20 August 2014 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomes the destruction of Syria’s declared chemical weapons material on board the United States Maritime Vessel Cape Ray. “This marks a significant achievement in the international community’s efforts to eliminate the chemical weapons programme of the Syrian Arab Republic following the framework agreement between the Russian Federation and the United States of America,” the UN chief said in a statement issued by his spokesperson in New York. The Secretary-General appreciates the cooperation of the Government of the Syrian Arab Republic and commends the Member States that provided crucial support to the process, as…
Author: UN News
20 August 2014 – A United Nations official for Nigeria today said that restoring the dignity and integrity of returning schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram militants in Chibok is instrumental in reintegrating the girls back into a “safe space” in society. “The UN family has not forgotten the girls,” said Rati Ndhlovu, the representative of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) in Nigeria at a Headquarters press conference. Some 200 girls were abducted by Boko Haram militants as they attended school on 14 April. Despite efforts by the Nigerian Government and international outcry, most of the girls remain missing, while some…
19 August 2014 – With a month left to the before full deployment of the United Nations mission in the Central African Republic (CAR), the UN envoy for that country today said that while there have been pockets of improvements, the overall humanitarian and security situation in the country remains dire and “extremely volatile.” Briefing the Security Council this afternoon, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General in CAR, Babacar Gaye, welcomed the significant political progress made at the summit of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, and the meeting of the International Contact Group…
19 August 2014 – The United Nations Mission in South sudan (UNMISS) today condemned the live gunfire by sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) soldiers near the UN base in Bentiu, that wounded a child. According to a statement, at approximately 9:45 am yesterday morning, 18 August, “sustained gunfire,” lasting for 30 minutes, was heard around the UNMISS compound in Bentiu, Unity state which houses thousands of displaced people. “All indications are that the firing into the air was done in the direction of the UNMISS Bentiu base,” the Mission said, adding that it has recovered nine bullets which penetrated its…
18 August 2014 – The Security Council today condemned in the strongest terms Saturday’s suicide attack on a United Nations base in Ber, Mali, that killed two UN Burkinabe peacekeepers and injured seven others. The 15-member body expressed condolences to the families of the peacekeepers killed, as well as to the Government and people of Burkina Faso. The most recent attack comes on the heels of two separate incidents last week which wounded three other UN peacekeepers. The Council, through a press statement, called on the Malian Government to “swiftly investigate this attack and bring the perpetrators to justice”. Those…
18 August 2014 – With the latest Gaza ceasefire due to expire at midnight, the United Nations special envoy for the Middle East urged all parties to reach an understanding on a durable truce which addresses underlying issues and breaks the deadlock of violence and retaliation. Briefing the Security Council today, Robert Serry, the Special Coordinator for the Middle East Process, said that while the temporary ceasefire has granted civilians a reprieve for the past eight days, “it has taken too much time, and too many lives to achieve.” To date, almost 2,000 Palestinians have been killed, of whom 459…
18 August 2014 – The United Nations refugee agency said today it has, for the first time, begun sending aid into western Libya from Tunisia to help some of the tens of thousands of people displaced by weeks of fighting in Tripoli. A first convoy carrying urgently needed medical supplies and relief items from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was organized by the International Medical Corps (IMC) on Saturday. The two trucks set off from Medinine and crossed the border at Ras Ajdir before heading to the town of Zawiya, where some 12,000 people have sought shelter from…
17 August 2014 – On a visit to Iran, the United Nations humanitarian chief today stressed the importance of regional cooperation in dealing with the myriad of “unprecedented” and “unravelling” crises in the Middle East. Speaking to the press in Tehran, Valerie Amos, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, said Iran had “a very important role to play in helping us gain better access for humanitarian organizations in Syria and elsewhere.” “I have had an important opportunity to discuss with Government partners ways in which we can strengthen our partnership to improve regional cooperation on humanitarian assistance and also to discuss the…
17 August 2014 – The United Nations mission assisting Libya today condemned the “grave escalation” in the fighting in Tripoli and its suburbs and urged all parties to work to put an end to the security deterioration, which forebodes serious consequences on the humanitarian level. In a statement from Tripoli, the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said it “strongly denounced the shelling of residential neighbourhoods, which has inflicted casualties among civilians, forced them out of their homes and caused damage to property.” The Mission said it deeply regrets that there has been “no response to the repeated international appeals”…
15 August 2014 – Conflict in eastern Ukraine, mainly in the areas in and around the cities of Donetsk and Luhansk, has affected nearly four million people, including 156,000 internally displaced people, many of whom lack access to healthcare, a United Nations health official said today as he appealed for funds to help address the situation. The $14 million dollar humanitarian response plan, developed by the UN World Health Organization (WHO) and its partners, aims to restore access to healthcare, provide medicine and equipment and strengthen community‐based mental health support services. “We are tailoring our response activities to care for…