Attacks against Civilians Condemned By Security Council.

• Position: Brief Article

The Security Council, gravely concerned at the growing civilian toll in armed conflicts, on 12 February condemned attacks or acts of violence directed at civilians, especially women, children, refugees and internally displaced persons, in violation of international law.

In a statement read by Canada's Minister for Foreign Affairs Lloyd Axworthy, who acted as Council President, it also called on the Secretary-General to make concrete recommendations on ways the Council could act, within the sphere of its responsibility, to improve the physical and legal protection of civilians in armed conflict. The Secretary-General's report, to be submitted to the Council by September 1999, was to also identify the contributions the Council could make towards effective implementation of existing humanitarian law.

Particular concern was expressed about attacks on humanitarian workers as the Council indicated its willingness to respond, in accordance with the UN Charter, to situations in which civilians were targeted or humanitarian assistance to civilians was deliberately obstructed.

On 22 February, 26 speakers addressed an open meeting of the Council on the issue of protection of civilians in armed conflict.

Dieter Kastrup of Germany - speaking on behalf of the European Union, the associated Central and Eastern European countries of Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia, and the associated country of Cyprus - said that in the current global security situation, not only was there an alarming number of conflicts, but the important distinctions between combatants and non-combatants and between humanitarian workers and peacekeepers had become blurred. He called for a reinvigoration of international efforts to protect civilians in armed conflict, saying that the collapse of law and the often anarchic nature of contemporary conflict were a severe challenge for the global community. Moreover, parties to the conflicts either ignored or had no knowledge of international humanitarian law. The widening gap between existing international norms and full compliance with them must be bridged, he added.

Michel Kafando of Burkina Faso, who spoke on behalf of the Organization of African Unity, also said that current conflicts were characterized by their devastating and anarchic nature. No longer confined to the battlefields, they had crept into cities, houses and families and had involved civilian populations...