HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STÉPHANE DUJARRIC,
SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES
WEDNESDAY, 21 MAY 2025
OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that yesterday and today, the Israeli authorities granted us access to Kerem Shalom so that our teams could reach additional humanitarian supplies that crossed into the Strip on Monday and Tuesday, crossed from Israel into Kerem Shalom loading areas. Other critical items such as hygiene products or fuel have not been allowed by the Israeli authorities into Kerem Shalom.
So far, and this is as a few minutes ago, but the situation is obviously fluid, none of the supplies have been able to leave the Kerem Shalom loading area. This is because, by yesterday evening, Israeli authorities had only allowed our teams to go through one area that was highly congested, that we felt was insecure and where we felt looting was highly likely to take place, given the prolonged deprivation in Gaza since the blockade by the Israeli authorities for over 11 weeks. The UN hopes that will change very soon. The discussions are ongoing as we speak between our colleagues and the Israeli security authorities.
The UN is continuing to are engage with them to identify the best possible routes out of Kerem Shalom towards Gaza to ensure that the flow of aid is not disrupted or suspended. Partners are in touch with community leaders in Gaza to mitigate the risk of looting and ensure that the supplies entering Gaza reach the people who need them.
However, it is important to underscore that the limited supplies finally being allowed to enter Kerem Shalom are nowhere near enough to meet the needs in Gaza, which are vast, which are tremendous. Much, much more aid needs to get in.
Meanwhile, bombardment and shelling are continuing across the Gaza Strip. Today, the Gaza Ministry of Health reported dozens of people killed in the last 24 hours, and yesterday, it made an urgent call for blood donations for the sick and for those injured.
OCHA is telling us that 80 per cent of the Gaza Strip is now either subject to displacement orders or located in Israeli-militarized zones. These zones require humanitarians to coordinate their movements with the Israeli security authorities.
UN partners says that over the past few days, almost half of the newly displaced people have fled with none of their belongings. The ongoing displacement of Gaza’s population is putting immense pressure on humanitarian teams, especially when there is no food or any basic items being allowed in.
In Gaza City, our partners report an extreme lack of shelter space: Displacement sites and residential buildings are all very much overcrowded. People are settling in abandoned, unfinished, or destroyed or damaged structures. Some are sleeping out in the open.
And as we have been saying over, and over and over again, civilians need be protected, including those fleeing or forced to leave through displacement orders or those who remain despite the displacement orders.
Meanwhile, continued attacks on healthcare facilities are ongoing. Earlier today, Al Awda Hospital, which is the only partially functional hospital in North Gaza governorate, and still treating a dozen patients, was hit. Yesterday, Kamal Adwan Hospital ceased operations.
As of yesterday, UN partners report that about 304,000 daily meals were prepared and delivered through about 70 kitchens. Five kitchens resumed operations, including two in Khan Younis and three that relocated to Gaza City following recent displacement orders from North Gaza. However, five others in Gaza City and Khan Younis were forced to shut down after their supplies were depleted.
UN partners providing water, sanitation and hygiene services say that the water situation is worsening by the day. For example, the largest desalination plant in the north of Gaza is in an area slated for displacement. This has disrupted access to drinking water for about 150,000 people.
In southern Gaza, in Al Mawasi, the water situation is also dire, as the area is not connected to the water network and relies heavily on water trucking. This requires both vehicles and fuel to serve the needy population.
HAITI
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that armed violence and growing insecurity continue to expose children to sexual violence and other severe protection risks. And displaced boys and girls are especially vulnerable in this current environment in Haiti.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimates that more than half of all internally displaced people in Haiti are children.
One in eight children in Haiti is displaced. That is exposing them to exploitation, it is exposing them to abuse, and it is exposing them to potential recruitment into armed gangs. As we have mentioned in the past, our colleagues estimate that about half of all gang members are children.
The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) documented a staggering 1,000 per cent rise in sexual violence against children between 2023 and 2024.
In a statement released today, the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Haiti, Ulrika Richardson, expressed her deep distress at the shocking death of a six-year-old girl after she was brutally raped in a displacement site in Cité Soleil, in Port-au-Prince. This happened at the beginning of the month, and Ms. Richardson said it is a stark reminder of the extreme dangers faced by children living in highly precarious conditions. No child should ever endure such violence.
UN humanitarian partners have intensified efforts to support survivors of sexual violence across impacted regions. Between January and March of this year, more than 6,200 people, including many women and girls, received psychosocial support. Mobile health clinics reached more than 670 people. Our partners also distributed over 745 dignity kits.
UN partners are implementing legal, medical and socio-economic reintegration services for sexual violence survivors in the areas in Haiti of Ouest, Artibonite, Nord-Est, and Grande’Anse departments.
Immediate priorities include expanding access to protection and psychosocial support for survivors, increasing safety in displacement sites, creating a safe space for women and girls, and enhancing prevention, case management, and reporting mechanisms for gender-based violence.
Severe underfunding continues to hamper response efforts. Less than $600,000 – which is just 5 per cent of the more than $11 million required to support gender-based violence survivors – has been received to date, limiting obviously the capacity of our humanitarian partners to sustain and expand vital services, especially in high-risk areas of the country.
OCHA continues to work closely with national authorities, UN agencies and humanitarian organizations to support efforts to protect children across Haiti and to ensure that, even in the most difficult circumstances, the right to safety, the right to dignity remains at the center of our humanitarian response.
SECRETARY-GENERAL/ECOSOC
Yesterday afternoon, the Secretary-General addressed the 2025 ECOSOC Operational Activities for Development Segment. He warned that with less than five years to go to the 2030 deadline, we are facing nothing short of a development emergency and that the Sustainable Development Goals are alarmingly off-track.
The Secretary-General said that we must never forget that a development emergency is, at its root, a human emergency, adding that it there is also a funding emergency with resources shrinking across the board. He noted that, for example, as detailed in his report, total financial contributions to the UN development system dropped by $9 billion — or 16 per cent — in 2023 from the year before.
The Secretary-General pointed out that our organization is increasingly asked to do more with less — a trend that will continue for the foreseeable future.
And this morning, the Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed, presented the annual report on the work of the Development Coordination system and the Resident Coordinator system. The report highlights the critical role played by the revitalized Resident Coordinator system in making the UN development system more effective, more efficient and more responsive, and to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs.
SYRIA
This morning, the Security Council held an open meeting on Syria. Briefing them from Damascus, in Syria, via video conference, was our Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen. He welcomed the latest international steps related to lifting economic sanctions, saying that this holds major potential to improving living conditions across the country and supporting the Syrian political transition.
He also noted that he shared concrete ideas with the interim authorities so that the People’s Assembly is seen as representative of the unity and the diversity of the Syrians.
Also briefing remotely was Ramesh Rajasingham, our Director for Coordination at OCHA. Today, he said, 16.5 million Syrians need protection and humanitarian assistance. Despite these challenges, we and our partners are reaching millions each month through in-country and continue cross-border operations.
Highlighting the alarming funding situation: as of today, he warned that only 10 per cent has been funded of the $2 billion needed to reach 8 million people from January through June of this year.
SUDAN
In a statement issued yesterday, the Secretary-General takes note of the decree issued on 19 May by the Chairman of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council appointing Kamil Eltayeb Idris as the new Prime Minister. The Secretary-General said he hopes that the appointment will serve as the first step towards an inclusive consultations aimed at forming a broad-based technocratic government for Sudan and forging peace for the country.
The Secretary-General also underscores that consensus efforts must be prioritized and lead to tangible progress for the benefit of all Sudanese people, including by silencing the guns, by delivering essential services to the population and by laying the groundwork for a common vision for Sudan’s future.
MYANMAR
In Myanmar, where it has been seven weeks since the devastating earthquakes, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warns that the humanitarian situation in the country could deteriorate further amid continued aftershocks as well as insecurity.
On May 17th, a 5.2 magnitude earthquake hit the Mandalay region. The tremor, which lasted around 20 seconds, was the strongest to hit the area since the 7.7-magnitude quake killed more than 3,800 people across the country.
Meanwhile, insecurity continues. Local sources report that between 10 and 13 May, intensified airstrikes reportedly killed more than 50 civilians and injured nearly 100 others across northern Shan, Rakhine and Sagaing regions. Aid workers continue to race against the clock to help people before the start of the monsoon season, which runs from June to April but is expected to arrive even earlier this year.
Since the March 28th earthquakes, our humanitarian partners have provided nearly 400,000 people with food and almost 300,000 people with emergency water, sanitation and hygiene support. UN partners have supported more than 40,000 people with health assistance and provided emergency shelter to more than 20,000 people.
However, many families remain displaced in temporary shelters or rental housing, with limited sustainable long-term shelter solutions in sight. The lack of infrastructure to address solid waste is posing serious environmental and public health risks in these displacement sites. Malaria and dengue could spread as stagnant water from rain creates breeding grounds for mosquitoes, especially during the Manson season.
Funding for the humanitarian response in Myanmar remains limited despite the scale and urgency of the problem.
The Flash Addendum to the 2025 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan, which calls for US$275 million to reach 1.1 million people with urgent aid is only 22 per cent funded with only $60 million received so far. There are some apartments for sale in Manhattan for more than $60 million.
LIBYA
The UN Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has reported that the Public Prosecutor in Tripoli has begun an urgent investigation into the matter of the 58 bodies found at a hospital that was under the control of a militia whose leader was killed last week.
Meanwhile, UNSMIL is coordinating with local authorities to verify the accuracy of the reported number of bodies found, and to ensure that the rights of victims and families are respected during the investigation and identification process.
INTERNATIONAL DAYS
Today, It is International Tea Day and is also World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, which highlights the essential role of intercultural dialogue for achieving peace and sustainable development.
4TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON FINANCING FOR DEVELOPMENT
The 4th International Conference on Financing for Development will take place in Seville, in Spain, from June 30 to 3 July.
MALU reminds journalists that the deadline to apply for media accreditation is 12 June. Participants are also required to submit the visa application to Spain at least 5 weeks before the opening of the Conference.
