Security Council

Despite the conclusion of efforts to evacuate the eastern districts of Aleppo, the situation in Syria remained catastrophic, a senior United Nations humanitarian official told the Security Council this morning.

On 14 December 2016, the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1533 (2004) concerning the Democratic Republic of the Congo met with the Coordinator of the Group of Experts on the Democratic Republic of the Congo to discuss the midterm report of the Group submitted pursuant to paragraph 9 of resolution 2293 (2016).

Authorities in the Gambia must respect the results of the recent presidential election, the Security Council said today, while also commending the initiatives of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in support of that goal.

Expressing outrage at the “unacceptable and escalating” violence in Syria, the Security Council today reiterated its demand that all parties, in particular the Syrian authorities, immediately comply with their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law.

The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Román Oyarzun Marchesi (Spain):

The Security Council condemned in the strongest terms today all instances of human trafficking in areas affected by armed conflict as it heard from more than 70 speakers during a day-long open debate on the subject.

Alarmed by the continuing deterioration of the humanitarian situation in the Syrian city of Aleppo, the Security Council demanded today that all parties ensure safe, immediate and unhindered access for the monitoring of evacuations from the city’s eastern districts and for the protection of civilians throughout the country.

Members of the Security Council were briefed this afternoon by Chairs of its subsidiary bodies, reporting on the Committee’s activities concerning, among other topics, Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/Da’esh), Al-Qaida, the use of sanctions and the need for Committee reform.

While great progress had been made in Afghanistan, a better future for that country would not be possible without an inclusive peace process that involved Afghans from all strata of society, the Special Representative of the Secretary General for Afghanistan and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) told the Security Council today.

Reiterating its request to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia to complete its work and facilitate its closure as expeditiously as possible, the Security Council today unanimously adopted resolution 2329 (2016).