INTERNATIONAL – With four million Syrian and host community children in need of education and no let-up in sight in the fighting tearing the country apart, the United Nations and its partners are seeking $1.4 billion at a major conference in London on Thursday to save the current youth generation.

“The scale of the crisis for children is growing all the time, which is why there are now such fears that Syria is losing a whole generation of its youth,” said UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Peter Salama, whose agency is coordinating the ‘No Lost Generation Initiative'.

“As a result of all the work being done by partners and donors, education and protection for children are now being prioritized. But what we must see in London is the step-change necessary to bring all children back to learning; to protect those who are at risk of dropping out; expand safe and inclusive learning environments; recruit and train more teachers; improve the quality of education, and support the development of technical, vocational and life skills opportunities for youth.”

The London conference is being co-hosted by Britain, Germany, Kuwait and Norway, and leaders from more than 30 countries are expected to attend, with the aim of raising new funding to meet the immediate and longer-term needs of those affected by the crisis.

Nearly five years into the Syrian war, some four million Syrian and host community children and youth aged 5-17 years are in need of education assistance, including 2.1 million out-of-school children inside Syria and 700,000 Syrian children in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt.

Last year, the combined efforts of Governments and international partners helped more than one million children and youth inside Syria benefit from formal or non-formal learning opportunities. But with no political solution in sight to one of the most brutal conflicts the world has seen in decades, the number of children missing out on an education continues to climb.

Governments at the London meeting will also be urged to put more pressure on parties to the Syria conflict and those who support them to end attacks on schools and other places of learning, in accordance with international humanitarian law.

According to UNICEF, the killing, abduction and arrest of students and teachers has become commonplace, as have arbitrary attacks on schools. About one in four schools cannot be used because they have been damaged, destroyed or are being used as shelters for the internally displaced or for military purposes.

The No Lost Generation Initiative was set up in 2013. By the end of 2015 1.2 million children and youth inside Syria benefitted from improved formal and non-formal learning opportunities and more than 650,788 in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey received school supplies or support through cash grants.

INTERNATIONAL - The delayed intra-Syrian talks to end five years of bloody warfare officially started in Geneva today with two hours of talks between the United Nations mediator and the opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC).

“As far as we are concerned, their arrival at the Palais des Nations and initiating the discussions with us is the official beginning of the Geneva talks,” said UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura, who already met the HNC yesterday, but at their hotel, not at the UN’s Geneva headquarters.

Mr. de Mistura, who is mediating the indirect talks between Government and opposition factions in close proximity diplomacy, which will see him shuttling between the parties in different rooms, will meet Government representative tomorrow morning and plans a second meeting with the HNC in the afternoon to go more deeply into the issues raised today.

These concern the opposition’s desire to see, for the talks’ duration, a reduction in violence, release of detainees and lifting the sieges that have driven several towns to the brink of starvation, with dozens reported dead.

“Of course we do respect very much and we heard very clearly their very clear position,” Mr. de Mistura told a news briefing. “We feel they have a very strong point because this is the voice of the Syrian people asking for that. When I meet Syrian people they tell me, please don’t just have a conference, have something also that we can see and touch while you are meeting in Geneva,” he said.

He noted that in Vienna, where the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) – comprising the Arab League, the European Union, the United Nations, and 17 countries including the United States and Russia – laid the groundwork for the Geneva talks, there was a message that “in parallel there should be a serious discussion about a ceasefire.”

Mr. de Mistura has made clear that he is under no illusions about the difficulties in ending a war that has killed over 250,000 people, sent over 4 million fleeing the country, displaced 6.5 million internally, and put 13.5 million people inside the country in urgent need of humanitarian aid.

“There will be a lot of posturing, we know that, a lot of walk-outs and walk-ins because a bomb has fallen or because someone has done an attack, and you will see that happening,” he said last week.

Asked today what his immediate short-term objectives are, he replied: “The first immediate objective is to make sure that the talks continue and that everyone is on board. It’s crucial that no one should be feeling excluded and that everyone should be concretely, constructively but also effectively be part of it.”

In reply to another question, he said he has not yet received a list of detainees which he has asked for and wants “because I think that a list of the names, particularly of women and children detained, should be the first among the signals that in fact there is something different happening.”

INTERNATIONAL – As more than 800 young leaders gather in New York for the annual United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Youth Forum, UN officials today launched a new initiative to tackle youth unemployment, making it clear that success in fighting poverty and inequality will largely depend on them being a driving force.

“The challenges we face may seem overwhelming and out of reach for us to solve. But that is not true. Each and every one of us can be an agent of change, no matter our age or means,” said Oh Joon, the President of ECOSOC, at the opening of the two-day event at UN Headquarters.

It is the fifth time the Council hosts the Forum, which this year is focusing on the role of young people in implementing, communicating and realizing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which aims for global changes through 17 goals (SDGs) within the next 15 years.

“Many of the biggest challenges we are facing are especially daunting for young people,” Mr. Oh added. “Youth unemployment continues to be on the rise. Young people all over the world face a world where inequalities are high, where destinies too often depend on gender, race, social status or religion,” he said.

To energize the global job market, a plan to “unleash the dynamism of youth,” considered the first-ever UN system-wide response to the global youth employment crisis, was launched.

Addressing the Forum, Guy Rider, the Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO), said the Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth will generate decent jobs for them and assist in their transition from school-to-work.

He described the initiative as a unique partnership with governments, the UN system, businesses, academic institutions, youth organizations and other groups to scale-up action to create new opportunities and avenues for quality employment in the global economy.

“Today, two out of every five young persons of working age are either unemployed or working jobs that don’t pay enough to escape poverty,” he stressed to the hundreds of young people in attendance, noting that the trap of “working poverty” affects as many as 169 million of them.

According to ILO, in low-income countries the situation is even worse where nine in ten young workers remain in informal employment which is sporadic, poorly paid and falls outside the protection of law.

“Your voices reflect the aspirations of young people everywhere. Your voices must be heard and acted upon if we are to shape inclusive and sustainable societies, challenging injustices and inequalities and opening pathways to peace, progress and prosperity for all,” declared Mr. Rider.

Meanwhile, the UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth, Ahmad Alhendawi, said “the launching of this timely initiative reflects the UN commitment to tackle youth unemployment and promote decent jobs for youth.”

He noted that it reflects that youth employment should be a priority at all levels to unlock the potential of 1.8 billion young people, “a recipe that is imperative for development, as well as peace and security.”

Also speaking at today’s event, UN Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson said the situation must change. “Now comes the real test: making it happen, making it a reality. Our work begins with you now, with us together at the start of the first year of implementation.”

He recalled that just recently, the Security Council recognized the crucial role of young people as peacebuilders by adopting resolution 2250 on ‘youth, peace and security.’

“This is a historic step forward to recognizing the role and potential of young people in the world today for peace and security. It may play the same role for young people and the world as the legendary Security Council resolution 1325 has played for women over the years,” he underlined.

The two-day event is expected to feature brainstorming sessions, interactive panels and discussions with Member States.

INTERNATIONAL – Cyprus has seen many positive developments concerning the treatment of people in detention, but still faces several challenges, particularly regarding the independent monitoring of places of detention and the treatment of migrants, the UN Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture (SPT) said today after visiting the country.

“We were very pleased to have visited Cyprus and take note of improvements. But the situation of those in immigration detention centres requires careful attention,” said Malcolm Evans, the SPT Chair and head of the four-member delegation to Cyprus, in a press release.

“It is so important to ensure that such detention is only resorted to when it is strictly necessary. The conditions of detention should reflect the fact that such places are not prisons and those detained are not prisoners,” he added.

The SPT, which monitors how States that have ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT) are meeting their treaty obligations, was in Cyprus from 25 to 29 January. The delegation accompanied members of the independent Cypriot body that monitors places of detention to the Menoyia Detention Centre, where people are held pending the outcome of their asylum application. The Centre has in the past seen riots, protests and hunger strikes.

“It is vital that all those whose legal situation is unclear, whether asylum seekers or those detained for infringement of immigration rules, are promptly and fully informed of what is happening to them. This is an essential safeguard for their wellbeing,” stressed Mr. Evans.

The SPT also held discussions with representatives of the Cypriot monitoring body, officially known as a National Preventive Mechanism (NPM), on how they work and the challenges they face in fulfilling their role.

“We are particularly concerned that the National Preventive Mechanism for torture prevention, which is a part of the Ombudsman’s office, should be much better resourced financially and have its legal powers reviewed so that it can continue and expand its good work. It currently does not have the capacity to work as the Optional Protocol requires,” he noted.

The delegation also visited police stations in several parts of the country, Nicosia Central Prison, Athalassa Psychiatric Hospital and centres for unaccompanied teenage migrants and for minors.

Following the visit, the SPT will submit a confidential report to the Government of Cyprus, containing its observations and recommendations on prevention of torture and ill-treatment of individuals deprived of their liberty. As with all other States, the SPT is encouraging Cyprus to make this report public.

“I am sure that working together in a spirit of cooperation and collaboration, we will be able to help the Cypriot authorities make progress in achieving a betterment for all those who are in detention,” the expert said.