UN Security Council Extends Sierra Leone Humanitarian Mission

On September 19, 2003, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1508, extending for six months from September 30, 2003 the mandate of the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL). After commending progress made to the present, the Resolution reiterates the importance of consolidating state authority and stability in order to strengthen security capacities. While the Resolution applauded cooperation with forces deployed by the Economic Community of West Africa, it also demanded that armed groups from Liberia cease illegal incursions into Sierra Leone. The Resolution reveals an important weakness in UN efforts ? funding ? and demonstrates the ways in which a collapsed state destabilizes an entire region.