"UNITED NATIONS"

Displaced families and their host communities in the Middle East had already been struggling to cope with the economic crisis and devastating impact of COVID. Now, winter storms have only exacerbated the situation and increased hardships, according to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR). UNHCR

In a statement issued today, the members of the Security Council condemned in the strongest terms the heinous terrorist attacks in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on Monday, as well as in other sites in Saudi Arabia. UNIFEED

Lieutenant-General Shailesh Tinaikar is retiring from his post as Force Commander of the United Nations peacekeeping mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) have a long and decorated military career. UNMISS

The Head of the United Nations Verification Mission in Colombia (UNVMC), Carlos Ruiz Massieu told Member States that it is important to carry forward the momentum provided by the celebration of the fifth anniversary of the Peace Agreement in order to consolidate peace. UNIFEED

In a statement on behalf of several members of the Security Council, United States ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) recent missile launches “demonstrate the regime’s determination to pursue weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programmes at all costs, including at the expense of its own people,” and stressed that the country’s “unlawful behaviour is a threat to international peace and security.” UNIFEED

The Government of Tonga has asked the United Nations for urgent assistance, according to a spokesperson, who said the Resident Coordinator, Sanaka Samarasinha, has responded and remains in close contact with the Tongan authorities. UNIFEED

UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for the Philippines, Gustavo Gonzalez, said Typhoon Rai was the world's second deadliest disaster of 2021, adding that “the magnitude of the damage is very close to the destruction caused, as you remember by Typhoon Haiyan in 2013.” UNIFEED

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres saluted young people around the world “for raising their voices – in the streets and online – and standing up for climate action, gender equality, racial and social justice and so much more.” UNIFEED

Ahead of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, the President of the General Assembly Abdulla Shahid appealed to all Member States to demonstrate their commitment to the Olympic Truce and to “undertake concrete actions at the local, national, regional and world levels to promote and strengthen a culture of peace and harmony based on the spirit of the Truce.” UNIFEED