Recently returned from a visit to Gaza, Dr. Renee Van de Weerdt, the World Health Organization (WHO)’s representative in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, briefs reporters in Geneva about the dire humanitarian situation marked by continuing violence. Dr. Van de Weerd highlights the work of national humanitarian colleagues who cannot leave Gaza, continuing to support communities amid collapsing health services, daily danger, and increasingly difficult living conditions.
Briefing by Ted Chaiban, Deputy Executive Director, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), on threats to international peace and security.
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Also briefing the Council, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Ted Chaiban said:
“The need for this discussion could not be more urgent. The war in Ukraine continues to rage and devastate children’s lives. According to reports, last night drone strikes hit a dormitory housing at least 86 adolescents aged 14-18, in the town of Starobilsk in the Luhansk region. The attack reportedly left six dead and dozens of others injured, including children. It is too early to know the full extent of the casualties, as we understand rescue operations are still unfolding. This is yet another example of children paying the price for a war that is not of their own making. According to verified UN data, more than 3,400 children have now been killed or injured since the escalation of the war in 2022.”
Source: Republic of South Africa (video statements)
🤝🏾 “This initiative reflects the true spirit of Ubuntu and African unity, standing together to uplift and support our children for a better future.” 👞📚🌍
Briefing by Vanessa Frazier, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, on threats to international peace and security.
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Also briefing the Council, Vanessa Frazier, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, said, “When schools are damaged or destroyed, the consequences extend far beyond the immediate loss of infrastructure, sometimes of life too.”
Source: Council of the European Union (video statements)
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The toll of the war in Ukraine on civilians is “staggering – and still rising,” a top UN humanitarian official told the Security Council.
Briefing the Security Council members, Edem Wosornu, Director of Crisis Response Division at the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said “The toll of this war on civilians is staggering – and still rising. The statistics bear repeating. Since February of 2022, the UN has recorded nearly 16,000 civilians killed and more than 44,000 injured. The real numbers are almost certainly much higher.”
She also reported that “a ballistic missile struck a UNHCR-contracted warehouse in Dnipro on the night of 19 to 20 May, killing two warehouse workers and destroying more than one million dollars worth of aid – including blankets and hygiene kits intended for evacuees and people sheltering in collective sites."
She said, "This is the fifth hit on humanitarian workers and assets in just nine days. Excellencies, Mr. President, this must stop.”
Nazhat Shameem Khan, Deputy Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, called the confirmation hearing in relation to Khaled Mohamed Ali El Hishri a “true landmark”, emphasizing that the Court remains committed to ensuring accountability.
Addressing the Security Council from the Hague via video link today (22 May), the ICC Deputy Prosecutor regretted that she is again unable to join the Council due to the non-issuance of a US visa required for her travel to deliver the briefing in accordance with Security Council resolution 1970.
Khan said, “It was my honour this Tuesday to address the Pre-Trial Chamber together with the OTP Libya Unified Team, opening the confirmation hearing in relation to Mr. Khaled Mohamed Ali El Hishri.”
She noted that in the first judicial proceedings stemming from this referral, El Hishri is accused of 17 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity carried out principally in Mitiga Prison, including in the women’s section of the Prison over which Mr. El Hishri had direct control.
The Deputy Prosecutor said, “the actions of Mr Khaled El Hishri’s and the RADA militia are not the actions of a legitimate law-enforcement agency; and Mitiga was not a normal prison,” highlighting “it was a system designed to inflict extreme pain, deep humiliation, and, ultimately, to destroy the lives of those detained.”
“As the Court heard this week, Mr Khaled EL HISHRI was at the centre of this abuse,” she added.
Khan also said, “following submissions by Victim’s Legal Representatives and the Defence, the confirmation hearing has now concluded. In the event charges are confirmed, our Office stands ready to commence trial promptly.”
She said, “we remain focused on ensuring that this process ultimately leads to the full recognition of victims experiences through the conviction of Mr. El Hishri.”
The Deputy Prosecutor also said, “to those responsible for alleged Rome Statute crimes in Libya, to those carrying them out, to those facilitating them and ordering them, we have a simple message: Know that our Office remains committed to delivering accountability for your acts. And we are moving at speed across our lines of inquiry to ensure the rights of those you have mistreated are vindicated, in a court of law, as we saw here in the Hague this week.”
For his part, US diplomat Jeff Bartos reiterated Washington’s “ongoing, unequivocal opposition to the ICC’s attempts to assert jurisdiction over the United States or any US ally that has not consented to ICC jurisdiction.”
He said, “the core US objections to the ICC have been the same for nearly three decades. To date, however, we have seen no indication that the ICC intends to reform its behavior or that states parties will exercise appropriate oversight and management of the Court.”
“As our long-standing concerns have not been realized, our response has escalated in proportion to the threat presented by the ICC and to the degree to which our concerns remain unaddressed,” the US diplomat added.
He said, “we will continue to take action as needed to safeguard US interests. Let me repeat that we will continue to take action as needed to safeguard US interests.”
Bartos also reiterated US’s “long standing calls on Libyan authorities to ensure that former senior officials of the Gaddafi regime face justice, ending impunity for those who commit serious human rights abuses in Libya is critical for the country’s continued progress on a path to greater unity, stability and prosperity.”
For his part, Libyan Ambassador Taher M. El-Sonni stressed, “the extending cooperation until the end of 2027 strengthens the Court’s jurisdiction based on the fundamental principle, the principle of complementarity rather than substitution.”
He added, “the Libyan national judiciary is the mandate holder. Judicial complementarity can be invoked. The role of the Court remains through cooperation and the exchange of evidence when national proceedings or the prosecution of suspects are not feasible.”
After the Council’s meeting, Ambassador of Liberia Lewis G. Brown spoke on behalf of the Member States of Security Council that are state parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. The countries are Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, France, Greece, Latvia, Panama, the United Kingdom, Denmark and Liberia.
Ambassador Brown said, “We reaffirm our steadfast and unwavering support for the Court as an independent and impartial judicial institution,” reiterating the state parties’ “strong commitment to upholding and defending the principles and values enshrined in the Rome Statute. Safeguarding its integrity against any threats or actions aimed at the Court, its officials or its partners. Such actions are counterproductive to our shared goal of ensuring accountability for the most serious crimes, promoting the rule of law, and fostering lasting respect for international law, including international human rights law.”
