HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY FARHAN HAQ,
DEPUTY SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES
THURSDAY, 9 MAY 2024

OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY 
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that, as of last night, some 80,000 people have been displaced from Rafah since Tuesday, when the Israeli military’s ground operation there began.  
Most of those displaced people are seeking safety in Khan Younis and Deir al Balah. These areas lack the basic services needed to support civilians who need food, shelter and health care.  
No humanitarian assistance – or the fuel to power our aid operations – has been able to enter through the Rafah crossing in recent days. 
The World Food Programme (WFP) reports that its main warehouse in Gaza is now inaccessible. It says that only one bakery is still working and that supplies of food and fuel are running out. Without them, WFP says its operations will come to a standstill. 
The UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in Gaza said that some hospitals will start shutting down their generators in three days if we don’t get fuel in. UNRWA said that, as of today, its facilities are down to almost no fuel, rationing the small amount that is still in place in Gaza. 
The UN continues to engage with all involved on the resumption of the entry of goods, including fuel, to begin managing incoming supplies. 
Yesterday, OCHA – alongside UNRWA, the UN Mine Action Service, and the UN Department of Safety and Security – were at the Kerem Shalom and Rafah crossings to assess the security situation. The area is highly militarized, making it impossible for organizations to distribute at the scale they previously did. The situation remains extremely fluid, and the UN continues to confront a range of challenges, amid active hostilities.
Meanwhile, debris on the roads has made these routes impassable for the time being. The UN is exploring alternative solutions, including use of the fence road or other routes. 

LEBANON 
The daily exchanges of fire across the Blue Line are deeply concerning, profoundly impacting towns and villages on both sides.  
Many people have been displaced, injured, and killed, including today.  
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) is working continuously to decrease tensions with hundreds of daily activities aimed at de-escalating situations and assisting local communities within its mandate. The ultimate solution can only be political and diplomatic.  
The UN urges all parties to reaffirm their commitment to the cessation of hostilities and to upholding their obligations under Resolution 1701. 

BRAZIL 
In a statement issued on Wednesday (9 May), the Secretary-General said he is deeply saddened by the loss of lives and damage caused by heavy rains and flooding in the south of Brazil. 
He extended his condolences and solidarity to the Government and people of Brazil, as well as to the families of the victims. 
The Secretary-General also noted that disasters such as this are a reminder of the devastating effects of the climate crisis on lives and livelihoods.  
And he reiterated that the UN team on the ground stands ready to assist at this difficult time. 
The Resident Coordinator in the country, Silvia Rucks, is leading the UN team's response. This includes shipping emergency supplies and monitoring the spread of disease, supporting shelter and related needs, and distributing emergency kits and monitoring children and adolescents, some of whom have been separated from their families. 

HAITI 
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that the UN and its partners are responding in the wake of recent attacks in the commune of Delmas, which is in the capital, Port-au-Prince.  
Meals, shelter and other supplies have been provided to the displaced people and host community, and the hope is to ramp up this assistance as security allows. 
This week, the World Food Programme distributed food to 264,000 schoolchildren and more than 5,600 displaced people in Port-au-Prince.   
WFP also distributed food to people in Cité Soleil, one of the most insecure neighbourhoods in Port-au-Prince, reaching some 26,000 people this week. 
Since the beginning of March, WFP has reached more than 680,000 people.  
It has distributed more than 800,000 hot meals to more than 94,000 displaced people in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan zone. WFP has also distributed school meals to more than 330,000 school children across the country. 
Also, since the start of March, the UN and its partners have distributed 8.4 million liters of drinking water to nearly 70,000 displaced people in Port-au-Prince. 

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO 
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that the situation in Goma in North Kivu, in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is relatively calm, nearly one week after the explosions that claimed the lives of 18 civilians and injured dozens at displacement sites. 
The UN partners were able to resume their activities at displacement sites the following day. They are providing food and water, essential supplies and medical care. The World Health Organization dispatched 24 tons of medicine for injured people in Goma. 
Meanwhile, OCHA says that intensifying clashes in North Kivu have triggered new waves of displacement. Since the beginning of May, some 80,000 people have sought refuge in the Kalehe territory, in the neighbouring province of South Kivu. This influx has put a significant strain on the province that already hosts nearly 2 million displaced people. 
Access to Kalehe territory is limited, due to security and lack of infrastructure, and this is hampering large-scale delivery of humanitarian assistance to the displaced men, women and children. 
And as a reminder, the 2024 Humanitarian Response Plan for the Congo, seeking $2.6 billion, is only 17 per cent funded at $443 million. 

UKRAINE 
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that civilians, including children, were impacted by a massive wave of attacks across the country yesterday.
Several children were injured when a school playground was hit in the city of Kharkiv, and children were also reportedly injured in the Dnipro and Kropyvnytskyi, according to local authorities. Several education facilities and a hospital were also damaged in Zaporizhzhia City, according to the partners on the ground.  
Also yesterday, authorities and power plant operators reported damage to critical energy facilities in the west and the centre of the country.  
In total, nine regions have experienced disruptions to their power supplies and the system continues to face power shortages today, according to the grid operator. 
Humanitarian organizations are mobilized to provide psychological support and deliver repair materials to families whose homes were damaged by overnight strikes in the cities of Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia, as well as in the Kyiv and Kropyvnytskyi Regions. 
 
MYANMAR 
In Myanmar, the United Nations is deeply concerned over the escalating conflict in Rakhine. Civilians face devastating violence, rising intercommunal tensions and forced recruitment by parties to the conflict. 
Fighting is rapidly escalating between the Arakan Army and Myanmar Armed Forces in Buthidaung in northern Rakhine.  
This comes amid reports that other armed groups are now joining the conflict, sparking fears of intercommunal violence, as well as fear among civilians and aid workers. As the Arakan Army moves closer to the downtown area, military airstrikes have also intensified. 
All parties to the conflict are reminded of their obligations under international humanitarian law not to target aid workers or the premises of humanitarian organizations. 
Amid the worsening security situation across the country, the UN reiterates its call for the protection of civilians in Myanmar, a cessation of hostilities, and humanitarian access. The UN also urges all parties to the conflict to stop misinformation and hate speech and promote social cohesion and respect for human rights. 
 
HUMAN SECURITY EXHIBITION 
At 6 p.m., in the Sputnik Area of the Visitor’s Lobby, there will be a reception to launch a new Multimedia Exhibit on Human Security.  
The Exhibit is organized by the UN Trust Fund for Human Security, and it is co-sponsored by the Permanent Missions of Costa Rica, Italy, Japan, Romania, Senegal and Sierra Leone, in partnership with the Group of Friends of Human Security.  
The Exhibit illustrates how human security can help frame solutions to our world’s complex challenges and is presented in the lead up to the Summit of the Future and the 2025 World Summit on Social Development. 
  
NOON GUEST TOMORROW 
Tomorrow, noon briefing guest is Edem Wosornu, OCHA’s Operations and Advocacy Director. She will join virtually from Istanbul to brief on her recent visit to Sudan with directors from UN agencies and NGOs.