HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STÉPHANE DUJARRIC,
SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES
FRIDAY, 17 AUGUST 2018
 
SECRETARY-GENERAL PAYS TRIBUTE TO FALLEN U.N. STAFF

• This morning, the Secretary-General laid a wreath in a ceremony commemorating the 15th anniversary of the bombing of the United Nations Headquarters in Baghdad.
• He said that this was the first mass terror attack on the United Nations and that, before and since that day, United Nations staff have been targeted by those who would like to weaken us and make us afraid to do our jobs.
• He added that the best tribute was to continue our work; to go to dangerous places with the aim of making them safer; to stand with those who are suffering, and to bring them the relief they need. 
• Later, the Secretary-General opened the “Surviving Terrorism: Victims’ Voices” Multimedia Exhibition. This is part of the commemoration of the first International Day of Remembrance of and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism, which is on Tuesday 21 August.
• The Secretary-General said that the victims of terrorism are some of the most important voices we have in countering this global menace.
• “Supporting victims and their families is a moral imperative, based on promoting, protecting and respecting their human rights,” he added. “To support victims in a meaningful way is to prove that we care – and to negate the terrorist narrative.”

• The Office of the Special Envoy, Martin Griffiths, had issued invitations to the Geneva Consultations on 6 September to the Government of Yemen and to Ansarullah.

• The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that an estimated 200-250 civilian casualties have been reported following recent fighting in Ghazni.
• It adds that parts of the water system are reportedly functioning again but additional generator power is needed to ensure distribution. The immediate restoration of electricity is a top priority to ensure water supply.
• In support of government efforts, humanitarian partners remain on standby to scale up activities once safe and secure access is ensured both for aid workers and people in need.
• Initial priorities include extraction of war wounded and the management of mortal remains, provision of emergency health services, food and water.

• The heads of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Food Programme (WFP) today pledged to increase support for regional efforts addressing the critical food and nutrition security situation in the Sahel.
• They made the commitment as they wrapped up a four-day visit to Niger where they visited several projects in which the 3 agencies collaborate with the Government and other partners to provide people with new opportunities to feed their families and build livelihoods that are more resilient to extreme weather events and other shocks.

• The World Health Organization (WHO) says that, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as of yesterday, 16 August, there have been 78 cases, of which 51 are confirmed and 27 are probable. Forty-four people have died.
• WHO adds that more cases are expected, and it is not clear whether all the transmission chains have been identified, mainly because of some zones being off limits to responders due to security concerns.
• Two treatment centres are however now open, one in Mangina and another in Beni.

• The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that the humanitarian situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has deteriorated sharply in recent months.
• Some 13 million people require humanitarian assistance and protection across the country, an increase of more than 50 per cent from 2017.
• Around 4.5 million people are internally displaced, while food insecurity has reached record levels, with 7.7 million people across the country, or 11 per cent of the population, severely food insecure.
• The country-wide Humanitarian Response Plan for 2018, which requires $1.67 billion to respond to the needs of 10.5 million people, is only 22 per cent funded.

• The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that it is deeply concerned about the recent forced evictions of about 2,000 Tawerghan internally displaced persons (IDPs) from the Tarik Al Matar displacement camp in Tripoli.
• Last week, and over the course of several days, raids and arrests by local militia led the displace people to flee the site, which had housed them since 2011.
• The displaced persons are currently scattered across various locations including with host communities, and informal settlements. 
• The Office for the High Commissioner for Human Rights is calling on the Libyan Government of National Accord to take all necessary measures to protect Tawerghan internally displaced persons from further displacement, torture and other human rights violations.

• The UN Human Rights Office is concerned about the human rights environment around the elections that were recently held in Cambodia without the dissolved main opposition party, leaving a significant proportion of the population without chosen representation.
• The Office says that people were reportedly intimidated or paid to vote, and civil society organizations faced harassment in the run up to the election. There were further restrictions placed on the freedom of expression of individual voters and political opponents who called for a boycott or announced their intention to abstain from voting in the election.
• Now that the official results of the national elections have been announced on Wednesday, the Office calls on the Government to create an environment for open and inclusive political debate that allows all voices in Cambodia to be heard. 

• The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the UN Country Team in India have been watching the situation in the south of India closely. The United Nations is saddened by the loss of life, destruction and displacement caused by floods in India.
• OCHA says that it has been reported that this is the worst flooding in Kerala in 100 years, with some 80 dams having overflowed, more than 300 lives lost and some 200,000 people sheltering in relief camps.

• The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that, after four years of armed conflict in eastern Ukraine, 4.4 million people are affected by the crisis, of whom 3.4 million require humanitarian assistance and protection.
• These vulnerable people include about 1.5 million internally displaced people who are in need of food, medicine, shelter, water, education and protection services.
• While finding durable solutions is urgently required for the internally displaced people and their host communities, the United Nations and its partners are supporting the Government of Ukraine in implementing its action plan.

• Today, the Secretary-General is appointing Mirjana Spoljaric Egger of Switzerland as Director of the Regional Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States at the UN Development Programme (UNDP).
• Ms. Spoljaric Egger currently serves as Head of the UN and International Organisations Division of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs.

• Eswatini has joined the Honour Roll, bringing the to a full payment to the regular budget, the list of Member States that have paid now totals 122.