8 April 2014 – While noting that the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) provided assistance to a record 4 million Syrians in March, a new report out today highlights that, with only one month left in the rainy season, a potential drought may strain the country’s already fragile food security situation. “It has taken a massive effort from WFP and partners to scale up to reach 4 million people in March, but we fear now that a possible drought – if rainfall doesn’t pick up – could put the lives of millions more at risk,” said WFP’s coordinator for…
Author: UN News
8 April 2014 – With the recent discovery of a new case of polio in a six-month-old boy in Iraq, the United Nations and it partners, warning that the crippling virus still poses a threat to children across the Middle East, have re-launched a massive vaccination campaigns in Syria, Iraq and Egypt, aiming to reach 22 million children by Thursday. “The recent detection of a polio case in Iraq after a 14-year absence is a reminder of the risk currently facing children throughout the region,” said Maria Calivis, Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa of the UN…
8 April 2014 – Amid surging violence across Syria, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has condemned the killing of an elderly priest in Homs and the ongoing brutality against the civilian population, and urged all Syrians and their outside supporters to put a stop to this conflict, “now.” “In the face of troubling new reports of atrocities in the brutal conflict driving Syria to its destruction, the Secretary-General demands that warring parties and their supporters ensure that civilians are protected, regardless of their religion, community or ethnic affiliation,” said a statement issued yesterday evening by Mr. Ban’s spokesperson in New…
6 April 2014 – As Rwandans commemorate the genocide that took place 20 years ago, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stressed during a visit to Kigali on Sunday the need for the international community to learn from such atrocities and to ensure that the words ‘never again’ are translated into action. Mr. Ban is in Rwanda to participate in tomorrow’s official commemoration of the genocide, during which at least 800,000 ethnic Tutsis and politically moderate Hutus were killed in 1994 during three months of bloodletting that followed the death of the then-president Juvenal Habyarimana. Speaking at a joint press encounter today with…
5 April 2014 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon paid a visit to the Central African Republic (CAR) on Saturday to focus the world’s attention on a crisis that has been marked by widespread atrocities and suffering, and to call on the country’s citizens to heed the lessons of neighbouring Rwanda and stop the violence. “There is a hole in the heart of Africa. Every day, I wake up thinking about your trials and troubles. Everywhere, I have called on leaders to step up their efforts,” Mr. Ban said in an address to the country’s National Transitional Council. “Some say this is…
4 April 2014 – A preliminary investigation by the United Nations human rights office into the deadly events that took place on 29 March in a suburb of Bangui, the crisis-riven capital of the Central African Republic (CAR), has found that Chadian soldiers killed some 30 civilians and seriously wounded more than 300 in an indiscriminate attack on a crowded market. Rupert Colville, spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), made the announcement during a press conference today in Geneva, where he said the UN had received more detailed information on the incident following an…
4 April 2014 – The United Nations Security Council has urged all national stakeholders in Guinea-Bissau to facilitate the conduct of peaceful and credible elections on 13 April, when citizens of the West African nation will participate in long-delayed president and legislative elections. In a statement issued to the press on Thursday, Council members also urged national stakeholders to respect the results of the polls “as an expression of the will of the people of Guinea-Bissau” in line with the country’s agreed electoral code. “They also called upon them to refrain from any action that could hamper the electoral process…
4 April 2014 – The United Nations human rights office today voiced its concern at the “hasty” judicial process in the Somali town of Kismayo that led to the execution of man nine days after he allegedly murdered an elder, and called on authorities to impose a moratorium on the death penalty. According to reports, more than 34 people have been executed in Somalia since January 2013. In the most recent case, a man in Kismayo was executed yesterday after he was accused of killing an elder on 24 March. “The man was found guilty last week – it is…
3 April 2014 – Deeply concerned at the “considerable deterioration” of the security situation in Darfur over the past year, marked by ongoing clashes between the Sudanese Government and rebels, and an upsurge in inter-communal violence, the United Nations Security Council today endorsed Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s revised strategic priorities for the joint African Union-UN mission in the long-restive western region of sudan. Unanimously adopting a new resolution, the Council endorsed the revised priorities for the mission (UNAMID) outlined in Mr. Ban’s special report on the outcome of a three-phase, inter-agency review carried out last year on the mission’s work, its…
3 April 2014 – With no political solution to the conflict that has torn South sudan apart in sight, senior United Nations officials working in the country stressed today that they are in a “race against time” ahead of the rainy season to help prevent a health and hunger catastrophe. Hilde Johnson, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative and head of the UN peacekeeping mission in South sudan (UNMISS), told a news conference in the capital, Juba, that plans are under way to establish alternative sites for tens of thousands of civilians who sought protection in UN compounds. It is estimated that…
4 April 2014 – During his official visit in the Czech Republic’s capital, United Nations Secretary-General congratulated the city of Prague for its new protection system against floods, which involves mobile barriers to prevent the Vltava River from inundating the streets. “Cities such as Prague have experienced major floods over the past two decades,” said the UN chief today after giving a lecture on climate change to the students of Charles University. “Lives have been lost, tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes and billions of euros of damage has been caused.” “I was struck by…
4 April 2014 – From reducing poverty and hunger to addressing climate change, the world faces big challenges that cannot be tackled alone, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today, highlighting the importance of shared global responsibility in an address to students in the Czech Republic. “We face a crossroads moment. There are three issues on the global agenda for the coming year that will shape people’s lives for generations to come. 2015 will be a year of global choices,” Mr. Ban said in a lecture delivered at Charles University in Prague. Firstly, he noted, it is vital to accelerate progress on…
1 April 2014 – The United Nations official tasked with coordinating the response to the cholera epidemic in Haiti says the country is not receiving the international attention it deserves, and is calling on the donor community to scale up support to combat the disease. “Haiti is not receiving the attention of the international community, particularly the donor community,” Pedro Medrano told the UN News Centre, as he reported on a recent trip during which he met with officials in Canada, the United Kingdom, Belgium, France, Germany, Spain and the Netherlands. “It is clear that this epidemic is not on…
2 April 2014 – Stating that the world failed to stop the Central African Republic’s slide “into a grave political, economic and humanitarian crisis,” United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today urged African and European leaders meeting in Brussels to act quickly to end the killing, protect civilians and prevent further inter-communal strife, including through the deployment of a UN peacekeeping force. “We have not made the difference that we promised we would make – to prevent the preventable,” Mr. Ban told the High-Level Meeting of the European Union (EU) and African Union (AU) on the crisis in the Central African…
1 April 2014 – Amid growing humanitarian aid needs and despite recent assurances from the Government, the United Nations mission in South sudan (UNMISS) continues to report increasingly difficult working conditions due to movement restrictions and other harassments against its personnel and partners. The mission stressed that such threats, forcible searches of UN vehicles, flights and convoys, and movement constraints are in violation of the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) between the UN and the Government of South Sudan, which establishes the rights and privileges of foreign personnel in a host country in support of a larger security arrangement. The…
1 April 2014 – The United Nations panel dealing with peacebuilding efforts in Guinea-Bissau today welcomed the successful preparations for the country’s upcoming legislative and presidential elections and called on all stakeholders to cooperate in ensuring that the polls are free and fair. The elections, which have been postponed several times, most recently from 16 March to 13 April, is seen as a crucial step on the path to restoring constitutional order in the West African nation, which is recovering from an April 2012 coup. “With the voter registration successfully completed, political campaign[ing] in full swing, and financial requirements timely…
1 April 2014 – The number of suspected and confirmed cases of Ebola (EVD) in Guinea has jumped from 103 to 122 in just three days, with 80 confirmed deaths, said the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO), which will now focus on preventing further transmissions of the often fatal disease. “The incubation period for all strains of Ebola is between two and 21 days,” said WHO spokesman Gregory Härtl, as he explained today at a press briefing in Geneva that the agency has taken “the maximum incubation period and multiplied it by two to get the length of time…
1 April 2014 – With the Central African Republic (CAR) capital of Bangui having relapsed into wider violence, the United Nations human rights office today urged States to support the world body’s appeal for thousands more peacekeepers and police. According to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), at least 60 people have been killed in Bangui in the past 10 days amid stepped-up attacks between the mainly Christian militias known as anti-Balaka and Muslims. OHCHR spokesperson Cécile Pouilly told reporters in Geneva that on 27 March, at least 20 people were killed and 11 injured when…
3 April 2014 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today he is encouraged by the technical and security preparations and broad public engagement for Afghanistan’s upcoming elections and urged all of the country’s citizens to take part in the historic polls which will be held on Saturday. The presidential and provincial council elections on 5 April will lead to the first transfer of power from one democratically elected leader to another in Afghanistan. “These are extremely important elections for the country,” said a statement issued by the Secretary-General’s spokesperson. Mr. Ban urged all Afghan men and women to participate in the…
2 April 2014 – United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today praised the commitment by small islands in the Pacific to low-carbon development and urged them to continue their ambitious efforts to combat climate change and spur other nations to come to a binding agreement on this issue next year. “Because you are on the front lines, you know that we are at a pivotal moment and that more needs to be done. You know that the world’s appetite for energy continues to grow, and the global thermostat continues to rise,” Mr. Ban said in his message to the Pacific launch…