Deeply concerned about long-term conflicts, terrorism and sectarian tension in the Persian Gulf, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, expert briefers and ministerial‑level representatives called for the entire region’s security to be addressed in a coherent manner during a Security Council video teleconference meeting today.
Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks, as delivered, at the Security Council meeting on the “Maintenance of international peace and security: comprehensive review of the situation in the Persian Gulf region”, today:
The United Nations human rights office called today for urgent action to address the dire situation of migrants attempting to cross the central Mediterranean Sea in search of safety in Europe, and to tackle the shocking conditions they face in Libya, at sea, and frequently, upon their reception in Europe.
The recent normalization of relations between Israel and two Arab countries presents an opportunity to re-engage Palestine and Israel in negotiations towards a two-State solution to their long-standing conflict, a senior United Nations mediator told the Security Council today.
The Human Rights Council held an urgent debate on conditions in Belarus, with the High Commissioner for Human Rights, in a statement, noting the continuation of mass demonstrations and expressing alarm over hundreds of claims of torture and ill treatment while in police custody. She urged authorities to facilitate independent, prompt and impartial investigations.
A record 13.4 million people in Burkina Faso, Mali and western Niger need humanitarian assistance and protection, as fast-growing crises spread across the Central Sahel region. The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that the number of internally displaced people has grown 20-fold to 1.4 million in less than two years.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) are helping the Government of Cambodia with distance learning programmes for the more than 3 million students who are out of school due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In Yemen, the United Nations and its aid partners report they have distributed emergency food, hygiene kits and other essential items to over 7,600 families impacted by deadly floods and torrential rains that destroyed homes, crops and livestock in July and August. An estimated 62,000 families have been affected.
The COVID-19 pandemic will push 47 million more women and girls below the poverty line by 2021, reversing decades of progress to eradicate extreme poverty, according to new data released today by the United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women.
Africa Amnesty Month begins today. Linked to the Silencing the Guns in Africa by 2020 initiative, the disarmament effort is designed to reduce the flows of illicit small arms and light weapons, allowing anyone to hand in illegal weapons throughout the month of September.
