Vivian van de Perre, Deputy Head of the UN Stabilization Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO), provided a detailed briefing from Goma, highlighting the dire humanitarian situation and the need for “urgent and coordinated international action” to stop the fighting between Rwanda-backed M23 rebels and Congolese forces – as they battle...
Briefing ambassadors in New York on Tuesday, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini warned that the laws passed in October last year in the Knesset jeopardize the lives of millions of Palestinians and risks undermining the fragile ceasefire in Gaza. They require that UNRWA cease its activities in the territory of the...
As fighting intensifies between the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group and Congolese forces, UN chief of Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix underscored the critical state of the battle for eastern DRC’s regional capital Goma, describing the crisis as “volatile and dangerous”....
Intensifying hostilities in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo involving the non-state armed group M23 have caused further mass displacement in the mineral-rich region, with fears that the regional capital Goma could come under attack, UN agencies warned on Friday....
The resolution authored by the United Kingdom was passed by 14 votes with none against – permanent Council member Russia abstained. It introduces new provisions concerning the arms embargo and assets freeze measures imposed in 2011 following the overthrow of long-term ruler Muammar Gaddafi. It also establishes a new listing...
Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix was joined by Major General Patrick Gauchat, Head of the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) who is temporarily in charge of the UN force in the Golan, UNDOF. Mr. Lacroix is currently in Lebanon, where the UN Interim Force in the country UNIFIL, monitors...
In his briefing, UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen underscored the delicate nature of the transitional phase, describing it as a moment of “great opportunities and real dangers.” He urged careful navigation to ensure that decisions taken now lead to long-term stability. The humanitarian situation remains critical, with nearly...
Khaled Khiari, Assistant Secretary-General for peacebuilding and political affairs, briefed ambassadors two days after the DPRK, commonly known as North Korea, fired off what it described as a new type of intermediate-range hypersonic ballistic missile (IRBM) loaded with a hypersonic glide vehicle. He cited an official statement from Pyongyang which...
While the war in Gaza grinds on with dozens of civilians already reportedly killed and injured so far this year – and as the fragile ceasefire in Lebanon largely holds – hopes are still high for a successful transition of power in Damascus following the overthrow of the Assad regime,...
Addressing the Security Council on Monday, Edem Wosornu, Director of the Advocacy and Operations Division at the UN aid coordination office (OCHA) described the unfolding disaster as “a humanitarian crisis of staggering proportions.” This “man-made” catastrophe, driven by relentless conflict, has dismantled food systems and critical infrastructure, leaving millions in...
The UN Security Council met on Friday morning in New York to debate the collapse of health services in Gaza. The meeting was called by Algeria, the leading voice for the Arab world on the Council which has just taken the gavel as president for the month of January. Senior...
Regina De Dominicis – who also heads the agency’s Europe and Central Asia Regional Office – issued her plea for action after another small boat sank off the coast of the southern Italian island of Lampedusa on New Year’s Eve. “Among the seven survivors is an eight-year-old child whose mother...