In a world dramatically altered by COVID-19, civilians in conflict hotspots — weakened by fighting, cut off from aid and now facing escalating attacks by parties exploiting the pandemic — require stronger support from Governments and a more unified international response, delegates heard in a 27 May videoconference meeting of the Security Council.
The COVID-19 pandemic poses grave consequences in Somalia ahead of long-awaited elections as the Government grapples to address terrorist attacks, floods, an extreme locust infestation and at least 5 million citizens requiring humanitarian assistance, including 2.6 million internally displaced persons, briefers told the Security Council in a videoconference meeting on 21 May.
On 21 May 2020, the Security Council Committee pursuant to resolutions 1267 (1999), 1989 (2011) and 2253 (2015) concerning ISIL (Da’esh), Al-Qaida, and associated individuals, groups, undertakings and entities approved the addition of the entry specified below to its ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions List of individuals and entities subject to the assets freeze, travel ban and arms embargo set out in paragraph 1 of Security Council resolution 2368 (2017), and adopted under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations.
Israel’s stated intention to annex parts of the occupied West Bank will deal a devastating blow to the two-State solution and close the door to fresh negotiations with the Palestinians towards peace in the Middle East, the top United Nations official for the peace process said during a videoconference meeting of the Security Council on 20 May.
Venezuela is mired in a protracted crisis that only its people can resolve, the Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs told the Security Council during a 20 May videoconference meeting.
Continued fighting in Libya threatens to worsen an already volatile situation, despite calls to end violence amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Acting Special Representative of the Secretary‑General cautioned during a 19 May videoconference meeting of the Security Council.
A mix of increased cross-border and cross-line access is needed to sustain — and preferably increase — the delivery of aid into north-east Syria amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the senior United Nations humanitarian official in the country told the Security Council in a videoconference meeting on 19 May.
Too many “fleeting opportunities” have been lost to turn dynamics in Syria towards a political path, the Special Envoy told the Security Council in an 18 May videoconference meeting, as he urged international parties and Syrians alike to take advantage of “some calm” in the near decade of fighting to build trust and unlock progress.
The global COVID-19 pandemic is an opportunity for the Security Council to explore ways to become more transparent, efficient and effective, while also forging closer ties with the broader United Nations membership, experts said during a 15 May videoconference meeting of the Council dedicated to its working methods.
Amid unabated military clashes and a worrying jump in COVID-19 cases, an end to the fighting in Yemen is now “within close reach” as the warring parties continue to weigh a proposed set of draft agreements, the senior United Nations official in that country told the Security Council during a 14 May videoconference meeting.
