Secretary-General/Travels-China, Trip Announcement/Cyprus, Security Council & other topics - Daily Press Briefing

New in in a short while We'll be joined virtually by our guest, La Pogo, the Chief of Mission in Venezuela for the International Organization of Migration.
She will be briefing us live from Caracas, where IOM, as you know, is involved in part of the recovery regarding the recent earthquakes.
She will be accompanied by Lucas Guides Hakrat, IOM's disaster risk reduction coordinator in Venezuela.
They will be, as I mentioned, connecting live from Caracas.
The Secretary-General arrived in China today tomorrow morning, he will attend the opening ceremony of the World Artificial International Conference in Shanghai.
And excuse me, the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai.
And in the afternoon, he's expected to deliver remarks at the opening session of the World AI Conference meteorological Forum.
And he will also have several other official engagements.
We will issue readouts and remarks as they come to us.
I want to share some upcoming travel for you for Secretary-General in addition to his trip to China.
The The Secretary-General will travel to Cyprus from the 27th to the 29th of July as part of his good officer's mission and his strong demonstrated commitment to the Cyprus issue.
He will meet with the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders as well as other stakeholders and discuss efforts to advance the peace process and support stability on the island, including through the work of the UN peacekeeping mission on the ground there on FSP.
Further details on the Secretary-General program will be shared with you closer to that date.
And this morning, the Security Council held consultations on the Secretary-General report on resolution 1701, which you all know has to do with Lebanon.
The officer in charge of the Special coordinator's Office in Beirut, Jean Arnault briefed, as well as the Secretary-General for Peacekeeping operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix briefed the Council.
Also this afternoon at 3:00 P.M.
They will reconvene for another series of closed consultations this time on Cyprus, and they will hear from Kasim Dan, the head of the peacekeeping mission in Cyprus and FSP.
Staying on peacekeeping and staying in the Eastern Mediterranean.
I have an update for you concerning our UNIFIL peacekeepers in Southern Lebanon.
They tell us this morning that UNIFIL recorded 13 trajectories of projectiles attributed to the Israeli defense forces, six trajectories yesterday and 18 the day before.
Since 2021 June, UNIFIL has not detected any trajectories originating from non state actors, including Hezbollah.
UNIFIL peacekeepers have continued to observe violations of Lebanese airspace, including 28 violations detected yesterday.
UNIFIL personnel have also observed drone incursions mostly by micro aerial vehicles in both sectors.
On Tuesday, UNIFIL peacekeepers observed two Israeli tanks engaged in an apparent exchange of fire with Hezbollah north of the Lani River outside of UNIFIL area of operations.
The combat engagement occurred a few kilometers from the UN position near Fron in sector East.
Yesterday, a UNIFIL patrol located several unexploded ordinances in a private garden in Ramesh and Sector West.
Also in that same sector, UN peacekeepers discovered two remnants of munitions that had been dropped or intercepted in the past.
Lebanese armed forces engineering team successfully neutralize those unexploded ordinances through a controlled detonation procedure.
Tomorrow, July 17th, will be the 12th and sorry, I wanted to stay in the region before going off to Europe.
Just staying in the region and the occupied Palestinian territory.
Our Deputy Special Coordinator and resident Humanitarian coordinator Raz Alekbaov welcomed yesterday the latest commitments by international partners worth almost $58 million from eight member states to the UN Horizon fund and called on additional partners to join the initiative to strengthen coordinated UN efforts in the occupied Palestinian territory.
Yesterday, the Word Foo Program said in a social media post that as many as people are being forced to move in Gaza, they are risk losing access to basic services and assistance.
The World Food Program called for a safe environment for us to be able to reach people who are in need.
Despite ongoing impediments to the first 12 days of this month, we and our partners provided general food assistance to more than a quarter of 1 million people across 36 distribution sites in Gaza in a statement issued today, the Food and Agriculture Organization said that it has scaled up cash assistance program to help about 1,500 Palestinian farmers cultivate land across the Gaza strip during the 2026 planting season.
This will help farmers produce enough fresh vegetables for more than 100,000 people and improve access to nutritious food for vulnerable communities.
Meanwhile, our humanitarian partners providing education services continue to distribute learning and teaching supplies to students and teachers during the first week of the month.
More than 5,440 educational kits, which include copybooks, markers, pencils will help about 217,000 girls and boys during the summer learning activities, which started on Saturday.
Turning to the West Bank, a high level delegation was led by our OCHA colleagues to Denit village in Ramallah in Ramallah governoorate, that took place yesterday.
Participants met with Palestinian families impacted by Israeli settlement violence and the expansion of Israeli settlements.
The delegation heard directly from affected communities about the protection risks that these families face, as well as the humanitarian consequences for their daily lives and livelihoods.
Settler attacks have become a leading cause of Palestinian injuries in the West Bank, accounting for about 55% of all injuries in 2026.
We reiterate again that Palestinians living in the occupied West Bank must be protected as required by international humanitarian law.
And some of you had asked me about the latest decision by the Israeli government regarding Israeli settlements in the West Bank, and I can tell you that the Secretary-General is deeply alarmed that the Israeli authorities have granted the status of a city to Givatv an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank, that is just northwest of Jerusalem.
This administrative designation does not alter Givadzev's legal status under international law as part of the occupied Palestinine territory.
The Secretary-General reiterates that Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem and all related infrastructure, have no legal validity and are excuse me, flagrant violation of international law and all relevant UN resolutions.
He recalls in regard to the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice from July 19th of 2024.
Israeli settlements remain a significant obstacle to achieve the two state solution and a just lasting comprehensive peace.
The Secretary-General continues to call on Israel to cease all settlement expansion and related measures in line with Security Council resolutions.
Now, turning to Europe, tomorrow, July 17th, will be the 12th anniversary of the tragic downing of the Malaysian Airlines flight MH 17 over eastern Ukraine.
As you will recall, the shooting took the lives of 298 souls.
On this occasion, the Secretary-General stands in full solidarity with the families of the victims.
And in honor of their memory.
Pursuant to Security Council Resolution 21 66, the Secretary-General urges all member states to extend their full cooperation to ensure that those responsible are held to account following the important work of the independent joint investigation team.
And from Ukraine today, our humanitarian colleagues on the ground tell us that overnight attacks have killed civilians, injured scores of people and damaged homes, hospitals, schools, and other civilian infrastructure.
The regions of Kyiv Odessa, Sumi, and aparica were among the hardest hit in this wave.
Elsewhere.
Meanwhile, OCHA warns that the growing use of drones and continued attacks on humanitarian workers and supplies as well as their premises and their equipment are making it increasingly difficult for us to reach people most in need.
OCHA latest assessment shows that nearly half of Ukraine's frontline and border communities now face higher extreme humanitarian access constraint.
In the 521 conflict affected municipalities assisted in Frontline and border Oblast, 251 were classified as having high extremely high access difficulties that su from 242 in October of last year.
Turning to Asia, I can tell you that the Secretary-General joins our colleagues at the International Organization for Migration and the UN Refugee Agency in expressing The deep concern and sadness about reports that two boats carrying more than 500 human beings may have capsized off the coast of Myanmar in recent days.
According to preliminary information the agencies have received, the vessels departed from Myanmar's Rakhine state in late June, carrying mostly Rohingya passengers.
This includes some who reportedly traveled from refugee camps in Katsas Bazar in Bangladesh.
One boat lost contact shortly after departure.
A second boat is believed to have sunk off Myanmar's coast on July 8th.
If actually verified, this tragedy would add to the nearly 300 people reported missing or dead in the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal so far just this year.
These reports underscore yet again the devastating impact of the prolonged conflict and the displacement, as well as the lack of sustainable solutions for Rohingya communities.
Escalating conflict and worsening humanitarian situation in Myanmar, along with limited assistance and opportunities in refugee camps in Bangladesh, are driving increasing numbers of people to attempt dangerous sea journeys just in search of safety.
We continue to call for sustained international support for Rohingya refugees and the communities that are generously hosting them.
Greater efforts to address the drivers of displacement and additional regional and international efforts to prevent further loss of life along one of the world's deadliest maritime routes.
And staying in Asia, the Under Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Tom Fletcher continues his visit to Pakistan.
Today, Mr.
Fletcher traveled to the regions of Gilgit Balistan where he met communities taking part in disaster preparedness simulation exercise, and he saw a community based flood mitigation wall designed to protect villages from natural disasters.
He also visit the Pasu White Glacier viewpoint.
He met with UN staff and our humanitarian partners and saw an early warning system.
And also was briefed on the 2010 massive landslide that submerged villages and displaced thousands of people at Atabad Lake.
Mr.
Fletcher said that for Pakistan, climate shocks such as melting glaciers, flash floods, heat waves and drought are not distant warnings.
They are arriving faster and hitting harder and affecting the most vulnerable.
He underscored the need for greater investment to support for Pakistan's efforts to adapt to prepare and protect the people least responsible for the climate crisis we're all enduring.
Yesterday in Islamabad, he met the foreign minister, Shar, and they discussed diplomacy in the Middle East, as well as the issue regarding the humanitarian convoys going from Pakistan into Afghanistan.
They also talked about UN reform and, of course, global disaster risk preparedness.
He also visited the National Disaster Management Authority, where he stressed the need to bolster preparedness for future climate shocks.
Um Staying on Tom Fletcher, he has allocated $2 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund to strengthen Ebola preparedness in Rwanda.
Although there have been no reported cases of Ebola in Rwanda, there is a high risk of cross border spread due to the movement of people across the border from the DRC, where the outbreak, as you know, was declared in mid May and I'll have more update for you on that in just a second.
The risk is worsened by displacement and pressure on health systems.
The funding from SRF will support action to prevent the introduction and spread of Ebola into Rwanda.
It will also help strengthen early detection and rapid response, improve case management and infection prevention, and expand community engagement and national preparedness across 13 high risk districts in Rwanda, and we expect it to reach 161,000 people.
The allocation is part of Tom Fletcher's broader commitment of up to $60 million to accelerate Ebola response efforts in the DRC and to help preparedness in neighboring countries at risk.
Speaking of Ebola, a quick update or not so quick update from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, our humanitarian colleagues tell us they're deeply concerned by escalating violence impacting the Ebola response in the east of that country.
Yesterday, an incident reportedly involving armed men occurred near the Ebola treatment in Yakund in Ituri province.
No patients or health workers were injured and care resumed this morning for four critically ill Ebola patients.
The worsening security situation has forced several humanitarian partners involved in Ebola response to temporarily relocate staff to the provincial capital Bunia, which is relatively safer.
Access to treatment centers and surrounding communities remains constrained.
For their part, our peacekeeping colleagues in the Congo colleagues from Monusco tell us they've deployed a long range patrol to Mara in the vicinity of N Conde to deter further attacks and stabilize the situation.
They remain committed to protecting civilians in all contexts and continue to support Ebola response efforts in any way they can.
As of this Tuesday, health authorities in the country had reported 2073 cases across five provinces.
Ituri remains the epicenter of this outbreak.
It accounts for nearly 90% of all confirmed cases.
We and our partners are scaling up the response while continuing to help millions of people impacted by the myriad of crises that we keep talking about in the DRC.
To address the rising needs, the humanitarian community today released a revised humanitarian response plan for the remainder of the year, increasing funding requirements from $1.4 billion to $2.3 billion.
That includes $313 million dedicated to Ebola response alone.
Overall, the revised plan aims to assist 10.8 million human beings by the end of the year.
OCHA calls on all parties to protect health workers and health facilities and to ensure safe and sustained access across affected communities, a secure operating environment, strong commitment acceptance, and increased international support are essential to containing the Ebola outbreak and delivering lifesaving assistance.
And closer to the shores on Haiti, I wanted to flag a horrific report from our human rights colleague.
They tell us that between the fourth and 9th of July in the village of D Dieu, a The gang carried out a series of attacks.
So, the name of the gang is Village du die.
Interesting.
This gang carried out a series of attacks in Kenkof and Pitonville in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, killing at least 61 residents, including 14 children.
Residents were killed while attempting to flee inside their homes or after encountering gang members on roads and footpaths.
The violence was concentrated in the community of Rabin, where the majority of casualties were recorded.
At least 5,840 people were displaced while homes and telecommunications infrastructure were just outright destroyed.
Although the last documented attack took place on July 9th, the situation there remains tense with gang members continuing to maintain a presence in Kentskov.
Lastly, I just want to read into the record that yesterday, the Secretary-General appointed Rap Fatima of Bangladesh as his new special representative in Afghanistan and head of the UN political mission there, Yama.
She succeeds Roza Otunbayeva of Kyrgyzstan to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for her dedicated service.
As you know, miss Fatima is currently the Under Secretary-General, Hi representative for least developed countries, landlocked developing countries, and small island developing states.
And before that, she was the permanent representative and ambassador of Bangladesh to the United Nations.
As for me.
I'm happy to entertain questions from you, though.
Gabriel.
Thanks.
As you know, there are lots of islands in the Strait of Hormuz controlled by Iran.
My question is, the Secretary-General is very clear about freedom of navigation.
Would if one of the parties to the conflict decides to militarily take control of one of those islands, I under the pretense that that would lead to freedom of navigation, what would be the Secretary-General overall view of that situation? As you know, Gabriel, I'm not going to dive in with you into the Strait of Hormuz into hypotheticals.
There are a couple of unbendable principles here.
One is respect the territorial integrity of all member states, and the other one is freedom of navigation, and they're not incompatible.
We had a We've had decades of freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
There have been moments when that was a little challenging.
We all know that.
But there is no reason why all the parties involved here cannot get back to a situation where international cargoes, commercial ships, laden with much needed energy supplies, food supplies, humanitarian supplies, cannot go in and out of the Strait of Hormuz un harassed.
Okay.
No.
I'm not begging here, but I don't know if I heard you make a statement about the declaration that was passed today at the UN General Assembly on affordable housing and sustainable cities.
Almost every country voted for it except for the United States and Israel.
Does he welcome this declaration? Does he have any concerns about it? Well, I mean, the Secretary-General, I think definitely backs the idea that we all need to have sustainable cities and affordable housing.
He's not going to start to comment on the voting sheet of the resolution.
Abdel Hamid.
Thank you, Steph and I commend the statement of the SG on Gvd Zev declaring it a city.
It's the fourth declared city now by Israel by these settlements.
But what is missing, I think the point that Israel dedicated now 8.5 billion to develop settlement.
Abdel Hamid, we've I think we have been unwavering.
We have been consistent in calling out the expansion of the settlement architecture, which involves brick and mortars, which involves building of roads for settlers only, or as we just had today, the administrative designation of a settlement into a city.
Another question regarding two prominent Palestinians in Israeli jail.
Doctor Hassan Abu Safi, who had been visited by Sanfer and they appealing to the world to try to let him out of his jail after he was beaten by one of his prisoners.
The same thing with Marwan Boufi, the most prominent Palestinian leader.
In jail.
Also, he was shot by a rubber bullet in his leg and he was also bleeding, and his wife declared that three days ago.
So do you have any comment? We've seen these very troubling reports.
I think it's very important that the organization that has the legal authority to visit these detention center, and that is the ICRC be allowed to do so.