[JURIST] UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Ibrahim Gambari [official profile] told the UN Security Council Wednesday that the human rights situation in Iraq requires urgent action [meeting summary]. Gambari expressed concern over the "increasingly disturbing reports" of abuses occurring in Iraqi detention facilities. US forces first discovered 173 badly malnourished, beaten and possibly tortured detainees [JURIST report] in November, and earlier this week, the Iraqi Human Rights Ministry reported finding additional abused detainees who required medical attention [JURIST report] in a Baghdad facility. Gambari urged the Iraqi government to follow up on plans to address the situation and Iraqi Ambassador to the UN Samir Sumaidaie acknowledged that the country's police forces "have a problem". Sumaidaie said that many police were trained during Saddam Hussein's regime and "were brought up in a culture of lawlessness" but said that the government is determined to correct the situation. Watch recorded video of the Security Council meeting. AP has more.