Noon briefing of 2 June 2016

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC, SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

THURSDAY, 2 JUNE 2016

MIDDLE EAST: SECRETARY-GENERAL TO ATTEND PARIS CONFERENCE

• The Secretary-General will leave New York later today to attend the Paris conference on the Middle East, formally known as Réunion ministérielle "Initiative pour la paix au Proche Orient," which is take place tomorrow.
• As the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle Peace Process, Nickolay Mladenov, informed the Security Council last week, participants at the conference intend to reaffirm their commitment to a negotiated two-state solution and to discuss how they can support both parties constructively in achieving this goal.
• The Secretary-General expects to have bilateral meetings with some of the key participants at the conference. He will be back in New York later tomorrow.

SECRETARY-GENERAL BRIEFS ON SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN CONFLICT, CALLS FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE OF PEOPLE HELD CAPTIVE

• The Secretary-General today spoke at the Security Council debate on sexual violence in conflict. Stressing that sexual violence is widely recognized as a deliberate strategy used to shred the fabric of society, the Secretary-General urged the international community to continue to speak up for the women, girls, men and boys whose bodies for too long have been considered the spoils of war.
• He said that extremists groups, including Da’esh and Boko Haram, are using sexual violence as a tactic of terrorism - using it as a means of attracting and retaining fighters, and to generate revenue. He added that the Yezidi community gave Da’esh up to $45 million in ransom payments in 2014 alone.
• He called for the immediate release of all who have been taken captive, as well as for the care and support of those who return, and suffer from social isolation and depression.
• The Secretary-General’s Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Zainab Hawa Bangura, also briefed the Council. She warned that ultimately all our words, laws and resolutions will mean nothing if violations go unpunished in practice, and if we are unable to increase the consequences for committing such crimes.
• “Justice may be delayed but it will not be denied,” she said, adding that international community is steadfast and committed to live up to its duty to prevent these crimes and care for survivors.

U.N. HUMANITARIAN CHIEF CONCERNED OVER PLIGHT OF CIVILIANS TRAPPED IN FALLUJAH, IRAQ

• The Emergency Relief Coordinator, Stephen O9;Brien, has expressed deep concern for the plight of civilians trapped in the besieged Iraqi city of Fallujah, where a major military operation against Da’esh is taking place. An estimated 50,000 civilians, including at least 20,000 children, are unable to leave.
• Mr. O’Brien said that civilians must be allowed to freely move to safer areas and all who flee must be granted aid and protection. All parties to this conflict are obliged to abide by international humanitarian and human rights law and do everything possible to protect civilians.
• It is vital that aid workers are guaranteed safe, secure and unhampered access in this fluid and dangerous environment.

SYRIA: AID CONVOYS REACH DARAYA FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 2012 DESPITE ONGOING CHALLENGES – U.N. SPECIAL ADVISER

• The humanitarian task force for Syria met in Geneva today, and following that meeting, Jan Egeland, the Special Adviser to the Special Envoy for Syria, spoke to the press saying that, although May was a bad month in terms of humanitarian access, June already seems to be going better. He noted that convoys reached Daraya for the first time since 2012, with plans to travel to 11 besieged areas in the next few days.
• So far this year, he said, 14 out of 19 besieged areas have received humanitarian aid, and another three besieged areas could be reached for the first time over the coming days.
• Regarding Daraya, Mr. Egeland said that yesterday, humanitarian workers were able to bring in vaccines, some medical items, especially oriented to children, and baby milk and nutritional items for mothers. There still needs to be another full convoy going to Daraya with other items, and Mr. Egeland said that was expected very soon, although possibly not tomorrow.
• As fighting and violence escalate across Syria, the regional directors of UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) say that we risk losing the opportunity to vaccinate and save the lives of more than one million children.
• For example, due to the sharp increase in attacks on health personnel and facilities in Idleb, the immunization campaign in the city has been temporarily halted amid fears to the safety of health workers and the local population.
• Since the beginning of the year, there have been reports of attacks on 17 health care facilities across Syria. Only one third of hospitals currently function in the country.
• WHO and UNICEF appeal to all parties to the conflict to put an end to the violence across Syria so that health workers can resume the vaccination campaign in safety.

YEMEN REMAINS AN INVISIBLE CRISIS – WARNS HUMANITARIAN OFFICIAL

• The Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, Jamie McGoldrick, said today that Yemen is one of the more invisible crises in the region and in the world right now, given the dire humanitarian situation people face there on a daily basis. Figures are stark: eight out of ten people in the country need some kind of humanitarian assistance.
• Mr. McGoldrick said that everyone you meet has been affected by this conflict. He said that humanitarian workers have to be given the opportunity, the funding and the support to deliver assistance to all those in need.
• The international community launched a $1.8 billion appeal to help the most vulnerable with food, health, water and sanitation, but the appeal is only 17 per cent funded.

SOMALIA: U.N. MISSION CONDEMNS ATTACK AGAINST HOTEL IN MOGADISHU

• The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Somalia, Michael Keating, has condemned in the strongest possible term the terrorist attack on a Mogadishu hotel yesterday.
• He said that the incident was a stark reminder of the ruthless tactics employed by violent extremists, adding that killing civilians is an act of desperation, political inability and moral bankruptcy.

U.N. REFUGEE AGENCY CONCERNED OVER EXPULSIONS FROM SUDAN

• The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said today that it is concerned by recent collective expulsions from Sudan to Eritrea.
• At least 313 Eritreans were arrested on 6 May in the northern Sudanese town of Dongola. They were tried and convicted of “illegal entry” into Sudan under national immigration laws and were forcibly returned to Eritrea on 22 May.
• The Office has also learned of a previous collective expulsion of 129 Eritreans back to their country of origin a few days before the 22 May incident.
• The latest expulsion included six Eritreans who were registered refugees. Others had not applied for asylum but it remains unclear if they had been given the opportunity to do so.
• UNHCR reminds Sudan of its obligations under international and Sudanese law and urges the Sudanese government to refrain from forcible returns of Eritreans back to their country of origin.

AFGHANISTAN: U.N. CONCERNED OVER RECENT SPATE OF ATTACKS AGAINST CIVILIANS

• The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has expressed deep concern over the spate of abductions, hostage-taking and summary executions carried out in recent days against passengers travelling in civilian vehicles.
• In a recent incident, armed attackers abducted an estimated 25 civilian men and women the northern province of Saripul. All passengers were reported to be from the Hazara community – five were released but the fate of the rest remains unknown.
• The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Nicholas Haysom, has called for the immediate and unconditional release of all civilians detained and for an end to this horrible practice.

LATEST HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT ON UKRAINE EXPECTED TOMORROW

• The Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights, Ivan Šimonovic, is expected to present the 14^th report of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine in Kiyv, Ukraine, on 3 June. Mr. Šimonovic is also scheduled speak to the media.
• The report covers the period between 16 February and 15 May 2016, presenting findings regarding the human rights situation in the eastern regions of Ukraine, the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, as well as the impact of the armed conflict elsewhere in the country.

COMMODITY TRENDS POINT TO STABLE FOOD PROCES – U.N. AGENCY

• The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) today released its biannual Food Outlook, which reports that global food commodity markets are on a stable path for the year ahead, with solid production prospects and abundant stocks pointing to a broadly stable outcome for prices and supplies.
• It also issued today its Food Price Index for May, which is rising for the fourth month in a row, but is still some 7 per cent below the level reported one year ago.