The Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) elected Mathu Joyini (South Africa) Chair on 1 June.

The Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization Committee) approved its programme of work for the General Assembly’s seventy-eighth session today, covering topics ranging from the decolonization of the 17 remaining Non-Self-Governing Territories and United Nations peacekeeping operations to the plight of Palestinian refugees and the peaceful uses of outer space, among other items.

The Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) today approved a draft resolution forwarding the latest report of the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations for adoption by the General Assembly.

Acting on the recommendation of its Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization), the General Assembly today adopted 33 draft resolutions and two draft decisions, including texts concerning the mandate and operations of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.

The Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization), completing its work for the main part of the General Assembly’s seventy-seventh session, approved six draft resolutions plus one draft decision today, including texts that would renew the mandate of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and request an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

Several delegates voiced support today for the General Assembly to request an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on the legal consequences of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory, as the as the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) concluded its general debate on Israeli practices affecting the human rights of the Palestinian people and other Arabs of the occupied territories.

Speakers today condemned unprecedented levels of violence by Israeli security forces and settlers against Palestinians, as well as attacks on human rights defenders and organizations, as the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) began its general debate on Israeli practices which impact the human rights of Palestinians and other Arabs living in occupied territories.

With its mandate up for renewal by the General Assembly, and demands for its services growing, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) urgently requires a substantial capital injection to lift it out of a chronic budget deficit, its head told the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) today.

Acting without a vote, the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) approved today a draft resolution on the United Nations’ special political missions as it held its general debate on that topic, with several speakers calling for them to be accorded their own budget.

Delegates from countries where United Nations peacekeeping missions are deployed expressed divergent views today on their effectiveness in the midst of increasingly difficult conflict environments, as the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) continued its general debate on the Organization’s peacekeeping efforts.