At U.N. council, U.S. calls life in North Korea 'living nightmare'

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (C) smiles as he gives field guidance at the Kim Jong Suk Pyongyang Textile Mill in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang December 20, 2014. REUTERS/KCNA

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United States and other Western members of the U.N. Security Council on Monday slammed North Korea's human rights record after voting to overrule China's objections and add alleged grave abuses by the hermit state to the council's agenda.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power described life in North Korea as a "living nightmare" and dismissed as absurd Pyongyang's demand for a joint U.S.-North Korean investigation of the hacking of Sony Pictures and threats of retaliation if the United States refused.