Tag Archives: UN
8 February 2015
In December 2014, the United Nations reported that in the previous months hundreds of civilians had been killed in the struggle between armed militias in Libya, and that the acts of the militias might amount to crimes against humanity. It seems like a déjà vu. In February 2011, a popular uprising started in Libya and was brutally repressed by the regime of Colonel Qadhafi, who was eventually charged with committing crimes against humanity. The UN Security Council decided to authorize the use of military force on humanitarian grounds, in order to protect civilians. The ensuing NATO operation, which lasted from March to October 2011, resulted in the fall of the Qadhafi regime and in the establishment of a transitional government, which pledged full respect for human rights and international law. So, what has gone wrong – and what responsibility does the international community carry? (more…)
28 January 2015
On 21 January, Sir Mark Lyall Grant, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the UK Mission to the UN, stated at the UN Special event to mark the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the German Nazi extermination camp in Auschwitz-Birkenau that: ‘Where a state is failing to act to protect its own citizens or, worse, is actively persecuting and killing them, the international community has an equal and shared responsibility to do all it can to protect populations at risk.’
Source: Statement by Ambassador Lyall Grant of the UK Mission to the UN, at the UN Special event to mark the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the German Nazi extermination camp in Auschwitz-Birkenau | 21 January 2015
21 January 2015
The United Nations has reported progress in the fight against Ebola, one year since the outbreak of the virus in West Africa. On Tuesday 20 January, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon announced dramatic improvements in three of the most affected states. According to data from the UN World Health Organization (WHO) the three most affected countries – Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia – reported their lowest weekly numbers of confirmed cases in months. However, Mr. Ban urged the international community for continued support. (more…)
Source: UN News Centre | ‘No room for complacency’ UN says, urging vigilance in Ebola fight as West Africa marks progress
12 January 2015
A joint operation by UN troops and the Congolese army (FARDC) took control of the main bases used by an armed group actively threatening security and stability in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s long-troubled eastern region. FARDC troops backed by attack helicopters and the Force Intervention Brigade of the UN Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) took control of bases used by the National Liberation Front, known by the French acronym FNL, in an area of restive South Kivu Province. (more…)
Source: UN News Centre | UN Mission chief applauds joint operations against armed groups in eastern DR Congo
7 January 2015
Former head of the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER), Anthony Banbury, pointed to significant progress in tackling the outbreak since he was appointed in September 2013, but stressed the ‘heavy responsibility’ on the UN. (more…)
Source: UN News Centre | Outgoing head of UN Ebola mission sums up progress in ‘big battle’ with outbreak