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Ahead of a briefing later in December on assistance to civilians in Syria, the Security Council today renewed its authorization of the delivery of humanitarian supplies to the devastated country across borders and lines of conflict for a further 12 months, until 10 January 2020.

To prevent outer space from becoming another military battlefield, delegates today explored ways to establish a rules‑based order to securely govern that sphere, which they called “a common asset for humanity”, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) continued its work.

The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) expressed itself on human rights situations in Myanmar and Syria, as well as on human trafficking and inclusive development for persons with disabilities, approving 13 draft resolutions on those and other topics in an action‑filled day.

The WFP reached 5 million people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2018, double the number reached last year.  WFP significantly expanded its operations there due to widening violence and displacement, poor harvest and endemic poverty, with scaled up interventions in Ituri, Tanganyika and North and South Kivu.

By violating the last de‑escalation zone in the Syria conflict, the Russian Federation and Iran are not demonstrating a commitment to protecting civilian lives, and it is absurd to think the world will pay for reconstruction as they pummel Idlib, the representative of the United States told the Security Council today.

Voicing concerns about the erosion of confidence in nuclear disarmament and international security in the Euro‑Atlantic area, First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) delegates today called attention to a United States decision to pull out of the Intermediate‑Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, as they concluded a thematic discussion on nuclear weapons.

Divergent views on how to rid the world of nuclear weapons dominated discussions in the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) today, as it reflected on action taken on several draft resolutions and decisions.

Despite the demands of the Security Council’s resolution for a ceasefire in Syria, humanitarian convoys had not been able to enter eastern Ghouta without impediment, members heard today as the Secretary‑General provided an update on the situation.

Amid escalating tensions, outside interference and growing risks of potentially explosive miscalculations, from Gaza to Syria to Yemen, everyone in the region must “step away from the brink”, the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process told the Security Council today.

The undermining of independent judiciaries, along with other trends impacting access to justice, has been increasing around the world, a top United Nations official warned, as the Sixth Committee (Legal) took up the matter of the rule of law at the national and international levels today.