Syria

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) warned today that the deteriorating drought conditions in Somalia could displace more than 1 million people by April if urgent action is not taken now.  IOM noted that water scarcity in some parts of the country is the worst in 40 years.

United Nations international experts arrived today in Peru to carry out a rapid assessment of the social and environmental impacts of an oil spill disaster.  The team started working today and expects to continue for two weeks.

Briefing the Security Council today, the High Commissioner for Human Rights said that the situation that now faces women human rights defenders, and prospects for women’s full participation in shaping and building peace, are vastly worse than they were before the pandemic got under way.

In Yemen, the United Nations Mission to Support the Hudaydah Agreement (UNMHA) has expressed its concern at the allegations of the militarization of the Hudaydah ports.  The Mission has made a request to undertake an inspection and reminds all parties that the ports are a crucial lifeline for millions of Yemenis.

Due to persisting gaps, inconsistencies and discrepancies that remain unresolved, Syria’s declaration of its chemical weapons programme still cannot be considered accurate and complete in accordance with the Chemical Weapons Convention, the United Nations disarmament chief told the Security Council today, urging that country to cooperate with the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) without delay.

The Security Council today renewed the mandate of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) in the Golan for six months, until 30 June 2022, requesting the Secretary-General to ensure that the mission has the required capacity and resources to fulfil its mandate in a safe and secure way.

Amid a worsening humanitarian situation in Syria, the Security Council must focus on its stated aim of maintaining international peace and security instead of tending to political objectives and geopolitical rivalries, Syrian-born paediatrician Amani Ballour told its 15 members today, as the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy called for a “step-by-step, step-for-step approach” to advancing the political process.

Marking International Human Solidarity Day, the Secretary-General said that hunger is no longer about lack of food, but largely a man-made disaster, concentrated in countries affected by large-scale, protracted conflict.  He urged the international community to do everything in its power to tackle both hunger and conflict.

Amid the continued humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, the World Food Programme (WFP) reports that it provided food to nearly 150,000 people and cash assistance to 6,000 on 14 December.  Some 100 food shops and other businesses have closed in Jalalabad city due to currency devaluation and high food and commodity prices.

Syria’s declaration of its chemical weapons programme cannot be considered accurate and complete due to the identified gaps, inconsistencies and discrepancies, the United Nations disarmament chief told the Security Council today, urging that country’s thorough cooperation with the Technical Secretariat of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).