| Calendar |
December 10
is observed
December 12
Jan Kubis, Special Representative and Head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), is in Washington for meetings.
December 13
Security Council holds a meeting of troop-contributing countries to the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF). It is also briefed and holds consultations on Somalia and elections for the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Hilde Johnson, Special Representative and Head of the United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS), participates in the International Engagement Conference for South Sudan hosted by the USAID. UNDP Administrator Helen Clark will also participate.
December 14
Resolutions are adopted on Liberia sanctions and on the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP). The Security Council is briefed and holds consultations on United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in the Central African Republic (BINUCA).
At 11:00 a.m., in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium, there will be a year-end press conference by the Secretary-General.
The Secretary-General holds a year-end press conference at 11 a.m. It can be viewed live at www.un.org/webcast
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Valerie Amos, briefs reporters on Consolidated Appeals for 2012 in Geneva.
December 15
Security Council is briefed and holds meetings on Sudan, the International Criminal Court (ICC) and holds consultations on Iraq/Kuwait.
December 16
Security Council holds consultations, during which it will receiving a briefing by the Department of Political Affairs (DPA) and the Sudan Sanctions Committee.
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Watch live coverage of many of the events listed above at www.un.org/webcast
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 | | December 9, 2011, Somalia - United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon arrives in Mogadishu followed by the president of the General Assembly Nassir Al-Nasser. |
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Somalia at 'critical' juncture, UN chief says in historic visit to Mogadishu
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon paid an unannounced visit to Mogadishu today together with the President of the General Assembly, Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, to express the solidarity of the United Nations at what he called a "critical juncture" for the future of the Somali people.
"We have come here to see for [ourselves] the changes under way and show the strong solidarity of the United Nations and the broader international community," Mr. Ban said at a press conference in the capital.
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(File Photo, November 22, 2011, Mogadishu, Somalia) - A view of the skyline beyond the northern suburbs of Mogadishu is seen through a bullet hole in the window of a hotel in Yaaqshiid District, where African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) forces have pushed Al Shabaab militants beyond the city's northern fringes to the outskirts of the Somalia seaside. UN Photo/Stuart Price
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This is the first time that a Secretary-General and Assembly President have visited Somalia together, and the first by a UN chief in nearly two decades.
"I believe we are now at a critical juncture - a moment of fresh opportunities for the future of [the] Somali people," said Mr. Ban, who met with President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed and other leaders to discuss the way ahead and how the international community can help the country, which has been torn by factional strife for the past 20 years.
Mr. Ban said he stressed to the Somali leadership the importance of "seizing the moment," adding that there is a very limited window of opportunity.
Mr. Ban announced that the UN Political Office for Somalia (UNPOS), headed by Special Representative Augustine Mahiga, will re-locate from Nairobi to Mogadishu in January.
Read more
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Iraq: UN calls for more time to resolve issue of camp residents The United Nations envoy for Iraq has voiced concern over the situation in a camp housing several thousand Iranian exiles and urged the Iraqi government to extend the deadline for closing down the settlement as efforts continue to find a peaceful solution that conforms with international law.  | |
December 6, 2011, United Nations, New York - Martin Kobler, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), briefs the Security Council on the situation in that country. UN Photo/Rick Bajornas
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Situated in the eastern Iraqi province of Diyala, Camp Ashraf houses members of a group known as the People's Mojahedeen of Iran. The Iraqi government has repeatedly stated its intention to close down the camp by December 31 and to transfer residents to another location until countries willing to accept them for resettlement are found. Residents want to remain in the camp until a resettlement solution is found. Martin Kobler, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and head of the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), told the Security Council in a briefing on the situation in the country that the UN is making efforts to facilitate a peaceful and durable solution. "Lives are at stake and must be protected," said Mr. Kobler. "The government has a responsibility to ensure the safety, security and welfare of the residents. Any forced action that results in bloodshed or loss of life would be both ill-advised and unacceptable." Mr. Kobler noted that any workable solution must be acceptable to both the Iraqi government and residents of Camp Ashraf. A solution must respect Iraqi sovereignty, on the one hand, and be in line with international humanitarian, human rights and refugee laws, on the other. Read more
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To mark Human Rights Day, UN launches social media campaign
The United Nations has launched a social media campaign to encourage people to get involved in the global human rights movement, inspired by the role played by tools such as Facebook and Twitter in the awakening that transformed parts of the Arab world this year.
 "Our social media human rights campaign focuses on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and aims to help more people know, demand and defend human rights," said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay. The campaign launched by the High Commissioner's Office (OHCHR) comes ahead of Human Rights Day, observed annually on December 10 - the birthday of the Declaration. OHCHR already started an online discussion on Facebook and Twitter on 1November 10 called "30 Days and 30 Rights," which counts down to Human Rights Day with a daily posting about one specific article of the Declaration. Meanwhile, Human Rights Day was observed in Washington with a reading of the Declaration by Acting UNIC Washington Director Marie Okabe at the Human Rights Luncheon on Capitol Hill hosted by the United Nations Association of the National Capital Area. Members of the academic and NGO community also marked the occasion at a day-long conference titled, Getting Rights...Right: How Companies are Implementing the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, hosted by the US Institute of Peace, UN Global Compact U.S. Network and The George Washington University on December 8. Follow the Human Rights Day "30 days and 30 rights" discussion on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on Facebook and Twitter #CelebrateRights.
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Week in Pictures
UNFCCC Head Speaks at Durban Climate Change Summit
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December 6, 2011, Durban, South Africa - Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), addresses the opening of the high-level segment of the COP17/CMP7 UN Climate Change Conference in Durban, South Africa. UN Photo/Mark Garten
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| New UN Reports | |
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
Crop Prospects and Food Situation
International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
Making Television Accessible
UN Volunteers (UNV)
State of the World's Volunteerism Report
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