THAILAND
The Secretary-General is shocked and saddened by the horrific mass shooting today at a child-care facility in the northeast of Thailand, in which dozens of people were killed, most of the victims as you know were children. The Secretary-General extends his condolences to the families of the victims and wishes those injured a speedy recovery.
And of course, the UN team in Thailand have issued various statements also on this horrific incident.
DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL
The Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed concluded her visit to Kenya today. Earlier today, she was in the Kajiado area to see first-hand how the climate emergency is impacting people there. Kajiado is a county South of Nairobi that has been heavily impacted by the ongoing drought in Kenya.
Ms. Mohammed visited a vaccination and livestock feeds facilities and a hospital, where she saw a nutrition programme, interacted with health workers and members of the community. The Deputy Secretary-General also received a briefing from representatives of the County Government and UN agencies about the work they’re doing in the area, their humanitarian work.
Also today, in Nairobi, Ms. Mohammed met with Rigathi Gachagua, the Deputy President of Kenya.
The Deputy Secretary-General’s next stop is Cape Town, in South Africa, where she will address the Twelfth Annual Desmond Tutu International Peace Lecture.
SECURITY COUNCIL
Back here this morning, the Security Council held an open meeting on strengthening the fight against the financing of armed groups and terrorists through the illicit trafficking of natural resources in Africa. Ghada Waly, the head of the UN Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC), told Council members that the threat of terrorism and organised crime is becoming entrenched in Africa.
She pointed to research conducted by her agency that established that illegally mined gold and other precious metals are being fed into the legitimate markets, providing huge profits for traffickers. She added that the illegal trade in ivory alone generates $400 million in illicit income each year.
This, she said, strips the people of Africa of a significant source of revenue. It robs the millions of people who depend on these natural resources for their livelihoods, and it fuels conflicts and instability.
The UN Office for Drugs and Crime remains fully engaged to support Africa’s fight against the criminal trade in wildlife and natural resources, she said, and she welcomed the attention of the Council to this issue.
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO
The UN peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo tells us that yesterday, suspected members of the Twirwaneho armed group opened fire towards the peacekeeping base in Minembwe, in South Kivu province in the eastern part of the country.
Our UN peacekeepers returned fire, forcing the assailants to disperse. There are no casualties among peacekeeping troops. This is the second attack carried out by the group in a week towards the same UN base, and as a reminder, one UN peacekeeper from Pakistan was killed in that attack on 30 September.
SYRIA
Turning to Syria, our humanitarian partners continue to respond to the outbreak of cholera there. As of yesterday, the World Health Organization said there have been 14,202 suspected cases of cholera, 884 confirmed cases and 63 reported deaths across the country.
This rise in cases is compounded by severe, country-wide water shortages, resulting from low water levels in the Euphrates and drought-like conditions, as well as the destruction or deterioration of water infrastructure, which has left people reliant on unsafe water sources.
In the north-east, amid the cholera outbreak, critical water shortages continue to be reported in Al Hasakeh Governorate. Water remains inaccessible for the population through Alouk water station, which has not been operational since 11 August. In the current context, access to safe water is more important than ever.
We along with our humanitarian partners have mobilized health and water, sanitation and hygiene interventions to stop the spread and activate and strengthen preparedness capacities on the ground. Public health awareness campaigns are also continuing.
Our partners urgently need $34 million over the coming three months to cover health, water and sanitation responses in the coming three months.
MYANMAR
Quick update from Myanmar, where our team is concerned about the safety of journalists. According to UNESCO, as of this week, at least 170 journalists have been arrested since the military takeover in February of last year. Nearly 70 journalists, including 12 women, remain under detention. UNESCO has also recorded over 200 incidents of media repression, including killings, arrests, detention, criminal cases, imprisonments, and raids of editorial offices. Forty-four journalists, which include seven women, have been sentenced for criminal offences by local courts. Also, media workers report that they experience digital surveillance of mobile phones and social media platforms. UNESCO remains committed to protecting and defending their press freedom.
Staying in Myanmar, our humanitarian colleagues are telling us that aid workers have continued to respond to new needs, reaching 3.1 million people with at least one form of assistance in the first half of the year. However, a shortfall in funding and heavy access constraints have hindered us from delivering the full range of relief required by people in need.
The response also remains drastically underfunded. As of 29 September, the 2022 Humanitarian Response Plan was only 20 per cent funded, leaving a gap of $680 million. This situation is forcing partners to make tough decisions about prioritization of assistance at a time when needs are growing and scaling up is required.
PROACTIVE - CAR: MINUSCA mandate implementation
We have an update from our peacekeeping mission in the Central African Republic, which continues to support the restoration of state authority, while also protecting and building trust with local communities. MINUSCA organized a two-day training workshop on administrative and financial governance for local authorities in Kaga-Bandoro, in Nana-Grébizi prefecture. The Mission also organized awareness raising on discrimination, misinformation and hate speech targeting 50 women traders from Bangui, Bimbo and Begoua – this initiative helps promote social cohesion. MINUSCA continues to support the recruitment of 1,000 internal security forces; a competition for the 13,912 eligible candidates is slated for 23 October. Since last week, a total of 1,497 patrols were carried out by peacekeepers, including three for the Central African armed forces, to assess the security situation, detect armed groups presence and deter any violence against the population.
BRIEFINGS TOMORROW
Tomorrow, at 11:30 a.m., that’s half an hour before the noon briefing, there will be a virtual briefing by our friend Máximo Torero, the Chief Economist of the Food and Agriculture Organization. He will brief you on the FAO’s latest Food Price Index. And then at 12.30 p.m., there will be a briefing by the Chair of the Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee, Ruchira Kamboj, who is the Permanent Representative of India to these United Nations.
