The Secretary-General was appalled by the bombing in Marrakech, which killed and injured Moroccans and foreign nationals. He reiterated his firm rejection of the use of indiscriminate violence against innocent civilians. In their own statement to the press, the members of the Security Council condemned in the strongest terms the terrorist attack in Marrakech.
In progress at UNHQ
Noon Briefings
Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs B. Lynn Pascoe provided the Security Council with an update on Syria in an open meeting yesterday afternoon, saying that the anti-Government demonstrations that had started in mid-March have gradually, but steadily, increased in geographic scope and participation and the Syrian authorities have reacted with a mix of reform measures and increasingly violent repression.
In Côte d’Ivoire, OCHA says that thousands of people face enormous humanitarian needs. Their vulnerability is aggravated by a lingering lack of security in certain places, as well as by the difficulty in obtaining access to essential health, education and sanitation services. The United Nations has deployed an evaluation and coordination team to Abidjan and the western part of the country since 19 April, to identify the needs of the most vulnerable people.
We put out the advisory report of the Secretary-General’s Panel of Experts concerning accountability in Sri Lanka yesterday afternoon. The Secretary-General expressed his appreciation to the advisory Panel of Experts and is carefully reviewing the report’s conclusions and recommendations.
Over the long weekend, the Secretary-General condemned the violence against peaceful demonstrators in Syria. He reminded the Syrian authorities of their obligation to respect international human rights, including the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, as well as the freedom of the press, and reiterated that there should be an independent, transparent and effective investigation into the killings.
The UN mission in Cote d’Ivoire, UNOCI, has deplored the ongoing fighting in the Yopougon and Abobo neighbourhoods of Abidjan, saying the clashes could threaten efforts to bring back peace. Yesterday, UNOCI started joint patrols with the Republican Forces of Côte d’Ivoire to restore law and order in Abidjan.
The Secretary-General travelled to Chernobyl, along with Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, and saw first-hand the situation there, 25 years after the nuclear crisis, becoming the first Secretary-General to visit Chernobyl. He said the recent Fukushima Daiichi power accident, together with the Chernobyl disaster, have provided a strong message and we have to learn lessons from these tragedies.
The Secretary-General addressed a summit on nuclear safety in Kyiv today and said that we need a global rethink on this fundamental question. Because the consequences are catastrophic, safety must be paramount. He said that it is time for a top-to-bottom review of current nuclear safety standards, both at the national and international levels.
The Secretary-General, speaking to reporters in Hungary today, said that his Special Envoy for Libya, Abdul Ilah al-Khatib, visited Tripoli yesterday, together with the United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator, Valerie Amos. He said that he was encouraged to report that, as a result, the United Nations reached an agreement yesterday on a humanitarian presence in Tripoli.
On Côte d'Ivoire, the UN refugee agency reports that, with the security situation apparently calming in western Côte d’Ivoire, its staff is reporting large groups of internally displaced people living in alarming humanitarian conditions. An estimated 200,000 people in the area have been displaced by post-election violence over the past four months, the agency says.