Trump says the US will withdraw from the UN Human Rights Council

Trump’s administration intend to withdraw the United States from the United Nations Human Rights Council on Tuesday.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley are scheduled to announce the withdrawal at 5 p.m EST, reported The Hill.

The US could withdraw from arguably the most important human rights body in the world.

President Donald Trump at the G7 Summit in Quebec (SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty)

“For our part, the United States will not sit quietly while this body, supposedly dedicated to human rights, continues to damage the cause of human rights,” the US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said in a statement.

“In the end, no speech and no structural reforms will save the members of the Human Rights Council from themselves.”

The move comes after Haley and the Trump administration said that the body was targeting Israel.

(Mark Wilson/Getty )

The US also wanted more stringent criteria for membership and the ability to kick countries that have egregious human rights records off the council, reported CNN.

These states include Venezuela, China and Saudi Arabia.

In Saudi Arabia, being gay is punishable by death.