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As Haiti faces a situation of “absolute brutal violence”, the deployment of a multi-national security support mission is awaited with hope, the UN’s top humanitarian official in the country said on Friday.
Amid ongoing bombardment in the Gaza Strip, UN agencies and humanitarian partners continue to provide desperately needed food, water, healthcare and other services to the more than two million people living there.
The UN Security Council held an emergency meeting Friday morning New York time to discuss the catastrophic situation in Gaza. This follows Wednesday’s urgent letter by Secretary-General António Guterres - one of the most powerful tools at his disposal - urging the body to help end carnage in the war-battered enclave through a lasting humanitarian ceasefire. Our live coverage is over for now but ambassadors are due back at 5:30 PM. Stay tuned here for further developments...
As intense Israeli bombardment of Gaza and fighting with Palestinian armed groups continued to impede aid operations, reports on the ground of children begging for water and people cutting down telephone poles for firewood indicated that “society is about to break down”, UN humanitarians said on Friday.
Over half a million people have been displaced in Myanmar amid a surge in fighting between the military and armed groups that started in late October and has spread to over two-thirds of the country, the UN humanitarian affairs office reported on Friday.
The UN Security Council held an emergency meeting Friday morning New York time to discuss the catastrophic situation in Gaza. This follows Wednesday’s urgent letter by Secretary-General António Guterres – one of the most powerful tools at his disposal – urging the body to help end carnage in the war-battered enclave through a lasting humanitarian ceasefire. A resolution tabled late afternoon in the chamber calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire was vetoed by the United States.
Two months to the day since Hamas’ terror attacks in Israel prompted a massive Israeli military retaliation in Gaza, the situation in the war-torn enclave is becoming “apocalyptic” with hostilities making meaningful humanitarian efforts “nearly impossible”, UN humanitarians warned on Thursday.
The UN Secretary-General called for stronger action to fight the growing challenge of transnational organized crime in an address to the Security Council on Thursday.
Two months to the day since Hamas’ terror attacks in Israel prompted a massive Israeli military retaliation in Gaza, the situation in the war-torn enclave is becoming “apocalyptic” with hostilities making meaningful humanitarian efforts “nearly impossible”, UN humanitarians warned on Thursday.
The 59th round of the Geneva International Discussions (GID) took place on 5-6 December 2023 in accordance with the six-point agreement of 12 August 2008 and implementing measures of 8 September 2008. This round was held in two working groups meeting in parallel on security and humanitarian issues, as per usual practice.
It was the third round held this year in a highly challenging regional and geopolitical environment. The participants reconfirmed the importance of the GID as the only platform where the conflict consequences have been addressed over the past 15 years.
The round took place against a backdrop of increased tension along the South Ossetian Administrative Boundary Line. In this context, the fatal shooting of 6 November 2023 was broadly discussed, with extensive exchanges between participants on ways to prevent a repetition of similar incidents.
The issue of internally displaced persons and refugees could not be discussed due to a walkout by some participants.
The Co-Chairs thanked the participants for their overall commitment to this process and called on all of them to engage in constructive, forward-looking exchanges to overcome their differences and ensure the peaceful settlement of issues relating to the security and humanitarian situation on the ground.
It was agreed to hold the next GID round in April 2024.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY-GENERAL MIROSLAV JENČA’S
REMARKS TO THE SECURITY COUNCIL ON
UKRAINE
New York, 6 DECEMBER 2023
Mr. President,
The cold winter weather has arrived in war-torn Ukraine. Intensifying Russian attacks on the country’s energy facilities, amidst heavy snow and freezing temperatures, are worsening the dire humanitarian conditions across the country.
Since the last time I briefed this Council two weeks ago, we have continued to see daily reports of attacks on Ukraine’s critical civilian infrastructure, many resulting in civilian casualties.
Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine – in violation of the UN Charter and international law - the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has verified 10,065 civilians killed and 18,679 injured. The actual figures are likely considerably higher.
Most civilian casualties continue to be caused by shelling and multiple-launch rocket systems in areas near the frontline.
However, the attacks have recently escalated on populated areas across the country. On 25 November, Kyiv came under the most significant drone attack in months.
The extensive presence of explosive remnants of war and mines continues to have a significant impact on civilians and their livelihoods, more so in rural areas and agricultural lands. Since August, they killed 31 people and injured 98 – mostly men and boys.
All attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure must stop immediately. They are prohibited under international humanitarian law and are simply unacceptable.
Mr. President,
As a result of the war, ten million people have been forced to flee their homes, including 3.7 million internally displaced, and over 6.3 million refugees recorded globally.
While we can attempt to count the numbers of those killed, injured and displaced, the full lasting toll of this devastating war on the civilian population is beyond measure. In addition to the lives lost, families torn apart, and life-changing physical injuries, the impact of the war on the mental health of millions of Ukrainians will be felt for decades to come.
Children often suffer the greatest lasting trauma in any conflict. In Ukraine, they also face major disruptions in access to basic health and education, which will impact their lives for years.
The fighting has damaged and destroyed hundreds of schools, health and medical facilities. Given the security situation, only half of the 3.9 million children in the territory under Ukraine’s control have attended school in person full-time since the start of the school year.
Mr. President,
Due to the war, women in Ukraine face a heightened risk of sexual- and gender-based violence. Increased poverty rates caused by the war also affect women more than men. Women face a greater amount of domestic and unpaid care work due to family separation, lack of childcare facilities and school closures.
Yet, since the beginning of the war, women have also taken on new vital roles in their communities. Most frontline workers, volunteers and first responders in Ukraine are women.
Mr. President,
As long as the war continues, all four Ukraine’s nuclear power plants remain at risk.
On Saturday, the International Atomic Energy Agency reported that the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant – Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, located dangerously close to the front line - suffered a complete off-site power outage. This was the eighth time since the start of the invasion.
Last Wednesday, the IAEA team at the Khmelnitsky Nuclear Power Plant in western Ukraine reported hearing several explosions close to the plant. The plant was not directly affected. Yet, the incident reminded of the risks faced by Ukrainian nuclear sites – even those away from active combat.
All nuclear sites must be able to operate safely and must be protected to avoid potentially catastrophic consequences.
Mr. President,
Despite the reports of increasing shipments in the Black Sea, the war continues to pose significant risks to civilian navigation and to Ukraine’s grain export capacity.
Since 11 July, OHCHR has recorded 32 attacks that damaged or destroyed grain production and export facilities in territory of Ukraine under Ukrainian control. Russian attacks hit port facilities, grain silos and vehicles for transporting grain. Most attacks affected infrastructure in Odesa region, where the Black Sea and Danube River ports are located.
Following the suspension of the Black Sea Initiative, these attacks substantially reduced the capacity of Ukraine to export food. With so many facilities damaged, and export routes curtailed, the cost of logistics is rising.
Mr. President,
Much like last year, the year 2023 has been devastating for the people of Ukraine.
If urgent steps are not taken to reverse this trajectory, next year may be even more unpredictable and destructive.
I reiterate the Secretary-General’s call to all Member States to do their part to lay the groundwork for peace. Peace that is in line with the UN Charter, international law, and resolutions of the General Assembly.
UN human rights chief Volker Türk on Wednesday condemned serious sexual violations allegedly carried out by Hamas militants during their terror attacks in southern Israel on 7 October, while humanitarians in Gaza said conditions for civilians there had hit “rock bottom”, amid continued bombardment and mass displacement in the south.
More than 90 countries underlined their commitment to UN Peacekeeping during a two-day conference in Accra, Ghana, that concluded on Wednesday.
If urgent steps are not taken to end the ongoing war and its dire humanitarian consequences in Ukraine, 2024 may be even more unpredictable and destructive, a senior UN official warned on Wednesday.
Invoking a rarely used article of the UN Charter, Secretary-General António Guterres on Wednesday called on the Security Council to “press to avert a humanitarian catastrophe” in Gaza and unite in a call for a full humanitarian ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militants.
Invoking a rarely used article of the UN Charter, Secretary-General António Guterres on Wednesday called on the Security Council to “press to avert a humanitarian catastrophe” in Gaza and unite in a call for a full humanitarian ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militants.
The transition to renewable energy at UN peacekeeping missions helps to ensure the safety and security of uniformed personnel serving in the field, a senior official said on Tuesday.
For over a year, a group of United Nations peacekeepers from Ghana led by Captain Esinam Baah regularly patrolled the “blue line” or the demarcation line between Lebanon and Israel, and visited neighbourhoods in the area, checking in with local families and making sure they were safe.
The situation for Gazans is “getting worse by the hour”, the UN health agency WHO said on Tuesday, after some of the heaviest Israeli shelling in the enclave since Hamas militants massacred some 1,200 people in southern Israel and took around 240 hostages on 7 October.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has reiterated his call for a sustained humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza and the unconditional and immediate release of all hostages, his Spokesperson said on Monday.
Ministers and delegates from more than 85 countries and international organizations are meeting in Ghana this week to express their collective commitment to UN Peacekeeping.
Reports of hundreds of fatalities from bombing in southern Gaza over the weekend heightened deep concerns for civilians sheltering there, while UN humanitarians on Monday said that aid teams had only “extremely limited” movement and access to the north was “now entirely blocked”.
The resumption of hostilities in Gaza and its terrifying impact on civilians underscore the need for the violence to end and a long-term political solution between Palestinians and Israelis to be found, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said on Sunday.
UN engagement with Sudan will continue in the wake of the decision to terminate its political mission in the country, the Spokesperson for Secretary-General António Guterres said in a statement.
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As the 28th United Nations conference on climate change (COP28) opened in Dubai, UNAMA...
As Secretary-General António Guterres spoke of his deep regret about the resumption of military operations in Gaza on Friday, UN humanitarians vowed to stay and help all those in need, while reiterating “nowhere is safe from attacks” in the war-shattered enclave.
The Security Council on Friday decided to terminate the mandate of the UN political mission in Sudan from next Monday, after Khartoum called for its immediate withdrawal last month.
