The conflict in Yemen has become increasingly internationalized, with the escalating cycle of strikes and counter-strikes hindering the prospects of peace, a senior United Nations official told the Security Council today, warning that the improved security conditions for civilians that have existed since the 2022 truce could be lost.
Runaway conflicts, widening inequalities, the intensifying climate crisis and the unchecked rise of technology were among the pressing global challenges highlighted by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres as he presented the Organization’s priorities for 2025 to the General Assembly today.
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has been actively working towards acquiring new military capabilities that undermine the global non-proliferation architecture, a senior United Nations official warned the Security Council today, as its members condemned that country’s 6 January launch of a new-type intermediate-range hypersonic ballistic missile.
As Syria seeks to chart a new course after the fall of the former regime, there are great opportunities and real dangers in the current moment, the Security Council heard today, while that country’s representative said its people are eagerly turning the page on oppression.
Hunger and starvation in Sudan are spreading because of decisions made each day to continue the conflict, irrespective of civilian cost, United Nations aid officials told the Security Council today, as they urged members to push for a ceasefire and the lifting of restrictions impeding humanitarian work.
Following Israel’s 27 December attack on the last functioning hospital in north Gaza, the Security Council today heard calls for urgent international action to protect civilians and ensure accountability, including independent investigations into these incidents and the alleged misuse of medical facilities by Hamas.
Millions in Yemen, Israel and throughout the region continue to bear the brunt of military escalations, a senior United Nations official told the Security Council today, as its members stressed the importance of protecting humanitarian workers and civilians.
The Security Council today endorsed the African Union Peace and Security Council’s decision to replace the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) with the African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM), marking a further step in transitioning national security responsibilities to that country’s own forces.
The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) wrapped up the main part of its seventy-ninth session today by sending the General Assembly a 2025 regular budget of $3.72 billion, about $100 million more than the $3.6 billion budget laid out by the Secretary-General in October. In a year of ongoing fiscal constraints, delegates completed the crucial step of approving new scales of assessment — the complex financial mechanism the Secretariat uses to establish the annual contributions of each Member State — for both the regular and peacekeeping budgets.
Concluding the main part of its seventy-ninth session today, the General Assembly adopted a 10-year action programme to address the unique challenges faced by landlocked developing countries, a historic cybercrime convention and the $3.72 billion United Nations budget for 2025.
