Security Council

Delivering the year’s last scheduled Security Council briefing on the Middle East situation, a senior United Nations official said today that “credible progress in the search for peace between Israel and the Palestinians is more urgent than ever, but remains elusive in a context of tensions on the ground, deep mistrust between the parties, and volatile regional dynamics”.

Welcoming Burundi’s progress towards peace, stability and development, yet noting continuing human rights violations with grave concern, the Security Council decided today to extend the mandate of the United Nations mission in that country for another year.

The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Vitaly Churkin (Russian Federation):

The international community’s commitment to enduring engagement with Afghanistan through its transition and transformation — voiced at the Bonn Conference on 5 December — was the subject of a presidential statement and a debate in the Security Council today.

On 30 November 2011, the Security Council Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee adopted revised Guidelines for the Conduct of its Work. The Guidelines were revised in compliance with paragraph 43 of Security Council resolution 1989 (2011), which directed the Committee “as a matter of priority, to review its guidelines with respect to the provisions of [that] resolution”.

On 30 November 2011, the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1988 (2011) adopted Guidelines for the Conduct of its Work. The Guidelines were adopted in compliance with paragraph 26 of Security Council resolution 1988 (2011), which urged the Committee “to ensure that there are fair and clear procedures for the conduct of its work” and directed it to establish guidelines accordingly.

On 16 December 2011, the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1970 (2011) concerning Libya decided to remove the names of the following entities from its List of Individuals and Entities subject to the travel ban and/or assets freeze: Central Bank of Libya; Libyan Foreign Bank.

The following Security Council press statement was issued on 15 December by Council President Vitaly Churkin (Russian Federation):

The individuals sought by the International Criminal Court for genocide and crimes against humanity in Darfur were still allegedly committing similar acts, but the execution of the arrest warrants against them “will end the crimes in Darfur”, the Court’s Chief Prosecutor told Security Council members today.

Welcoming the encouraging progress made so far in the fully fledged negotiations on Cyprus, as well as the prospect of further decisive progress in the coming months towards a comprehensive and durable settlement resulting from those talks, the Security Council today extended the mandate of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) for a further period ending 19 July 2012.