United Nations Security Council resolution 638, adopted unanimously on 31 July 1989, after reaffirming resolutions 579 (1985) and

618 __NOTOC__ Year 618 ( DCXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 618 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...

(1988), the Council expressed its deep concern at the prevalence in incidents of

hostage-taking A hostage is a person seized by an abductor in order to compel another party, one which places a high value on the liberty, well-being and safety of the person seized, such as a relative, employer, law enforcement or government to act, or refra ...

having grave consequences for the international community and relations between states. The Council recalled various

General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...

and other resolutions, condemning all incidents of hostage-taking and abductions and calling for the immediate safe release of hostages wherever they are. It also called on States to use their political influence, in accordance with the

United Nations Charter The Charter of the United Nations (UN) is the foundational treaty of the UN, an intergovernmental organization. It establishes the purposes, governing structure, and overall framework of the UN system, including its six principal organs: the ...

, to secure the safe release of hostages and abducted persons. The resolution also asked Member States not party to the

International Convention Against the Taking of Hostages The Hostages Convention (formally the International Convention against the Taking of Hostages) is a United Nations treaty by which states agree to prohibit and punish hostage taking. The treaty includes definitions of "hostage" and "hostage taki ...

to become party to it and other treaties. Finally, the Council urged greater cooperation in devising and adopting effective measures in accordance with

international law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...

to facilitate the prosecution, prevention and punishment of all acts of hostage taking as "manifestations of international terrorism".

References

Text of the Resolution at undocs.org

External links

* {{UNSCR 1989 0638 Hostage taking 0638 July 1989 events

See also

References

External links