Activists are alarmed that 69 countries, including the US and China, sought to remove references to LGBTIQ people from a United Nations resolution condemning extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions.
On Thursday, the UN General Assembly’s Third Committee, which addresses human rights issues, overwhelmingly adopted the resolution, with 131 votes in favour, none against, 47 abstentions and 15 countries not voting.
Some countries, however, sought to first water down the resolution by excluding LGBTIQ people.
UN resolution affirms protections against unlawful killings
Presented every two years, the resolution affirms that states have an obligation to investigate and prosecute unlawful killings and provide justice for victims.
It identifies groups at high risk, including journalists, human rights defenders, Indigenous Peoples and victims of so-called honour killings.
The resolution has included people killed because of their sexual orientation since 2002 and their gender identity since 2012.
Egypt-led amendment sought to remove LGBTIQ protections
Ahead of the resolution vote, Egypt introduced an amendment on behalf of most members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation to remove references to sexual orientation and gender identity from the resolution.
Although the amendment failed, the vote was close. A total of 74 countries voted to retain the protections, while 69 supported removing them. Another 24 abstained and 26 did not vote.
Notably, the United States voted in favour of the amendment, marking the first time it has backed removing this language from the resolution.
While South Africa voted against the move, several other African countries, including Ghana, Nigeria and Uganda, supported the amendment.
Activists are concerned that more countries voted to remove references to sexual orientation and gender identity this time than in 2024, when a similar amendment failed by 78 votes to 47.
Report documents killings of LGBTIQ people
In a recent report, Outright International documented 233 killings of LGBTIQ people between January 2020 and July 2026, examining how states commit, enable or ignore these murders.
The organisation argues that, although the report likely excludes many more undocumented and un-investigated killings, it provides strong evidence for retaining references to sexual orientation and gender identity in the resolution.
“Behind every case in our report is a grieving family and community, often still waiting for an investigation or justice. This resolution is a source of hope for them: that they can legitimately look to their governments to help give them answers,” said Ohotuowo Ogbeche, Global Researcher at Outright International.
Outright warns of shifting UN politics
The organisation warned of “a sharp shift in the politics of the General Assembly”, pointing out that in December last year, a similar Egypt-led amendment removed language on sexual orientation and gender identity from the UN’s disability rights resolution, also with the support of the US.
Outright noted that the extrajudicial killings resolution still needs to be adopted by the General Assembly next month. It urged all countries that voted to retain references to sexual orientation and gender identity to stand by their decision.
“When the full General Assembly votes in December, governments must keep that language intact and make clear that the right to life belongs to everyone,” asserted Maria Sjödin, Executive Director of Outright International.
