The United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in Yemen, Lise Grande, has condemned continued attacks against health facilities in Taizz, which are threatening services for hundreds of thousands of people. Preliminary reports indicate that two buildings at the Al-Thawra General Hospital were hit by missiles on 13 March.
The desert locust situation in the Horn of Africa remains extremely alarming, as new swarms form, causing an unprecedented threat to food security, humanitarian colleagues report. The Food and Agriculture Organization has increased its appeal to $138 million to support regional aerial and ground control operations.
The United Nations human rights office said today it is very concerned about repeated attacks against indigenous peoples in Nicaragua, non-protection of their rights and impunity for crimes committed against them. Some 40 indigenous people have been killed, 47 injured, 44 kidnapped and four disappeared since 2015.
The United Nations and its partners launched a $34 million Flash Appeal to help 260,000 people facing food insecurity in Lesotho due to a severe drought. The Government declared a national disaster on 30 October. Between January and March, an estimated 71,000 people will be one step away from famine.
The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:
The United Nations recorded fewer human rights violations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the first half of 2019, a High Commissioner for Human Rights report found, describing the 3,039 violations as an improvement. However, the number of violations committed until June remains higher than two years ago.
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that in Libya at least 90 civilians have been killed and more than 200 injured in and around the southwest town of Murzug since fighting escalated earlier this month. The United Nations and aid agencies are responding with emergency supplies.
The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:
The Secretary-General takes note of the signing of a cessation-of-hostilities agreement by President Filipe Nyusi of Mozambique and opposition leader Ossufo Momade of the Resistência Nacional Moçambicana (RENAMO), a step towards a signing a definitive peace agreement next week.
Across parts of Bangladesh, monsoon rains have led to flooding and landslides that has reportedly killed at 30 people affected 2 million. The Government is providing food, shelter and emergency cash assistance, and the United Nations and aid partners are supporting water and health-related efforts.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres arrived in Maputo from Nairobi early on Thursday, 11 July.
The following statement by UN Secretary-General António Guterres was issued today:
A humanitarian emergency in Burkina Faso is worsening as recurrent armed attacks and insecurity continue to force people to flee their homes. Nearly 220,000 people are now displaced - 50,000 more than in May - and rains are impeding access to basic services.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres announced today the appointment of Mirko Manzoni of Switzerland as his Personal Envoy for Mozambique.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) today said that more than 5 million families across Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean spend over 40 per cent of their non-food household expenses on maternal health services. The costs of prenatal care and delivery services can deter women from seeking medical attention.
Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ message to the International Donors Conference in Beira, Mozambique, today:
The United Nations is supporting the Government of Mozambique, which beginning today is convening a pledging conference for recovery and reconstruction in the wake of the devastation caused by Tropical Cyclones Idai and Kenneth.
Relief organizations in Mozambique are working to contain a cholera outbreak in the north of the country after water sources were contaminated and health clinics damaged by Cyclone Kenneth, according to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
Unfolding developments in Benin are under close watch following the 28 April legislative elections, from which opposition parties were barred. Noting with concern the ongoing tensions and unrest, the United Nations calls upon all Beninese to exercise maximum restraint and resolve differences through dialogue.
The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:
