“I am encouraged to see that the situation along the Blue Line is generally calm,” the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Hervé Ladsous, said today following an aerial tour which included visits to the Wazzani and Shebaa areas, El Adeisseh, Kafr Kela and Sheikh Abbad’s Tomb and meetings with UNIFIL troops from Indonesia, Italy, Nepal, Spain, France, and India.

In his remarks, Mr. Ladsous commended Israel and Lebanon for their continued commitment to the cessation of hostilities and the implementation of Security Council resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 war between Israel and the Lebanese group Hizbollah, and calls for respect for the Blue Line, the disarming of all militias in Lebanon, and an end to arms smuggling in the area.

Accompanied by UNIFIL Force Commander, Paolo Serra, the Under-Secretary-General also received a briefing on the ongoing visible marking of the Blue Line, which is undertaken by UNIFIL in coordination with both parties.

“A visible element of their good work with UNIFIL is the Blue Line marking process,” Mr. Ladsous noted, stating it was “a critical confidence-building measure.”

Established in 1978, UNIFIL is tasked with ensuring that the area between the so-called Blue Line – separating Israel and Lebanon – and the Litani River is free of unauthorized weapons, personnel and assets. It also cooperates with the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) so they can fulfil their security responsibilities.

Mr. Ladsous praised the cooperation between UNIFIL and the LAF in maintaining a relatively tranquil security environment in an area of the world under increasing strain – most notably, due to the continuing conflict in nearby Syria which has fuelled sectarian tensions across Lebanon and raised concerns that the country could plunge back into the internecine violence it endured during its 15 year civil war, which ended in 1990.

The last weeks of August 2012, for instance, witnessed fighting between supporters and opponents of the Syrian Government in Beirut, while tensions also increased in other parts of the country, such as the northern city of Tripoli. Moreover, a series of kidnappings also contributed to escalation in tensions.

Nevertheless, the UN official singled out the positive work undertaken by the two forces.

“I saw on the ground today the positive outcome of the strategic partnership between UNIFIL and the LAF,” Mr. Ladsous continued.

“I have high admiration for all the military and civilian personnel of UNIFIL whose hard work and sacrifice have rendered southern Lebanon the security and stability it lacked for three decades until 2006,” he added.

“We know it’s going to be a fairly volatile environment,” the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Hervé Ladsous, told journalists in New York moments after the 15-member Council unanimously adopted resolution 2100 establishing the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA).

“This is not an enforcement mission. This is not an anti-terrorist operation,” he stressed.

MINUSMA’s core task is to support the political process in Mali, in close coordination with the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

While officially established today, MINUSMA troops will not be on the ground until 1 July, when they will take over from the African-led force (AFISMA) and begin an initial 12-month mandate. That start date is subject to review and could be delayed in the event of a major international military operation or a continued threat from terrorist forces on the civilian population or international personnel, according to the resolution.

However, as of today, MINUSMA will assume responsibility for the mandated tasks being carried out by the UN Office in Mali (UNOM), which deployed in January and provides good offices aimed at facilitating contacts between the Government and those groups that wish to take part in the search for a political solution to the crisis.

In the resolution, the Security Council called on Member States to provide troops and police with “adequate capabilities and equipment in order to enhance the capacity of MINUSMA to operate, and discharge its responsibilities effectively.” Mr. Ladsous said meetings are planned with potential troop-contributing countries over the next few days.

Northern Mali was occupied by radical Islamists after fighting broke out in January 2012 between Government forces and Tuareg rebels. The conflict uprooted hundreds of thousands of people and prompted the Malian Government to request assistance from France to stop the military advance of extremist groups.

In parallel to MINUSMA, the Council authorized French troops “within the limits of their capacities and areas of deployment, to use all necessary means” to intervene in support of the mission when under imminent and serious threat, upon Mr. Ban’s request.

France’s Ambassador to the UN, Gerard Araud, today stated that his Government expects to keep 1,000 troops inside Mali until the end of the year.

While the protection of civilians is a key component of the mission’s mandate, the Council reminded the transitional authorities in Mali that the primary responsibility to protect civilians rests with them. They also noted that while UN peacekeepers have the authority to use force in certain cases, the Malian Defence and Security Force will continue to assume full responsibility for providing security throughout the country.

On the humanitarian front, the UN troops have the right to use force “to create a secure environment for the safe, civilian-led delivery of humanitarian assistance, in accordance with humanitarian principles, and the voluntary return of internally displaced persons and refugees in close coordination with humanitarian actors.”

The Council also authorized the use of force to assist the transitional authorities in protecting from attack the cultural and historical sites, in coordination with the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

It also reiterated its call on all parties within Mali and on all Member States, particularly those in the area, “to cooperate fully with the deployment and activities of MINSUMA” and “to ensure the free, unhindered, and expeditious movement to and from Mali.”

“In the early morning hours of 19 April, one peacekeeper of the African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) was shot dead and two others injured in an attack by unidentified assailants on the mission’s team site near Muhajeria,” according to a statement from UNAMID.

An estimated 18,000 displaced persons remain concentrated around the Mission’s team sites near the Muhajeria and Labado villages since 6 April, when fighting broke out between the Government forces and the Sudan Liberation Movemenet/Minni Minawi.

The UN has been calling for humanitarian access to assist the groups, who are mostly women and children.

In today’s statement, UNAMID said it was investigating the events surrounding the incident and working in coordination with Government of Sudan to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice.

The Mission reiterated that “any attack on international peacekeepers is a crime under international law.”

Earlier in the week, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon spoke about unrelated attacks on peacekeepers in South Sudan where he recalled “that the killing of peacekeepers is a war crime that falls under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court,” his spokesperson said.

“July could see the transfer of AFISMA to a UN stabilisation mission,” Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Edmond Mulet, told journalists in the Malian capital city of Bamako, referring to the African-led International Support Mission in Mali by its French acronym – AFISMA.

In December 2012, at the request of the Malian Government, the Security Council authorized AFISMA’s deployment to support national efforts to recover the north, which had been occupied by radical Islamists. The conflict uprooted hundreds of thousands of people and prompted the Malian Government to request assistance from France to stop the military advance of extremist groups.

Mr. Mulet was in Mali assessing possible options for a UN presence. Speaking to media today, he stressed that any UN force would be limited and focus on supporting the Malian authorities and protecting civilians.

“The sovereignty of Mali is the main objective of this international support,” Mr. Mulet said.

“It is not to create a buffer between the north and the south. The members of the Security Council and the member states are very clear on the need for Mali to extend its authority over all its territory,” he added.

The 15-member UN Security Council would be required to vote on any UN presence in the country. That authorization is likely to be up for debate following a report from Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon due on 27 March. Following Security Council approval, it would take approximately another two month to deploy a force to Mali.

Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Hervé Ladsous highlighted the need for flexibility and increased coordination among international actors to ensure peacekeeping missions address the needs of the countries they operate in, within the context of financial restraint.

“We are a global partnership. In order to achieve our mandates, we need support and strong cooperation between the Security Council, Member States and the Secretariat, so that we collectively focus on addressing the needs of the countries in which we are deployed,” Hervé Ladsous, told a news briefing at UN Headquarters in New York.

The budget for UN peacekeeping operations for the fiscal year 1 July 2012 to 30 June 2013 is about $7.23 billion – less than half of one per cent of world military expenditures in 2010, according to Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO).

Currently, the DPKO leads 16 peace operations around the world. In accordance with the UN Charter, every UN Member State is legally obligated to pay their respective share towards peacekeeping, based on a special scale of assessments. In addition, troops which can serve as ‘blue helmets’ are also sought from Member States.

These include the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), the United Nations-African Union operation in Darfur (UNAMID), the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) and the UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT), the last of which is expected to close at the end of this year. However, the economic crisis had an impact in financial resources provided to make the projects possible, and Mr Ladsous stated that “On balance, we are seeing modest overall reduction which gives us a strategic opportunity to focus on the quality and capabilities of peacekeeping,” He also added that financial constraints require peace missions to be versatile and creative in the implementation of their mandates from the Security Council.

The West African nation of Mali figured prominently in the UN official’s remarks. He stated that the two main priorities there remain restoring constitutional order and helping the country regain its sovereignty.

Currently Mali has been dealing with a range of security, political and humanitarian problems. Fighting between Government forces and Tuareg rebels broke out in the country’s north in January. Since then, radical Islamists have seized control of the north, where they have imposed an extremist version of Muslim Sharia law as well as restrictions that target women in particular.

Mr. Ladsous stressed that during a meeting of the international community last week in Bamako, Mali’s capital, there had been consensus amongst the UN, the Malian authorities, the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) that the two priorities should be achieved through political solutions.

DPKO, Mr Ladsous noted, has started to work with the Malian authorities, ECOWAS and the AU to plan the international military force that may ultimately be required for the recovery of the country’s north. He added that there will be another meeting in Bamako early next week to refine the concept of operations with all parties that are willing to contribute. In view of the meeting, the Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution which held out the possibility of endorsing an international military force to restore the unity of the West African nation, within 45 days.

Mr. Ladsous offered remarks on other operations as well. Regarding the ongoing crisis in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), he said the UN Stabilization Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO) is taking a firm position in view of its mandate to support DRC forces and protect civilians, but emphasized that wider political action is needed to find a lasting solution.

The DRC’s eastern provinces of North and South Kivu have witnessed increased fighting between Government troops and the M23, which is composed of renegade soldiers who mutinied in April. The fighting has displaced more than 300,000 people, including many who have fled to neighbouring Rwanda and Uganda, as well as within DRC. MONUSCO has clashed with members of M23 on several occasions.

“It is very important that all external support to the M23 cease and that a regional dialogue can develop,” Mr. Ladsous said, noting that two solutions have been put forward at meetings of the International Conference on the Region of the Great Lakes (ICGLR).

One of these is the establishment of an international force to work alongside MONUSCO to pacify the Kivus, and the other, the so-called Expanded Joint Verification Mechanism (EJVM), was launched in September, in the eastern DRC town of Goma. The mechanism is a technical body, comprising military experts from both DRC and Rwanda, as well as other ICGLR countries and supported by the AU and the UN, to address DRC-Rwanda border security issues, amongst other tasks.

Mr. Ladsous also discussed Sudan and South Sudan, particularly their achievement in avoiding violence between them over the past six months. “In April this year the two countries were terribly close to open war and fortunately an all-out conflict has been avoided,” he said, commending the AU for its role as intermediary in related peace talks.

Regarding the situation in Syria, Mr. Ladsous said the main focus right now rests on supporting the efforts of the Joint Special Representative of the UN and the League of Arab States, Lakhdar Brahimi, to help Syria achieve a cessation of violence and ultimately bring about a political process that meets the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people.

At the same time, DPKO is preparing plans should a ceasefire take place and the Security Council calls for the involvement of UN peacekeepers. However, he noted, it was still too early to say what size of force, and precisely what kind of peacekeeping mandate and force, could be called for.

Syria has been wrecked by violence, with an estimated 20,000 people, mostly civilians, killed since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began some 20 months ago. Some 2.5 million people are also in need of humanitarian assistance, according to UN estimates.

The Secretaries-General of the United Nations and the League of Arab States – Ban Ki-moon and Nabil El Araby – have called on all warring parties in Syria to heed the call of Joint Special Representative Brahimi for a ceasefire in all its forms during the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, which takes place on Friday, and called on international actors to support this appeal.

During the range of topics covered in his news briefing, Mr. Ladsous also spoke of the general work of UN peacekeepers, to whom he paid tribute for their efforts and sacrifices: “Let us never forget the sacrifices made by our peacekeepers,” he said. “This year alone, a total of 73 peacekeepers have died serving in the cause of peace.”

“I am saddened that the people of Kutum have again had to endure pain and suffering,” UNAMID’s Acting Joint Special Representative, Aichatou Mindaoudou, said in a news release. “UNAMID calls for a cessation in hostilities and for all parties to engage in peaceful dialogue.”

According to the news release, UNAMID peacekeepers at a team site near the town of Kutum, located some 100 kilometres northwest of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state, reported that the security situation began deteriorating on Tuesday, 4 September, with a rash of shootings, including an assassination attempt on a local official.

The incidents reportedly resulted in several dead and wounded, and UNAMID evacuated wounded civilians to El-Fasher by helicopter for emergency medical treatment. On 5 September, armed men allegedly fired at local civilians, resulting in additional casualties.

The latest violence comes as the locality recovers from a series of attacks, and subsequent destruction and looting, which took place last month.

That violence began on August 1, with the shooting of a district commissioner and his driver during a car-jacking by three unidentified armed men. The vehicle was recovered later that same day, in the vicinity of the Kassab camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs), located near Kutum.

Later that day, armed men surrounded Kassab, looted its market and burnt down the police post located within. Three civilians and one police officer were reported killed, in addition to six people injured.

In the following days, similar events took place – such as fighting between armed elements and Government forces, looting and the displacement of civilians – leading to a deterioration of the security and humanitarian situation at the Kassab and Fataborno IDP camps, as well as around Kutum. The incidents forced more than 25,000 IDPs from Kassab camp to flee and seek refuge in Kutum.

In response, UNAMID began providing a round-the-clock presence with continuous patrols, monitoring movements in and around the camp and facilitating humanitarian assistance.

At the end of August, UN humanitarian agencies and non-governmental partner organizations reported that they were able to resume their activities at Kassab IDP camp, with about 80 percent of its residents having returned following the violence in August.