Meetings Coverage

The General Assembly met today to elect members of the International Law Commission, the United Nations organ tasked with the progressive development of international law and its codification.

Taking action for the first time during the seventy‑first session, the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today unanimously approved three resolutions on literacy, crime prevention, and alternative development programmes, and heard the introduction of a draft text on obstetric fistula.

The Committee on Relations with the Host Country provided an open environment where members and interested delegations could raise any relevant concerns, the Sixth Committee (Legal) heard today during its consideration of that body’s report.

Palestine refugees had suffered unimaginable hardship, including obstacles to the delivery of humanitarian aid, and those in Syria had been twice displaced, the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) heard today as it concluded its general debate on the work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

Strongly condemning repeated ceasefire violations in Mali by armed groups over the last few months, the Security Council urged those factions, as well as the Government to expeditiously carry out all their commitments under the 2015 Agreement on Peace and Reconciliation for the country.

The Second Committee (Economic and Financial) today introduced 14 draft resolutions, including a text underscoring the massive contribution of migration and human mobility to sustainable development.

Refugees were at the centre of political attention for the first time in decades, the new United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today as it began its general debate on humanitarian questions.

Continuing its review of third‑cluster topics from the International Law Commission’s report, Sixth Committee (Legal) delegates pointed to several aspects which they said needed further work or were cause for concern.

Concerted efforts would be needed to avert any reversal of the commendable gains achieved in Africa’s Great Lakes region thus far, the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy told the Security Council today.

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.