Amid mounting geopolitical tensions and a surge in serious violations, it is “more important than ever” for the Human Rights Council to effectively fulfil its mandate, speakers told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, urging sustainable financing to support the organ’s expanding tasks.
The First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) was unable to conclude its session today, as more time is needed to consider remaining drafts concerning nuclear and conventional weapons, and outer space, on which separate provisions and amendments will be considered, however, it completed action on all other scheduled drafts, approving most without a vote.
The Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) today approved two draft resolutions relating to the global media landscape as well as United Nations communications, as speakers concluded the debate on this topic while highlighting information wars that are intensifying many current crises.
Amid “non-stop humanitarian emergencies” that have displaced 123 million people globally, States must include refugees in their societies instead of using illegal methods to prevent migration, a United Nations official told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today.
Mindful of the possible international security implications of artificial intelligence in the military domain, including the risks of an arms race, miscalculation, lowering the threshold for conflict and escalation of conflict, and proliferation to non-State actors, States would be encouraged to pursue efforts at all levels to address related opportunities and challenges, including from humanitarian, legal, security, technological and ethical perspectives, by one of 14 drafts passed today in the First Committee.
The Sixth Committee (Legal) completed its debate this morning on the status of the Protocols Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 1949, with speakers underscoring the key role of these instruments in protecting victims of armed conflicts, while some pointed to an ‘international silence’ amidst the ongoing international humanitarian law violations and others urging greater compliance to the Protocol’s tenets. (For background, see Press Release GA/L/3735.)
As the Sixth Committee (Legal) began its consideration of the Secretary-General’s report on the status of the Protocols Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 today (document A/79/174), speakers underscored those instruments’ continued relevance — and the need to respect their provisions — despite the reality that modern war looks different than it did 75 years ago.
The Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) continued its general debate on questions relating to information today, with speakers stressing the urgent need for a collective effort to combat the pervasive threat of disinformation, which undermines democracy and international peace, while emphasizing the crucial role of the United Nations in promoting accurate and reliable information across diverse media platforms.
The General Assembly would reaffirm that the prevention of an outer space arms race would avert a grave danger for international peace and security and thus welcome deliberations by the open-ended working group on reducing space threats, which constitute an important contribution to outer space security and the prevention of such an arms race, according to one of 15 drafts approved today by the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security).
The United Nations’ anti-racism commitment must extend to the Palestinian people, an independent expert told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural) today, underscoring the need to combat deep-rooted racism against them within international policies, media narratives and institutional frameworks.
