#COVID-19

A planetary emergency is upon us, driven by the dual threats of the climate crisis and biodiversity collapse, the Secretary-General said in a video message today, to leaders who took part in the virtual Pledge for Nature.  He added that we have failed to meet any of the biodiversity targets set in Japan 10 years ago.

The following statement by UN Secretary-General António Guterres was issued today:

We are devastated by the sudden passing of our long-time friend and colleague Reynaldo Naval of the Media Documents Centre.  Rey proudly served the United Nations for 39 years, and we always appreciated his kindness, sunny disposition, dedication and pride in belonging to the Organization.

Countries have largely failed to cooperate in efforts to prevent the global spread of coronavirus, the top United Nations official warned the Security Council during a 24 September videoconference meeting, calling for a rethink of global governance and multilateralism.

Following is the text of UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed’s video message at the closing of the Sustainable Development Goals Business Forum, held today:

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ video-message acceptance of the Concordia Leadership Award during the 2020 Concordia Annual Summit:

With relative calm prevailing in Syria and the need to alleviate the suffering of its people all the more urgent amid the COVID-19 pandemic, now is the time to press ahead towards a lasting political settlement, the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy told the Security Council during an 18 September videoconference meeting.

The Human Rights Council held an urgent debate on conditions in Belarus, with the High Commissioner for Human Rights, in a statement, noting the continuation of mass demonstrations and expressing alarm over hundreds of claims of torture and ill treatment while in police custody.  She urged authorities to facilitate independent, prompt and impartial investigations.

While the confirmed number of COVID-19 cases in Syria currently stands at 3,618, reports from inside the country are pointing to a much broader spread of the disease, and it will not be possible to gauge the extent of the outbreak without more laboratory testing nationwide, Mark Lowcock, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, told the Security Council during a videoconference meeting on 16 September.

The General Assembly convened today to hold the first meeting of its thirty-first special session on the COVID-19 pandemic, adopting one decision — and taking note of six others recently approved through the organ’s temporary silence procedure — related to the session’s leadership and other modalities.