SG urges Egyptian officials to lift state of emergency, congratulates Haiti on successful elections, WHO issues top 30 medicines to save women’s and children’s lives, and more from UN Direct

SG: the SG spoke to civil society in Cairo today, and met with senior Egyptian officials, urging them to lift the state of emergency “well before elections”.  He also met with Amr Moussa, the SG of the League of Arab States, and told press that the UN will continue working to bring an end to conflict in Libya and provide humanitarian relief.  He is currently in route to Tunisia.

Libya: UNHCR and IOM are estimating that at least 320,000 people have fled Libya, and another 9,000 are stranded at the Libya/Tunisia Boarder.  The UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Libya has just finished a trip to the border area, where he discussed preparedness measures with humanitarian partners and authorities.  On Saturday, 2,700 Libyans fled to Egypt, citing fears for their safety and the reported “massive use of force” by Government forces.

Haiti: the SG issued a statement congratulating Haitians for the successful conduct of elections yesterday, and reaffirmed the UN’s commitment to support Haiti.

Security Council: the Council held consultations on Libya this afternoon, following a request by Russia and China.

WHO: today WHO issued a list of the top 30 medicines that need to be available to save the lives of women and children.

Darfur: parties to the Darfur peace talks will resume negotiations April 18 in Doha.