A recent report by the Middle East Quartet that failed to characterize Israeli actions against Palestinians as terrorism was offensive, the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People heard today, amid strong calls for the General Assembly to declare 2017 as the International Year to End Israeli Occupation of Palestine.
Twenty years after a ground-breaking report on the impact of armed conflict on children brought the issue into focus at the United Nations, young people in hotspots around the globe were still being tortured, maimed and killed, recruited by armed groups and exposed to numerous threats as a result of massive displacement, stressed delegates today as the Security Council held an open debate on the matter.
The General Assembly decided today that the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development — mandated to coordinate the follow-up to and review of global sustainable development commitments — would spend the next three years focusing on a range of specific themes and targets, ranging from eradicating poverty to building resilience to empowering communities.
Expressing concern about continuing violence and a persistent political impasse in Burundi, the Security Council requested today that the Secretary-General establish a police officers component in the country for one year to monitor the security situation and to support Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
The Security Council today renewed the mandate of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) until 12 August, determining that the situation in that country constituted a threat to international peace and security.
Opening the first meeting of its 2017 session today, the Economic and Social Council elected, by acclamation, Frederick Musiiwa Makamure Shava (Zimbabwe) as its new President and adopted the provisional agenda and working arrangements for its upcoming session.
The Security Council underscored the importance of long-term institution-building as a critical part of peacebuilding in Africa, as it held an open debate today on the topic where speakers emphasized the importance of addressing the root causes of conflict, the need for predictable and sustainable financing, and closer cooperation with the African Union and subregional organizations.
The Security Council today welcomed the merging of the Office of the Special Envoy for the Sahel with the United Nations Office for West Africa, encouraging the Secretary-General’s Special Representative in the region to ensure a unified management structure for the new United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS).
Violence by Boko Haram had led to massive forced displacement and a widespread humanitarian crisis in West Africa’s Lake Chad Basin, senior United Nations officials told the Security Council today, as speakers called for increased international support for regional efforts to combat terrorism and meet the needs of 9.2 million people facing unimaginable desperation across four countries.
Taking consensus action today, the General Assembly adopted an oral decision paving the way for Member States to continue discussions on reforming the Security Council during its seventy-first session.
