Noon briefing of 4 October 2010

SECURITY COUNCIL SENDS MISSION TO SUDAN

• The Security Council adopted its programme of work for October this morning. Afterward, the Security Council President, Ambassador Ruhakana Rugunda, informed the press that the Security Council will travel on Monday evening to Sudan, where a Council delegation will visit Khartoum, Juba and El Fasher.
  

• Ambassador Rugunda this morning also read a press statement following consultations, saying that Council members condemned the car bombing that took place last Friday in Abuja, Nigeria.

CLIMATE CHANGE CHIEF CALLS TO ACCELERATE SEARCH FOR COMMON GROUNDS BEFORE CANCUN CONFERENCE

• The head of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Christiana Figueres, has called on governments to accelerate their search for common ground, ahead of the Climate Change Conference in Cancún, Mexico.
  

• With less than two months left, she said that a concrete outcome in December was urgently needed to restore faith in the ability of Parties to take the negotiations forward. Governments need to agree on what is doable in Cancún, and how it will be achievable in a politically balanced manner, she added.
  

• Figueres was speaking at the opening of the Tianjin climate meeting in China, which is being attended by around 3,000 participants from more than 176 countries.

SECRETARY-GENERAL SPOKE BY PHONE WITH ISRAELI, PALESTINIAN LEADERS AND MIDDLE EAST ENVOY

• On Friday, 1 October, the Secretary-General made separate telephone calls to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of the State of Israel, President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority, and Senator George Mitchell, US Envoy for the Middle East.
  

• In each case, the Secretary-General discussed with his interlocutor the current status of the direct talks between Israelis and Palestinians.
  

• He renewed his hope that the Government of Israel would extend its settlement restraint policy.

U.N. OFFICE IN MIDDLE EAST IS SHOCKED AT APPARENT ARSON AT WEST BANK MOSQUE

• The UN Special Coordinator's Office for the Middle East Peace Process (UNSCO) expressed shock Monday following an apparent act of arson at a West Bank mosque, the Spokesperson said in response to a question.
  

• This attack is shocking and completely unacceptable, UNSCO said. Robert Serry, the Special Coordinator, is extremely concerned with this act of desecration. It follows a number of attacks upon mosques as well as ongoing attacks on Palestinian civilians and property.
  

• The Special Coordinator’s office reminded the Israeli Government that the extremists responsible for such attacks must be brought to justice and the rule of law upheld.

HEADS OF U.N. MIDDLE EAST PEACEKEEPING MISSIONS MEET WITH ISRAELI PRESIDENT

• Earlier today, the heads of the three UN peacekeeping missions in the Middle East (UNTSO, UNDOF and UNIFIL) met Israeli President Shimon Peres at his residence in Jerusalem. The evolving regional affairs and the dangers of terrorism were discussed.
  

• President Peres expressed his gratitude for the work of UN peacekeepers, while the Heads of Missions noted they are honoured to serve the cause of peace in the Middle East.

ON WORLD HABITAT DAY, SECRETARY-GENERAL STRESSES NEED TO CREATE BETTER CITIES FOR URBAN POOR

• Today is World Habitat Day and the theme of the Day this year is “Better City, Better Life”. In a message to mark this day, the Secretary-General says that the urban poor are too often condemned to a life without basic rights, hope of an education or decent work. But he adds that the challenges of urban poverty – from pollution to criminal gang culture – are not insurmountable.
  

• “Smart cities recognize the importance of good governance, basic urban services for all, and streets and public spaces where women and children feel safe,” he says.
  

• The Secretary-General stresses that creating better cities demands the combined efforts of national and local governments, civil society and the private sector, supported by the best efforts of the United Nations system.

HEAD OF U.N. REFUGEE AGENCY WARNS OF RISE OF SEMI-PERMANENT GLOBAL REFUGEE POPULATION

• UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres warned today that a rise in drawn-out conflict was creating new semi-permanent global refugee situations.
  

• He said this requires broader and better protection for the world’s 43 million forcibly displaced people.
  

• In a speech to the opening of the annual meeting of UNHCR’s governing Executive Committee, Guterres said that the environment for refugees, internally displaced people, asylum seekers, stateless people and others in need of help was becoming significantly more complex.
  

• He said “the changing nature and growing intractability of conflict makes achieving and sustaining peace more difficult.”

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

U.N. WILL STRIVE TO ENSURE WORK OF LEBANON TRIBUNAL: Asked about potential problems in the budget for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, the Spokesperson reaffirmed the UN’s belief in the importance of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon's work. The Tribunal has a mandate from the Security Council, he said, and we will strive to ensure that it can go about its work. He noted the role of the Tribunal's management committee in that process.

HIGH-LEVEL MEETING ON SUDAN NOTED IMPORTANCE OF ABYEI REFERENDUM: Asked about remarks in the press suggesting the possible delay of the referendum on Abyei, the Spokesperson said that the communiqué at the end of the recent high-level meeting on Sudan had noted the importance of the Abyei referendum.