Despite recent political and security gains, Central Africa still faces looming threats — from the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Cameroon to Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo — requiring local solutions alongside strong continuing international support, the head of the regional United Nations office told the Security Council today.
The Security Council aims to adopt its first-ever resolution on missing persons in situations of armed conflict when it debates the issue during a high-level meeting on 11 June, Mansour Alotaibi (Kuwait), Council President for the month, said at a Headquarters press conference today.
Renewing its authorization of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) for one year ahead of national elections in 2020, the Security Council decided to maintain deployment and reduce uniformed personnel by 1,000 in line with the existing plan to gradually transfer such responsibilities to Somali security forces.
The Security Council decided today to renew until 31 May 2020 the arms embargo it imposed on South Sudan last year, as well as the sanctions put into place in 2015 on those blocking peace in the country.
The humanitarian response to fighting in north-western Syria, including Idlib, is stretched and further military action will overwhelm all ability to respond, the Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs warned the Security Council today, appealing to the 15-member body to take immediate action.
On 10 May 2019, the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 2140 (2014) held informal consultations to meet with its Panel of Experts, whose mandate was extended to 28 March 2020 pursuant to resolution 2456 (2019).
Along with holding perpetrators to account, the experiences and needs of civilian communities who suffer the daily brutalities of armed conflict must be incorporated into measures that protect them, speakers told the Security Council during an open debate today as it marked the twentieth anniversary of placing “the protection of civilians” on its agenda.
On 15 May 2019, the Security Council Committee pursuant to resolution 751 (1992) concerning Somalia held its third informal consultations of the year to consider the midterm update of the Panel of Experts on Somalia, in accordance with paragraph 54 of resolution 2444 (2018).
With the recent flare-up of violence in Gaza as the central topic of discussion in the Security Council today, members also considered the funding shortage affecting the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
The tasks of restoring cooperation between Somalia’s two tiers of government and denying Al-Shabaab the space to prepare and launch its attacks are vital for the country’s progress, senior officials told the Security Council today.
