Meetings Coverage

Strongly condemning ongoing attacks and atrocities carried out in Central Africa by the Lord’s Resistance Army rebel group, the Security Council this afternoon urged swift implementation of United Nations and African Union strategies to address the threat through cooperation of all countries, organizations and peacekeeping operations in the region.

As 2012 drew to a close, momentum was slipping for a two-State solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and tensions on the ground were worsening after the upgrade of Palestinian status in the General Assembly last month, the United Nations political affairs chief told the Security Council today, calling on all stakeholders to put bitterness aside to focus on the hard, practical work of forging an agreement in the year ahead.

The Security Council this morning extended until 30 June 2013 the mandate of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), which monitors the ceasefire in the Golan Heights between Israel and Syria, expressing grave concern at recent violations by the Syrian Armed Forces in the mission’s area of operations.

As the United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) neared its 31 December 2012 completion, the Security Council this morning commended the country for the “remarkable achievements” of the past decade, underscoring the importance of continued support to the fledgling nation as it embarked on the next stage of its development.

In a single round of voting today, the Fourteenth Meeting of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child elected nine members to the 18-member committee charged with monitoring implementation of the treaty and its two Optional Protocols.

The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) this afternoon examined revised budgetary estimates for the 2012-2013 cycle related to a diverse array of issues, including sustainable development, decisions of the Human Rights Council, the Special Court for Sierra Leone, the arms trade treaty, the contingency fund and financing of the United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste.

The General Assembly today, acting on the recommendation of its Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization), drew divided support among its resolutions and decisions on decolonization and issues concerning Israeli practices and the United Nations Agency tasked with mitigating the plight of the region’s refugees, but attracted broad backing for drafts on the effects of atomic radiation, peacekeeping, outer space, information and University for Peace.

Adopting two resolutions today, the Security Council refined the recently separated sanctions regimes on Al-Qaida and the Taliban, strongly urging Member States to consult with the Government of Afghanistan on requests for the listing and delisting of those targeted for the latter measures in order to ensure coordination with Afghan reconciliation efforts.

The Security Council decided today to extend the terms of office of 21 judges of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, established in the wake of the Balkans conflicts in the 1990s.