By: Taliyah Winn and Ethan Lehman-Pace, Student Reporters*

This is a developing story.

11:00 pm – In the wake of a Shock & Awe campaign by the United States launched against Iraq six days ago on 19 March, Turkey, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Red Cross, among others, have warned about the possibility of a major refugee and humanitarian crisis should aid not quickly come to the Iraqi population. Amid this, President Saddam Hussein has hailed the Iraqi military’s resistance to the invasion and has said invasion forces have been trapped by elements of the Iraqi military.

11:07 pm – The Secretary-General presents a report to the Security Council, regarding the U.S. invasion of Iraq.

11:17 pm – The Vice President of the Security Council announces that they have not received information on Secretary of State Colin Powell’s appearance, which was requested at the last session. 

11:19 pm – The Security Council votes to set the agenda to the situation in Iraq.

11:25 pm – Germany motions for a 30 minute unmoderated suspension. The motion passes without opposition.

11:39 pm – It is announced that a Representative of Iraq is available to caucus with the Council during the 30 minute suspension

11:55 pm The Security Council reconvenes and a Representative of Iraq is present as party to the dispute with full debate privileges.

12:02 am – A motion for a 20 minute consultative session with the President of the Security Council as a moderator passes with a vote of 14/0/1. 

12:03 am – The Secretary-General announces the American and Polish bombardment of Baghdad has commenced. The head of Turkey’s military stated that Turkey will not send troops into Iraq except in the event of a refugee catastrophe, or open warfare between factions of the Iraqi government. Both American and Iraqi forces expect American forces to reach Baghdad between 5-10 days. There has been no reported usages of chemical, nuclear or other weapons of mass destruction by either side. 

12:10 am – A moderated consultative session begins, ending at 12:30 am.

12:15 am – During the consultative session, many countries echoed the need for a ceasefire. Acknowledging that goal, Angola expressed that regarding the situation, the UN should focus its efforts on providing humanitarian assistance to Iraq.

12:17 am – Iraq states that it is accepting humanitarian aid and a ceasefire. They aim to continue sovereign control within their territory. 

12:20 am – In a statement to the body the United Kingdom suggests that proper precautions should be taken to minimize civilian casualties. They also stated that they are interested in providing humanitarian aid to Iraq. 

12:22 am – A Representative of Chile asks what the United Kingdom’s rules of engagement are. The United Kingdom informed the body of its rules: distinguishing between combatants and noncombatants and avoiding the extreme use of force.

12:26 am – France announces its government’s support of over €6,000,000 Euros to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Iraq.

12:28 am – A Representative of Chile discloses that their home government is able to provide 100 humanitarian workers, including a team of doctors, along with supplies for humanitarian aid.

12:41 am – Representative Quinn DeVries of Iraq said, “This invasion is an illegal attack on Iraqi sovereignty and we are willing and looking for a ceasefire and peaceful resolution but are willing and able to protect our borders from this intimidation and scare tactics as long as we need to.” Representative DeVries continued on the topic of the US intervention saying, “There is a sense of betrayal or maybe untruthfulness especially since in these investigations by the UN and powers that be we feel we have been compliant, and the evidence so far suggests that we have done nothing wrong, we again condemn this attack.”

12:46 am – Multiple Representatives have stated their home governments are committed to providing humanitarian support to the crisis including: €6,000,000 from France, €8,000,000 from Germany, €3,000,000 from Spain. The group, primarily composed of European nationals, are working to get a package approved by the European Union (EU) to send aid in. In terms of the EU Package it is developing and the amount of aid money is unknown. France is willing to cooperate with other EU states on this matter. Representative Jean Tissot of France said, “France is saddened that war could not be avoided, but hopes that the conflict is as short and bloodless as possible.”

12:51 am – Representative Karina Nelson of Spain said, “Unfortunately it [the invasion] was unavoidable so we’re looking forward to doing what we can to help people impacted by the crisis.” Representative Nelson went on to note the broad coalitions in the committee working to address the problem.

12:50 am – Suspension is extended by 10 minutes. The Security Council will reconvene at 1:00 a.m.

1:03 am – A Representative of the Russian Federation motions that Turkey (Türkiye) be invited to the Council as party to the dispute, with full debating privileges and no limit on the amount of time in session. 

1:07 am – The Council voted unanimously to invite a representative of Turkey (Türkiye) to discuss the next actions of the Council.

1:10 am – The Council enters a 15 minute suspension, reconvening at 1:25 am.

1:25 am – The Council session reconvenes. Secretary of State Colin Powell arrives at the emergency session as a party to the dispute. Secretary Powell describes his confusion of the need for his presence in the Council today. Representatives went on to ask questions of Powell, most of which did not receive answers due to his limited knowledge as a diplomat and the personal nature of the information. Powel expanded on the evidence he had received from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), finding discrepancies in the reports with the help of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

1:42 am – Resolution HSC-IV is available to the body. A Representative of the Russian Federation motions for the Resolution to be brought before the body. 

1:45 am – The Secretary-General informs the Security Council on the mobilization of American and Kurdish forces 350 miles north of Baghdad. American and Kurdish forces are attempting to create a northern front in Baghdad. Much of the United States’ assistance is going through non-government organizations (NGOs), but little to no aid is being received by Iraqi civilians due to regional instability. 

1:50 am – A Representative of Iraq advised eliminating the middleman of the United States and NGOs and suggested creating a body to act in humanitarian aid or directly supporting the Iraqi government. 

1:55 am – Representatives of the United States and United Kingdom took issue with the wording of Resolution SC-IV, with the Representatives focused on the terminology of “ceasefires” and “safe havens,” with the Representatives preferring the term “zones of suspensions of hostility.” The Security Council begins to deliberate on whether an amendment will be appropriate.

2:04 am – A Representative of Iraq expressed support for a ceasefire, but denounces the weak language used by the Representatives of the United States and United Kingdom regarding a ceasefire and military presence in Iraq. They also recommended creating a body to oversee the nature of this crisis.

2:19 am – The Security Council enters into a 15 minute unmoderated session to streamline the discussion on the wording in the Resolution being considered in the body. A Representative of the Syrian Arab Republic requests more aid from other countries to provide medical and humanitarian resources for refugees, even suggesting channels outside of the Security Council. Cameroon and Angola expressed their support of providing aid, but would need more information of what they require. 

2:21 am – The Council continues to discuss its drafted amendment to the resolution, hoping to come to a unanimous decision to approve the resolution. 

2:26 am – After an hour of deliberation, the United Kingdom made a statement that they could not confirm if they would agree with the resolution, even with the amendments made (until the response from their home government). A Representative of the United States would be amenable to the resolution if the language has changed. A Representative of the United Kingdom is still waiting for information from their home government until they will take action. France steers the conversation towards making a sheet of Representatives who belong to countries willing to send aid, and to determine what that aid will be. 

2:35 am – The Baghdad Zoo has been bombed and is short-staffed. 

2:37 am – A Representative of the United Kingdom announced that their home government can not sign onto any resolutions that would hurt the safety of British troops, and they are not confident that a ceasefire would be complied with. As such the United Kingdom can not support the resolutions on the floor. 

2:40 am – A Representative of the United Kingdom wishes to receive an official statement from a Representative of Iraq to comply with adherence to a  ceasefire and ensure the safety of British troops. With an official statement of that nation, the United Kingdom would agree with the resolution on the floor.

2:42 am – A Representative of France has made available their document that details the aid that each state can provide and urges the body to pass along more aid by highlighting the dangers of inaction.

2:43 am – A Representative of Iraq expressed that a ceasefire is oxymoronic in the face of an American invasion of Iraq. 

2:45 am – The amendment to replace the phrase ‘zones of ceasefire’ to the phrase ‘zones of safe haven’ in all cases has been approved by the Dias and is to be voted on by the body. The amendment is friendly and has automatically been approved by the body and added to the resolution. 

2:46 am – A Representative of Guinea urges all members to vote in favor as all requests have been considered and moves for closure of debate on draft resolution HSC-IV, to move to an immediate vote. 

2:56 am – The United Kingdom announced that they will be in support of the resolution. 

2:59 am – The Council unanimously moved into closure of debate on draft resolution HSC-IV.

2:59 am – According to a Secretary-General report, a truck carrying water and food supplies was attacked in Iraq and two members of the Red Crescent groups were killed and the supplies compromised. 

3:03 am – The situation at the Baghdad Zoo is getting dire. The last zookeeper in Baghdad Zoo is soon going to have to consider feeding the birds to the tiger due to lack of food. There is also a polar bear without ice that is at risk of dying from heat exposure in the desert. 

3:10 am – In a unanimous vote, Resolution SC-IV has passed, establishing a substantive response on the situation in Iraq. 

3:13 am – A Representative of Germany has collected a substantial amount of aid, including $18,000,000 for humanitarian aid, laid out in a press release by Germany and France sent to the body. 

3:20 am – The meeting was suspended.

_{*The views and opinions expressed in this article were part of a simulation of the United Nations held from 18 to 21 November 2023 and do not reflect the views and opinions of the American Model United Nations Conference, American Model United Nations International, LLC. or the governing bodies of the states mentioned in the article.}