Insecurity persists in Somalia, with extremist group Al-Shabaab and fighting in the Laascaanood region taking a heavy toll on civilians, the UN envoy for the country told the Security Council on Thursday.

The United Nations-African Union partnership stands out as a “pillar of multilateralism”, a senior UN official told the Security Council on Thursday, one which has continued to grow in scope and depth.

The Government of Iraq has made “several important steps and promising initiatives” one year since its formation, but more efforts are required to address the populations needs, the Head of the UN Mission in the country, UNAMI, told the Security Council on Tuesday.