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Tag: UN

  • UN warns of more attacks on voter registration sites

    UN warns of more attacks on voter registration sites

    The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) warned of increased attacks on voter registration sites in Afghanistan as the country prepares for parliamentary elections set for October.

    According to UNAMA report, 23 election-related incidents including coordinated attacks on voter registration sites have been recorded since April 14, the beginning of the registration process.

    Tadamichi Yamamoto, the UN secretary general’s special representative for Afghanistan, described them as “attacks on democracy.’’

    Based on the UN findings, the victims have mainly been civilians, with a total of 271 people killed or injured in the attacks.

    According to the report, the deadliest election-related attack took place in a voter registration centre in Kabul’s western neighbourhood of Dasht-e-Barche – a mainly Shiite dominated area – on April 22, leaving 60 dead.

    Islamic State claimed the attack through its official mouthpiece, Amaq News Agency.

    Nearly 75 per cent of the incidents have taken place in mosques and schools that are used as voter registration centres, according to the UN report.

    More than 40 per cent of polling stations for Afghan parliamentary elections could be subject to security risks affecting voter participation, an election monitor said in late March.

     

  • UN condemns Kaduna killings, demands justice for victims

    The Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, has expressed concern over persistent violence in parts of Nigeria.

    Guterres therefore called on all stakeholders to work together to bring peace and stability to the country.

    The UN chief said this in a statement by his spokesman, Stéphane Dujarric, on Tuesday.

    He was reacting to the attacks recorded in Gwaska village in Kaduna State.

    The statement read, “The Secretary-General strongly condemns the attack on May 5, 2018 in Gwaska village, Kaduna State, north-western Nigeria, which resulted in scores of casualties.

    “The Secretary-General expresses his deepest condolences to the bereaved families and to the government and people of Nigeria, and wishes a speedy recovery to the injured.

    “The Secretary-General calls for those responsible for this attack to be swiftly brought to justice.

    “The Secretary-General also expresses his continued concern over the persisting violence and urges all actors to work together to bring peace and stability to the country.”

    The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Uche Secondus, had sent a petition to Guterres accusing President Muhammadu Buhari of human rights violation.

    Secondus had in the petition also accused Buhari of allegedly being behind the spate of herdsmen and farmers clashes in the Middle Belt of Nigeria.

    Also, the National President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, Dr. Felix Omobude, on Tuesday bemoaned the spate of violence in the country, adding that Nigeria was “degenerating into a failed state.”

    Omobude lamented that the killing of unsuspecting Nigerians by armed herdsmen and other criminals had gone unabated such that it had become a daily affair.

    The PFN president spoke during an interview with journalists in Benin, the Edo State capital.

    He said, “There is hardly any day that you do not hear of bloodshed, killings either by Boko Haram, through suicide bombing, or herdsmen killings across the country. The PFN is worried as Nigeria is degenerating into a failed state.

    “Whereas we have a government in office, it appears that this situation is overwhelming our security forces.”

    The cleric, who is also the founder of the New Covenant Gospel Church, called on government at all levels to ensure the safety and security of Nigerians, irrespective of their ethnicity or religion.

    Omobude said, “We hold the current administration to their campaign promises of change for the better. We call on the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and his government and the ruling party to take a look at the promises made to Nigerians and make every effort to fulfil them.”

    The PFN president faulted the claim by President Buhari that those responsible for the killings were not herdsmen but fighters who had infiltrated the country from outside.

    He also described the suspected herdsmen responsible for the killings in the country as terrorists.

    Omobude said, “We are amazed that our President can announce that in the UK and the US and has not said it at home. But even if that was the truth, if someone is using my name to perpetrate evil, I should fight it and stop him from doing so.

    “So, if these people (herdsmen) are coming from outside, it is the government’s responsibility to check the borders and fish them out. It is not my responsibility. It (government) should do the needful.”

    He said, “Honestly, whatever language you use to describe their activity, it all points to terrorism. What do you say? People go out and say that they are cattle rearers only to spring out and bring AK47 rifles, kill owners of the farm, rape their wives and disappear into the thin air. So, it is terrorism.”

    The cleric, therefore, called on the President to take urgent steps to address the insecurity in the country.

    When asked if the President had not done enough to check the state insecurity, the PFN president said, “I will leave that to Nigerians to decide. What the PFN is saying is that it is the responsibility of government to safeguard the people. So, if it were enough, we would not have been crying.

    “The cry is all over the place, across party lines. When we are dealing with this issue, we should not be thinking about parties.

    “We want it stopped; it does not really matter to us which party is ruling. We want good government; we want peace and security for all Nigerians.”

  • Benue groups to drag FG before UN, ICC over incessant killings

    Sequel to the incessant killings by suspected Fulani herdsmen in Benue State, a coalition of socio-cultural groups in the state, comprising Mdgzou U Tiv, Idoma National Forum and Omi’Ngede, have resolved to drag the Federal Government before the United Nations.

    Also, a popular lawyer from the state, Prof. Agbo Madaki, has said that in addition to the efforts by the groups, the spate of killings in the state had left himself and other prominent persons in the state with no option but to drag the concerned authorities before the International Criminal Court at The Hague, Netherlands.

    They, therefore, called on the international bodies to carry out an immediate and an independent investigation into the “heinous” killings of Benue people, which they described as an act of terrorism.

    The groups also accused the Federal Government of being complicit in what they described as an attempt to wipe out the Tiv nation in the country.

    Speaking to newsmen on Friday, the President General, Mdgzou U Tiv, Chief Edward Ujege, said the group was already collating materials detailing the activities of herdsmen attacks in the state, which he said had led to the death of hundreds of people and destruction of properties.

    He stressed that the spate of attacks in the region was an act of terrorism, alleging that the Tiv people in Benue, Nasarawa and Taraba states had been the target of the series of attacks on the region by the suspected herdsmen.

    He said, “Our group, comprising of Mdgzou U Tiv, Idoma National Forum and Omi’Ngede, have decided to formally write the United Nations to raise the issue of the crisis in Benue State, particularly, the ethnic cleansing in Benue.

    “Within the past four months, hundreds of people were killed in Benue and properties worth billions of naira also destroyed, due to the activities of these herdsmen.

    “This is pure ethnic cleansing because the whole attacks have been on the Tiv ethnic group of Nasarawa, Taraba and Benue states. However, we have compiled all the attacks, the attendant casualties and destruction of property in all these areas, which we are attaching to our report.”

    The Amnesty International had said that as of January 30, the herdsmen crisis had claimed 168 lives, while it lamented in a statement by its country’s director, Osai Ojigho, that in 2017, 549 deaths were recorded across 14 states, while thousands were displaced.

    However, between January and the time of filing this report, several other persons had been killed, including the recent attack on Ukpor-Mbalom in Gwer East Local Government Area of Benue State, where 19 Tiv people, including two priests, were killed during morning Mass.

    Meanwhile, Madaki, who expressed his full support for the move to approach the UN, lamented that the killings had crippled every aspect of the lives of Benue people and the economy of the state.

    “This has left the state with no other available option than to lodge a formal complaint with the Prosecutor at the International Criminal Court of Justice at The Hague, who can in the process cause an investigation into the killings. It is not necessary that it must be the state government that would lodge the complaint,” he said.

    He added, “We lawyers, groups and individuals will collect data of these mindless attacks and lodge a formal complaint to the office of the Prosecutor so that those behind the killings can be investigated.

    “The good thing about the ICC is that, usually the person responsible for the crime or had the greatest responsibility for committing these crimes under the status has no immunity. So, if the President is behind the killings, he can be investigated.”

    He noted that under Article 7 of the Charter of the United Nations, “the security council can also make a reference to the International Criminal Court at The Hague for such person to be investigated.”

    According to him, the killings in Benue have a trace of terrorism.

    Recall that President Muhammadu Buhari had come under heavy criticism over his statements on the killings in the country during his visit to Taraba State on March 5, 2018, where he said the crisis in Mambilla Plateau in Taraba State had claimed more lives than herdsmen killings in Benue and Zamfara states.

    The President of the National Council of Tiv Youths, Chief John Akperashi, had described the President’s statement as the height of insensitivity, saying it was an attempt to trivialise the killings in the state.

    Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Nigeria Bar Association, Makurdi Branch, Emmanuel Agbakor, said a team of lawyers in the state had carried out an assessment of the level of destruction of lives and properties in the state with the intention to pursue legal action against the military and leadership of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore.

    Agbakor, who frowned at the manner the Federal Government is handling the killings of innocent persons in the state by suspected herdsmen, said the branch had taken the government and the nation’s security chiefs to the ICC for their “unholy silence” over the killings.

    “What is happening in Benue is genocide; a crime against humanity, which is an international crime, among many others being perpetrated across the states in the country,” he added.

    Reacting to the killings, the Mutual Union of Tiv in the United Kingdom, known as MUTUK, said on Friday that President Buhari’s “failure” to act decisively on the killings in Benue State was condemnable, saying it had worsened the security situation in the state.

    In a statement by the President of the union, Mr. Kuram Gwakyaa, in Jalingo, the Taraba State capital, the union said it was high time the Federal Government stepped in to resolve the situation in Benue.

    The statement partly read, “The failure of President Buhari to act in time thus far is reprehensible and it is high time the government stepped in to resolve the wretched situation in Benue.

    “We acknowledge the need to act in any way we can and we the Tivs in the UK are working to identify further measures we can take in the coming days and will communicate these in due course. However, we will not stop telling the world what is happening in Benue until the international community turns its eyes on Benue and justice has been served.”

    The union also condemned what it described as “grotesque killings” in Benue and especially the most recent incident at St. Ignatius Catholic Church, Ukpor-Mbalom in Gwer East Local Government Area, where 19 Tiv people, including two priests, lost their lives in an attack on a church during morning Mass.

  • Expert advice: 4 ways Nigeria can ensure tech boosts development

    Expert advice: 4 ways Nigeria can ensure tech boosts development

    An expert at the London School of Economics and Australian National University has presented four ways governments can ensure technology boosts development, which TheNewsGuru, after strong consideration, is of the opinion that the Nigerian government should adapt to boost development in the country.

    Dr George Barker and a team of other experts, in ICT-centric economic growth, innovation and job-creation, documented current thinking about how information and communication technologies (ICTs) can contribute to realization of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

    In a short synopsis published by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), George asserts that government policy affecting ICTs can have a major effect on achieving the SDGs, and that there are four key areas where governments need to establish legal, regulatory, budgetary, and policy frameworks to ensure that ICTs make an optimal contribution to sustainable development.

    1. Measure and monitor progress

    The first area relates to outcome measurement, policy review and target setting. Four of the SDGs are outcome-related, and highlight important drivers of the well-being of individuals’ over time including: poverty reduction (SDG 1), gender balance (SDG 5), inequality reduction (SDG 10) and economic growth (SDG 8).

    Governments need to accurately measure progress achieved against these outcome SDGs over time, better investigate the causes for this progress, set targets for improvement, and monitor the effectiveness of policy. ICTs and so-called “big data” have a major role to play in this.

    2. Use ICTs to enhance government performance

    The second broad area relates to the organization of Government itself. ICTs can play a central role within Government itself in particular to ensure two of the most critical or foundational SDGs are achieved, namely: “peace, and justice for all” (SDG 16), as well as peaceful and mutually productive “global partnerships” (SDG 17).

    E-government is the term given to the use of ICTs in facilitating better government performance. Governments need to embrace innovation and utilize ICTs to deliver effective services and engage people in decision-making processes so as to establish lasting foundations for peace and justice for all.

    The 2016 United Nations E-Government Survey highlighted a positive global trend towards higher levels of e-government. ICTs can also help in UN SDG 17 that seeks to “strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development”. This is because ICTs are a means for information sharing and communication between countries. A key challenge in this area, however, is ensuring states cooperate to address cyber-security threats including cyber-war.

    3. Adopt enabling policies for ICT markets

    The third broad area relates to government policy directly affecting ICT markets. There are two broad subsets of related ICT markets here: i) ICT infrastructure markets, and ii) ICT applications and content markets. Together these ICT markets can make a significant contribution to two key SDGs: SDG 9 which aims to “build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation”; and SDG 12 which aims to “ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns”.

    On the role of Government in ICT infrastructure markets, attention focuses on the scope for considerable improvements in relation to state ownership of key telecommunications network assets, and in the extent and quality of spectrum licensing, competition law, access regulation and universal service obligations (USO). In ICT applications and content markets the focus is on the government’s role in intellectual-property rights (IPR), privacy law, and platform regulation generally.

    For example, governments who own the state telecommunications network need to provide credible commitments to convince potential domestic or foreign ICT-market entrants that neither government policy nor the regulatory environment will expose them to excessive regulatory risk or uncertainty. At the same time, governments should avoid abusing its control of assets.

    4. Adopt enabling policies for non-ICT markets

    The fourth and last broad area is Government policy in relation to non-ICT markets that nevertheless indirectly affect ICT adoption, investment and utilization.

    There are three main categories of relevant non-ICT markets highlighted by the remaining UN’s SDGs, where Government policies currently impose barriers to securing a greater ICT contribution to sustainable development:

    1. Markets that meet basic needs, including markets for: food (SDG 2), water (SDG 6), energy (SDG 7) and the services of cities and settlements (SDG 11).
    2. Markets for human services: including health (SDG 3) and education (SDG 4);
    3. Markets for environmental goods and services that are currently either missing, or need to be significantly improved: including climate (SDG13), oceans and seas (SDG 14) and terrestrial ecosystems (SDG 15)

    Government policy on these non-ICT markets are having major and largely unforeseen effects in limiting the benefits of ICT. In non-ICT markets policies designed for the pre-Internet era appear to be preventing the development of smart agriculture and smart food markets, smart water markets, smart energy markets, smart cities, smart transport, smart health, smart education and smart manufacturing markets–which are both more efficient and environmentally friendly.

    For this reason, governments urgently need to review and adapt their existing policies on non-ICT markets to ensure that they better suit the Internet era, thereby enabling cutting-edge ICTs to play their role in sustainable development.

     

  • UN agencies call for global action as drought looms over Africa’s Sahel region

    UN agencies call for global action as drought looms over Africa’s Sahel region

    UN agencies have urged greater international support to stave off severe food insecurity in the Sahel region, reeling from the effects of conflict and threatened by drought and rising hunger.

    The World Food Programme (WFP) and UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said about five million people in northern Senegal, southern Mauritania and parts of Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and Chad, were affected.

    The UN agencies said the region would require food and livelihood assistance, after having exhausted their food reserves, which may run out by the end of May.

    WFP and UNICEF said in normal weather conditions, supplies would last beyond June, into September.

    “We are hearing of people cutting down the number of daily meals and children dropping out of school,” said Abdou Dieng, the Regional Director of WFP for West and Central Africa.

    “Those are telling signs of a looming disaster that the world cannot continue to ignore.”

    It is feared the region’s children would be the worst affected, with more than 1.6 million at risk of severe acute malnutrition this year.

    The figure represent a 50 per cent increase compared with the last major nutrition crisis in the Sahel, in 2012.

    Marie-Pierre Poirier, the Regional Director for West and Central Africa at UNICEF, said that it was “tragic that the same mothers are coming back to the clinics year after year with their children for treatment.”

    Poirier said: “This year, the numbers have been the worst, she added.

    “We can break this cycle if we invest now in building resilience – making families, communities and national authorities better equipped to prevent and deal with similar shocks in the future.”

    According to Coumba Sow, the Sub-Regional Coordinator for Resilience for Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) across the region, strengthening resilience is also the top priority.

    “What will help stabilise the Sahel is support for pastoralists and agro-pastoralists, during this lean season and in the future, to cope with shocks that include climate change and conflicts.”

    To mitigate the impact of the immediate crisis, the three UN agencies have developed a joint response to cover food needs, protect livelihoods and address malnutrition.

    They have also prepared longer-term interventions, including improving access to local food resources as well as strengthening health and social services to allow communities and countries at large, to prevent and deal with similar shocks in the future.

    The UN agencies, said, however, that implementing these programmes relied on sufficient funding.

    Fully funded, the WFP said its response requiring 284 million dollars would provide food and nutrition to some 3.5 million people.

    Similarly, UNICEF’s response of 264 million dollars would protect almost one million children from severe acute malnutrition and provide them access to water and sanitation facilities and education until the end of the year.

    FAO said its response requiring 128 million dollars, of which 45 million dollars was urgently needed, would help the situation from further deteriorating for 2.5 million livestock and other farmers, and their families.

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  • UN appoints another Nigerian into Global Compact Board

    The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, has confirmed the appointment of Bola Adesola of Nigeria to the Board of the United Nations Global Compact, the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative.

    The appointment was announced in a statement issued in New York by the UN on Friday.

    A former Nigerian minister, Amina Mohammed, is currently the UN Deputy Secretary-General.

    Ms Adesola, who is the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Standard Chartered Nigeria and Paul Polman, of the Netherlands and Chief Executive Officer of Unilever, were appointed to serve as the two Vice-Chairs of the Board, the statement announced.

    “Ms. Adesola and Mr. Polman succeed out-going United Nations Global Compact Board Vice-Chair, Sir Mark Moody-Stuart, Former Chairman of Royal Dutch/Shell Group of Companies and of Anglo American plc.

    “The Secretary-General extends his great appreciation to Sir Mark for serving in the position for the past ten years and shepherding the United Nations Global Compact into a new era.”

    It said both Ms. Adesola and Mr. Polman have served on the Board of the United Nations Global Compact previously, “and will bring to the position a wealth of experience in the private sector, in the corporate sustainability space and specifically with the United Nations Global Compact itself.

    “Ms. Adesola has served as Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria Ltd since 2011. She has over 25 years of banking experience, including at First Bank of Nigeria and at Citibank. Ms. Adesola holds degrees from Harvard Business School and Lagos Business School, as well as a law degree from the University of Buckingham.

    “Mr. Polman has served as Chief Executive Officer of Unilever since 2009. Prior to joining Unilever, he worked at Nestlé S.A., and at Proctor and Gamble, where he spent 26 years. Mr. Polman holds degrees from the University of Groningen and from the University of Cincinnati.

    “As Chair of the Board of the United Nations Global Compact, the Secretary-General looks forward to working closely with Ms. Adesola and Mr. Polman, along with United Nations Global Compact Executive Director, Lise Kingo, as they lead the United Nations Global Compact, the entry point for business within the broader United Nations system,” the statement concluded.

  • UN to understudy Liberia’s conflict resolution, political mediation

    The UN Security Council has asked Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to conduct a study on the role played by its peace-keeping mission in resolving conflicts and other challenges that Liberia had faced.

    In a Presidential Statement adopted on Thursday, the 15-member body said it “looks forward to the results of this study’’.

    The Security Council said the study could be useful when considering ways to enhance the overall effectiveness of UN peacekeeping.

    The Council commended the remarkable achievements made by the people and Government of Liberia to consolidate lasting peace and stability in the wake of a 1999 to 2003 civil war.

    The UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) closed on March 30, ending a nearly 15-year presence in the West African country, which had been devastated by 14 years of civil war.

    In the statement, the Council welcomed the continued implementation of the peacebuilding plan for Liberia as submitted by Guterres.

    It stressed that the UN would continue to be an important partner with Liberia after the closure of UNMIL.

    Addressing the Council, Alexander Zuev, Assistant Secretary-General for Rule of Law and Security Institutions in the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations, commended the people of Liberia for their resilience.

    Zuev said the resilience of the people of Liberia was the deciding factor in turning the page on conflict whose determination would ensure that the hard-won peace was sustained.

    “For nearly 25 years, the situation in Liberia was so concerning that it has been a constant presence on this Council’s agenda.

    “But the country has turned an important corner,’’ Zuev said.

    In January, President George Weah succeeded Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who had led Liberia since 2006.

    The succession marked the first peaceful transfer of power between democratically elected leaders in 71 years.

    Zuev said the important work of continuing to build a unified, reconciled nation with an accountable Government, committed to addressing corruption within its ranks, now lies with the people and Government of Liberia.

    The UN official challenged them to build a nation, where all citizens share the benefits of Liberia’s abundant natural and human resources.

    He tasked Liberia with building a nation, fully responsible for its own destiny, with institutions and a government providing basic guarantees of security, protection and services to its citizens.

    “The conclusion of UNMIL’s mandate is a remarkable demonstration of confidence that the country is moving steadfastly along the path of sustained peace,’’ he said.

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  • UN elects Amb. Peters Emuze into Rights panel

    Nigeria’s candidate, Amb. Peters Emuze has been elected to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) in a keenly-contested election held at the UN Headquarters, New York.

    Emuze, who was elected for a four-year tenure, would be representing the African continent on the panel from 2019 to 2022.

    His victory, in clinching one of the two Africa’s seats on the board of the committee for at least four years, is seen as a ‘feather’ for Nigeria.

    Apart from signalling “prestige”, being a member of the commission would also improve Nigeria’s future “diplomatic leverage”.

    CESCR is the body of 18 independent experts that monitors countries’ compliance with the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of citizens by its States parties.

    The committee was established under ECOSOC Resolution 1985/17 of May 28, 1985, to carry out the monitoring functions assigned to the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).

    Emuze, who entered the race at the last minute, beat candidates of six other countries’ to clinch the first of the two seats for Africa.

    While other countries and candidates had been campaigning for upward of one year, Nigeria’s candidate just jumped into the ring barely two months to the election.

    The seats were keenly contested against Nigeria by Algeria, Sudan, Niger, Uganda, Cameroon and Mauritius.

    However, Cameroon withdrew at the last minute while Mauritius’ candidate defeated Algeria’s in a run-off to clinch the second seat for Africa.

    Fielding candidates for CESCR would require the country’s permanent mission to the UN.

    In this instance, the Permanent Mission of Nigeria to the UN at New York and Geneva, in conjunction with all the 54 Nigerian missions in ECOSOC member states, coordinated the process and canvassed for votes for the position.

    Nigeria’s Ambassador/Permanent Representative to the UN, Prof. Tijjani Bande, personally wrote to all the 54-Member States of ECOSOC, seeking their support for Nigeria’s candidate.

    He also followed with reminders to the countries.

    Nigeria’s Ambassador/Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Samson Itegboje, said it became impossible to get countries to step down for Nigeria, as all of them wanted to “go for broke”.

    “The victory has raised our profile on the international stage.

    “I don’t think there are many countries that can pull such outing, two months to the election.

    “We can call it a miracle but it was a result of hard work, strategy and good relations.

    “Also, we presented the best, as our candidate has got the required experience including being the former Charge d’Affaires at the Permanent Mission of Nigeria to the UN Offices in Geneva,’’ Itegboje said.

    Emuze, a retired career diplomat for 33 years, rose to become a Special Grade Director at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and served as Head of Mission at Nigeria’s Permanent Mission in Geneva.

    Speaking with NAN after the election, Emuze pledged to ensure that Nigeria complies with its treaties on economic, social and cultural rights of the citizens.

    “Nigeria long signed the treaty and that means Nigeria is ready to comply with various international human rights instruments as a responsible member of the international community.

    “It is also fulfilling one of its foreign policy options.

    “Nigeria is also in tune with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Charter and the African Human Rights Charter.

    “So, Nigeria cannot be aloof to these issues of human rights because they are contemporary, modern times.

    “Nigeria has always believed in the covenants of the United Nations with regards to human rights,’’ he said.

    Emuze had also served in Nigeria’s diplomatic missions in Zambia, the Netherlands, Italy, Hong Kong, and proficient in human rights issues.

    He was President, Conference on Disarmament and Coordinator of the African Group of Ambassadors on World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), leading to the establishment of WIPO offices in Nigeria and Algeria.

     

  • Security Council in emergency meeting on Syria airstrikes

    An emergency meeting of the UN Security Council is underway over the the airstrikes launched on Syria by the U.S., the UK and France in retaliation for the alleged use of chemical weapons against civilians.

    UN Secretary-General António Guterres in his address at the meeting cautioned against the crisis in Syria “spiraling out of control.”

    The overnight airstrikes in Syria spearheaded by the U.S., with support from France and the United Kingdom, targeted installations connected to the country’s chemical weapons capabilities.

    In a televised address on Friday night, U.S. President Donald Trump announced the airstrikes, which were in response to last week’s suspected chemical attack in the Syrian city of Douma.

    They were reportedly limited to three military locations, but Guterres stated the UN was unable to verify this information or if there were any casualties.

    Guterres told the Council, echoing a statement issued in the wake of the airstrikes: “As Secretary-General of the United Nations, it is my duty to remind Member States that there is an obligation, particularly when dealing with matters of peace and security, to act consistently with the Charter of the United Nations and with international law in general”.

    The UN chief called on the 15 ambassadors to unite and exercise their collective role in maintaining international peace and security.

    “I urge all Member States to show restraint in these dangerous circumstances and to avoid any acts that could escalate matters and worsen the suffering of the Syrian people.

    “As I did yesterday, I stress the need to avoid the situation from spiraling out of control,” he further stated.

    Guterres called the Syrian crisis, now in its eighth year, “the most serious threat to international peace and security.

    “In Syria, we see confrontations and proxy wars involving several national armies, a number of armed opposition groups, many national and international militia, foreign fighters from everywhere in the world, and various terrorist organisations,” he said.

    The Secretary-General reiterated that there was no military solution to the crisis, only a political one.

  • Road accidents claim 1.3m lives annually – UN

    Ms Amina Mohammed, the UN Deputy Secretary-General, said some 1.3 million drivers, passengers and pedestrians died each year on the world’s roads.

    Mohammed stated this as UN took a major step to address this tragedy by launching a trust fund to spur action that could save lives and prevent the loss of opportunity associated with road accidents.

    The UN deputy chief spoke at the UN General Assembly where she highlighted the opportunities offered by the UN Road Safety Trust Fund.

    “We have a chance to save the lives of millions of people around the world, and to prevent injuries, suffering and the loss of opportunity associated with road accidents,” she said.

    The UN deputy scribe urged all stakeholders to contribute to the Trust Fund and to step up their efforts to achieve global road safety targets.

    According to the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), which is also the secretariat for the Trust Fund, every 1,500 dollars contributed to the Fund could save one life; prevent 10 serious injuries and leverage 51,000 dollars towards investments in road safety.

    “The Road Safety Trust Fund will serve as a catalyst for much-needed progress towards the road safety targets of the Sustainable Development Goals,” said Ms Olga Algayerova, the head of UNECE.

    Dealing specifically with road safety, SDG targets 3.6 and 11.2 aim to halve the number of global deaths and injuries from road traffic accidents and to provide access to safe, affordable, accessible and sustainable transport systems as well as improve road safety for all, respectively.

    “We are committed to working with all stakeholders to multiply the impact of global action to improve road safety,” added Algayerova.

    Jean Todt, the President of the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile and the UN Special Envoy for Road Safety, also underlined the importance scaling up of resources to achieve global road safety targets.

    “The Trust Fund has the potential to galvanise our global efforts to address the road safety situation, building on the progress made and experience gained over the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020,” he said.

    The Trust Fund would support strengthened road safety management capacities, improved safety of road infrastructure and broader transport networks, enhanced safety of vehicles, improved behaviour of road users, and improved post-crash care.

    The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution on road safety in which it called for a host of measures to prevent road accidents and to minimising the resulting damage.

    It urged the adoption of policies and measures to implement vehicle safety regulations to ensure that all new motor vehicles meet “applicable minimum regulations for the protection of occupants and other road users, with seat belts, airbags and active safety systems fitted as standard equipment.”