21 March 2014 – Amid tit-for-tat attacks between locals and refugees sparked by food shortages in an area of South Sudan’s volatile Upper Nile state, the United Nations refugee agency said today that it is gravely concerned about new tensions rising in the region. “Local residents [in Maban County] are now demanding that the some 60,000 refugees in Yusuf Batil and Gendrassa camps leave within two months,” Fatoumata Lejeune-Kaba, a spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), told journalists in Geneva, adding that hostilities have also spread to Doro and Kaya camps. While stressing that UNHCR is working…
Author: UN News
22 March 2014 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Saturday reiterated his message that only a diplomatic solution, based on the ideals of the United Nations Charter, would solve the current crisis between russia and Ukraine. In a meeting in Kyiv with Ukraine’s Prime Minister, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Mr. Ban added that a direct dialogue between the two neighbours is critical to reducing the ongoing tensions. The UN chief was in russia on Thursday and arrived in Ukraine on Friday as part of his efforts to help de-escalate tensions between Moscow and Kyiv. Months of political unrest in Ukraine led to the…
21 March 2014 – United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today urged “real dialogue” between Kyiv and Moscow to peacefully resolve the current crisis, during a visit to the Ukrainian capital following discussions with Russian officials yesterday. “These are some of the most dramatic and difficult times in the history of Ukraine,” Mr. Ban said during a press encounter in Kyiv. “Tensions are high. Lives have been lost.” The Secretary-General said he is seriously concerned at both the tense situation within parts of Ukraine as well as between it and Russia, where he met yesterday with President Vladimir Putin and Foreign…
20 March 2014 – Leading diplomatic efforts to encourage all parties involved in the Ukraine crisis to find a peaceful solution, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon met today with Russian President Vladimir Putin and emphasized the need for de-escalating tensions between russia and Ukraine, and restoring the “brotherly relationship” between the two countries. “It is clear that we are at a crossroads. I will continue to fulfil my duty as Secretary-General of the United Nations and engage with all relevant parties. We must employ every possible diplomatic tool at our disposal to solve this crisis, which has grave political and…
20 March 2014 – As Liberia enters its second post-conflict decade, it faces great challenges to institutionalizing critical sector reforms and building capacity for effective governance, a senior United Nations official said today, adding that seizing the present “window of opportunity” would be critical for consolidating the country’s hard-won peace and charting a future of inclusive development. “These are complex and daunting processes, as even before the war, Liberia had few well-functioning meritocratic institutions and effective accountability mechanisms,” said Karin Landgren, head of the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL). She said that despite a relatively stable political and security landscape,…
20 March 2014 – The women of South sudan played an instrumental role in the country’s liberation struggle and will continue to make sure their voices ring loud and clear as the world’s youngest nation seeks to restore peace and stability amid the recent conflict, women leaders stressed today at the United Nations in New York. “Peace and stability will not be achieved without the full participation of women at every stage of the process,” said Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director of the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women). Speaking at an event held on…
20 March 2014 – Despite the recent halt in large-scale violence that took place in crisis-riven Central African Republic (CAR) in December and January, people are still being killed every day, the United Nations human rights chief warned today, deploring the “dire” humanitarian situation facing the country and calling on the international community to dramatically step up vital aid efforts. “The inter-communal hatred remains at a terrifying level, as evidenced by the extraordinarily vicious nature of the killings,” said Navi Pillay, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, in a statement to the press during a visit in the capital, Bangui.…
19 March 2014 – A senior United Nations relief official today stressed the need to act quickly to assist people suffering from food insecurity and malnutrition in the Central African Republic (CAR), after witnessing the alarming situation first-hand during a visit to the strife-torn nation. “Today I heard harrowing stories from ordinary women and children of losing their families in the violence and traumatic attacks that forced them to flee,” Ertharin Cousin, Executive Director of the World Food Programme (WFP), said after a visit to the north-western town of Bossangoa. “I am humbled by their strength in these desperate times.…
20 March 2014 – The Joint Mission of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and the United Nations said today that over half of Syria’s chemical weapons material has been removed or destroyed. As of today, some 53.6 per cent of Syria’s chemical weapons material has been removed from or destroyed in the conflict-ridden country. The deadline for completing the destruction of Syria’s entire chemical weapons programme is 30 June 2014. “This represents important progress,” said OPCW-UN Joint Mission Special Coordinator Sigrid Kaag, as she made the announcement. “The Joint Mission welcomes the momentum attained, and encourages…
20 March 2014 – A United Nations convoy carrying vital humanitarian supplies for hundreds of thousands of people in desperate need in northern Syria is leaving today from Turkey, the first time in the three years of the conflict that aid is being transported via this route. The convoy is leaving the Turkish border crossing at Nusaybin and is bound for the city of Qamishli, according to Regional Humanitarian Coordinator Nigel Fisher. It marks the first time since the conflict started in March 2011 that the UN has been able to carry aid across into Syria from Turkey, noted Mr.…
19 March 2014 – Young Syrian refugees in Jordan need the support of the country’s population, said the head of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), during a visit to the country to examine the challenges faced both by the Syrian and Jordanian youth since the arrival of hundreds of thousands displaced families. Irina Bokova, UNESCO’s Director-General, went to Zainab Bint El Rasoul public girls’ school located in Ramtha, five kilometres from the Syrian border, where a UNESCO project is helping Syrian refugee girls cope with the uprooting from their country and the loss of their homes,…
19 March 2014 – With Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon headed to Russia and Ukraine as part of his diplomatic efforts to de-escalate current tensions, the Security Council heard senior United Nations officials in New York urge adherence to fundamental principles of the UN Charter, including respect for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and ensuring respect for the human rights of all. “It is in the spirit of the UN Charter that [the Secretary-General] now embarks on his mission to Moscow and Kiev,” said Deputy Secretary-General, Jan Eliasson, who, alongside UN Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights, Ivan Simonovic, briefed the Council on…
17 March 2014 – Leading the United Nations push for parties in Ukraine to resolve the country’s ongoing political crisis through peaceful dialogue, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today said he is “deeply concerned and disappointed” that this weekend’s Crimea secession referendum will only exacerbate an “already complex and tense situation.” “The Secretary-General continues to closely follow the situation in Ukraine,” Mr. Ban’s spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, told reporters in New York, adding that since the beginning of the crisis, the UN chief has urged all parties to avoid “hasty steps” that could exacerbate tensions. “He encourages all parties to work for a…
19 March 2014 – The Security Council today unanimously adopted a resolution condemning attempts to illicitly export crude oil from Libya and imposing sanctions on vessels involved in such efforts. The resolution requested that Libya inform the Security Council committee overseeing the arms embargo, travel ban and assets freeze imposed on the country by resolution 1970 – known as the 1970 committee – of any vessels transporting crude oil illicitly exported from Libya. It also decided that the 1970 committee would designate those vessels for some or all measures authorized in the resolution on a case-by-case basis for a period…
19 March 2014 – The United Nations envoy for Somalia, Nicholas Kay, has welcomed progress made by the national army and the African Union peacekeeping mission in regaining control of key towns from Al Shabaab insurgents. In a news release issued by the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM), Mr. Kay congratulated the Somali National Army (SNA) and the AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) on their efforts in south-central Somalia. He added that the UN will continue support the joint operations, and stressed the importance of ensuring that international humanitarian law and human rights are fully respected during these operations.…
18 March 2014 – The United Nations strongly condemned a deadly suicide attack that occurred today in the northern Afghan province of Faryab, killing 15 civilians and injuring nearly 50 others. According to reports, a suicide attacker with a body-borne improvised explosive device (IED) detonated in the centre of the provincial capital, Maimana. Local health officials have confirmed that two children were among those killed, and the injured included a pregnant woman. “The continuing rise in civilian deaths from IEDs is tragic. Their use in a distinctly civilian location such as a market is atrocious and cannot be justified,” the…
18 March 2014 – A group of independent United Nations experts today urged Chinese authorities to promptly investigate the circumstances leading to the death of prominent human rights lawyer Cao Sun Ly Shunli, who died in the hospital on 14 March. According to a news release issued by the experts, Ms. Cao had tirelessly campaigned since 2008 for transparency and greater participation of civil society in the periodic review of China’s human rights record by the UN Human Rights Council. On 14 September 2013, Ms. Cao was prevented by Chinese authorities from boarding a flight from Beijing to Geneva where…
17 March 2014 – Detailing a raft of “unspeakable atrocities” committed in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) “without parallel in the modern world,” the head of a United Nations-mandated probe into the human rights situation there called today on the international community to hold the country to account, including through referral to the International Criminal Court (ICC). “The Commission of Inquiry found systematic, widespread and grave human rights violations occurring in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. It also found a disturbing array of crimes against humanity,” said Chairman Michael Kirby in Geneva during a dialogue with members…
17 March 2014 – In a personal appeal to the Afghan people less than three weeks before national elections, a senior United Nations envoy today urged all citizens of the nascent democracy to exercise their right to vote and not allow spoilers to deter the holding of peaceful and credible polls. “The success of the April 2014 elections will be of critical significance in reinforcing Afghanistan’s institutional and political stability and instilling confidence in the future,” the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Ján Kubiš, said in his briefing to the Security Council. Afghanistan is set to hold presidential and provincial…
18 March 2014 – The United Nations mission in Libya has strongly condemned the terrorist bombing in Benghazi on Monday that targeted members of the military, and called on the country’s citizens to rally around their national institutions. In a statement issued today, the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) called on Libyans of all affiliations to denounce and reject the continued series of acts of violence and terror such as kidnappings, assassinations and bombings that have buffeted Benghazi and other parts of the country. “The Mission urges Libyans to rally around their national institutions in confronting these crimes and…