Tunisia

On 14 September, UN Secretary-General António Guterres appointed Arnaud Peral of France as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Tunisia, with the host Government’s approval.

The new Permanent Representative of Tunisia to the United Nations, Tarek Ladeb, presented his credentials to the Secretariat today.

The Secretary-General expressed concern over the number of restrictions and attacks against journalists, as many face harassment, intimidation, killing and arbitrary detention.  He called on Governments to immediately release journalists detained while exercising their profession, stressing:  “No democracy can function without press freedom.”

Thérèse Gastaut, a former Spokeswoman for the United Nations in Geneva, passed away last night.  She ably served the Organization for 37 years and held positions in the Department of Public Information in New York, Geneva and Brussels.  Thérèse had the United Nations in her blood and in her heart.

The new Permanent Representative of Tunisia to the United Nations, Kais Kabtani, presented his credentials to the Secretariat today.

Armed attacks and insecurity continue to affect parts of northern, eastern and central Burkina Faso, driving forced displacement and increasing the number of people in need of protection and assistance.  Some 486,000 people have been displaced, up from 80,000 in January.

Acknowledging the 1,000th person in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to survive Ebola after treatment, the head of the emergency relief operation, in a joint statement with WHO, WFP, UNICEF and Save the Children, commended the country’s health leadership and the efforts of local health workers and partners.

Moncef Baati, the new Permanent Representative of Tunisia to the United Nations, presented his credentials to UN Secretary-General António Guterres today.

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks to the General Assembly remembrance ceremony for Beji Caid Essebsi, late President of Tunisia, in New York today:

The following statement by Secretary-General António Guterres was issued today: