Increasing reports of sexual violence and human trafficking in Ukraine — allegedly committed against women and children in the context of massive displacement and ongoing fighting — are raising “all the red flags” about a potential protection crisis, the Executive Director of the United Nations gender agency warned the Security Council today.
The United Nations team in Myanmar remains alarmed by deteriorating humanitarian conditions amid continued fighting, particularly in the country’s south-east and north-west. Across Myanmar, more than 900,000 people are displaced, including more than 560,000 people who remain uprooted since the military takeover in February 2021.
Somalia faces a risk of famine in six areas through June 2022 if the rainy season from April to June fails as predicted, if food prices continue to rise, and if humanitarian assistance is not scaled up to reach the most vulnerable populations. An estimated 4.9 million people across Somalia have been impacted.
The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:
Continuing its emergency special session today, the General Assembly took the extraordinary step of adopting a resolution that suspended the Russian Federation’s membership in the Human Rights Council, doing so in the wake of recently revealed images and testimonies of atrocities perpetrated against the civilian population of Ukraine.
The United Nations takes note of the decision by Yemen’s President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi to irrevocably delegate his full powers to a newly formed Presidential Leadership Council and stands ready to work with that Council and the Yemeni parties for a sustainable, inclusive settlement of the conflict.
Humanitarian needs across the Sahel region are at unprecedented levels due to escalating conflict, climate change, rising food insecurity and record-high food prices, United Nations officials report, saying that more than 30 million men, women and children in the Sahel will need assistance and protection in 2022.
Humanitarian needs in Sudan are rising to unprecedented levels due to the economic crisis, prolonged dry spells and erratic rainfall. The World Food Programme and Food and Agriculture Organization predict that the number of people facing acute food insecurity could double from 9.8 million in 2021 by September.
In an impassioned address to the Security Council today detailing the death and destruction caused by Russian forces in Moscow’s war against Ukraine, the President of that country challenged members to uphold international law or disband the United Nations, calling for the convening of a global conference in Kyiv to determine how to reform the world security system.
Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks to the Security Council meeting on Ukraine, in New York today:
