UN and Red Cross chiefs unite for call to end use of explosive weapons in cities
UN chief António Guterres and head of the Red Cross, Peter Maurer, joined forces on Wednesday to call for an end to the use of explosive weapons in cities.
Idlib in Syria and the Libyan capital Tripoli are today enduring “a hail of bombs and shells”, they said in a statement.
The appeal to all parties to armed conflict warns that 50 million people are affected the world by lethal devices, including those that have a “wide impact area” in populated zones.
Citing estimates indicating that nine in 10 casualties of urban warfare are civilians, the UN and Red Cross chiefs also noted how clashes in the Yemeni city of Aden had left at least 200,000 people without clean water and how wider conflict had set the country’s development back two decades.
In Iraq, they added, one and a half million people have been internally displaced across the country by conflict and are unable to go home.
In a reminder to States that 2019 marks the 70th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions which say that even wars have rules, the heads of the UN and Red Cross urged countries to create mechanisms to mitigate and investigate harm to civilians, and ensure accountability.
Cameroon stresses commitment to tackle Boko Haram (#HRC42)
To the Human Rights Council now, where Cameroon has reaffirmed its determination to lead “tireless combat” against Boko Haram extremists.
Addressing the 47-member body in Geneva, Ambassador Mbella Mbella Lejeune also noted that nume rous positive steps had been taken for a “durable peace”, following clashes between English-speaking separatists and Government forces.
After explaining that President Paul Biya’s decision to hold a “grand” national dialogue with all sectors of Cameroonian society aimed to resolve the conflict, the Ambassador noted that there would be no impunity for those responsible for attacks in the north-west and south-west of the country.
Mediterranean diet ‘must be protected and promoted’ for global well-being, says UN food agency
More people everywhere should tuck into Mediterranean-style menus to counter the threat from easy-to-eat processed meals that can be bad for their health - and the environment - UN experts said on Wednesday.
At a Food and Agriculture Organization event in Italy, FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu explained that traditional and indigenous eating patterns like the Mediterranean diet, often promote local produce and have a low carbon footprint.
With its reliance on grilled meat, fish and olive oil, the southern European menu has long been regarded as a healthier alternative to its sometimes stodgier northern neighbours.
Despite these benefits, the Mediterranean diet and others like it are being “lost”, Mr Dongyu warned, amid population growth, globalization and urbanization.
With funding from the Italian Government, FAO is working to promote the Mediterranean Diet in Lebanon and Tunisia.
The lessons learned from this project will be transferred into policies to promote the Mediterranean Diet more broadly as part of the Sustainable Development Goals 2030 Agenda, the agency said in a statement.
Daniel Johnson, UN News.
