18 February 2014
Ban Ki-moon calls for concerted action by the United Nations and regional organisations to help the people of the Central African Republic
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for solidarity and concerted action by the United Nations and regional organisations to help the people of Central African Republic (CAR), warning that ‘dark clouds of mass atrocities’ are looming over the nation.
Thousands of people are estimated to have been killed in the conflict in the CAR. The conflict has also left an estimated 2.5 million people – well over half of the country’s 4.6 million residents – in need of humanitarian assistance.
Ban Ki-Moon said: ‘[o]ur commitment to protect civilians is only as meaningful as the political, military and financial muscle deployed to defend them’ and that ‘[t]his will be a crucial opportunity to fortify our collective efforts – a chance to show that cooperation between the UN, AU, EU and others can help the people of the CAR at their time of need.’