Tag Archives: António Guterres

UN Chief Invokes Article 99 to Spur Security Council Action on Gaza

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“Facing a severe risk of collapse of the humanitarian system in Gaza, I urge the council to help avert a humanitarian catastrophe and appeal for a humanitarian cease-fire to be declared.”

By Jessica Corbett. Published 12-6-2023 by Common Dreams

António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations during opening session of the High Level Segment at the 52nd session of the Human Rights Council. 27 February 2023. UN Photo / Jean Marc Ferré

With over 16,000 Palestinians dead just two months into Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Wednesday demanded immediate action by the U.N. Security Council.

For the first time since becoming secretary-general nearly seven years ago, Guterres invoked Article 99, a rarely used section of the U.N. Charter empowering him to bring to the attention of the council “any matter which in his opinion may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security.”

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‘Baby Steps’ Will Not Avert Climate Catastrophe, UN Warns

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The United Nations assessment coincided with the release of “the world’s most comprehensive roadmap of how to close the global gap in climate action across sectors.”

By Jessica Corbett. Published 11-14-2023 by Common Dreams

A resident holds a sign asking passing drivers to slow down to reduce wakes that exacerbate flooding in a suburb of Houston, Texas, in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in 2017. (U.S. Customs and Border Protection photo by Glenn Fawcett)

“The world is failing to get a grip on the climate crisis.”

That’s how United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres began his Tuesday remarks about a new U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) report on nationally determined contributions (NDCs), or countries’ plans to meet the goals of the Paris agreement, including its 1.5°C temperature target.

The UNFCCC analysis “provides yet more evidence that the world remains massively off track to limiting global warming to 1.5°C and avoiding the worst of climate catastrophe,” said Guterres. “As the report shows, global ambition stagnated over the past year and national climate plans are strikingly misaligned with the science.”

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400+ Actions to End Fossil Fuels Planned Around the World for Sept. 15-17

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“When we the people use our collective power we can win,” said one campaigner.

By Julia Conley. Published 9-11-2023 by Common Dreams

Photo: Extinction Rebellion

“September 15-17, 2023. Everywhere.”

Those are the dates and location of the international mobilization against fossil fuels set to take place this coming weekend, and the last word is hardly an exaggeration as organizers with the Global Fight to End Fossil Fuels report that more than 400 actions, marches, rallies, and other events have already been registered around the world.

More than 780 organizations have endorsed the day of action—up from 500 less than a week ago—and millions of participants are expected to rally from Cape Town, South Africa to Manila, Philippines and Lahore, Pakistan, as well as in dozens of cities and towns across the United States, the largest emitter of greenhouse gases in history.

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On Nagasaki Anniversary, UN Chief Warns ‘Humanity Now Confronts a New Arms Race’

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“We will not sit idly by as nuclear-armed states race to create even more dangerous weapons,” he said, calling for abolishing such arms.

By Jessica Corbett. Published 8-9-2023 by Common Dreams

António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations. Photo: UNclimatechange/flickr/CC

Nearly eight decades after the United States dropped an atomic bomb codenamed “Fat Man” on the Japanese city of Nagasaki, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Wednesday was among the voices around the world renewing calls for eliminating nuclear weapons.

In a message to the Nagasaki Peace Memorial on the 78th anniversary of the 1945 bombing, Guterres said that “this ceremony is an opportunity to remember a moment of unmatched horror for humanity.”

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Egypt Announces Regional Summit as UN Warns of ‘Full-Scale Civil War’ in Sudan

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News of the upcoming meeting in Cairo followed U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres’ warning that an ongoing armed conflict in Sudan could destabilize “the entire region.”

By Kenny Stancil. Published 7-9-2023 by Common Dreams

Internally displaced people in South Sudanese province of Upper Nile. Photo: UNMISS

Egypt announced Sunday that it plans to host a summit of Sudan’s neighbors on July 13 to discuss how they might help broker an end to the 12-week battle between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF)—an ongoing conflict that has exacerbated humanitarian crises in North Africa.

News of Thursday’s meeting in Cairo came after United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres warned—in a Saturday statement issued by his deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq—that intensified fighting between the two factions “has pushed Sudan to the brink of a full-scale civil war, potentially destabilizing the entire region.”

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