UN News For the latest news updates and email alerts, visit us at www.un.org/news UN Daily News Issue DH/7568 Tuesday, In the headlines: UN regrets reported loss of life amid Iranian protests Somalia: UN voices deep concern at reported destruction of housing for displaced persons Early action key to preventing crises related to El Niño and La Niña UN relief official UN experts decry Saudi Arabia s use of anti-terror laws against peaceful activists On New Year's Day, UNICEF challenges nations to join fight to help more newborns survive first days of life DR Congo: UN chief calls for restraint amid reports security forces violently dispersed Kinshasa protests UN chief issues 'red alert,' urges world to come together in 2018 to tackle pressing challenges After 1,000 days of conflict, Yemen sliding into 'deepening catastrophe,' UN agencies warn UN regrets reported loss of life amid Iranian protests 2 January The United Nations regrets the reported loss of life resulting from the protests in Iran, and hopes that further violence will be avoided, a spokesperson for the world body said on Tuesday. The Secretary General has been carefully following the reports of protests in a number of cities in Iran, Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for António Guterres, told reporters in New York. We regret the reported loss of life, and we hope that further violence will be avoided, he continued. Flags outside the UN Secretariat building. UN Photo/Rick Bajornas We expect that the rights to peaceful assembly and expression of the Iranian people will be respected. According to media reports, several days of demonstrations have left at least 20 people dead. For information media not an official record
UN Daily News - 2 - Somalia: UN voices deep concern at reported destruction of housing for displaced persons 2 January A senior United Nations official in Somalia expressed deep concern over reports of the unannounced destruction of settlements for internally displaced persons (IDPs) as well as humanitarian infrastructure in Mogadishu. I am deeply saddened to learn of evictions, without prior notice, of internally displaced persons, in Banadir region, Peter de Clercq, the Secretary-General s Deputy Special Representative for Somalia, said in a statement issued on Monday. Malnourished children, many of them suffering from diarrhea, lie on beds in Banadir hospital in Mogadishu, Somalia, while their parents and hospital staff tend to them. UN Photo/Tobin Jones Some of these displaced people have walked long distances from different parts of the country fleeing drought and conflict, he continued, pointing out that on 29 and 30 December, over 23 IDP settlements, housing over 4,000 IDP households, were destroyed. Mr. de Clercq, who is also UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, added that personal property and livelihoods have also been lost as people were not given time to collect their belongings before the destruction started. Families, including children, women and the elderly are now living in the open, he underscored. In addition to engaging with authorities to ensure a solution for the newly displaced people, humanitarians are mobilizing resources to provide life-saving assistance to the affected people. I am equally concerned that when everyone is seized of the agenda of improving the lives of Somalis, humanitarian and development installations are being senselessly destroyed, including schools, latrines, water points, sanitation centres, shelters and other related investments generously supported by donors, said Mr. de Clercq. Throughout Somalia, more than two million people are now displaced due to drought and conflict, including one million newly displaced in 2017 alone. These people constitute one-third of the 6.2 million people in need of humanitarian assistance. I call upon all parties to protect and assist all civilian people who have fled conflict and drought and that have already suffered so much. Humanitarians stand ready to cooperate with and support the authorities in this regard, Mr. de Clercq stressed. Malnutrition rates there are surging and have reached emergency levels in some locations, especially among internally displaced people. Displaced people lack access to food, shelter and basic services, and also face the most serious protection-related risks, such as physical attacks, gender-based violence and movement restrictions.
UN Daily News - 3 - Early action key to preventing crises related to El Niño and La Niña UN relief official Most of the reefs in the Seychelles have died due to El Niño, bleaching, fishing and the rising temperature of the seawater. Photo: Kadir van Lohuizen/NOOR 2 January La Niña is expected to impact weather around the world in 2018, a United Nations relief official said, urging governments and the international community to act early to mitigate the impacts from this potentially destructive weather pattern and its counterpart, El Niño. We know that the earlier we re able to put in place a response, the more efficient and effective that response can be, Greg Puley, Chief of Policy Advice and Planning Section, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), told UN News. El Niño is the term used to describe the warming of the central to eastern tropical Pacific that occurs, on average, every three to seven years. It raises sea surface temperatures and impacts weather systems around the globe so that some places receive more rain while others receive none at all, often in a reversal of their usual weather pattern. Its counterpart La Niña is associated with cooler-than-average sea surface temperatures, but it also results in extreme weather. In 2016, 23 countries representing 60 million people had to appeal for emergency aid because of El Niño-related weather events. While there is never 100 per cent certainty that a weather event will happen, Mr. Puley urged governments to be willing to act on the clues. He discussed insurance, or forecast-based funding, which released funding early, as innovations that have no regrets even if a predicted event does not happen. If you re aware that excess precipitation is forecast, for example, you can make some investment to reinforce river beds so that the excess precipitation doesn t result in flooding, he said. It will cost you $10 million to reinforce the river bed. It might have cost you $50 or $60 million to provide food, water and shelter to people who are displaced by the flood. You can make those investments when you know.
UN Daily News - 4 - UN experts decry Saudi Arabia s use of anti-terror laws against peaceful activists 2 January United Nations human rights experts deplored Saudi Arabia s continued use of counter-terrorism and security-related laws against human rights defenders and urged the release of all those detained for peacefully exercising their rights. The rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly are severely restricted in Saudi Arabia, the group said in a joint statement issued on Tuesday. Independent Expert on Human Rights Michel Forst. Photo: Jean- Marc Ferré Religious figures, writers, journalists, academics and civic activists are being targeted, along with members of the banned Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association (ACPRA), in a worrying pattern of widespread and systematic arbitrary arrests and detention, they continued. We are witnessing the persecution of human rights defenders for peacefully exercising their rights to freedom of expression, assembly, association and belief, as well as in retaliation for their work. The Government has ignored repeated calls by UN experts and others to halt these violations, rectify them, and prevent their recurrence. More than 60 prominent religious figures, writers, journalists, academics and civic activists are reported to have been detained in a wave of arrests since September, adding to a list of past cases which had already been raised by UN experts with the Government. We have written to the Government requesting detailed information about these numerous arrests on terrorism, cyber-crime or any other state security-related charges during that period, the experts said. The experts noted that they are also seeking government clarification about how these measures are compatible with Saudi Arabia s obligations under international human rights law, as well as with the voluntary pledges and commitments it made when seeking to join the UN Human Rights Council. Despite being elected as member of the Human Rights Council at the end of 2016, Saudi Arabia has continued its practice of silencing, arbitrarily arresting, detaining and persecuting human rights defenders and critics, they said. In addition to previous cases and new arrests since September, the experts pointed to the country s failure to implement two recent opinions of the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, calling for the release of all the human rights defenders concerned in these cases. We appeal to the Saudi authorities to ensure their right to reparation and compensation. The experts are independent, unpaid staff appointed by the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council to examine and report back on a specific human rights theme or a country situation.
UN Daily News - 5 - On New Year's Day, UNICEF challenges nations to join fight to help more newborns survive first days of life 2018's first baby a girl named Vilisi Ciri Sovocala was born at 1.44 am on New Year's Day in Suva, the island capital of Fiji. Photo: UNICEF/Chute 1 January Nearly 386,000 babies will be born on New Year's Day some 90 per cent in less developed regions and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is challenging nations around the world to make sure more newborns survive their first days of life. This New Year, UNICEF's resolution is to help give every child more than an hour, more than a day, more than a month more than survival, Stefan Peterson, UNICEF's Chief of Health, said Monday. The agency reported that Kiribati's Christmas Island in the Pacific would most likely welcome 2018's first baby; the United States, its last. Globally, over half of these births are estimated to take place in nine countries: India 69,070 China 44,760 Nigeria 20,210 Pakistan 14,910 Indonesia 13,370 United States 11,280 Democratic Republic of Congo 9,400 Ethiopia 9,020 Bangladesh 8,370 While many babies will survive, some will not make it past their first day. In 2016, an estimated 2,600 children died within the first 24 hours every day of the year. UNICEF said that for almost two million newborns, their first week was also their last. In all, 2.6 million children died before the end of their first month. Among those children, more than 80 per cent died from preventable and treatable causes such as premature birth, complications during delivery, and infections like sepsis and pneumonia. We call on governments and partners to join the fight to save millions of children's lives by providing proven, low-cost solutions, said Mr. Peterson. Over the past two decades, the world has seen unprecedented progress in child survival, halving the number of children worldwide who die before their fifth birthday to 5.6 million in 2016. But despite these advances, there has been slower progress for newborns. Babies dying in the first month account for 46 per cent of all deaths among children under five. Next month, UNICEF will launch 'Every Child Alive,' a global campaign to demand and deliver affordable, quality health care solutions for every mother and newborn. These include a steady supply of clean water and electricity at health facilities, the presence of a skilled health attendant during birth, disinfecting the umbilical cord, breastfeeding within the first hour after birth, and skin-to-skin contact between the mother and child. We are now entering the era when all the world's newborns should have the opportunity to see the 22nd century, added Mr. Peterson, but unfortunately, nearly half of the children born this year likely will not. A child born in Sweden in January 2018 is most likely to live to 2100, while a child from Somalia would be unlikely to live beyond 2075, he lamented.
UN Daily News - 6 - DR Congo: UN chief calls for restraint amid reports security forces violently dispersed Kinshasa protests 1 January United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has called on the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to exercise restraint amid reports of a violent crackdown by national security forces on demonstrations in the capital, Kinshasa, and a number of other cities. In a statement issued late Sunday by his spokesperson, Mr. Guterres expressed concern about reports of the violent dispersion of protests by national security forces, resulting in the death of at least five people, the wounding of several others and the arrest of over 120 persons. The Secretary-General calls on the Government and national security forces to exercise restraint and to uphold the rights of the Congolese people to the freedom of speech and peaceful assembly, said the statement. Secretary-General António Guterres. UN Photo/Mark Garten (file) The Secretary-General went on to urge all Congolese political actors to remain fully committed to the 31 December 2016 political agreement, which remains the only viable path to the holding of elections, the peaceful transfer of power and the consolidation of stability in the DRC. That agreement facilitated by Conférence Episcopale Nationale du Congo (CENCO) mediators, and reached in Kinshasa on 31 December 2016 allowed President Joseph Kabila to stay in power beyond the end of his term and has stipulated that peaceful, credible and inclusive elections would be organized in DRC by the end of December 2017. UN chief issues 'red alert,' urges world to come together in 2018 to tackle pressing challenges Secretary-General António Guterres (left) meets people living in a camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) known as "Site du Petit Seminaire St. Pierre Claver", in the town of Bangassou. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe 31 December In his message on the New Year, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres is calling for unity among the global community to tackle overwhelming challenges and defend values shared by all. On New Year's Day 2018, I am not issuing an appeal. I am issuing an alert a red alert for our world, said the Secretary-General. As we begin 2018, I call for unity. [ ] We can settle conflicts, overcome hatred and defend shared values. But we can only do that together, he expressed. Recalling that last year he urged that 2017 be a year for peace, the UN chief noted that unfortunately in fundamental ways, the world went in reverse. Perils, including deepening conflicts and new dangers emerged, and global concerns over nuclear weapons reached the highest since the Cold War, he added. At the same time, impacts of climate change worsened at an alarming rate, inequalities grew and there were horrific violations of human rights. Nationalism and xenophobia are on the rise, said Mr. Guterres.
UN Daily News - 7 - Underscoring his belief that the world can be made more safe and secure, conflicts can be settled, hatred can be overcome and shared values defended, he emphasized that unity is indispensable to achieving these goals. Unity is the path. Our future depends on it, said the Secretary-General, urging leaders everywhere to resolve in the New Year to: Narrow the gaps. Bridge the divides. Rebuild trust by bringing people together around common goals. After 1,000 days of conflict, Yemen sliding into 'deepening catastrophe,' UN agencies warn 30 December As the conflict in Yemen passes the grim 1,000-day milestone, the United Nations is warning that if humanitarian workers cannot gain greater access and the violence does not subside, the cost in lives will be incalculable. As violence has escalated in recent days, children and families are yet again being killed in attacks and bombardments,' the heads of key UN agencies said Friday in a joint statement, as they once again appealed to parties to the conflict to immediately allow full humanitarian access in Yemen and to stop the fighting. World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director David Beasley, and UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director Anthony Lake, painted a dire picture of what 1,000 days of brutal violence in Yemen has wrought saying the fighting has driven families from their homes, destroyed hospitals and damaged schools. People queue to fill containers with water from a tank provided by UNICEF in Sana'a, Yemen. Some 14.5 million people in the country have no access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation. Photo: UNICEF/Algabal2017 More than 1,000 days of children recruited to fight [ ] 1,000 days of disease and death [and] of unimaginable human suffering, they said, adding that the conflict has created the worst humanitarian crisis in the world a crisis which has engulfed the entire country. Some 75 per cent of Yemen's population is in need of humanitarian assistance, including 11.3 million children who cannot survive without it. At least 60 per cent of Yemenis are now food insecure and 16 million people do not have access to safe water and proper sanitation. Less than half of Yemen's health facilities are fully functional and medical staff has gone months without being paid their salaries. This horrific tally of the conflict's devastation reflects only what we know. In reality, the situation is likely to be worse. UN agencies do not have full humanitarian access to some of the hardest hit communities. In many, we cannot even assess their needs, the UN leaders explained. But this we do know: Yemen has passed the tipping point into a rapid decline from crisis to deepening catastrophe. While acknowledging some progress in recent days with the first commercial fuel imports allowed into Hudaydah port, following recent commercial food imports, the agency chiefs said it is critical that these supplies are maintained, as restrictions on fuel imports have caused the price of diesel fuel to double, threatening access to safe water and sanitation, and urgent medical care. Far too many hospitals are short of fuel for the generators that allow them to stay open. Water pumping stations serving over three million people are quickly running out of the fuel they need to operate, while the price of commercially trucked water has increased up to six-fold. Safe water is now completely unaffordable for more than two thirds of Yemenis living in extreme poverty. All of this threatens to undermine efforts to contain the ongoing, deadly outbreaks of diphtheria, cholera and acute watery diarrhea,
UN Daily News - 8 - they warned. We remain committed to helping the people of Yemen. We have reached nearly six million people with clean water, distributed 3.7 million litres of fuel to public hospitals, treated more than 167,000 children for severe acute malnutrition, they noted but warned: Yet worsening conditions on the ground threaten to overwhelm our capacity to respond. Yemen's families should not have to withstand another day of war, let alone another 1,000, the UN leaders concluded. The UN Daily News is prepared at UN Headquarters in New York by the News Services Section of the News and Media Division, Department of Public Information (DPI)