Trip Announcement/ Kenya and Ethiopia, UNIFIL, Lebanon & other topics - Daily Press Briefing

All right.
Good afternoon, everyone, and happy Friday.
In a short while, I will be joined here by Edem Wosornu, who, as you know, is the Director of the Crisis Response Division at the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
She will be here to speak to you about the humanitarian situation in the Central African Republic following her recent mission there.
Then on Monday, I will be joined by our colleagues from the Department of Economic and Social Affairs.
Bjørg Sandkjær, DESA Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Interagency Affairs, and Juliette Biao, Director of the United Nations Forum on Forest Secretariat, will brief you on the launch of the Global Forest Goals Report 2026.
On Sunday evening, the Secretary-General will arrive in Nairobi, Kenya.
On Monday, he will hold a bilateral meeting with the President of Kenya, William Ruto before joining him for the inauguration of new UN offices and the groundbreaking of a new conference facility at the UN office at Nairobi.
During the ceremony, the Secretary-General will highlight the importance of the Kenyan capital as the only UN headquarters in Africa.
He will add that the expansion of our campus in Nairobi also sends a clear message that the United Nations must be closer to the regions that it serves, connected to people's realities, and equipped to support solutions where they're being built.
Later on Monday, the Secretary-General will hold a press conference, a town hall meeting with our colleagues based in Kenya and hold a number of bilateral meetings before attending a state dinner hosted by the president of Kenya.
On Tuesday, the Secretary-General will deliver remarks during the opening ceremony of the Africa Forward Summit.
In his remarks, he is expected to renew his appeal for global reforms to ensure that Africa has the voice, representation, and decision making power it deserves.
Later in the day, Mr.
Guterres will deliver remarks during a plenary session of the Africa Forward Summit, focusing on peace and security on the African continent.
Both sessions can be seen live on UN web TV.
On Tuesday evening, Secretary-General will travel to Adis Ababa, Ethiopia for the tenth African Union United Nations Annual Conference, which is scheduled on the following day.
Discussions this year will include topics such as the impact of the latest conflict in the Middle East on the African continent and the AU theme of the year, assuring sustainable water availability and safe sanitation systems.
Following the conclusion of the AU UN Annual Conference on Wednesday afternoon, the Secretary-General will have a meeting with the chairperson of the African Union Commission and the President of France.
In the evening, he will also attend a reception hosted by the Prime Minister of Ethiopia to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the United Nations, which will include the launch of commemorative Ethiopian stamps.
The Secretary-General is expected back in New York on Thursday, the 14th of May.
Yesterday, two humanitarian organizations successfully conducted missions to Tyre in Sector West in Lebanon, following coordination with the UNIFIL OSHA civil military coordination cell and deconfliction through the UNIFIL Liaison branch.
UNIFIL continues to report extensive Israeli defense forces activity across its area of operations, including armored movements, large scale engineering works, sustained logistical traffic, and significant air activity, mainly in Sector East.
UNIFIL also observed drone activity in Sector West reportedly conducted by Hezbollah.
Once again, IDF personnel temporarily blocked the UNIFIL convoy north of Al Naqoura yesterday.
We underscored that UNIFIL must be able to carry out its mandate without obstruction and that freedom of movement for peacekeepers must be fully respected at all times.
Yesterday, the IDF issued displacement orders for residents of Dezarani, Farah, and Habou calling on civilians to evacuate at least 100 meters towards open areas.
Since the ceasefire, such orders have doubled, now affecting at least dozens of towns and villages and forcing tens of thousands of people in southern Lebanon to flee once again.
We urge all parties to uphold international humanitarian law and to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure.
Also from Lebanon, OCHA reports that the humanitarian situation remains fragile as violence and displacement continue to affect civilians across the country.
Humanitarian needs remain severe, particularly in the health sector.
Our health partners continue to support the Ministry of Public Health in maintaining essential services, despite the insecurity and repeated attacks on healthcare facilities.
To date, more than 58,000 health consultations have been provided alongside medication for acute diseases.
According to the Ministry of Public Health, between Wednesday and yesterday evening, at least 12 people were killed and dozens of others were injured.
We're deeply concerned by reports from the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health that an ambulance team was struck by an Israeli strike in Marshal Salim, resulting in the death of one paramedic and the injury of another.
Attacks affecting medical crews are particularly alarming.
International humanitarian law is clear that medical personnel, facilities, and vehicles must be protected at all times.
We and our humanitarian partners call for the protection of civilians, healthcare workers, and civilian infrastructure, full respect for international humanitarian law, and sustained humanitarian access.
Turning to the occupied Palestinian territory, our OCHA colleagues say that we and our partners today collected more than 300 pallets of medicines, medical, and reproductive health equipment, and other supplies from the Karim Shalom arm Abu Salem crossing.
These supplies will support maternity and patient care services as well as emergency response.
Yesterday, teams also collected three truckloads of fodder to support local food production and nearly 450 pallets with hygiene items, winter clothes for children, ready to use complementary food, medicines, and education materials.
Last week, our partners installed 27 specialized tents across five sites to serve as classrooms.
And on Sunday in de Alba, they completed a light rehabilitation of 12 damaged classrooms in a public school.
That has allowed more than 1,500 students to access improved learning environments.
To put that in context, partners remind us that 93% of school buildings across Gaza need major rehabilitation or reconstruction.
More materials and equipment must be allowed in to meet that scale of need.
Meanwhile, partners providing mental health and psychosocial support as well as other protection services to more than 14,000 people last week, including thousands of children and caregivers.
They also continued to offer services to those returning from Egypt, although their numbers remained low at just over 250 people last week.
Overall, of more than 2000 people who have returned to Gaza so far, about 15% have been identified as requiring follow up support, which our partners are providing as needed.
In the West Bank in the first week of May, OCHA recorded the displacement of 42 people, including two dozen children due to home demolitions.
Nearly 40,000 people have been displaced across the West Bank since the beginning of last year.
Turning to the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, our OCHA colleagues warned of a new wave of deadly attacks against civilians in Ituri and North Kivu provinces.
In the last three days, local authorities and partners on the ground report at least 34 civilians killed by an armed group in a series of attacks in Ituri and North Kivu provinces.
In Iruuma and Bambasa in Ituri, attacks reportedly killed at least 15 civilians with several injured people evacuated from medical care.
This happened between the fifth and 7th of May.
The violence forced people to flee to neighboring villages in the province of North Kivu, while several localities reportedly emptied of residents.
Our humanitarian partners are currently assessing displacement and urgent needs.
In Ocha in North Kivu province, at least 19 civilians were reportedly killed on the fifth and 6th of May in an attack by an armed group near the border with the Turi.
According to local partners, several civilians were attacked while working in their fields, and other people remain missing.
As a reminder, local authorities have reported a sharp resurgence of violence with at least 130 civilians reportedly killed and more than 500 people abducted in Mombasa territory since mid March.
The violence has displaced over 68,000 people within Mombasa territory and into the neighboring Chopo province, while more than 310,000 people have also been displaced across Beni and Lubero territories in North Kivu province.
As you can imagine, these attacks are heightening humanitarian and protection concerns in the northern parts of Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
We reiterate our call on all parties to the conflict to immediately cease attacks against civilians and on all parties to uphold their obligations under international humanitarian law.
Turning to South Sudan, we welcome commitments from the transitional government parties to allow aid teams into Akoba County in Jangle state and to protect humanitarian staff and equipment.
Fighting in March and April have forced an estimated 200,000 people to flee their homes, including more than 100,000 who fled to Ethiopia.
Civilian infrastructure, including Akobo Hospital has been looted and damaged, cutting off essential healthcare and putting mothers and children at greater risk.
The acting Humanitarian coordinator in South Sudan, Humphrey Karmagi stated that full, safe, and sustained humanitarian access at this time is essential to enable urgent lifesaving assistance to reach affected communities and help avert a further deterioration of this worrisome humanitarian crisis that is unfolding.
According to the latest integrated food security phase classification, thousands of people in Akobo County are already facing the most extreme hunger and malnutrition or IPC phase five between April and July of this year.
OCHA says that aid agencies on site are ready to quickly expand emergency food deliveries and protection, nutrition and health services in Akobo County and nearby areas.
There's only a narrow window of time before the rainy season begins and travel becomes harder, while humanitarian needs are likely to grow.
Our office in Haiti has published a new our UN office in Haiti has published a new report, which, once again, details the devastating impact of violence on people there.
According to the report, at least 1,642 people were killed and 745 others injured in the first three months of the year.
Carlos Ruiz Massieu, the head of binu said that despite security advances in certain areas of downtown Port-au-Prince, insecurity is a daily and unbearable feature of daily life for a large number of Haitians, adding that violence continues to spread beyond the Capitol, particularly in Artboit and the center.
In the areas under their control, gangs have continued to commit numerous human rights abuses, including targeted killings, kidnappings, acts of extortion, and destruction of property.
Overall, gang members were responsible for 27% of those killed and injured between January and March.
They were also responsible for sexual violence, including gang rapes or cases of sexual exploitation.
According to data published in the report, more than 69% of those killed and injured during the first three months of the year were the result of operations carried out by security forces against gangs, sometimes supported by a private military company using drones.
Our colleagues recall the urgency of accelerating measures to improve the protection of human rights in the country, including the full operationalization of specialized judicial units and ensuring that all operations by national and international security forces are conducted in strict compliance with international human rights law.
The Under Secretary-General for Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix is in Turkey today where he met with the Deputy Prime Minister of the Interior, Memoth Geir, and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Levet Gumuktchu to discuss Turkey's current continued contributions to UN peacekeeping.
Mr.
Lacroix also visited the Turkish National Police Academy in Ankara, along with the UN police advisor Faisl Chakar.
They discussed opportunities to deepen the already strong cooperation with Turkey, including through training and capacity building initiatives.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, the benchmark of world food commodity prices rose in April for a third consecutive month amid elevated energy costs and disruptions caused by the conflict in the near East.
The FAO food Price Index averaged 130.7 points in April, up 1.6% from its revised March level and 2% higher than a year ago.
Today marks the time of remembrance and reconciliation for those who lost their lives during the Second World War.
On this day, we recognize the immense human suffering caused by the Second World War and underscore the importance of remembrance, reconciliation, and international cooperation in preventing future conflicts.
Just a flag that tomorrow marks World Migratory Bird Day, a global campaign dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of migratory birds and the need for international cooperation to protect them and their habitats.
And Sunday is the International Day of Argania.
The Argon tree is highly resilient to drought and harsh climatic conditions, making it an important natural barrier against desertification and land degradation.
That's it for me.
Any questions before we go to our guest? Yes, Edie.
Thank you, Farhan.
First, can we get an update on efforts by the United Nations to get food and fertilizer through the Strait of Hormuz? Are there talks going on with the Iranian officials? I know that in the draft US Gulf resolution, that was one of the key provisions.
Uh, yes, there is an effort underway.
As you know, Jorge Mora de Silva, the head of the UN Office for Project Services, has been consulting.
He traveled to some of the countries in the region, but he's also been holding talks here in New York, including with the permanent representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
So he is keeping that dialogue up, and we're seeing where we can go with that.
But nothing definitive yet? No, ultimately, what we need is agreement by all parties on this mechanism.
Once that happens, the system that UN OPS is putting in place could get up and running very quickly.
And on a completely different issue, there was a briefing to the Fifth committee yesterday on the State of UN finances.
Can we get a briefing here, an update on what the status is and whether the Secretary-General dire prediction earlier this year is still holding? Certainly, in terms of the amount of money we're due, that continues to be owed.
We still lack something in the neighborhood of $4 billion all told.
And obviously, that puts a constraint on our operations.
As you've seen, we are getting money in bits and pieces.
We've told you about the full contributions to the budget.
Different key countries, we do expect at least some partial contributions from some of them in the months ahead.
But we'll have to see.
And I'll see whether we can get the controller, Chandra Muli Ramanathan, to brief you when he is next available.
Linda.
Thank you, Farhan.
Apropos of South Sudan.
You mentioned that, you know, the dire situation, 200,000 people fled and that hospital was looted and damaged.
Which side is responsible, for example, for the hospital? Damaged.
Certainly, both of the main parties in South Sudan have been responsible for some of these acts.
And so we hold them responsible for the violence overall.
You've seen what the Secretary-General has had to say about the amount that people have suffered because of the ambitions of the two leaders and his effort to make sure that they set aside the sort of brutal warfare that has entrapped the people of South Sudan for so many years.
Sylvia.
Thank you, Farhan.
There are reports that Lebanese and Israeli ambassadors will hold discussion in Washington in May 14 15 at the level of State Department regarding the normalization between relation between the United Nations between Lebanon and Israel.
Are the United Nations involved in these talks, particularly given that the UN Special coordinator for Lebanon visited Israel last week? Certainly, Janean Hennis Pleser did visit Israel last week.
We told you about her talks at the time.
This particular process of talks being held in the United States is not one that we are in charge of.
We're certainly aware of what you've said, and we'll see what sort of role we can play as this process goes along.
But again, we are not the mediator for this.
Yes, please.
Thank you, Farhan.
The US forces launched strikes on Iran after Iran in response to Iran's attacks on American warships.
And the US prisoner Trump said the ceasefire still holds.
So does three has any comments on this latest developments.
Thank you.
Yeah, what I can tell you is that the Secretary-General is concerned by the reported recent exchange of fire in the strait of Hormuz.
He underscores that this is a critical moment for de escalation and urges all sides to exercise maximum restraint to avoid further escalation.
The Secretary-General calls on all parties to fully abide by the ceasefire and refrain from any actions that could lead to renewed escalation or undermine ongoing diplomatic efforts.
And I believe Zara has a question online.
And then you after.
Thank you.
First Sara and then, Sarah, please.
Hi, Karan.
Thank you so much.
I have a question regarding Iran and the United States.
I'm following up my colleague.
The president of the United States has stated that the war with Iran has ended.
Yet he has also confirmed early Friday a strike on the ports of Resh and Banderapos in Iran.
Does this strike constitute a violation of ceasefire and what is the Secretary-General position on this development and continuation of such attacks? Your colleague Pan had basically asked about the same attacks.
So my response is the same.
Again, what we call on is for all the parties to fully abide by the ceasefire and refrain from any actions that could lead to any renewed escalation.
Yes, please.
Thank you, Farhan.
Does this extra constitute a violation of ceasefire or not? The ceasefire is an agreement between the parties.
If the parties continue to uphold the ceasefire, that is the development that we would welcome.
Yes.
Thank you.
Thank you, Farhan.
My name is Jerry Kao with China Central Television.
The US government yesterday announced a new round of sanctions against Cuba.
On the same day, three UN independent experts said that the move could cause energy starvation in Cuba.
Does the Secretary-General have any comments on this? And for three years in a row, the GA has passed resolutions calling the US and its economic, e commercial, and financial embargo on Cuba.
Besides passing resolutions, does the UN have any other ways or suggestions to help Cuba to deal with the current situation? Well, first of all, of course, the Secretary-General would want the General Assembly's many resolutions on Cuba and on the need a to ensure that Cuba gets the support that they need in the face of these sanctions are fully respected.
Beyond that, we are in discussions with different member states trying to see what can be done to alleviate the humanitarian problems in Cuba.
We've said from this podium at different times, the sort of efforts we've made on this, and we'll continue to provide updates as we get more.
All right, I'm going to get our guests 1 second.