Urgent action was required to deal with the effects of El Niño, the General Assembly heard this morning as it discussed the phenomenon that devastates more than 60 million people a year and whose extreme weather events were predicted only to worsen in the future.
With crimes against humanity multiplying around the world, States must push forward toward — and not back away from — universal support for the International Criminal Court, the General Assembly heard today, as it considered the latest annual report of the Hague-based judicial body.
The General Assembly today elected, by secret ballot, 14 States to serve on the Human Rights Council, the United Nations body responsible for the promotion and protection of all human rights around the globe.
Seventy years after its inception, the International Court of Justice — the principal judicial organ of the United Nations and “tireless custodian of the international legal order” — was more needed now than ever before, the General Assembly heard today, as it considered the Court’s latest annual report.
In a near‑unanimous vote, the General Assembly today adopted a resolution on the necessity of ending the United States economic, commercial and financial embargo on Cuba, despite the resumption of diplomatic relations between the two countries two years ago.
The memory of the more than 15 million victims of the transatlantic slave trade provided a moral imperative to effectively combat racism, xenophobia, inequality and modern-day manifestations of slavery, speakers in the General Assembly said today as it held its annual commemoration of the largest forced migration in human history.
With violent extremism on the rise and waves of intolerance and hate targeting minorities, migrants and the most vulnerable, the international community must renew efforts to uphold its human rights treaties, the General Assembly heard this morning.
Pledging to support an Africa that was stable, prosperous and at peace with itself, speakers today warned the General Assembly that poor infrastructure and trade barriers still hampered the continent’s development, while challenges such as “brain drain” and terrorism threatened to reverse significant gains made since the turn of the millennium.
On the heels of what had been hailed as a historically transparent and inclusive selection process, the General Assembly this morning, for the ninth time since 1946, chose its next Secretary-General, appointing by acclamation António Guterres of Portugal for a five-year term starting 1 January 2017.
The Economic and Social Council, over the course of 2016, had focused on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development’s early implementation while also tackling emerging threats such as the Zika virus, El Niño and widening global inequality, the General Assembly heard today as it took note of the 54-member organ’s latest annual report.
