With steadily increasing food prices beginning to squeeze the world’s poorest people — who were already spending nearly all their income on basic staples — the top United Nations food security official today appealed to the international community and multilateral agencies to be ready to respond to market volatility and supply shocks affecting the nutrition, lives and livelihoods of the most vulnerable communities.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay has condemned the response of a number of Governments in the Middle East and North Africa to the legitimate demands of their people as illegal and excessively heavy handed. She is particularly troubled by targeted attacks of security forces on certain professions.

The Security Council held consultations this morning following a request from Libya’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations. After that, Council members agreed to hold a private meeting at 3 p.m., on “peace and security in Africa”, at which Council members expect to receive a briefing from the Secretariat.

Last night, the Secretary-General cut short a trip to Los Angeles, telling an audience there that the changes under way in the Middle East are historic. Whether in Libya or elsewhere, he said, our message must be consistent and strong: no violence. The time for change is now, and the UN stands ready to assist.

Robert Serry, the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, briefed the Security Council this morning and conveyed the Secretary-General’s profound concern at the continued impasse, saying the longer it persists, the greater the worry that the modest achievements made so far will unravel.

Mexico’s signature of the Nagoya Protocol to the Convention on Biological Diversity was not only a demonstration of its commitment to biodiversity protection, but also of the importance of signing for the country itself and the world, Environment Minister Juan Rafael Elvira said at a Headquarters press conference today.

Investing in the health, education and empowerment of adolescents was a powerful way to create a stronger future, experts from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and its partners said at Headquarters today. “Adolescence is a pivot point,” said UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Hilde Frafjord Johnson at a press conference to launch the agency’s flagship annual report, The State of the World’s Children, subtitled “Adolescence: an Age of Opportunity”.

The Secretary-General is deeply concerned by the deteriorating situation in Côte d'Ivoire, including the armed clashes in Abidjan, as well as the fighting in the west between Forces Nouvelles elements and forces loyal to Mr. Laurent Gbagbo. He also deplores the latest threats by Mr. Gbagbo’s camp against the United Nations, including the recent call to impede the movement of peacekeepers in Abidjan beginning today.

Stressing the urgent need to extend basic schooling to all children, representatives of the United Nations and civil society organizations this afternoon welcomed over $16 million of private-sector grants and appealed for greater use of the resources and expertise of business to reach international goals in education.

The Secretary-General travelled to Washington, D.C., where he will meet with President Barack Obama, and they will discuss further steps to deal with the situation in Libya. He will also visit the Holocaust Museum, where he will warn that it is once more time to live up to our commitment to the words “never again”.