UN Security Council renews mission in Somalia

The UN Security Council Thursday extended a UN mission in Somalia for one more year to continue providing "good offices" in the country's peace and reconciliation process.

In an unanimously adopted resolution, the 15-member Council commended the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) for its first 12 months of operation and decided to "extend UNSOM' s mandate for a period of 12 months", Xinhua reported.

According to the resolution, the mandate of UNSOM includes providing United Nations "good offices" functions in support of peace and reconciliation; providing advice on peace- and state- building; coordination of international donor support; government capacity building on human rights; and human rights monitoring and reporting.

It also condemned "in the strongest terms" recent terrorist attacks perpetrated by Al-Shabaab in Somalia and the region, underlined the importance of holding perpetrators to account. and reiterated that terrorist attacks will not lessen its resolve to support the peace and reconciliation process in Somalia.

Expressing "deep concern" about the humanitarian situation as well as the reports of human rights violations in the country, the council members urged the Somali government to ensure that all perpetrators of serious violations of international humanitarian and human rights laws are held accountable.

On May 2, 2013, the Security Council unanimously voted to establish a new UN Assistance Mission to be based in the national capital of Mogadishu. The mandate of this political mission began June 3.

Somalia has been torn asunder by factional fighting since 1991 but has recently made progress towards stability.