ISTANBUL, May 23 — James Bond star Daniel Craig appeared at the World Humanitarian Summit in Turkey today to speak out against landmines.
Craig spoke before business leaders, aid groups and donors in Istanbul for the world's first humanitarian summit and called on government to do more to clear landmines.
The summit is an attempt to develop a more coherent response to what the UN chief ban Ki-moon has called the worst global humanitarian situation since World War Two.
The United Nations estimates that more than 130 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance and that less than 20 per cent of the US$20 billion (RM80 billion) needed to fund that is covered.
The summit — billed as the first of its kind bringing together governments, civil society and the private sector — aims to mobilise funds and get world leaders to agree on issues from better managing displaced civilians to renewing commitments to international humanitarian law.
UN second-in-command Jan Eliasson said yesterday it was necessary to stand up for international humanitarian law which was being disregarded, citing attacks on hospitals and “practically medieval” sieges on civilians in Syria and Yemen.
Eliasson said that there were many signs the Geneva convention on human rights was being neglected.
Some 6,000 participants from 150 UN member states are taking part in the summit including 57 heads of state or government. German Chancellor Angela Merkel is the only G7 leader attending the summit. ― Reuters
