The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says more children and women were abducted for ransom between January and August 2021 than during the entire 2020. UNICEF estimates based on official sources say 71 women and 30 children were abducted in the first eight months of 2021, and 59 women and 37 children in 2020.
Through a presidential statement, the Security Council urged signatory states of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as well as regional organizations and the international community, to coordinate their efforts to undercut the economic lifelines of armed groups that benefit from the illegal exploitation and trade in natural resources, and to prevent the exploitation of women and children in the trade of these resources.
In Afghanistan, the World Health Organization and United Nations Children’s Fund today announced house-to-house polio vaccinations will resume 8 November across the country for the first time in three years, targeting more than 3.3 million children who were previously out of reach.
Noting the ongoing security challenges in several provinces, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative in the Democratic Republic of the Congo today called on the Security Council to continue providing its “full backing” to the United Nations peacekeeping mission in that country.
In northern Syria, a reported 5 million people lack reliable access to and suffer from insufficient levels of safe water due to low water levels and disruptions to water systems. The United Nations and aid partners have released a plan to target 3.4 million of those most affected by the water crisis in the next six months.
On 30 July 2021, the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1533 (2004) concerning the Democratic Republic of the Congo held informal consultations on “DRC-mined gold, tantalum and tungsten: illicit trading in DRC and internationally”. The Committee received briefings by the Group of Experts, the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for the Great Lakes Region, the Executive Secretary of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region and the Head of Due Diligence in the Centre of Responsible Business Conduct of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has declared an outbreak of meningitis in Tshopo Province, in the country’s north-east, with some 261 suspected cases, including 129 deaths. National health authorities have deployed an initial emergency team and efforts are under way to quickly ramp up the response.
The Office for Children and Armed Conflict says the United Nations and the Plateforme coalition of armed movements in Mali signed new action plans by which the latter committed to release all child recruits, end military use of schools, and guarantee unimpeded delivery of humanitarian assistance to all children.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are concerned about the impact on children of new cases of the bubonic plague in the eastern province of Ituri. They say the plague has been reported in areas that had not seen a case in more than 15 years.
Heavy rains and flooding have claimed dozens of lives in Chad and Niger, impacting over 100,000 people in recent weeks. The United Nations is supporting Governments in providing health care, food, shelter, water, hygiene and sanitation, and warns that the Sahel region’s weather variability has been worsened by climate change.
The United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) reports that it has facilitated discussions between the Hema and Bira communities in Irumu territory in Ituri. As a result, the rival groups signed a protocol of non-aggression and cessation of violence.
On 13 July 2021, the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1533 (2004) concerning the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 2127 (2021) concerning the Central African Republic held joint informal consultations with Pramila Patten, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict.
The United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon expressed deep regret over the inability of Lebanon’s leaders to reach agreement on the formation of a new Government that is urgently needed to address the country’s numerous challenges.
Following the confirmation of a new Government and the enactment of its programme of action for 2021-2023, efforts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo must now coalesce around ending an upsurge of fighting in the eastern provinces of Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative in that country told the Security Council today.
The World Meteorological Organization reports that the recent heatwave in Canada and the United States had major impacts on people, animals and vegetation, and that so many records were broken in June regarding high temperatures worldwide that it was hard to keep track.
In Niger, 2.1 million children need humanitarian assistance, a third more than just a year ago, as the country continues to face conflict, displacement, food insecurity, floods and drought, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reports. The Agency is appealing for safe, sustained access to deliver aid.
The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) recorded 617 human rights abuses, including 165 killings by armed groups in the country, which is 37 per cent higher than the previous six months. The deteriorating human rights situation is also marked by a steep rise in abductions.
Renewing the sanctions regime imposed on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Security Council today also extended by 12 months the mandate of the Group of Experts overseeing their implementation.
Hanaa Singer, Resident Coordinator in Sri Lanka – alongside the United Nations Environment Programme and the European Union — facilitated the rapid deployment today of experts to help with marine litter and environmental impact assessment work related to the sinking of the 'MV X-Press Pearl' cargo ship.
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet warned today that a further escalation in violence is unfolding across Myanmar, saying there appear to be no efforts towards de-escalation, but rather a build-up of troops in key areas, contrary to commitments the military made to end the violence.
