SUDAN & SOUTH SUDAN
This morning, the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, addressed the Security Council on the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA). He said the Mission continues to play a stabilizing role in the Abyei Area and along the border regions, adding that he was encouraged by the significantly improved relations between Sudan and South Sudan in the past year.
Also addressing the Council on Sudan and South Sudan was Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa. He updated Council Members on recent developments in relations between the two countries, on the conflict in South Kordofan and Blue Nile States and the process led by the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP).
WESTERN SAHARA
The Security Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara, otherwise known as MINURSO, and that mandate was extended for a further six months.
SYRIA
This afternoon, Geir Pedersen, the Special Envoy for Syria, will brief the Security Council in a meeting, followed by closed consultations, and he will address reporters after at the stakeout.
LIBYA
On Libya, the United Nations is very much concerned about the continued clashes and their impact on civilians. The UN continues to provide humanitarian support and call for humanitarian pauses and a ceasefire.
An estimated 43,000 people have now been displaced by fighting, that’s according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Almost 30,000 people have received some form of humanitarian assistance since the start of the current hostilities, including assistance to displaced families at collective shelters, assistance to refugees and migrants, including evacuations, and restocking of medical facilities.
Through the Tripoli Flash Appeal, $10.2 million in funding is being urgently needed to assist people impacted by the clashes.
The High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, today expressed grave concern that thousands of civilians remain stranded in conflict-affected areas of Tripoli. In a statement, she stressed the urgent need for the creation of safe humanitarian corridors for trapped civilians and joined calls for an immediate ceasefire and resumption of political talks.
UNFPA
This morning, the United Nations Chef de Cabinet, Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti, spoke on behalf of the Secretary-General at the Salas Lecture of the UN Population Fund, which this year coincided with the 25th anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development and the 50th anniversary of when UNFPA began operations.
The Secretary-General said the 50th anniversary of UNFPA reaffirms the importance of its efforts to save lives, promote the well-being of people worldwide, particularly in the areas of sexual and reproductive health.
PRESS BRIEFING TOMORROW
Tomorrow at 3:00 p.m., the President of the Security Council for the month of May, Ambassador Dian Triansyah Djani, Permanent Representative of Indonesia to these United Nations, will be brief journalists on the Council’s programme of work.
JAZZ
Today is International Jazz Day. In a tweet, Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed said that jazz crosses culture and borders, and on this Jazz Day we should celebrate the musicians who are using their art to bring people together and to speak out on issues they care about.
This year the main celebrations are being held in Melbourne, Australia. There will be a concert at the Melbourne Art Centre Hamer Hall that will feature over 30 artists including Herbie Hancock, James Morrison, Dee Dee Bridgewater and Kurt Elling. The concert will be webcast via YouTube, Facebook, the United Nations and UNESCO to millions of people worldwide.
HONOUR ROLL
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has paid its budget dues in full. The total is now 89.
