Despite slow progress in peace talks and a worsening humanitarian crisis in Syria, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the commitment by the Government and opposition to two upcoming meetings of the Constitutional Committee presents a real opportunity for the warring sides to advance the political process, the Secretary-General’s Deputy Special Envoy for Syria told the Security Council during a video conference meeting today.
Iraq must immediately address the ongoing financial and economic crisis to build domestic resilience and prevent the country from becoming an arena for foreign‑Power rivalries, the top United Nations official in that country told the Security Council during a 24 November videoconference meeting, urging the Government, Parliament, political parties and others to step up to the plate collectively in such efforts.
The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Inga Rhonda King (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines):
The recent consensus among Somalia’s leaders on a plan to hold forthcoming parliamentary and presidential elections through indirect voting ended a two-year political stalemate between the Federal Government and federal member states, the senior United Nations official in that country told the Security Council during a 23 November videoconference meeting today, emphasizing the importance of maintaining that momentum.
Anticipating intensified terrorist activities during the COVID-19 pandemic, Security Council counter-terrorism subcommittees are striving to maintain continuity in their work despite severe restrictions, the Chairs of those Council subsidiary bodies said today in their periodic briefing to Council members.
After many years of oppression, division, chaos, misery and conflict, Libyans are coming together to chart the way forward to preserve the country’s unity and reassert its sovereignty, the head of the United Nations special political mission there told the Security Council during a videoconference meeting on 19 November, painting a cautious but optimistic future for the war-torn State.
Increasing demolitions of Palestinian property — and the announcement of 1,200 new construction projects in East Jerusalem — are now the backdrop for a worrying spike in COVID-19 cases in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the senior United Nations official for Middle East peace told a Security Council videoconference meeting today, while calling upon the parties concerned to cooperate urgently on health and economic matters.
The General Assembly concluded its debate on Security Council reform today, with delegates calling for limits on the use of the veto by its permanent members and improved geographical distribution, particularly for Africa, on the 15‑member organ tasked with upholding international peace and security.
Eight individuals so far have been sanctioned for obstructing implementation of the 2015 Mali Peace and Reconciliation Agreement, the Chair of the Committee charged with overseeing the punitive measures told the Security Council today.
The United Nations will assess, in early 2021, the support provided by its peacekeeping mission in Mali to the joint counter-terrorism force for Africa’s Sahel region, the head of the Organization’s peace operations told the Security Council during a 16 November videoconference meeting.
