24 December 2013 – The Security Council today authorized almost doubling the United Nations peacekeeping force in strife-torn South Sudan to nearly 14,000 in the face of a rapidly deteriorating security and humanitarian crisis that has left hundreds of civilians dead and tens of thousands of others driven from their homes. As requested by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the Council unanimously approved a temporary increase in the strength of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) to up to 12,500 military and 1,323 police from a current combined strength of some 7,000, through the transfer of units if necessary from other…
Author: UN News
24 December 2013 – The top United Nations official in Somalia has renewed his call for a timely and credible political process that should lead to a new Puntland parliament this year and regional presidential elections next month. “As the election draws closer and political temperatures become more heated, I call on all candidates and stakeholders, in particular the traditional titled elders, to work jointly and be prepared, at times, to strike difficult compromises,” said the Secretary-General’s Special Representative and head of the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM), Nicholas Kay. “UNSOM has supported mediation and consultation efforts throughout the…
24 December 2013 – The United Nations voiced increasing concern today for the security of 710,000 people uprooted by conflict in the Central African Republic (CAR) amid difficulty of access to the sites where they have sought shelter and reports of youths prowling around with grenades and machetes. “Some 60 per cent of the displaced population are children, more needs to be done in terms of assistance and protection,” Lasare Kouassi Etien, the representative of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), said in Bangui, the capital, where 214,000 people have fled their homes as the year-long violence has taken…
24 December 2013 – Amid ethnically targeted killings, arbitrary detentions, rising displacement and now the discovery of mass graves, the United Nations human rights chief today urged the South Sudanese leadership to curb the escalating violence in the world’s youngest nation and make it absolutely clear that those committing abuses will be held accountable. South Sudan, which gained its independence from Sudan in July 2011, has been rocked by growing violence over the past 10 days that has displaced over 80,000 people, with some 45,000 taking refuge in the compounds of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). The conflict,…
23 December 2013 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called a crisis meeting of his top advisers on the deteriorating situation in South Sudan today and proposed reinforcing the United Nations peacekeeping force there in a bid to stem a conflict increasingly marked by ethnically targeted killings. “I am determined to ensure that UNMISS [UN Mission in South Sudan] has the means to carry out its central task of protecting civilians,” he told a news conference at UN Headquarters in New York just hours after arriving back from a visit to the typhoon-ravaged Philippines. “I will be spending most of today calling…
23 December 2013 – Urgent national and international action is crucial to prevent the Central African Republic (CAR) from plunging into full-scale sectarian conflict and protect civilians, particularly women and children, from atrocities that have already killed thousands and driven 750,000 others from their homes amid reports of rape and mutilation, United Nations human rights officials have warned. “Given the serious nature of continuing violations in an environment of complete impunity, CAR is on the brink of descending into atrocity crimes,” UN Special Advisor on the Prevention of Genocide Adama Dieng said over the weekend at the end of a…
23 December 2013 – The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the United Kingdom are teaming up to support Zimbabwe’s efforts to address poverty, food insecurity and climate change. A four-year initiative, funded by the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID), will enable poor vulnerable farming households to improve food security, nutrition and income while strengthening their long-term resilience, FAO said in a news release. More than 70 per cent of Zimbabweans depend primarily on agriculture for their livelihoods, but they face a wide range of challenges, including low productivity, limited market integration, low soil fertility in some…
23 December 2013 – Three Rome-based United Nations agencies are teaming up on a $2.7 million project to tackle the problem of food losses in developing countries, beginning with pilot programmes in Burkina Faso, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda. Globally, around one-third of all food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted each year, amounting to 1.3 billion tonnes – enough food to feed 2 billion people – according to a joint news release by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Food Programme (WFP). The…
22 December 2013 – Amid escalating tensions and deadly clashes between military factions in South Sudan, the United Nations Mission in the country today announced that it has begun relocating staff from the capital, Juba, while Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has demanded that South Sudanese political and military leaders end all hostilities and targeted attacks against civilians. In a statement issued early this morning, UNMISS announced that, as a precautionary measure to reduce pressure on its limited resources, it will relocate non-critical staff from Juba to the Ugandan city of Entebbe. Also, on Saturday, UNMISS relocated all remaining civilian staff from…
21 December 2013 – The top United Nations official in Somalia congratulated Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed, who was appointed today following a vote in the Federal Parliament, calling the process a key step heading into 2014, which will be “pivotal year” for the country. “I congratulate the new Prime Minister,” Nicholas Kay, Special Representative of the Secretary-General, said in a statement, adding that Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed takes office as Somalia approaches 2014, which will be a pivotal year in Somalia’s progress towards peace and prosperity. Mr. Kay said that the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM), which he heads,…
22 December 2013 – United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has urged the international community to scale up support for the massive typhoon recovery plan under way in the Philippines, where the Government-led effort that is helping millions of people rebuild their lives must be underpinned by measures to improve the country’s preparedness and resilience to natural disasters. “We must not allow this to be another forgotten crisis,” said Mr. Ban during a press conference earlier today in Manila with Albert F. Del Rosario, Secretary of Foreign Affairs. He added: “I have come … to show solidarity with the Government and…
21 December 2013 – Visiting the storm-ravaged Philippine city of Tacloban, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon hailed the resilience of the people and pledged the commitment of the United Nations to keep working with the Government to “build back better and safer” all the communities devastated by super Typhoon Haiyan, which ripped through the archipelago a little over a month ago. “I’m deeply saddened and humbled by what I have seen – the immense loss of life and total destruction,” said the UN chief during a press conference after touring the area. He said that while pleased by the community’s warm welcome,…
20 December 2013 – Proceeds from the annual United Nations all-star charity football game, led by legends Ronaldo and Zinédine Zidane and which will be held next March in Switzerland, will benefit recovery efforts in the Philippines in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan, the world body has announced. Ronaldo and Zidane – who are Goodwill Ambassadors for the UN Development Programme (UNDP) – will mobilize their team of internationally renowned football players for a friendly game against the Bern professional football club, the BSC Young Boys and Friends, for the 11th Match Against Poverty, slated for 4 March. “Through the…
20 December 2013 – The United Nations human rights office today called on Egyptian authorities to immediately release all individuals detained in relation to their work as human rights defenders, noting a “worrying escalation” in the harassment and intimidation of civil society in the country. The call comes after at least 50 men in civilian clothes, who were later identified as police and security officers, raided the Cairo office of the Egyptian Centre for Economic and Social Rights on Wednesday. According to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), six members of the non-governmental organization (NGO)…
20 December 2013 – The Joint Special Representative of the United Nations and the League of Arab States for Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi today announced that more than 30 nations have been invited to attend the long-sought Syria peace conference to be held in Geneva next month. Mr. Brahimi said invitees to the so-called “Geneva II” conference include the UN, the five permanent members of the Security Council (China, France, Russia, United Kingdom and the United States), the League of Arab States, the European Union, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and 26 other countries. “On Iran, we haven’t agreed yet. But…
20 December 2013 – The United Nations voiced deep concern today about the intimidation and prosecution of individuals in Saudi Arabia for exercising certain fundamental freedoms, noting in particular the treatment of an activist who seemed to have been targeted for his work on civil and political rights. “We call on Saudi authorities to immediately release all those imprisoned for exercise of their fundamental human rights,” Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), said at a news conference in Geneva. Ms. Shamdasani cited the recent case of 23-year-old Omar bin Mohammed Al-Saeed, who…
19 December 2013 – Enforced disappearances are being committed throughout Syria as part of a campaign of intimidation and as a tactic of war, says a report published today by the United Nations panel investigating human rights violations in the country. “Without a trace: enforced disappearances in Syria,” the second thematic report by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria, concludes that there are reasonable grounds to believe that acts of enforced disappearances were committed by Government forces as part of widespread and systematic attacks against civilians amounting to a crime against humanity. The report, released today in Geneva,…
18 December 2013 – The Security Council today extended the nearly 40-year-old United Nations observer force in the Golan Heights for another six months, calling on all parties in the Syrian civil war to cease military actions in the area. In a unanimously adopted resolution, the Council extended the mandate of the 1,350-strong UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) which monitors the 1974 disengagement accord between Syria and Israel after their 1973 war, until 30 June, and strongly condemned recent intense fighting on the Syrian side of the area of separation. Calling on the parties to exercise maximum restraint and prevent…
18 December 2013 – The search for suitable vendors to assist in the commercial transport and destruction of Syrian chemical agents is due to begin tomorrow, the head of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said today, announcing a multinational effort for that will require additional funding. The goal, which OPCW Director-Genera Ahmet Üzümcü submitted in a plan yesterday to the Organisation’s Executive Council, is to transport the chemical agents to the Syrian port city of Latakia, where they will be shipped on commercial vessels provided by some Member States. They will then be loaded onto a…
17 December 2013 – The long-sought international peace conference on Syria is set to begin on 22 January with a one-day meeting in the Swiss town of Montreux, the United Nations confirmed today. The conference, originally scheduled to take place in Geneva, will now be held in two parts, with the opening session in Montreux, and, after a day’s break, moving on 24 January to the world body’s headquarters in Geneva. The conference will bring the Syrian Government and the opposition to a negotiating table for the first time since the conflict started in March 2011. “After the date had…