Sun Lei, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations on Thursday urged all parties concerned to stay calm and exercise restraint to avoid further escalation of the situation in Yemen.
At a meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Yemen, Sun said that the situation in Yemen has escalated drastically in the past month, with the conflict intensity reaching its highest level since a ceasefire agreement was signed in the April 2022.
Meanwhile, security risks in the Red Sea shipping lanes have been on the rise, sparking widespread concern of the international community, he said.
The current escalation of tensions in Yemen has taken place in the backdrop of growing instability in the Middle East and is the result of the spillover effects of regional conflicts, said Sun.
The Chinese envoy said the most urgent priority is to de-escalate the situation and prevent the conflict from continuing to expand. He called on all parties involved to remain calm and exercise restraint to avoid further escalation.
Chinese envoy calls for de-escalation in Yemen situation
Filipino demonstrators gathered outside the Japanese embassy in Manila, the Philippine's capital, on Friday to commemorate the victims of Japan's wartime military sexual slavery, commonly referred to as "comfort women," seeking justice for these victims, and opposing war and military expansion.
The protesters, including family members of sexual slavery victims and civil society members, urged the Philippine government to expedite the passage of a bill designating August 14 as the national Memorial Day for "Comfort Women."
In 2012, the 11th Asian Alliance Conference for "Comfort Women" designated August 14 as the International Memorial Day for "Comfort Women."
An estimated 200,000 women from China and many others from the Korean Peninsula, the Philippines, Indonesia and some other countries, euphemistically known as "comfort women", were forced into sexual servitude by Japanese troops. Many of them died.
During the Japanese occupation of the Philippines from 1942 to 1945, an estimated 1,000 Filipino women were forcibly conscripted as "comfort women."
Protest in Manila commemorates victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery
