NEW YORK/GENEVA: The State of Kuwait affirmed that the inability of the international community to address the Palestinian issue remains the biggest failure in the history of the United Nations in general and the Security Council in particular. This came during the State of Kuwait's statement delivered by First Secretary Fahad Muhammad Hajji at the Security Council's open debate on "Children and Armed Conflict". "We are discussing today the annual report issued by the Secretary-General of the United Nations on children and armed conflict, with such regrettable and alarming information and figures".

"While we are calling for the protection of civilians and children in armed conflicts, the report revealed a completely different realistic picture of what we call for," he noted. "The report revealed cases of children exploitation in wars and armed conflicts, and their exposure to kidnapping, rape, displacement and starvation, which destroy their innocence and rights to live in dignity", Hajji added. "Talking about children in armed conflict forces us again and again to address the suffering of the Palestinian people and their children, as the State of Kuwait renews its condemnation, in the strongest terms, of the (Zionist) occupation authorities' violations in this regard".

GENEVA: Diplomatic Attache Rashed Al-Abhoul speaks before the UN Human Rights Council.

He also called for working to end conflicts, establish sustainable peace, implement Security Council resolutions, support UN efforts to protect children, and provide them with basic services and relief and humanitarian aid without obstacles or discrimination. He affirmed the desire of the State of Kuwait to strengthen joint international efforts to address serious violations against children in armed conflicts in all their forms, provide them with effective protection, guarantee their legitimate rights, prevent further crimes against them, and hold the parties responsible for the breaches against them accountable.

Fair solution to Rohingya crisis In other developments, the State of Kuwait Thursday called on Thomas Andrews, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, to review the practical steps he made to address the causes of Muslims' crisis, Rohingya, to reach a fair and sustainable solution. This came in Kuwait's speech delivered by Diplomatic Attache Rashed Al-Abhoul before the UN Human Rights Council, as part of the interactive dialogue on situation in Myanmar.

The State of Kuwait welcomes the initiative of relocating those vulnerable refugees in Bangladesh, as a good step to face the forcible unprecedented displacement of large numbers all over the world due to war and oppression, Abhoul said. In this regard, Kuwait commended efforts and endeavors of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Bangladesh's government and the US to facilitate dealing with those refugees, he said.

Abhoul further extolled efforts of Andrews aiming to highlight situation of human rights in Myanmar through monitoring human rights 'violations' in that country. Meanwhile, Abhoul praised the positive outcomes of Andrews' visit to Kuwait last month, stating that it came in line with Kuwait's desire to contribute to enhancing and protecting human rights through its support to the UN Human Rights Council. – KUNA