               United Nations                                                                     S/RES/2686 (2023)
               Security Council                                                 Distr.: General
                                                                                14 June 2023




               Resolution 2686 (2023)
               Adopted by the Security Council at its 9347th meeting, on
               14 June 2023

                    The Security Council,
                     Underscoring the determination of the Member States of the United Nations to
               practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours,
                     Reaffirming the purpose of the United Nations to achieve international
               co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or
               humanitarian character, and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights
               and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or
               religion,
                    Bearing in mind the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations
               and the primary responsibility of the Security Council under the Charter for the
               maintenance of international peace and security, which includes activities across the
               peace continuum, from prevention, conflict resolution and peacekeeping, to
               peacebuilding and sustaining peace,
                     Recalling the Security Council’s continuing commitment to addressing the
               prevention of armed conflicts in all regions of the world, and its determination to
               enhance the effectiveness of the United Nations in preventing and ending armed
               conflicts, their escalation, spread when they occur and their resurgence once they end,
                     Underlining the need to uphold the rule of law, and to fully promote, protect and
               respect human rights, reaffirming the rights to freedom of opinion and expression and
               freedom of religion or belief under international law, and stressing the importance of
               the rule of law and human rights in the fight against all forms of intolerance and of
               discrimination, including but not limited to, discrimination based on religion or belief
               including against non-believers, in addressing the root causes of conflict, and in
               conflict prevention, resolution, reconciliation, reconstruction, and peacebuilding,
                     Reaffirming that States must respect and ensure the human rights of all
               individuals, within their territory and subject to their jurisdiction as provided for by
               relevant international law, including in particular the right to freedom of expression
               reflected in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and recognising
               in this regard that efforts to address hate speech, intolerance and extremism driving
               the outbreak, escalation and recurrence of conflict, in a manner that complies with
               international law, can contribute to respect for, and the protection and promotion of,
               human rights,




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S/RES/2686 (2023)

                     Acknowledging the importance of tolerance, equality, coexistence, dialogue,
               pluralistic traditions, mutual respect and the diversity of religions and beliefs, and
               taking note of the International Day of Human Fraternity proclaimed by United
               Nations General Assembly resolution 75/200 (2020),
                      Expressing deep concern at instances of discrimination, intolerance and
               extremism, manifesting in the form of hate speech or violence based on race, sex,
               ethnicity or religion or belief, such as but not limited to persons belonging to religious
               communities, in particular cases motivated by Islamophobia, antisemitism or
               Christianophobia, and other forms of intolerance which may occur in the lead up to,
               during, and in the aftermath of armed conflict, and in that regard, recognising the
               efforts of the United Nations system to address hate speech at the national and global
               level,
                     Being further deeply concerned by the number of victims as a consequence of
               intolerance, discrimination or incitement in situations of armed conflict, including
               among civilians of diverse religions and beliefs, and stressing the importance of
               assisting such victims and survivors in situations of armed conflict,
                     Remaining deeply concerned about the persistent obstacles to women’s full,
               equal, meaningful and safe participation in the prevention and resolution of conflicts
               and in post-conflict public life, as a result of violence and intimidation, lack of
               security and lack of rule of law, cultural discrimination and stigmatization, including
               the rise of extremist or fanatical views on women, and socio-economic factors
               including the lack of access to education, and in this respect, recognizing that the
               marginalization of women can delay or undermine the achievement of durable peace,
               security and reconciliation,
                     Expressing deep concern at those acts that advocate racial or religious hatred in
               violation of international human rights law and thereby undermine the spirit of
               tolerance, inclusiveness and respect for diversity,
                    Expressing deep concern at instances of violence fuelled by hate speech,
               misinformation and disinformation, including through social media platforms,
                     Recognizing the importance of education, and the role of civil society, including
               community-based civil society, youth, women, peacebuilders, and where relevant the
               private sector, academia, think tanks, media online as well as offline, including
               Internet-based platforms such as social media, and cultural and religious leaders in
               promoting tolerance and peaceful coexistence to support peace building efforts and
               sustaining peace,
                     Underlining the potential contributions of ethnic, religious and confessional
               communities and religious leaders to conflict prevention, resolution, reconciliation,
               reconstruction, peacebuilding and addressing the root causes of conflict, stressing the
               positive contribution of initiatives to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence, and
               welcoming efforts by religious leaders to promote interreligious dialogue and
               understanding,
                     Reaffirming that sexual violence, when used or commissioned as a method or
               tactic of war or as part of a widespread or systematic attack against civilian
               populations, can significantly exacerbate and prolong situations of armed conflict and
               may impede the restoration of international peace and security,
                     Strongly deploring all acts of violence against persons on the basis of their
               religion or belief and such acts directed against their places of worship, as well as all
               attacks on and in religious places, sites and shrines that are in violation o f
               international law including the Charter of the United Nations,



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               Acknowledging the important role that cultural heritage can play in the
           promotion of reconciliation, peacebuilding, tolerance and peaceful coexistence,
                 Underscoring the importance of strategic communications to, inter alia,
           contribute to countering disinformation and misinformation in order to strengthen the
           ability of United Nations peacekeeping operations to implement their mandates and
           enhance the safety and security of peacekeepers,
                 1.    Recognizes that hate speech, racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia,
           related forms of intolerance, gender discrimination, and acts of extremism can
           contribute to driving the outbreak, escalation and recurrence of conflict, and
           undermine initiatives to address root causes of conflict and prevent and resolve
           conflict, as well as reconciliation, reconstruction and peacebuilding efforts;
                2.    Urges States and international and regional organizations to publicly
           condemn violence, hate speech and extremism motivated by discrimination including
           on the grounds of race, ethnicity, gender, religion or language, in a manner consistent
           with applicable international law, including the right to freedom of expression ;
                3.     Encourages all relevant stakeholders, including religious and community
           leaders, media entities and social media platforms, as well as persons who may have
           credibility and influence within communities to speak out against hate speech, and to
           develop and share good practices to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence, and
           to address, in a manner consistent with applicable international law, hate speech and
           extremism that leads to or exacerbates armed conflict and impedes durable peace and
           reconciliation;
                 4.    Recognizes the importance of interreligious and intercultural dialogue and
           its valuable contribution to promoting social cohesion, peace and development, and
           calls upon Member States to have regard to, as appropriate and where applicable,
           interreligious and intercultural dialogue as an important tool in efforts aimed at
           achieving peace and social stability and the full realization of internationally agreed
           development goals in situations throughout the peace continuum;
                 5.    Urges States to promote women’s full, equal, meaningful and safe
           participation and leadership at all levels of decision-making, in efforts to promote
           tolerance, sustainable and inclusive peace, and to strengthen social cohesion and
           community resilience, as well as women’s economic empowerment and gender
           equality, further recognizes the role of women’s leadership in prevention and
           resolution of conflict and their contribution to preventing the spread of intolerance
           and incitement to hatred, and recalls the Women, Peace and Security agenda pursuant
           to Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) and related resolutions;
                6.    Reaffirms States’ obligation to respect, promote and protect human rights
           and fundamental freedoms of all individuals, and ensure equal access to justice and
           preserve the integrity of rule of law institutions, and to foster an enabling and safe
           environment for all those working on peace and security, including by protecting civic
           and political space and condemning hate speech and incitement to violence;
                 7.   Encourages States to engage relevant civil society, local communities, the
           private sector and other non-governmental actors, in developing strategies to address
           intolerance and extremism that infringes upon human rights and harms social
           cohesion, by empowering women, youth, families, and religious, cultural and
           education leaders, as well as community leaders, including racial and ethnic
           communities, persons with influence and authority within communities and all other
           concerned groups of civil society;
                8.    Urges Member States to support quality education for peace, including by
           designing and implementing policies whereby education systems promote sustainable

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               development and gender equality, help to prevent sexual and gender-based violence
               and instill the principles of tolerance and respect for others and cultural diversity, and
               the freedom of religion or belief;
                     9.    Encourages States to prevent the spread of intolerant ideology and
               incitement to hatred, through education to promote tolerance, human rights, and
               interreligious and intercultural dialogue;
                     10. Condemns misinformation, disinformation and incitement to violence
               against United Nations peacekeeping operations intended to negatively affect their
               safety or their ability to implement their mandates;
                     11. Requests United Nations peacekeeping and special political missions,
               within their respective mandates, to monitor hate speech, racism and acts of
               extremism that negatively affect peace and security, and to include reporting on these
               issues in their regular reporting to the Council;
                     12. Encourages all Special Representatives and Special Envoys of the
               Secretary-General, in coordination with relevant stakeholders, to use their good
               offices to support local peace initiatives, and where appropriate involve local
               communities, women, youth, civil society and religious leaders in the mediation of
               peace agreements and their implementation mechanisms;
                     13. Encourages the Peacebuilding Commission to continue fully utilising its
               role to convene United Nations bodies, Member States, national authorities and all
               other relevant stakeholders including regional and sub-regional organisations and
               international financial institutions to ensure an integrated, strategic, coherent,
               coordinated and gender-responsive approach to peacebuilding and sustaining peace
               and, in particular, to promote tolerance and address hate speech throughout the peace
               continuum in accordance with international law;
                     14. Encourages relevant United Nations entities to increase their activities that
               focus on peace education in order to enhance among young people an understanding
               of values such as peace, tolerance, openness, inclusion and mutual respect, whi ch are
               essential in developing a culture of peace;
                     15. Encourages the Secretary-General to carry out and include in relevant
               reporting lessons learned and best practices on participation of religious groups,
               institutions and leaders, including women, as well as local communities, in the
               mediation of peace agreements and their implementation, in initiatives directed to
               conflict prevention, resolution, reconciliation, reconstruction, peacebuilding and in
               addressing the root causes of conflict;
                     16. Requests the Secretary-General to provide an oral briefing to the Security
               Council by 14 June 2024, in a public meeting under the agenda item ‘Maintenance of
               international peace and security’, on the implementation of this resolution in the
               context of situations throughout the peace continuum which are on the agenda of the
               Council, utilizing information from available United Nations sources, including
               country teams, peacekeeping operations, and other United Nations personnel, and
               further requests the Secretary-General to swiftly inform the Council about threats to
               international peace and security in this regard, and expresses its intention to give its
               full attention to such information provided by the Secretary-General when those
               situations are brought to its attention.




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