In the aftermath of an air strike on a northern Gaza hospital that marked a sharp escalation in the ongoing Israel-Gaza crisis, the Security Council today failed to adopt a resolution put forth by Brazil that would have called for humanitarian pauses to allow full, safe and unhindered access for United Nations agencies and their partners, due to a veto cast by a permanent member of the Council, the United States.
Delegates in the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) today traded allegations over non-compliance with treaties banning biological and chemical weapons, which some called “morally repugnant” and a “breeding ground” for terrorists.
Information integrity is crucial for transforming a digitally divided world into a knowledge society, the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) heard today as it continued its general debate on questions relating to information, while also approving — without a vote — a draft decision concerning the Non-Self-Governing Territory of Gibraltar.
The international community must urgently come together to secure an immediate cessation of hostilities, the unconditional release of all hostages and safe and unhindered humanitarian access, delegates heard today, during a Security Council briefing on the situation in the Middle East, following the 7 October invasion of Israel by Hamas and a 17 October attack against the Al Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza.
While the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals has reached a critical juncture in its lifespan, the conclusion of its in-court activity “does not mean we are closing down”, its President said today as she briefed the General Assembly on its work over the past year.
As the Sixth Committee (Legal) continued its consideration of the rule of law at the national and international levels, speakers underscored their countries’ sovereign right to decide on their national legal system, while others stressed the necessity to ensure full respect for international law through domestic legal frameworks. (For background, see Press Release GA/L/3694.)
Armed groups’ hostilities in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and any support to them must cease, the Security Council heard today, as members urged strengthened regional cooperation and dialogue to tackle the root causes of the conflict in the country and the wider region and arrive at a political solution.
Delegates called on each other to address recent and long-standing conflicts, condemning human rights abuses and violations, including civilian population transfer, ethnic cleansing, and incitement to hatred, as the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) continued its discussion of the promotion and protection of human rights today.
Troubled by the Organization’s precarious liquidity situation and its impact on mandate delivery, delegates of the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today urged Member States with adequate financial resources to meet their obligations fully, promptly and without conditions.
The Second Committee (Economic and Financial) today concluded its debate on “Permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources”, with speakers disagreeing over the context of the current situation in Gaza.
