communications [at] rescue.org
New York, NY, May 12, 2021 The IRC and 25 civil society organizations have issued a joint statement ahead of the May 25th UN Security Council Open Debate on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict. The joint statement calls for the UN Secretary General, UN Security Council, Member States, and armed actors to take urgent and ambitious action to shift mindsets and invest in robust policies, strategies, and practices, to protect civilians caught in armed conflict. Read the full statement below and click here for the PDF.
Civil Society Statement on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict (2021)
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12th May 2021
Photo: Hala is a displaced woman who lives with her five granddaughters in a camp in northwest Syria.
Name has been changed
Over the past year, anniversaries of the conflicts in Syria, Libya, Yemen, and new outbreaks of violence elsewhere, have served as grim reminders of the international community’s lack of meaningful progress to uphold their commitments to protect civilians in armed conflict. The COVID-19 pandemic has interacted with new, ongoing, and protracted conflicts, exacerbating existing inequalities and protection concerns, and contributing to dramatically escalating humanitarian needs including displacement, famine and food insecurity, and desperate medical shortfalls. Civilians living in conflict-zones continue to experience the devastating impacts of conflict-related environmental damage and an increased vulnerability to climate and environmental risks with wide-ranging effects on health and human suffering.
Application Deadline: May 23, 2021
The Arms Division of Human Rights Watch (HRW) is seeking an Associate to provide administrative assistance to the team. The Arms Division works to advance humanitarian disarmament and enhance protections for civilians from various weapons that are indiscriminate and inflict unnecessary harm, such as cluster munitions, antipersonnel landmines, incendiary weapons. We promote the establishment and implementation of international treaties and are working to ban killer robots.
This is an entry-level opportunity for a young professional seeking experience in and exposure to the international human rights field. It is not a legal position.
This full-time position is preferably based in Washington, DC, but may be based in HRW’s New York office, and reports to the division’s Executive Director. Due to COVID-19 many of our global offices remained closed or at a limited capacity; we will decide to open (or close) offices based on our internal standards
States should curb urban slaughter of civilians from explosive weapons
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Amnesty International has documented disastrous impact of explosive weapons on civilians in multiple conflicts
Global civil society network outlines key changes needed
Dozens of states convening this week must forge a strong new political agreement that will help to minimize civilian casualties from explosive weapons that cause widespread destruction in cities and towns during armed conflicts, Amnesty International said today.
“It is high time for states to commit to stop using explosive weapons designed decades ago for open battlefields – such as artillery, rockets and heavy, air-delivered bombs – in populated civilian areas,” said Donatella Rovera, Senior Crisis Response Adviser at Amnesty International.