Continued killings based on sexual orientation or gender identity are “inadmissible” and require urgent action from Member States, a human rights expert told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, as it heard from other experts on issues ranging from counter-terrorism, unilateral coercive measures and foreign debt.
“It is sad but true that no region around the globe has been spared from crisis or insecurity this year,” the representative of the United States told the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) today in its thematic debate on regional disarmament and security, which was followed by the start of debate on the United Nations disarmament machinery.
All parties must exercise maximum restraint and immediately de-escalate to break the dangerous cycle of retaliation and prevent a full-blown war in the Middle East, speakers told the Security Council today during yet another emergency meeting on the escalating crisis in the region, following Israel’s 25 October air strikes against Iran, which earlier in the month launched missile strikes against Israel.
Speaking before the General Assembly for the first time since her election in March, Tomoko Akane, President of the International Criminal Court (ICC), said the past year has been marked by an unparalleled increase in demand for the Court’s work, along with unprecedented levels of threats, pressures and coercive measures which pose a serious threat to administering justice.
During the International Court of Justice’s annual visit to the Sixth Committee (Legal), its President emphasized that people’s rights are the ultimate concern of international law, as he spoke about the place of the individual in the Court’s jurisprudence and highlighted the significant increase involving human rights aspects.
Sexual violence in conflict includes acts such as “shooting at genitalia”, “inserting foreign objects” into reproductive and sexual organs or “mutilating or electrocuting genitals”, an expert on torture told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, proposing more robust legal frameworks to protect victims and hold perpetrators accountable.
The world is facing new and emerging technological threats, coupled with an increasingly unstable international environment and a blatant disregard by some States for international law, Ireland’s delegate today told the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security), which concluded its thematic debate on other disarmament measures and international security.
This morning, the Security Council met to hear from the remaining speakers in its annual open debate on women and peace and security.
The Sixth Committee (Legal) continued its discussion of the first cluster of topics from the International Law Commission’s annual report today, with statements centring on the nature of States as legal entities — be that in the context of their continuity amidst rising seas, or their ability to effectively conduct their affairs by guaranteeing certain immunities to officials acting on their behalf.
The inherent right to self-defence should “never be misconstrued as a free pass to commit atrocities, war crimes and crimes against humanity”, the representative of Myanmar told the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) today in its thematic debate on conventional weapons.
