World News Summary: UN-US cooperation, ‘essential pillar’, Updates DRC, another major storm hits Cuba
António Guterres congratulated President-elect Donald Trump after his apparent victory in Tuesday’s election.
“And I reaffirm my belief that cooperation between the United States and the United Nations is an essential pillar of international relations,” the UN chief continued in his statement.
“The United Nations stands ready to cooperate constructively with the incoming administration to address the serious challenges facing our world,” he concluded.
‘Continue to cooperate’
the Chairman of the General Assembly Philémon Yang offered his congratulations to Mr. Trump, who crossed the finish line with 270 Electoral College votes in just a few hours Wednesday morning local time, while also winning the popular vote.
Mr. Yang said in a statement: “As President of the United Nations General Assembly, I look forward to continuing to cooperate with the United States, a founding member of the Organization, deeply committed to promoting peace, human rights and global development”. .
DR Congo: At least 34 people died in recent violent clashes
Humanitarian organizations are sounding the alarm about continuing violence and deteriorating security in North Kivu province in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the United Nations reported today. Wednesday.
The situation continues to worsen, civilians are caught in the crossfire and humanitarian access is severely limited.
Local partners reported that since October 20, armed clashes in Walikale territory have left at least 34 civilians dead. Hundreds more were injured and more than 34,000 people were evacuated.
Relocation sites were attacked
Humanitarian activists also expressed concern about the increasing frequency of violent attacks at displacement sites in Goma, the provincial capital.
“Our partners have reported murders, armed robberies, sexual assaults, forced labor, extortion and looting. Women, children and vulnerable adults are particularly affected,” speak United Nations spokesman Stéphane Dujarric, speaking in New York.
From June to October, aid partners recorded more than 100 attacks against people at displacement sites in Goma, Nyiragongo and Masisi. At least 18 people were killed.
Despite the challenges, humanitarian organizations continue to provide food, water and health care assistance to more than 650,000 displaced people in and around Goma, Dujarric said.
“However, the presence of armed groups near the locations hindered the delivery of aid,” he added.
He called on Congolese authorities to take action to restore security and ensure that these locations are safe for both displaced people and humanitarians.
Humanitarians coordinate with Cuban authorities against new storm threats
United Nations humanitarian workers were monitoring the progress of Tropical Storm Rafael on Wednesday, which was reported to have strengthened into a major storm as it moved onto Cuba’s west coast.
The storm is expected to make landfall within hours and then move into the southeast Gulf of Mexico later in the day.
“We are coordinating with Cuban authorities to prepare for the impact of the storm,” UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said at a regular daily briefing in New York.
He said humanitarian partners are providing life-saving assistance and supporting the Government’s response to help approximately 1.5 million people affected by the recent Hurricane Oscar in eastern Cuba.
action plan
“The Hurricane Oscar Response Action Plan, released last Friday, calls for $33 million to help nearly half a million people. It focuses on shelter, health and food security, as well as water, sanitation and hygiene,” Mr. Dujarric said.
Earlier on Wednesday, the United Nations aid coordination office, OCHAheld a briefing to encourage Member States to support the initiative.
“As you will recall, $3.5 million was allocated from Central emergency response fund (CERF) last week to address humanitarian needs in Cuba following Hurricane Oscar,” he added.
