The Government of Belarus’ deliberate diversion of Ryanair Flight 4978 under the false pretext of a bomb threat is an act of unlawful interference that deliberately endangered the safety and security of the flight and the lives of those on board, Salvatore Sciacchitano, President of the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), told the Security Council today, citing the report of the agency and the work of its fact-finding investigation team.
The Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization), acting without a vote, approved two draft resolutions on international cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space, including one that would have the General Assembly urge Member States to work towards averting an arms race in space while also paying more attention to the danger of space objects colliding.
Delegates today commended the work of the International Criminal Court as the body marks 20 years since its inception, with many speakers emphasizing that the mechanism’s expanding workload requires resources and support from Member States in order to fulfil its mandate.
The Russian Federation’s decision to temporarily suspend its participation in the Black Sea Grain Initiative, due to alleged attacks against its ships, risks causing spikes in food and fertilizer prices and disproportionately impacting developing countries, senior United Nations officials told the Security Council today, as delegates urged all parties to work towards resuming shipments and extending the agreement.
Following the Secretary-General’s strategic review of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM), the Security Council today extended until 31 October 2023 the Mission’s mandate and tasks, as set out in resolutions 2158 (2014) and 2592 (2021), as Council members condemned the terrorist attack two days ago in Mogadishu.
The Economic and Social Council today appointed an additional member of the Ad Hoc Advisory Group on Haiti, adopting three decisions including those on geospatial information and enlargement of the Executive Committee of the Programme of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
The First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) today approved 19 draft resolutions and one draft decision on nuclear weapons, including a draft resolution entitled “Nuclear Disarmament”, which drew extensive debate.
As part of its annual tradition, the Sixth Committee (Legal) welcomed the President of the International Court of Justice today, who detailed the organ’s working methods designed to persuade States to place their trust in this “world court”.
Experts emphasized the need to address food insecurity, conflict-destroyed homes and civil society reprisals as the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) continued its dialogues on human rights today, also focusing on inescapable poverty, leprosy discrimination and restricted rights to assembly.
Amid a situation in a downward spiral, marked by an increase in violence across the Occupied Palestinian Territory, determined actions by both parties are urgently needed to reverse negative trends on the ground, the senior United Nations official for the Middle East peace process told the Security Council today, cautioning delegates that a failure to address the root causes of the escalation will only worsen an already explosive situation.
