Protests Spreading; Food Crisis; IAEA on Iran; Brahimi meets with Russia, China; Ebola in DRC; Culture of Peace; Next week at the UN

Protests Spreading: Protests against the anti-Islamic video released four days ago continue to spread to multiple countries across the Muslim world, including Sudan, Bangladesh, Gaza, Yemen, Egypt, Lebanon, Qatar, Kuwait, Iraq, Kashmir, Tunisia, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Iran. The SG issued a statement, saying he was “deeply disturbed” by the recent violence in Libya and elsewhere in the Middle East and called for calm and restraint to end hostilities. Human Rights head, Navi Pillay, also urged religious and political leaders to do all they can to restore calm in the
wake of such protests across the world.

Food Crisis: Today in Geneva, WFP reported that the increasing frequency of the droughts has had an eroding effect on the Sahel countries’ ability to cope, and also warning that malnutrition was still rampant in Senegal, Chad, Niger and Mauritania.  Yesterday, the WFP also announced a new global partnership with MasterCard, aimed at improving food delivery to poor communities around the world and facilitating online donations to the agency.

IAEA on Iran: Yesterday, the 35-nation IAEA Board passed a resolution censuring Iran after the country defied demands for the country to limit uranium enrichment and for not clarifying its research into nuclear weapons.

Brahimi meets with Russia, China: Joint Special Representative for Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, continues his meetings in Damascus with the Russian Ambassador, as well as the Chinese Charge d’affaires. Yesterday, he had discussions with the Iranian Ambassador. Airstrikes in both Aleppo and Damascus have also been reported in the last 24 hours.

Ebola in DRC: The WHO reported today that as of September 12 there are 41 cases of Ebola that have been reported from Haut-Uélé district in Province Orientale, DRC, 18 of which have been fatal.

Culture of Peace: The day-long GA forum on the promulgation of the a ‘culture of peace’ was held today at UN HQ, where top UN officials stressed that education could tackle the roots of conflict by promoting an understanding of common humanity. 

Next week at the UN:

Tuesday, September 18th: Opening of the GA’s 67th session

Friday, September 21st: Miloš Koterec, ECOSOC President, will be the guest at the Noon Briefing. He will brief on the forthcoming Ministerial meeting, “Building the Future We Want”, to be held on 24 September 2012.