ISRAEL/LEBANON
The Secretary-General, in press remarks over the past hour, expressed his profound concerns about escalation between Israel and Hezbollah along the Blue Line. He said that the risk for the conflict in the Middle East to widen is real -- and must be avoided.
One rash move – one miscalculation -- could trigger a catastrophe that goes far beyond the border, and frankly, beyond imagination, Mr. Guterres warned.
He said that people of the region and the people of the world cannot afford Lebanon to become another Gaza.
The Secretary-General said that the parties must urgently recommit to the full implementation of Security Council Resolution 1701 and immediately return to a cessation of hostilities.
Further military escalation will only guarantee more suffering, more devastation to communities in Lebanon and Israel, and more potentially catastrophic consequences for the region, he said.
He added that UN peacekeepers are on the ground working to de-escalate tensions and help prevent miscalculation in an extremely challenging environment. His remarks are online.
OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY
Turning to Gaza, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that the breakdown of public order and safety is increasingly endangering humanitarian workers and operations.
Alongside the ongoing fighting, criminal activities and the risk of theft and robbery has effectively prevented humanitarian access to critical locations.
For example, since 18 June, the UN has not been able to pick up supplies from Kerem Shalom crossing. With our humanitarian partners and relevant parties, we are working to address the lack of public order and safety, alongside other impediments to a meaningful humanitarian response.
As the occupying power, it is incumbent upon the Israeli authorities to restore public order and safety as far as possible and facilitate safe humanitarian access so that assistance reaches civilians in need.
OCHA adds that humanitarian colleagues are working relentlessly to restore key services at health facilities in northern Gaza as the health system struggles to address soaring needs amid a lack of any field hospitals in the area.
In central and southern Gaza, where most of Gaza’s population is now crammed in dire conditions, only seven hospitals remain functional, all partially, including three in Deir al Balah, four in Khan Younis and none in Rafah, alongside eight field hospitals.
In addition to the lack of health facilities, our colleagues warn that the volume of medical supplies entering Gaza remains insufficient to sustain the health response. Last week, the World Health Organization delivered its first cargo - through the Ashdod port for shipment to Gaza via Karem Shalom - with enough supplies to cover the health needs of 35,000 people. While this is a welcome development, the supplies are barely a fraction of what’s needed to sustain the massive health response.
AFGHANISTAN
This morning, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Roza Otunbayeva, briefed the Security Council on the situation in the country.
Ms. Otunbayeva said that over the past weeks, in preparation for the third Doha format meeting, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan has met with hundreds of Afghans, and especially women, around the country.
She added that these consultations revealed a broad agreement that it was important for the de facto authorities to attend the meeting, but that there should also be no recognition of the de facto authorities until the issues of women’s rights, girls’ education, and an acceptable constitution were broadly addressed.
Also briefing Council members, Lisa Doughten, the Director of Financing and Partnerships at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs warned that humanitarian needs in Afghanistan remain alarmingly high.
She said that more than 50 per cent of the population – some 23.7 million people – require humanitarian assistance this year, the third highest number of people in need in the world.
Both remarks were shared with you.
And I also want to flag that Ms. Otunbayeva will speak with you at the Security Council stakeout, soon after the end of the Council meeting. That could be actually, fairly soon.
DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL
This weekend, the Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed, will travel to China to co-chair the 15th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of the New Champions. This meeting will bring together the world’s top academics, private sector leaders, youth and civil society to discuss pressing issues on the global agenda and generate collective insights and solutions.
While in China, the Deputy Secretary-General will meet with senior Government officials and other stakeholders to discuss the acceleration of the Sustainable Development Goals and September’s Summit of the Future.
Ms. Mohammed will then go to Geneva, Switzerland, at the request of the Secretary-General to participate in the official celebration of the 60th anniversary of the International Trade Centre and meet with senior UN officials.
The Deputy Secretary-General will be back in New York on 27 June.
MALI
A High-level UN delegation, led by Abdoulaye Mar Dieye, the Special Coordinator for development in the Sahel, and Yacoub El-Hillo, the Regional Director for Africa at the Development Coordination Office, traveled to Mali from June 18 until today.
During their meetings with Mali's Prime Minister, Choguel Maiga, they stressed the UN’s commitment to accelerating the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in essential sectors such as education, health, water, energy, and agriculture to foster resilience and promote long-term stability.
Following their visit to Mali, the delegation will continue its mission in the Central Sahel with a stop in Burkina Faso.
SOUTH SUDAN
We have an update from South Sudan.
Our peacekeeping colleagues in the country have intensified patrols in Tonj East to address intercommunal violence and restore community confidence, as part of their efforts to protect civilians. The Mission also continues to engage with community members and leaders, particularly women, to understand their perspectives on the security situation and better tailor their responses.
The UN Mission notes that the challenges in accessing Tonj East, caused by poor road conditions and heavy rains, often make law enforcement complicated in the area, but local authorities are determined to continue providing services to these communities.
Separately, the UN Mission said that, together with the UN Development Programme, it has organized a two-day forum in Yambio for dozens of county commissioners, community leaders, youth, and women representatives from Western Equatoria State to help address persisting intercommunal conflict and violence.
NIGERIA
In Nigeria, our team there has launched an emergency response to address the cholera outbreak.
Authorities have confirmed over 300 cases in Lagos State alone, with 15 recorded deaths. The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), are collaborating with authorities to boost information, education, and communication materials to curb the spread of cholera.
ZAMBIA
In Zambia, UNICEF says that almost 52,000 children under the age of five are expected to fall into severe wasting – the deadliest form of malnutrition – within the next 12 months if urgent preventive measures are not put into place.
This assessment comes as Zambia grapples with prolonged drought. Children in the Western, Southern, Central, and North-Western provinces – four out of 10 of Zambia’s regions – are at particularly high risk of becoming malnourished, as many families already face hunger and are unable to put nutritious food on the table.
UNICEF is urging immediate action to ensure food distribution and cash assistance for mothers and children, expand healthcare access and improve health and sanitation services.
HAITI
And we have an update on the humanitarian situation in Haiti.
Our colleagues from the World Food Programme tell us that between 15 and 19 June, they distributed more than 76,000 meals to over 15,000 displaced people in the capital Port-au-Prince.
Since March 1st, our humanitarian partners have distributed some 21 million liters of drinking water to nearly 90,000 displaced people in the Port-au-Prince area. They also distributed 12,000 hygiene kits across 36 displacement sites.
SENIOR PERSONNEL APPOINTMENT
I’d like to read in the record an announcement that went out earlier this morning, about a newly appointed Assistant Executive Director at the World Food Programme (WFP).
The Secretary-General, WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain and the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) Director General Qu Dongyu have appointed Stephen Omollo of Kenya as Assistant Executive Director for Workplace and Management at WFP.
He succeeds Stanlake Samkange of Zimbabwe, who served in the role ad interim, and to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for his service and dedication to WFP.
Mr. Omollo brings over 25 years of experience to this role, with a rich background in leadership positions across the humanitarian and development sectors. Since 2022, he served as CEO of Plan International.
ROHINGYA REFUGEES
The UN Refugee Agency today said it is stepping up support to assist some 8,000 Rohingya refugees who were affected on Wednesday by landslides in the Cox’s Bazar refugee settlements in Bangladesh.
Initial reports suggest that seven Rohingya refugees have been killed and nearly 1,200 refugee shelters have been destroyed or damaged, displacing some 2,000 refugees. UNHCR has mobilized teams to find shelter for those displaced as work continues to rehabilitate or fix damaged accommodation.
UNHCR is urgently appealing to donors to make additional resources available as humanitarian efforts in the camps are severely hampered by acute underfunding. The agency requires $275 million this year for refugees in Bangladesh and this has only been 25 per cent funded.
CYPRUS
Regarding the question posed yesterday on Personal Envoy Maria Angela Holguin’s plans to visit Cyprus, we wish to clarify that no visit to Cyprus is planned at the moment.
She will, however, meet with the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders separately outside of Cyprus in the coming weeks.
INTERNATIONAL DAYS
Today is International Day of Yoga.
In a message, the Secretary-General says that the Day recognizes the ancient practice’s unmatched power to deliver healing, inner peace and physical, spiritual and mental wellbeing. He adds that this year’s theme — “Yoga for Self and Society” — reminds us of yoga’s important role in enhancing people’s lives and the wider community.
And today is also the International Day of Celebration of the Solstice.
Sunday is United Nations Public Service Day. In his message for the Day, the Secretary-General salutes the women and men around the world who have dedicated their lives to the highest-possible calling: public service. He notes that public servants are the foundation of communities large and small around the world — providing health care, teaching young people, building and maintaining vital infrastructure, ensuring safety, and serving and protecting the most vulnerable.
And Sunday is also International Widows’ Day. The UN notes that for many women around the world, the devastating loss of a partner is magnified by a long-term fight for their basic rights and dignity. Despite there being over 258 million widows around the world, widows have historically been left unseen, unsupported, and unmeasured in our societies.
BRIEFING – MONDAY
And last, I wanted to let you know that on Monday at 12:00 p.m., in this very room, there will be a press briefing by the Secretary-General on UN Global Principles on Information Integrity.
This will be in place of the regular Noon Briefing. And you should’ve received embargoed materials that will be launched on that day.
