UN (UNITED NATIONS NEWS)
UN TALKS TO COMPLETE TREATY ON RIGHTS FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES TO
RESUME MONDAY
Negotiators from around the world will convene at United Nations
Headquarters in New York on Monday to resume talks aimed at completing a new
convention that would protect the rights of persons with disabilities.
The delegates, from the 192 UN Member States and some 90
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) focusing on disabilities issues, will work to
hammer out remaining differences in the 33-article draft convention. If
the negotiations succeed, the convention can be formally adopted by the
General Assembly at its next session and then open for signature and
ratification.
"There are many indications that the international community wishes to
conclude the work of the convention," said Don MacKay of New Zealand,
who is chairing the negotiations. "We will have a good crack at it," he
added, but cautioned that two weeks for the negotiations was a short
time to complete agreements on a number of complex issues.
"No one is going to get their own way," Mr. MacKay said. "People are
going to have to start compromising."
In theory, the Chairman said, there is no need for a new convention,
which does not create any new rights. But in practice, he added,
"persons with disabilities are one of the most marginalized groups in
society." He said the new treaty would help raise the standards for
accessibility that would help make life better for persons with disabilities.
The proposed United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities would mark a major shift in the way the world's 650 million
people with disabilities are treated. Presently, discrimination against
persons with disabilities is widespread -- for example it is estimated
that 90 per cent of children with disabilities in developing countries
do not go to school.
The UN's Economic and Social Council, at its July session in Geneva,
welcomed the progress achieved so far in the negotiations and, in a
resolution, called the a
priority."
Persons with disabilities remain among the most marginalized of all
populations and are barred by a wide range of physical, legal and social
barriers from achieving their full potential. But officials say the
convention could lead the way to legislation that reshapes the public's
thinking about persons with disabilities, in everything from building and
civic design to transportation, education, employment and recreation.
Only about 45 countries presently have legislation that deals with
persons with disabilities. By ratifying the convention, a country accepts
its legal obligations and incorporates them into their own legal
mechanisms.
The pact would obligate countries, among other measures, to gradually
include disability-friendly features into the construction of new
facilities, promote and improve access to education and information and
introduce measures that eliminate discriminatory practices against persons
with disabilities.
GLOBAL YOUTH GATHER AT UN HEADQUARTERS FOR INTERNATIONAL YOUTH DAY TALKS ON POVERTY New York,
Young people from the far reaches of the globe gathered at United Nations Headquarters in New York today to discuss measures they can take in tackling youth poverty at an event to commemorate International Youth Day, marked each year on 12 August. “The world’s young people, now numbering more than 1 billion, are a major human resource for development and can be key agents of innovation and positive social change. Yet the scale of youth poverty robs the world of that potential,” UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said in a message on the occasion. With almost half of the world’s population under 25 years old and surviving on less than $2 a day, the repercussions of youth poverty are immense. Problems include hunger and malnutrition, lack of access to education and basic services, unemployment, increased disease and illness, homelessness and lack of participation in decision-making, Director of the UN Division for Social Policy and Development Johan Schölvinck said at the opening of the event. International youth studying human rights as well as volunteers from New York-area YMCAs assembled to discuss poverty issues from their perspectives. “I came because I wanted to learn something more about how things work out in different countries. After my interaction with people from Nepal, people from Uzbekistan and all the different countries I think people are the same everywhere. The problems are the same everywhere,” Vikas Sharma from India told the UN News Service. “I knew poverty existed in the US, but I wasn’t aware that it was so similar. In Costa Rica, for example, a big issue a part of poverty there is the lack of education – there’s a lack of schools, a lack of money to pay teachers and that’s the same thing that we’re dealing with here (in New York). Before I went abroad, I wasn’t aware of how similar our problems are,” Janai Smith told the crowd of young people about her homestay visit to Costa Rica in 2005. Community service and education were the poverty solutions highlighted in discussions. “Our challenge is clear: we must pay more attention to education and in particular to the transition from education to employment. And the ability of youth to find full and productive employment must be a central objective of national development strategies, including poverty reduction policies,” Mr. Annan wrote. Many youth agreed with the Secretary-General. Rakhmadjon Sobirov of Uzbekistan stressed the potential of young people to help foster a better future in their countries by improving themselves through learning. “We see the only way is through education and becoming a specialist in our own field,” he said. “Whether as a lawyer or economist, everyone has their own share to contribute.” 2006-08-11 00:00:00.000
SECRETARY-GENERAL VOICES CONCERN ABOUT WORSENING SITUATION IN SUDAN
Warning of deteriorating security conditions in Darfur and the grave challenges facing relief efforts there, Secretary-General Kofi Annan has urged the Security Council to work urgently to address the situation in the war-torn region. In a letter dated 10 August to the Council President, Ambassador Nana Effah-Apenteng of Ghana, the Secretary-General noted that there had been an upsurge in violence in Darfur in recent weeks. Consequently, civilians were forced to flee an onslaught of indiscriminate killings, rapes, and abductions while humanitarian organizations were unable to assist hundreds of thousands of people in need. The Secretary-General called July “a harrowing month” for relief workers in the region, citing statistics from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) showing 36 reported attacks on aid operations and nine staff members killed. “As a result of the fighting and direct targeting of humanitarians, only 50 per cent of civilians affected by the conflict can be reached by humanitarian organizations,” Mr. Annan said, noting that 1.6 million people were either inaccessible or reachable only by putting the lives of aid workers directly at risk. Scores of thousands have been killed and more than 2 million displaced during the three-year-old Darfur conflict. Mr. Annan noted there had been some progress in the implementation of the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) since its signing in May, though some deadlines for implementing its key aspects had been missed and several rebel groups were not yet parties to the agreement. “Both DPA signatories have violated the ceasefire arrangements, while non-signatories have violated pre-existing ceasefire obligations,” he said. Against this backdrop, the prospects for international assistance operations were bleak, he said, noting that the African Union has indicated that it may not have enough money to keep its 7,000-strong Darfur operation going until its mandate expires at the end of September. The possibility of having the UN take the place of the African Mission in Sudan (AMIS) also remained in doubt, he said, since the Sudanese government continued to oppose a UN mission in Darfur. “While the Government maintains its firm opposition to this plan, the situation on the ground is deteriorating,” he said. 2006-08-11 00:00:00.000
BRAZILIAN SOCCER GREAT RONALDINHO SCORES ROLE AS UN SPOKESPERSON FOR DEVELOPMENT
Brazilian soccer star Ronaldinho, one of the world's best known sports figures, agreed today to use his celebrity status to help the United Nations fight poverty when he was appointed UN Spokesperson for Sport for Development and Peace. After meeting Secretary-General Kofi Annan, Ronaldo Assis de Moreira, or Ronaldinho as he is known worldwide, told a press conference in New York that he was “extremely honoured and excited” to lend his support to the world body’s peace and development work. “Sport is a universal language that has no barriers. Football has obviously provided me with a wonderful life, and I believe it is now my mission to give something back and to help youth understand that the power of sport can help them achieve their dreams,” he said. One of Ronaldinho’s first activities as Spokesperson will be helping mobilize youth worldwide to tackle poverty in connection with the UN’s Global Youth Leadership Summit in New York set to take place from 29 to 31 October, the world body said in a press release. His appointment was made on behalf of Adolf Ogi, Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Sport for Development and Peace, by Djibril Diallo, Director of the UN New York Office of Sport for Development and Peace 2005. “Ronaldinho’s appointment builds on the momentum of the International Year of Sport and Physical Education 2005 by helping mobilize the world of soccer and its fans in support of social and economic development, health, education and peace,” Mr. Ogi, former President of Switzerland, said in a message for today’s event. Ronaldinho, who is a midfield player for FC Barcelona and was the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Player of the Year in 2004 and 2005, will be paid a symbolic salary of $1 a year for his UN work, said Mr. Diallo, adding that the contract will be for two years. In a related development, Ronaldinho was also honoured today for his humanitarian contributions by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), which is the regional office for the Americas of the World Health Organization (WHO). At a ceremony in New York, Ronaldinho received the PAHO “Champion of Health” award from Deputy Director Dr. Joxel García for his work in supporting the organization’s vaccination coverage throughout the Americas, as well as its programme to reduce youth violence through awareness campaigns. Ronaldinho also serves as a UN World Food Programme (WFP) Ambassador Against Hunger. 2006-08-11 00:00:00.000
UNICEF STRESSES NEED FOR HUMANITARIAN ACCESS IN LEBANON; AID AIRLIFTED INTO BEIRUT
With more than a thousand people killed in the worsening conflict between Hizbollah and Israel and around a quarter of Lebanon’s entire population forced to flee their homes, the United Nation’s Children’s Fund today stressed the urgent need to allow humanitarian aid to get through, as the world body said it was airlifting more emergency supplies into Beirut but that land convoys were still facing problems. Listing the growing humanitarian cost of the conflict, UNICEF Executive Director Ann M. Veneman highlighted its impact on children, noting that along with those killed and injured “countless others are living in extremely precarious conditions which are worsening daily, with limited access to clean water, food, medicine and hygiene supplies.” She pointed out that thousands of families and children critically need support. “At present we are unable to reach the majority of them,” she said. “We call upon the parties to urgently agree to a cessation of hostilities to allow humanitarian agencies to deliver needed supplies.” UNICEF, which is involved in various aspects of emergency work including supporting an immunization campaign to protect Lebanese children against measles and polio, is also working to help young people deal with the deaths, injury and other terrifying events they and their families have experienced. “By keeping families together and organising structured activities we can go some way towards putting normality back into the lives of these children and their parents,” says UNICEF regional child protection adviser Trish Hiddleston. “Children do have an inner resilience in times of crisis – we have to build on this.” Implementing Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s call for an immediate cessation of hostilities will be the most effective way to protect these children from further distress and provide an opportunity for their healing and recovery, the agency said in a press release. Also on the humanitarian front, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees ) has started an airlift from Jordan and Denmark to help rush tonnes of urgently needed supplies to Lebanon, including medicines from the UN World Health Organization (WHO), it said in a press release, adding that the first flight got through on Thursday and a second flight landed in Beirut this morning. UNHCR said more flights are being planned and sea routes are also being used to bring in supplies because the severely damaged roads between the border with Syria – where the agency has a major supply base – have slowed up the convoys and made it increasingly difficult to move emergency aid in bulk. Israeli warnings and air strikes in the densely populated southern suburbs of Beirut are also creating havoc as people flee to overcrowded areas for safety and the aid agencies scramble to help, according to UNHCR. “It is really impossible for thousands of civilians to leave their homes in a matter of hours and find safety nearby, particularly when the public centres are already bursting with displaced people,” said UNHCR's representative in Lebanon, Stephane Jaquemet. “For those who have already been displaced once and fled to find safety in Beirut, only to be displaced a second time, is exceptionally tough and frightening,” he added. The UN refugee agency has also started setting up tented camps in Syria to help deal with around 160,000 Lebanese who have fled to safety there, a UN spokesman told reporters in New York. Permission for UN convoys to southern Lebanon continues to be denied by the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF), the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said today, while noting also that there’s been no improvement in the countrywide fuel shortage. OCHA says that according to the Lebanese Higher Relief Council, 1,056 Lebanese have been killed and 3,600 wounded in the past month of conflict, while Israel’s Government reports that 41 Israeli civilians have been killed. Adding his weight to broader UN calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities in the Middle East, was the head of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (today who also warned of the conflict’s longer-term impact on the young people of the region. “Moreover, what does the future hold for the youth of the Middle East – whatever their nationality, affiliation or religion – when their minds risk being so deeply troubled that they will never be able to learn to talk to one another or live side by side?” Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura asked. 2006-08-11 00:00:00.000
SECURITY COUNCIL VOTES UNANIMOUSLY FOR AN END TO HOSTILITIES IN THE MIDDLE EAST
The Security Council voted tonight to halt the deadly conflict that has engulfed Lebanon and northern Israel for the past month, passing a resolution that calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities followed by the deployment of Lebanese troops and a significantly expanded United Nations peacekeeping presence across southern Lebanon as well as the withdrawal of all Israeli forces from the same area. In a unanimous vote, conducted after weeks of intensive diplomacy with Secretary-General Kofi Annan pushing for action, the 15-member Council called for Hizbollah to stop all attacks immediately and for Israel to cease “all offensive military operations.” Welcoming the Lebanese Government’s plan to deploy 15,000 troops across the south of the country as Israel withdraws behind the Blue Line “at the earliest,” the Council backed the simultaneous deployment of a UN force with an enhanced mandate, equipment and scope of operation. The expanded UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) will be authorized to have a maximum of 15,000 peacekeepers and its mandate has been extended by 12 months until August next year. The mission will be tasked with monitoring the cessation of hostilities, helping to ensure humanitarian access to civilians and the safe return of displaced persons, and supporting the Lebanese armed forces as they deploy in the south and enforce their responsibilities under the resolution. The Council said it reserved the right to make further enhancements to UNIFIL’s mandate in a later resolution. Underlining its desire “to help secure a permanent ceasefire and a long-term solution to the conflict,” the Council urged Israel and Lebanon to work towards those goals while respecting several principles, including:<BR> <li>Respect for the Blue Line;</li> <li>Ensuring the area between the Blue Line and the Litani river in southern Lebanon is free of any armed personnel and weapons other than those of the Lebanese armed forces and UNIFIL; andFull implementation of the relevant provisions of the Taif Accords, as well as resolutions 1559 and 1680, that require the disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon. The text stressed the importance of not just ending the violence, but the causes that gave rise to the current crisis, including “the unconditional release of the abducted Israeli soldiers.” It said the Council, “mindful of the sensitivity of the issue of prisoners,” encouraged efforts aimed at settling the issue of the hundreds of Lebanese prisoners detained in Israel. Council members also emphasized how vital it is that the Lebanese Government is able to extend its authority across all of the country’s territory through the deployment of its armed forces. The resolution also urged Member States to consider contributing to the expanded UNIFIL force while calling on the international community to offer financial and humanitarian aid to the Lebanese people, and to help displaced persons return safely to the country. The Secretary-General was asked to develop proposals within the next month on several issues, including the delineation of Lebanon’s border and the Shebaa farms area. More than 1,000 people, nearly all of them civilians, have been killed in Lebanon and northern Israel, and many more people injured, since fighting broke out following Hizbollah’s capture of two Israeli soldiers on 12 July. As many as a quarter of Lebanon’s population have been forced to flee their homes. 2006-08-11 00:00:00.000
ANNAN OFFERS UN SUPPORT TO INDIA AFTER DEADLY FLOODS AFFECT 6 MILLION PEOPLE
Expressing deep sadness over the deadly floods in India, which have killed over 160 people and affected more than 6 million, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan said today the world body was ready to offer whatever assistance was needed to help the Government deal with the disaster. “The Secretary-General regrets the loss of life due to this tragedy and extends his condolences to the victims and their families,” according to a statement released in New York, in which Mr. Annan also commended India authorities for their rapid search and rescue operations. He also regretted the damage to property caused by the recent floods that affected the states of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat and said that the world body “stands ready to offer any assistance requested by the Indian Government to support the national response to this disaster.” 2006-08-11 00:00:00.000
UN RIGHTS COUNCIL CONDEMNS ‘ISRAELI VIOLATIONS’ IN LEBANON; SENDS TEAM TO INVESTIGATE
The United Nations Human Rights Council passed a resolution today condemning “grave Israeli violations of human rights” in Lebanon, called for all parties to respect the rules of humanitarian law, and decided to immediately send a high-level team to investigate. By a vote of 27 in favour, 11 against with four abstentions, today’s special session of the Council, which was called to discuss the worsening conflict, also requested that the inquiry commission report back to the 47-member body by 1 September. Among others, the Council “strongly condemns the grave Israeli violations of human rights and breaches of international humanitarian law in Lebanon…calls upon Israel to observe the principle of proportionality and refrain from launching any attack that may be expected to cause incidental loss of civilian life.” “[It]…urges all concerned parties to respect the rules of international humanitarian law, to refrain from violence against the civilian population and to treat under all circumstances all detained combatants and civilians in accordance with the Geneva Conventions.” The Council also decided to “urgently establish and immediately dispatch a high-level inquiry commission comprising eminent experts of human rights law and international humanitarian law.” Among others, the commission will investigate “the systematic targeting and killings of civilians by Israel.” At the start of the day-long debate, which saw speeches from more than 50 Member States and representatives of regional groups along with representatives from 14 non-governmental organizations, the top UN rights official stressed the need for a probe to investigate attacks against civilians both in Lebanon and northern Israel. “Civilians must never be the object of a direct intentional attack…And yet, almost on a daily basis, information from the field indicates an alarming pattern in the scale and choice of targets by all sides in the conflict,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour told the meeting in Geneva. “The deaths of hundreds of civilians in documented and corroborated incidents, involving either random or targeted attacks on civilian vehicles or buildings, strongly suggest the indiscriminate use of force,” she added, highlighting both the effect on civilians of Israeli attacks and Hizbollah’s indiscriminate shelling of northern Israel. “There is a clear and urgent need to bring clarity to a situation in which facts and allegations are now given the same credit but without the benefit of systematic, independent, thorough and credible scrutiny.” She drew attention to the Israeli attack on 30 July in Qana, southern Lebanon, which killed scores of civilians, including a large number of children, who had sought shelter there, and also spoke of the “repeated allegations of Hizbollah’s systematic use of civilians as human shields.” “The independence, impartiality and objectivity of such an inquiry must be guaranteed not only by the credibility of the panel members, but also by the scope and methodology of their mandate…It should address all violations by all parties, and lay the foundation for possible measures of reparation and accountability.” Ms. Arbour said she was “particularly concerned” about the humanitarian situation of the population remaining in the south of Lebanon, especially following the destruction of the last bridge over the Litani River. “They are in dire need of food, water, and medical assistance, which humanitarian workers are no longer able to deliver… The plight of displaced persons in the war zone and of refugees in neighbouring countries is also of grave concern. Their right to food, to health, to adequate housing, the right of their children to education must be respected.” “Nearly a month from its beginning and worsening by the day, this crisis demands a firm and meaningful response from this Council,” she said, of the body that was set up to replaced the much-criticized Human Rights Commission. Today’s special session was called in response to a request from Tunisia on behalf of the Group of Arab States and the Organization of the Islamic Conference, which was supported in total by 16 Member States. In a related development, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination this afternoon adopted a statement on Lebanon expressing concern that the continuation of the conflict “may intensify racial discrimination and hatred in the region and the wider world.” The Committee held a debate on the worsening conflict earlier this month. 2006-08-11 00:00:00.000
ANNAN PRAISES MIDDLE EAST RESOLUTION AS KEY STEP ON ROAD TO LASTING CEASEFIRE
Welcoming tonight’s Security Council resolution that calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities in the Middle East, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said he believed it could serve as a base to reach “a sustainable and lasting ceasefire agreement” in the coming days and ultimately to the start of “a process to solve the underlying political problems in the region through political means.” In his address to the Council ahead of the vote on the resolution, Mr. Annan said he would work with the Lebanese and Israeli Governments over the weekend to determine “the exact date and time at which the cessation of hostilities will come into effect.” But the Secretary-General also told the 15-member body how “profoundly disappointed” he was that the Council took so long to agree to such a resolution. “All members of this Council must be aware that its inability to act sooner has badly shaken the world’s faith in its authority and integrity,” he said. In a unanimous vote, conducted after weeks of intensive diplomacy with Mr. Annan pushing for action, the 15-member Council called for Hizbollah to stop all attacks immediately and for Israel to cease “all offensive military operations.” The resolution welcomed the Lebanese Government’s plan to deploy 15,000 of its own troops in the country’s south as Israel withdraws its forces behind the Blue Line “at the earliest,” while at the same time the size and mandate of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) is significantly expanded. During his speech, Mr. Annan said that too many children have died in the conflict, and Lebanon’s economy and infrastructure have been devastated at a time when its population was “making real progress towards political reform and economic recovery.” The country’s attempts to “cast off the chains of external interference and domestic strife” will require not only constructive cooperation among Lebanon’s different groups, but “mutual goodwill and sustained dialogue” with key figures in the region, including the Syrian and Iranian Governments. Voicing “pride and admiration for the courage” of UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeepers, as well as UN humanitarian workers, he observed that UNIFIL faces a task under the resolution “perhaps even more difficult and dangerous than its previous one. “It must be robust and effective, and ensure that no vacuum is left between the Israeli withdrawal and the deployment of Lebanese forces,” he said, adding it must be provided with sophisticated military capabilities and additional troops as soon as possible. Mr. Annan also called for:<BR> <li>humanitarian convoys and relief workers to be given “a real guarantee of safe passage and access to those who need help”;</li> <li>a resolution of the Shebaa Farms border dispute in accordance with resolution 1680;</li> <li>the release of prisoners in the region, “starting with those who have been taken hostage”;</li> <li>potential donors to respond swiftly to requests from Lebanon for financial help;</li> <li>and the Security Council and the wider international community to tackle the crises in the Middle East “not in isolation or bilaterally, but as part of a holistic and comprehensive effort.” He also warned Council members not to turn their backs “on the bloodshed, suffering and hardship” suffered by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, or the danger to Israelis from rockets launched from inside Gaza. The Lebanese Government said more than 1,000 of its civilians have been killed and another 3,600 others have been injured, while about a quarter of the population – or a million people – have been displaced from their homes. Some 41 Israeli civilians have also died, while many others have had to flee their homes or seek shelter from rocket attacks. 2006-08-11 00:00:00.000
FRANCE AGREES TO UN COURT HEARING ITS DISPUTE WITH DJIBOUTI OVER IMMUNITY OF WITNESSES New York
The International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, will hear a case between France and Djibouti over whether high-level figures in Djibouti, including its Head of State, can be summoned as witnesses as part of a French judicial investigation. In a statement issued this week from its headquarters in The Hague, the ICJ said France has formally consented to the Court's jurisdiction in this case following an application filed by Djibouti in January. The dispute relates to an investigation by French judicial authorities into the circumstances surrounding the death of Bernard Borrel, a French judge, in Djibouti in 1995. Djibouti's application states that France has violated its international obligations under two bilateral treaties -- the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation (signed in 1977) and the Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters (1986) -- by not handing over information relating to its judicial investigation into Mr. Borrel's death. The ICJ statement noted that the Horn of Africa country said France has also breached its obligations by seeking to call as witnesses to the inquiry "certain internationally protected nationals of Djibouti, including the Head of State."
AS FIGHTING PERSISTS IN LEBANON, BLUE HELMET WOUNDED WHEN ISRAELI ROUNDS HIT UN POST
One day after the Security Council voted unanimously for a cessation of hostilities in Lebanon, fighting continued today and one blue helmet was wounded when Israeli fire hit a United Nations position in the south. In a speech to last night's Council meeting, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said he would be working with Israel and Lebanon this weekend to establish "the exact date and time at which the cessation of hostilities will come into effect." He also welcomed the resolution but said the Council should have acted much sooner. The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), which under the resolution is to be expanded from some 2,000 to 15,000 troops, today reported that military situation in the south of the country "for the most part has remained unchanged in the past 24 hours" with fighting between Hizbollah and the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) continuing "with same intensity" as before. One member of the Ghanaian battalion with UNIFIL was wounded early this morning when two artillery rounds from the Israeli side impacted directly inside a UNIFIL position in the area of Haris in the central sector, the Force reported. There were four other incidents of firing from the Israeli side close to UN positions in the areas causing material damage but no casualties, according to UNIFIL, which reported that Hizbollah also fired rockets from the vicinity of UN positions. As it has repeatedly in recent weeks, UNIFIL strongly protested all the incidents to the Israeli and Lebanese authorities respectively. The effort to help civilians caught in the crossfire continued to be severely hampered by Israeli military operations and overall insecurity. "UNIFIL's freedom of movement and the ability to re-supply positions and provide humanitarian assistance were denied because of the lack of security clearance from the IDF and due to the intensive hostilities on the ground," the mission said in a press release. A sector, and other humanitarian activities planned by UNIFIL, could not proceed in the last six days due to the denial of consent by the IDF. The IDF also still not responded to the repeated requests by UNIFIL to reopen the road between Tyre and Beirut by putting up another provisional bridge over the Litani River in a bid to facilitate the delivery of aid to beleaguered civilians in the south. UNIFIL had also been accompanying a convoy of hundreds of Lebanese security forces and civilians with prior Israeli approval out of the Force's area of operations when, the Lebanese authorities reported, it came under Israeli air strikes and a number of people were killed and wounded. "UNIFIL conveyed this information to the IDF and asked them to immediately cease attacks on the convoy," the Force said. "At the request of the Lebanese authorities today, UNIFIL requested the IDF to give security clearance for the convoy to proceed towards Beirut." The Force also continued to help civilians, among other measures by sending a medical and rescue team to evacuate some two dozen people from the village of Haris to a UNIFIL position in the area of Tibnin. UNIFIL provided medical assistance to 10 of them who were wounded as a result of intensive Israeli air strikes overnight. Two who had sustained serious injuries were relocated to a UNIFIL hospital.
