Warning that the recent deadly explosions of pagers and walkie-talkies in Lebanon marked a dangerous turning point, senior United Nations officials called for immediate de-escalation and ceasefire between all parties before a devastating war engulfs the entire Middle East.
All key stakeholders in Syria’s 13-year conflict must engage with the United Nations in a single format as the country remains in “a profound state of high conflict and territorial division,” the Organization’s senior mediator told the Security Council today, rejecting “piecemeal” diplomacy conducted by different groups.
The relentless expansion of Israeli settlements and escalating violence in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, are deeply alarming, the top United Nations official for the Middle East told the Security Council today, as delegates urged the organ to enforce its own demand for the occupier to cease such illegal activities.
A new wave of large-scale fighting between the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces broke out in the city of El Fasher on 12 September, a senior UN official told the Security Council today, reporting that hundreds of thousands of people trapped in the capital of North Darfur, Sudan, are now “at risk of the consequences of mass violence”.
The Security Council today examined the impacts of the Taliban’s new morality law on women and girls in Afghanistan, with speakers calling on the de facto authorities to reverse course and strengthen their engagement with the international community.
Underscoring that the only credible measure of progress is the actual condition on the ground in Gaza, the head of United Nations humanitarian efforts in the Strip told the Security Council today that sufficient political will is sorely needed to ensure effective humanitarian operations amid restrictions, security incidents and continued suffering.
Any transfer of weapons and ammunition must comply with the applicable international legal framework, the United Nations disarmament chief told the Security Council today, as delegates warned against such arms fuelling the Russian Federation’s war on Ukraine.
Amid rising regional tensions, a national humanitarian crisis and a looming environmental disaster, all stakeholders must put Yemen first, the United Nations official charged with mediating a sustainable resolution to the conflict in that country told the Security Council today.
The Security Council today extended sanctions against Sudan — including asset freezes, travel bans and an arms embargo — until 12 September 2025.
The ongoing conflict in Sudan has worsened the humanitarian crisis in Darfur and destabilized the region, the Security Council heard today from the head of the subsidiary body concerning that country, who also noted conflicting parties’ use of heavy weaponry in the capital city of North Darfur.
