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UN getting closer to agreeing on Security Council reform: Lajcak

UN getting closer to agreeing on Security Council reform: Lajcak

Miroslav Lajcak

Miroslav Lajcak

By Arul Louis,

United Nations : UN General Assembly President Miroslav Lajcak has said that the Security Council reform process has made headway in the past year and “we are getting closer to agreeing” on what it should be like.

Emphasising the need for a reform, he told reporters on Thursday that the inability of the Security Council to unite and act overshadows the positive work of the UN and the entire system “gets criticised harshly”.

Therefore, the importance of the reform process “goes well beyond the role of the Security Council”, he said.

Lajcak said that he had tried to ensure that the reform process was a credible one “and I think we succeeded on that”.

“I think here, the views of different member states would differ,” he conceded. “For some, we went very far; for some others, this was not far enough.”

The Intergovernmental Negotiations (IGN) as the reform process is known, was unable during the current session of the General Assembly to agree on a negotiating text, the most fundamental requirement for meaningful negotiations and in June rolled over the task to next session that begins later this month.

Lajcak appointed Ambassadors Kaha Imnadze of Georgia and Lana Nusseibeh of the United Arab Emirates as co-chairs of the IGN to revitalise the process stalled for over a decade.

“The current composition of the UN Security Council is not representative because it does not reflect the realities of 2018, of the 21st century. It copies the realities of 1945. So therefore, the call for reform is just, and it is not denied,” he said.

Despite a universal acceptance of the need for change, the reform process faced practical issues “like, if expanded, to how many members? What about veto rights? What about permanent, non-permanent, semi-permanent?”

But he added that the UN members “have to feel that the Security Council represents them all and they have to identify with the work of the Security Council.

“And this will not be the case for as long as there are important countries that believe that they are not adequately represented, or continents, and obviously starting with Africa.”

Lajcak said that he was certain that the member states would not allow the reform process to become a “routine question” and go around in circles.

“Honestly, I was taken aback by the level of emotions and also the level of frustration when we started the discussions about Security Council reform during this session,” he added.

“The Member States have very clear, very strong positions, and many of them will make sure that this will not become a routine.”

(Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in)

—IANS

UN warns against full-scale military assault in Syria’s Idilib

UN warns against full-scale military assault in Syria’s Idilib

SyriaUnited Nations : UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday expressed concern over the “growing risks of a humanitarian catastrophe” in the event of a full-scale military operation in the northern Idlib province of Syria.

Guterres’ statement on Wednesday followed the briefing a day before by the director of operations for UN humanitarian affairs John Ging to the Security Council. Ging warned such a government offensive in Idlib “has the potential to create a humanitarian emergency at a scale not yet seen” in the seven-year civil war, Xinhua news agency reported.

Speaking through his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric, Guterres reaffirmed that any use of chemical weapons is totally unacceptable, in an apparent response to allegations that emerged recently of possible staging of chemical attacks in the province.

The United States, Britain and France have warned that they will respond “appropriately” to any chemical weapons attack in Idlib, a warning repeated at the Security Council on Tuesday by the three countries.

Russia, for its part, said Syrian rebels are preparing a chemical attack, which Moscow said the West would use to justify a strike against the Syrian forces.

Guterres called on the guarantors of the Astana process, namely Russia, Iran and Turkey, to step up efforts to find a peaceful solution to the situation in Idlib, the last remaining de-escalation zone, one of the four that the process helped to create.

Complementary to the Geneva talks, the Astana process kicked off in early 2017 with a meeting providing for indirect talks between the Syrian government and rebel factions in the neutral Kazakh capital. In tandem with the Geneva talks, the process aims to achieve a peaceful and stable solution to the conflict in Syria.

Concluding his statement, Guterres urged all parties to take all necessary measures to safeguard civilian lives, allow freedom of movement, and protect civilian infrastructure, including medical and educational facilities, in accordance with international humanitarian law and human rights law.

Reports have said the Syrian government is gearing up for an offensive in Idlib province, which is home to nearly 3 million people and has a large al-Qaida presence in addition to Syrian rebel groups.

—IANS

Saudi-led coalition to respond to UN Yemen report

Saudi-led coalition to respond to UN Yemen report

Saudi ArabiaCairo: The Saudi-led coalition said Tuesday it will respond to a UN report that suggested war crimes may have been committed in war-torn Yemen.

The coalition “will take an appropriate stance on the report after a legal review of it,” the coalition said in a statement.

UN experts earlier Tuesday said that individuals in the Yemeni government and coalition forces conducted attacks in Yemen that may amount to war crimes.

“The Group of Experts have reasonable grounds to believe that individuals in the Government of Yemen and the coalition may have conducted attacks in violation of the principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution that may amount to war crimes,” said the 41-page report issued by the UN experts, which was mandated by UN Human Rights Council.

Yemen has been wracked by conflict since 2014 when Shia Houthi rebels overran much of the country.

The conflict escalated one year later when Saudi Arabia and its allies launched a wide-ranging military campaign aimed at rolling back Houthi gains in Yemen.

Riyadh accuses the rebel group of serving as a proxy force for Shia Iran, Saudi Arabia’s arch-foe in the region.

The coalition airstrikes, according to the report, caused “most direct civilian casualties after hitting residential areas, markets, funerals, weddings, detention facilities, civilian boats, and medical facilities.”

Some 6,660 civilians were killed and 10,563 injured in the Yemeni conflict since March 2015, the UN Human Rights Office said and warned that the real figures are likely to be “significantly higher.”

The report also highlighted the crimes of Houthi forces, including killing of civilians and child recruitment.

—AA

UN official urges Israel to allow entry of badly-needed fuel into Gaza

UN official urges Israel to allow entry of badly-needed fuel into Gaza

United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator Jamie McGoldrick

United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator Jamie McGoldrick

Jerusalem : United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator Jamie McGoldrick has called on the Israeli authorities to immediately allow the entry of UN-purchased emergency fuel into the Gaza Strip.

“Restricting the entry of emergency fuel to Gaza is a dangerous practice, with grave consequences on the rights of people in Gaza,” said McGoldrick in a press statement issued Wednesday by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in the occupied Palestinian territory.

“The well-being of two million people, half of whom are children, is at stake. It is unacceptable that Palestinians in Gaza are repeatedly deprived of the most basic elements of a dignified life,” he added.

The fuel, which is available and awaiting entry by the Israeli authorities, is needed to power backup generators required in the context of Gaza’s chronic energy crisis.

Since August 2, the Israeli authorities have prohibited the entry of fuel into the Gaza Strip, in the context of tightened import and export restrictions. This followed an early restriction on the entry of fuel that lasted from 16 – 24 July. According to the Israeli authorities, the intensified measures come in response to the launching of incendiary kites from Gaza into Israel, which has caused extensive property damage.

“Gaza desperately needs longer-term solutions so we can move past this cycle of repeated or worsening crises, including that Palestinian authorities prioritize the provision of fuel for essential services,” McGoldrick said, adding: “Until that happens, Israel must reverse the recent restrictions, including on the entry of emergency fuel, and donors must step in and fund emergency fuel, in order to avoid a disease outbreak or other major public health concern.”

The recent developments have exacerbated the existing humanitarian crisis caused by the Israeli 11-year blockade of the Gaza, raising concerns over collective punishment and human rights violations, alongside an unresolved internal Palestinian political divide.

—AB/UNA-OIC

UN: 20,000 Yemeni families benefit from UAE grant

UN: 20,000 Yemeni families benefit from UAE grant

20,000 Yemeni families benefit from UAE grantAden : The United Arab Emirates grant to support the “Yemen: Humanitarian Response Plan 2018” of the UN has benefited over 20,000 Yemeni families, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has said.

The remarks came during a meeting between UAE Humanitarian Operations Director for Yemen Saeed Al Kaabi, UNHCR’s Representative to Yemen Ayman Gharaibeh and Head of UNHCR Sub Office in Yemen Jacqueline Parlevliet, according to the report on Tuesday.

Parlevliet praised the UAE’s humanitarian initiatives and efforts in Yemen through its humanitarian arm, the Emirates Red Crescent (ERC).

The agency aims to provide food, shelter, water, electricity and healthcare to those affected, especially underprivileged Yemeni families.

Al Kaabi said that the UAE will help ease the burdens of Yemeni people, while pointing out that the coming period will witness more humanitarian programmes and development and services projects in the country’s liberated areas.

He added that the UAE’s leadership prioritised its efforts to alleviate the suffering of Yemenis and improve their humanitarian conditions and directed the ERC to continue providing urgent humanitarian and development aid, which accompanied the liberation of Red Sea Coast, to ensure the stability of local residents.

—IANS/WAM