UN to vote Thursday on suspending Russia from rights council

EDITH M. LEDERER

UNITED NATIONS (AP) – The U.N. General Assembly will vote Thursday on whether to suspend Russia from the U.N.’s premier human rights body.

The move was initiated by the United States in response to the discovery of hundreds of bodies after Russian troops withdrew from towns near the Ukrainian capital Kyiv which has sparked calls for its forces to be tried for war crimes.

General Assembly spokeswoman Paulina Kubiak said the assembly will meet to vote on the resolution to suspend Russia at 10 a.m. Thursday.

The resolution’s approval requires a two-thirds majority of assembly members that vote “yes” or “no.”