4 March 2015 – The United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Sigrid Kaag, met today with the country’s Defence Minister, Samir Moqbel, in Beirut to discuss the security situation, with a particular focus on Lebanon’s eastern border. Ms. Kaag praised efforts by the Lebanese Armed Forces and security forces to safeguard Lebanon’s security and stability from the threat posed by extremist militants, according to a briefing held by the Secretary-General’s spokesperson this afternoon. She said the international community would continue to stand firmly behind the Lebanese Armed Forces and security forces. The Special Coordinator also expressed her appreciation for the…
Author: UN News
4 March 2015 – The overall situation in Libya is “deteriorating rapidly” amid a growing terrorist threat and continuing violence, the United Nations envoy to the country warned the Security Council today, as he urged national stakeholders to move firmly in defining the country’s future. “Libya can no longer afford to allow the political crisis and armed conflict that has gripped the country for much of the past year to fester,” Bernardino León, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative and head of the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said in a briefing to the Council earlier this morning. “Unless Libya’s leaders…
26 December 2014 – United Nations Secretary-General has today condemned the Government of Sudan’s decision to expel two senior UN officials from the embattled nation. Ordered to leave the country are UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Ali Al-Za’tari, and UN Development Programme (UNDP) Country Director Yvonne Helle. In a statement released by his spokesperson, Mr. Ban said the sanctioning of UN personnel sent to sudan to carry out their duties in accordance with the UN Charter is unacceptable. The Secretary-General called on the Government of sudan to reverse its decision immediately and urged it to cooperate fully with all UN…
An Israeli and a Palestinian pick olives together in a disputed area. While Palestinians are often attacked by Israeli settlers as they collect olives, some Israelis have also taken to protecting them Photo: IRIN/Annie Slemrod 24 December 2014 – The United Nations Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, James Rawley, has said he is deeply concerned by reports of exchange of fire between Palestinian militants and the Israeli Defense Forces in the southern Gaza Strip today. The clash resulted in casualties on both sides and follows a series of armed incidents since the end of November. The…
24 December 2014 – The UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER) has reported that a main United Nations logistics hub managed by the World Food Programme (WFP) in Guinea is fully operational despite the fire that swept through the facility last week threatening medicines and laboratory materials used in the fight against Ebola. The warehouse fire was discovered around 8:00 a.m. local time on 18 December when workers arrived at the facility in the main humanitarian logistics base of the airport and of the city of Conakry, the capital of Guinea – one of the three most affected countries…
24 December 2014 – United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today welcomed the Parliamentary endorsement of Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke as the new Prime Minister of the Federal Republic of Somalia in a step towards resolving the country’s current political crisis. The Somali Parliament dismissed former Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed on 6 December with a vote of ‘no confidence’ due to reported disputes between Mr. Ahmed and Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud over political appointments. The ouster also came amid a recent spate of extremist violence in the East African country, as the terrorist group, Al-Shabaab, continues to wage a…
23 December 2014 – Christmas will be “like any other working day” for United Nations humanitarian worker Chris Huddart, who – like thousands across West Africa – is spending the holiday responding to the Ebola outbreak. Mr. Huddart, who is from the United Kingdom, works as a programme officer with the World Food Programme (WFP) in Liberia, one of the countries hardest hit by the outbreak. “Sadly, any sign of Christmas is lacking this year” in Liberia, he said in an online interview, noting that the country is fighting Ebola with a crumbling healthcare system, a lack of doctors and…
23 December 2014 – The United Nations refugee agency voiced concern today over the “deteriorating situation” facing more than 400 members of a Muslim minority group trapped by the ongoing violence fracturing the Central African Republic (CAR). Adrian Edwards, spokesperson for the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), told reporters in Geneva that 474 members of the Peuhl ethnic group had been trapped for several months in the town of Yaloke, 200 kilometres northwest of the capital city of Bangui, where they were now facing dire humanitarian conditions. Adults and children had become severely malnourished and more than 30 per cent…
18 December 2014 – Iraq will not be obligated to deposit 5 percent of its oil proceeds into a fund set up by the United Nations to pay compensation for the 1990-91 invasion and occupation of Kuwait, a decision Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed in light of the “severe security and humanitarian crisis” confronting the Iraqi people. “Noting the extraordinarily difficult security circumstances in Iraq and the unusual budgetary challenges associated with confronting this issue,” the Governing Council of the UN Compensation Commission (UNCC) on Thursday decided to postpone Iraq’s obligation to deposit 5 percent of oil proceeds and 5 percent…
19 December 2014 – In eastern Ukraine, the situation remains ‘extremely serious’ for more than 1.7 million children affected by the escalating crisis, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned today as it appealed for funds to continue its humanitarian response in the country. “Since March 2014, more than one million people have been displaced from the conflict-affected areas, including nearly 530,000 people within Ukraine, of who at least 130,000 are children,” Kristen Elsby, UNICEF’s communication director for Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia said today in a Geneva press briefing. She explained displaced Ukrainian children are faced with…
17 December 2014 – The top United Nations political official today voiced the Organization’s “unwavering commitment” in helping Ukraine address the range of political, humanitarian, security and development challenges it continues to face amid ongoing fighting in the country’s east. Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman’s words of support came during his visit to the Eastern European country in which he met with both Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk. Mr. Feltman’s trip was also marked by meetings with the Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament, Volodymyr Groysman, as well as a presentation to the Government of the…
16 December 2014 – In the Netherlands, assisting migrants living on the streets is not a matter of charity but rather an obligation of the Government, a group of United Nations human rights experts said today as they urged Dutch authorities to immediately provide irregular migrants with “bed, bath and bread”. As it stands, the Netherlands refuses to give emergency food, clothing, and shelter (popularly called “bed, bath and bread” in the country), despite repeated disapproval by international and regional human rights bodies. Recently, the Dutch central Government denied an appeal for help from over 60 local municipalities for 15…
15 December 2014 – As the conflict in eastern Ukraine heads into its tenth month, continued fighting and bitter cold temperatures are placing more than five million people at risk, the top United Nations human rights official warned today as he described conditions for those still living in conflict-affected areas as becoming “increasingly dire.” “The situation of many people, including those held against their will, in areas under the control of the armed groups may well be life-threatening,” High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said in a news release following the presentation of the UN rights office’s…
14 December 2014 – The United Nations Security Council has condemned in the strongest terms the 12 December terrorist attack on the Israeli Embassy in Athens, Greece, underscoring the continuing threat posed by terrorism to global peace and security. In the early hours of Friday morning, a number of assailants reportedly sprayed the Embassy of Israel in the Greek capital with gunfire, hitting the building multiple times. According to media reports, the attack did not cause any casualties or serious damage. In a press statement issued yesterday evening, the 15-member Council commended the Greek Government’s response to the incident including…
20 December 2014 – Cautioning that much remains to be done to wipe out Ebola in Guinea, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today that joint national, regional and global efforts have “significantly” slowed the spread of the deadly virus, giving hope to thousands of people and providing space for communities to look ahead to socio-economic recovery. “Thanks to the determination of national authorities, the mobilization of affected populations and with partners around the world, the spread of the virus has been significantly slowed in some regions of the country,” said Mr. Ban during a press conference in Conakry alongside…
18 December 2014 – The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention today welcomed the recent release of a number of detainees in Cuba and the United States, some of whose cases have been followed by the expert group. The release was announced after moves to normalize relations between the two countries were unveiled earlier this week. Media reports say that, as part of a deal negotiated over a period of 18 months, the US will restore full diplomatic relations with Cuba and open an embassy in Havana for the first time in more than 50 years. “Although the release…
19 December 2014 – The United Nations Security Council has strongly condemned the recent resurgence of violence in the Central African Republic (CAR) and reiterated its appeal to all parties to the conflict to “immediately and permanently” lay down their arms, release all children from their ranks, and embark upon the path of dialogue as the only viable means towards achieving lasting peace. In a statement presented by Moussa Faki Mahamat, Minister for Foreign Affairs and African Integration of Chad, which holds the body’s December presidency, the Council condemned “the continuous cycle of provocations and reprisals by armed groups, both…
18 December 2014 – As Syria’s war rages on into its fifth year, the needs for food, shelter and medicine are astronomical, several United Nations agencies said today as they launched a major appeal, requesting over $8.4 billion to help nearly 18 million people in Syria and throughout the region. Presented to donors at a meeting in Berlin, the 2015 appeal incorporates, for the first time, development aspects in addition to the life-saving humanitarian needs of over 12 million displaced people inside Syria, and the millions of Syrian refugees scattered throughout the region and the countries that host them. “This…
17 December 2014 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-mon has strongly condemned the bomb attacks in Radaa in Yemen’s Al Bayda province yesterday, which killed more than 25 people, including at least 15 schoolchildren. According to media reports, a school bus carrying the 15 school girls was hit by a car bomb as it passed a checkpoint in the Yemeni province of Al Bayda, south of the country’s capital of Sana’a. In a statement issued by his spokesperson in New York, Mr. Ban expressed his sympathies and sincere condolences to the families of the victims of these heinous attacks. “There is absolutely…
17 December 2014 – Two out of five children urgently needing humanitarian aid in Central African Republic are without it, thanks to a critical lack of funding and continued conflict, a year after extreme violence tore through the country, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has said today. “Children in the Central African Republic (CAR) are no longer making headlines, but over 2.5 million of them continue to live in constant fear,” said Manuel Fontaine, UNICEF Regional Director for West and Central Africa. “They have little access to essential services and rely entirely on humanitarian aid. As we prepare to mark…