20 May 2014

UN report: force ‘almost never used’ by peacekeepers in order to protect civilians

A report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services on the implementation of mandates to protect civilians in United Nations peacekeeping operations found that ‘peacekeeping missions with protection of civilians mandates focus on prevention and mitigation activities and force is almost never used to protect civilians under attack’. (para. 79) (more…)

Source: UNGA | UN Doc A/68/787 | Report on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight Services | 7 March 2014
Source: Reuters | U.N. study finds peacekeepers avoid using force to protect civilians

24 January 2014

Security Council calls on member states to deploy peacekeepers in Mali, but stresses primary responsibility of government

Noting that ‘terrorists and other armed groups’ appear to have gained the ability to operate in northern Mali, the United Nations Security Council called in a Presidential Statement on all member states to support the full deployment of UN peacekeepers in the country. It stressed the importance of achieving without further delays the complete operational deployment of the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali to stabilise key population centres and protect civilians. However, the Council also noted that the primary responsibility for securing the country rests with the government.

The Mission is to ‘continue to support the re-establishment of State authority throughout the country and the promotion of the rule of law and promotion of human rights,’ the Presidential statement added.

Source: UN News Centre | Mali: with terrorists regrouping, Security Council urges full deployment of ‘blue helmets’

25 February 2013

UN invokes immunity in response to compensation claims in relation to cholera believed to be caused by peacekeepers

The United Nations (UN) has invoked its immunity to deny claims for compensation from 5.000 victims of the Haiti cholera epidemic, believed to have been caused by UN peacekeepers that imported the infection into the country.

The reigning scientific theory about the origin of the epidemic is that peacekeepers from Nepal imported the cholera and, through a faulty sanitation system at their base, infected a tributary of the country’s largest river. The cholera epidemic has killed almost 8.000 people and has stricken hundreds of thousands more.

Source: The New York Times | U.N. Rejects Claim for Direct Compensation to Victims of Cholera Epidemic in Haiti
Source: The Guardian | UN will not compensate Haiti cholera victims, Ban Ki-moon tells president