The Security Council today decided to renew the mandate of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) in the Golan for six months, until 31 December 2023, while requesting the Secretary-General to ensure that it has the required capacity and resources to fulfil its mandate in a safe manner.
Describing a worsening humanitarian and security situation in Syria, amid an uptick in violence in the north-west of the country and with 90 per cent of Syrians living below the poverty line, senior United Nations officials called for the Humanitarian Response Plan to be fully funded and the cross-border aid mechanism to be renewed for another 12 months, as they briefed the Security Council today.
The following statement was issued today by the Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that, halfway into 2023, it has only received 20 per cent of the $54.8 billion needed to help the one in 22 people globally that require assistance. Further, unequal funding across emergencies has challenged the Office’s ability to respond to surging needs.
Amid ongoing violence perpetrated by armed groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Security Council today renewed the sanctions regime imposed on that country and extended until 1 August 2024 the mandate of the Group of Experts overseeing its implementation.
The Security Council today unanimously adopted a resolution renewing its authorization of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) by six months until December in support of the Government’s preparation for phase two and the Mission’s troop drawdown.
A senior United Nations official today warned the Security Council of the alarming spike in violence across the northern and central occupied West Bank, leading to numerous Palestinian and Israeli casualties.
The withdrawal of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) must not create security vacuums and jeopardize the protection of civilians, a senior United Nations official told the Security Council today, as speakers called for a gradual, responsible and conditions-based transition.
In Syria, a United Nations cross-line convoy of 10 trucks carrying 220 metric tons of humanitarian assistance for 22,000 people crossed from Aleppo to Sarmada on 23 June. While an important complement, the cross-line operation cannot substitute cross-border aid that reaches 2.7 million Syrians each month.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres announced today the appointment of Haoliang Xu of China as Under-Secretary-General and Associate Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Mr. Xu will succeed Usha Rao-Monari of India, to whom the Secretary-General has expressed his appreciation for her service and commitment during her tenure.
