Sarah Idan, the former holder of the Miss Iraq title, is facing the possible loss of her citizenship for criticizing policies at home and urging the government in Baghdad to make peace with Israel during a speech to the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva last month, according to a U.N. watchdog group.
In her June 26 speech, Ms. Idan cited what she said were the 6 million Iraqis displaced since 2014, the killing of protesters and poor living conditions. Those remarks, and comments on the rise of anti-Semitism in Muslim countries, attracted the angry notice of Iraqi conservatives, with the Iraqi Parliament’s Security and Defense Committee reportedly calling for her citizenship to be revoked on Tuesday.
The watchdog group, UN Watch, called on Iraq in a statement Wednesday to stop its intimidation tactics toward Ms. Idan, who represented Iraq at the 2017 Miss Universe pageant and faced controversy there for posting pictures on social media with Israel’s entrant.
“Iraq cannot be a member of the UN Human Rights Council while failing to respect its minimal obligations, such as protecting witnesses who appear before it,” UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer tweeted Tuesday.
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