16 December 2013 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the members of Security Council have deplored the shooting on Sunday of an Israel Defence Forces (IDF) soldier by a Lebanese soldier, and called for calm and continued restraint by all parties. The shooting occurred in the vicinity of the so-called Blue Line separating Israel and Lebanon at Naqoura, according to a statement issued by Mr. Ban’s spokesperson. “The Israel Defence Forces and the Lebanese Armed Forces are cooperating with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) to ascertain the facts,” the spokesperson stated. “The Secretary-General reminds the Lebanese Armed Forces…
Author: UN News
16 December 2013 – The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) voiced horror today at reports that as many as 28 Syrian children were killed in a bombing raid in Aleppo while the UN World Food Programme (WFP) announced plans to expand emergency food aid to over 7 million displaced Syrians in what it called “the worst humanitarian crisis … in decades.” “Recent assessments show that almost half the population inside Syria is food insecure and close to 6.3 million people need urgent, life-saving, food aid, victims of the nearly three-year-old conflict that has pitched forces loyal to President Bashar al–Assad…
16 December 2013 – With another release by Israel of Palestinian prisoners set for later this month, the top United Nations envoy for the Middle East urged both sides to refrain from any actions which could undermine the prospects for progress in what has been an important year for the peace process. In his final Security Council briefing in 2013, Special Coordinator Robert Serry noted the efforts being made in the renewed direct talks, and said that there was hope that this effort would lead – next year – to decisive and irreversible progress towards a comprehensive settlement with Israel…
19 December 2013 – Developing Asia-Pacific countries will face another year of subpar growth in 2014 due to slow recovery, policy uncertainty and protectionism in developed countries, marking the first time in two decades that their economies have grown at less than 6 per cent annually over a three-year period, according to a United Nations forecast released today. “Asia-Pacific developing economies face the prospect of a ‘new normal’ of lower growth in the coming years, underlining the need for forward-looking macroeconomic policies and intraregional cooperation,” said the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) Director of…
18 December 2013 – The recent execution of a senior official in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) “is just one among multiple executions” reported in the country since August, carried out with total disregard of due process and other international human rights standards, United Nations independent experts said today, calling on the Government to immediately halt the practice. “The arrest, trial by a special military tribunal and execution of Jang Song Thaek, uncle of the country’s leader Kim Jong Un, all reportedly took place within five days,” said the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in…
18 December 2013 – Led by strong growth in Myanmar, opium poppy cultivation in the area known as the Golden Triangle rose for the seventh consecutive year, according to a report released today by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). The Southeast Asia Opium Survey 2013 says that, despite eradication efforts, opium production increased by 22 per cent this year in the Golden Triangle – consisting of Myanmar, Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Thailand – led by a 13 per cent growth in Myanmar. In Laos, cultivation levelled off but remains a concern. The combination of an…
18 December 2013 – After moving significantly towards reducing poverty, Malaysia must ensure that such gains do not come at the expense of the environment and the rights of vulnerable groups in society such as indigenous communities and migrant workers, a United Nations expert warned today. “Malaysia has made impressive progress towards the reduction of poverty and has improved on all socio-economic indicators,” UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food Olivier De Schutter said at the end of a 10-day official visit to the South-East Asian country. “As it moves towards becoming a high-income country, it must address what…
19 December 2013 – Unknown assailants attacked a United Nations base in South Sudan today, possibly killing or injuring civilians who had sought refuge inside during violent clashes between Government forces and rebels, with the number of people fleeing to UN installations now reaching 35,000. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he was “appalled” to learn of the attack on the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) base in Akobo and demanded that Government and opposition forces respect the rights of civilians and ensure their safety and security. “UNMISS is doing everything it can, within its means and in a very fluid…
19 December 2013 – A group of independent United Nations human rights experts today urged all parties in the Central African Republic (CAR), where armed clashes have escalated in recent weeks leading to deaths and population displacement, to step back from the brink of all-out sectarian conflict. “The current shocking violence in the Central African Republic threatens to descend into a full-scale sectarian conflict between Christian and Muslim communities, but it can and must be halted now,” the experts said, while expressing grave concern over the escalating violence in the country and the rapidly deteriorating human rights and humanitarian situation.…
19 December 2013 – A locust control programme launched in Madagascar is making progress against an invasion of the voracious insects that is threatening rice and maize crops but requires an additional $17 million for the next two phases, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said today. The three-year programme jointly prepared by FAO and the Government has already produced results against the invasion of the Malagasy Migratory Locust that began in April 2012 and which has damaged crops and discouraged farmers in affected areas from planting. On 30 November, after less than one month of control operations,…
18 December 2013 – The top United Nations envoy in Somalia has strongly condemned the killing of six people during an attack on a medical convoy outside Mogadishu today. “Somalia, still struggling to build up its health services, relies on the goodwill of NGOs [non-governmental organizations] and medical personnel who work in incredibly difficult conditions to save Somali lives,” said the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Somalia, Nicholas Kay, in a statement. According to the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM), which Mr. Kay heads, reports indicate that a convoy carrying medical personnel to a health facility west of…
18 December 2013 – The Security Council, deeply concerned over the increasing links between drug trafficking and other forms of transnational organized crime in West Africa, today emphasized the need to enhance regional cooperation and develop effective strategies to combat this growing threat. In a number of measures outlined in a Presidential Statement, the 15-member body called on countries in West Africa and the Sahel region to strengthen border management to effectively constrain the spread of transnational threats, such as drug trafficking. “To this aim, it encourages Member States and relevant organizations, as appropriate, to enhance cooperation and strategies to…
18 December 2013 – Amid the ongoing fighting in South Sudan, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is reaching out to key leaders in the region seeking a political end to the crisis, while the Security Council has urged all parties to immediately cease hostilities and exercise restraint to prevent the further spread of violence. Mr. Ban told reporters in New York that the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) is in the process of verifying reports that many people have been killed and injured amid the factional fighting, which has uprooted thousands of civilians in recent days. Media reports say that hundreds…
18 December 2013 – The Security Council today extended the mandates of judges at the United Nations tribunal set up to deal with the worst atrocities committed during the Balkan conflicts of the 1990s. With 14 members voting in favour and Russia abstaining, the Council extended until the end of December 2014 the terms of 17 permanent and ad litem judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). The judges are all members of the Trial Chambers and the Appeals Chamber and have until 31 December 2014 or until the completion of the cases to which they…
17 December 2013 – With the lives of nearly six million children disrupted by the typhoon that devastated the Philippines a month ago, 1.4 million of whom lost their family homes, the United Nations is forging ahead with long-term programmes to restore schooling, protection, vaccination and other child services. “While I had followed the reports of progress closely from UNICEF’s New York Headquarters, no statistics can adequately capture the physical and human challenges that remain,” UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director Anthony Lake said today in Manila at the end of four-day visit to the Philippines. He was deeply impressed,…
17 December 2013 – Despite volatility and uncertainty, Afghanistan continues to make progress in enhancing its stability as the drawdown continues for the international forces that have sought to bring security there for the past 12 years, the top United Nations envoy in the strife-torn country said today. But international support will be required through at least another decade for the ambitious security, political and economic transformations envisaged, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s Special Representative Ján Kubiš told the Security Council. “We must resolutely continue working together to ensure a sovereign and sustainable State that will never again become a haven for…
17 December 2013 – Despite commendable efforts by leaders of West African countries, the region remains fragile and continues to require ongoing support from the United Nations and the international community, particularly to stem the rise of organized crime, a UN envoy today told the Security Council. Briefing the 15-member Council, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for West Africa, Said Djinnit, reiterated “the need to assist countries in the region and their regional institutions to better understand the causes of their vulnerability to terrorism, and the factors feeding this growing threat.” This point was emphasized at a brainstorming session organized…
17 December 2013 – The United Nations refugee agency is working with the Government of Sudan and partners to reduce the number of kidnappings and incidents of trafficking and smuggling in, through and out of the country. “Those most vulnerable are the newly arrived asylum-seekers, mainly of Eritrean origin, who cross the border into Eastern Sudan,” according to a joint news release by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The strategy, which strengthens the capacity of the Government, also provides care and psychosocial support for victims, and builds awareness of risks among…
17 December 2013 – The United Nations refugee agency said today it has deployed additional emergency teams in the Central African Republic (CAR), where some 210,000 people have been forcibly displaced by violence in the last two weeks in the embattled capital, Bangui. “In Bangui, our staff are reporting continued shooting and a mood of widespread fear,” Adrian Edwards, spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), told reporters in Geneva. He added that on Monday, on the outskirts of the city, UNHCR staff came across some 40,000 people who had been uprooted on 5 and 6 December, but…
17 December 2013 – Amid reports of continued clashes today in South Sudan, senior United Nations officials are calling for restraint and protection of civilians, regardless of their communities. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called on leaders of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA), whose members are fighting with each other in the capital, Juba, “to impose discipline on their forces and to exercise maximum restraint in the use of force.” “It is essential that the Government guarantees the security of all civilians,” Mr. Ban’s spokesperson said in a statement released last night, noting the risk of targeted violence against certain…