GENEVA, Nov 2 (Reuters) - The United States and rights groups complained on Thursday that it was "insulting" to allow Iran's envoy to chair a U.N. human rights council meeting in Geneva, citing violations by Iranian authorities, especially those against women. "Any discussion led by representatives of a regime that continually, and with impunity, infringes upon its own citizens’ human rights is not just fruitless, but an insult to our shared ideals," she added. The two-day meeting called the "social forum" is an annual meeting that aims to improve dialogue between governments and civil society groups, with this year's theme devoted to technology and human rights. Farideh Karimi, an Iranian woman who is president of Women's Human Rights International Association, said her organisation wrote to democratic countries asking them not to attend. Some non-governmental organisations took part, with Justice for Iran criticising Iran's ban on U.S. and UK COVID-19 vaccines.

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Persons: Geneva Ali Bahreini, Michèle Taylor, Bahreini, Farideh, Gabrielle Tetrault, Farber, William Maclean Organizations: Reuters, Rights International Association, Thomson Locations: GENEVA, United States, Geneva, Islamic Republic, Iran, Asia, Pacific, China, Cuba, Venezuela, Iranian