Libya

The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President François Delattre (France):

The National Conference on the future of Libya, to be held in April, presents a crucial opportunity for all parties to set aside their differences, unite, avoid war and choose a path of peace and prosperity, the Secretary‑General’s Special Representative for that country told the Security Council today.

Adama Dieng, Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, acknowledged today’s final appeal judgment by the Residual Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals, largely upholding the 2016 guilty verdict against Radovan Karadžic and increasing his sentence from 40 years to life imprisonment.

UNAIDS is concerned that new HIV infections are not declining among people who inject drugs, despite a decline in new infections globally.  A new report also shows that 99 per cent of them live in countries lacking adequate needle and syringe programmes, drug-dependency treatment, and HIV testing and treatment.

The United Nations today released the 2019 Needs and Priority Plan for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, which calls for $120 million to urgently provide life-saving aid to 3.8 million people.

An estimated 30,000 refugees have returned to the north-eastern Nigerian town of Rann from Cameroon since Wednesday and are in dire need of aid, according to humanitarian colleagues.  International and national humanitarian organizations have not returned to Rann since 17 January due to ongoing insecurity.

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

On 8 February 2019, the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1970 (2011) concerning Libya held its first informal consultations of the year to meet with the Panel of Experts on Libya established by resolution 1973 (2011).

The United Nations and Libya’s Government of National Accord launched the 2019 Humanitarian Response Plan for that country today, seeking $202 million to provide health support, protection, water and sanitation, as well as shelter and education in support of more than 550,000 vulnerable people.

Without the international community’s support in Libya, spoilers will sabotage the political process and unravel the fragile and easily reversible progress made amid an already grim backdrop of sporadic violence and rising humanitarian needs, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the country warned today in a briefing to the Security Council.