75th Session of the United Nations General Assembly
Security Council briefing on the Situation in the Middle East (Yemen)
Statement by the DPR, Mr Andre Lipand
August 24, New York
Thank you Mr. President,
I thank Assistant Secretary-General Khiari, Under-Secretary-General Griffiths and Executive Director Fore for their briefings.
I welcome the nomination of Mr Hans Grundberg as the new UN Special Envoy for Yemen. We wish him success and look forward to working with him in his efforts to reach peace in Yemen. We call upon all parties to engage constructively with the new Special Envoy.
It has been very disappointing to witness the lack of progress in the ongoing efforts to reach an agreement, as lamented by ASG Khiari. There can be no military solution to this conflict. It is vital that all parties show willingness to compromise and agree to a sustainable and nationwide ceasefire and resume an inclusive political process, with the participation of women and youth.
We call upon the Government of Yemen and the Southern Transitional Council to avoid actions which will further increase tensions in an already volatile situation. We urge them to resume the implementation of the Riyadh agreement, which is an essential step in the path towards reaching a wider peace.
We are deeply concerned about the ongoing hostilities, which continue to have a devastating effect on people of Yemen – especially in Marib, where the Houthis’ assault on Marib continues, but also in Al Bayda and elsewhere.
Alarmingly, the number of civilian casualties has reached levels higher than before since the signing of Stockholm Agreement in December 2018. In Marib alone, tens of thousands have been displaced this year.
This adds to the already dire socio-economic conditions, food insecurity, COVID-19 pandemic and flooding.
Turning to the effect of the conflict on children, we fully share the concerns raised by Ms Fore. Without ending the hostilities, the humanitarian organisations have only limited means to help the 400,000 children suffering from severe acute malnutrition, the families affected by COVID-19, children being deprived of education and the record number of families forced to flee homes due to the conflict.
We are deeply worried about the high number of child casualties in attacks by various parties to the conflict. We also condemn the continued attacks on schools and hospitals as well as recruitment and use of children in hostilities, in clear violation of International Humanitarian Law.
In order to alleviate the dire humanitarian situation, it is important to ensure unhindered access of humanitarian actors, in order to reach all in need. It is also essential to guarantee a regular flow of fuel and other essential commodities to all parts of the country.
Finally, we reiterate our call upon the Houthis to ensure immediate and full access to the SAFER oil tanker for the UN team.
I thank you.