Noon briefing of 14 January 2025

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STÉPHANE DUJARRIC,​
SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES
TUESDAY, 14 JANUARY 2025

SECRETARY-GENERAL
 

Good afternoon. Just a reminder tomorrow at 10 a.m., the Secretary-General will deliver his remarks to the General Assembly on his priorities for 2025, the year that is already underway. We will be circulating those remarks under embargo as soon as possible. We will keep you updated about possible interactions between the Secretary-General and yourselves, which will depend on events beyond our own control as you can imagine.

UKRAINE
Turning to Ukraine, our Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, visited the Kharkiv region today. He traveled to the village of Shevchenko, which is about 30 kilometers from the front lines, and also the city of Kupiansk, which is on the front lines. 
We are working with our local partners in these areas to provide transport for people living close to the front lines – many of them older or with limited mobility – so that they can access basic services. The transportation assistance is partly funded through the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund, which is managed by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
At a press conference with the governor of the Kharkiv region and as well joined by his colleague the High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, Mr. Fletcher underscored our sustained commitment to stay and deliver for people as the war rages on around them.
Mr. Fletcher said he will continue tomorrow in the capital Kyiv where, on Thursday, Mr. Fletcher will launch, along with Mr. Grandi, the humanitarian and refugee response plans for 2025, this will also be done jointly with the government of Ukraine.

YEMEN
Today, our Special Envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, concluded his visit to Riyadh, in Saudi Arabia. He met with Yemen’s Prime Minister, Ahmed Bin Mubarak, and the Foreign Minister Shayea Al-Zindani, as well as with other senior Saudi officials. 
Discussions focused on the developments in Yemen and the region and its impact on the Yemeni peace process. It was also an opportunity to emphasize the urgency to deescalate tensions and focus on the needs of the Yemeni population. 
Mr. Grundberg underscored that the roadmap remains a viable path towards a nationwide ceasefire.
He also met, while in Riyadh, with the ambassadors of the permanent members of the UN Security Council to Yemen and stressed that the unity of the Council is paramount to achieving a way forward for a peaceful and comprehensive resolution of the conflict. 
Mr. Grundberg will brief the Security Council tomorrow via video link and he will provide more details on his ongoing efforts. We will obviously share those remarks with you.

SYRIA
Turning to Syria, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, is in Damascus today as part of a visit to both Syria and Lebanon. During his brief two-country visit, Türk is scheduled to meet officials, as well as representatives of civil society organizations, members of the diplomatic corps and UN colleagues. 
Meanwhile, across the country, we and our partners report that more than 2.4 million people have received bread between the end of November and 12 January. More than 380,000 people also received food assistance, including hot meals. 
OCHA says that the humanitarian response there continues amid security and logistical challenges. Our partners also continue to distribute blankets, mattresses and winter clothes, to families who have been displaced.
Explosive ordnance remains a threat across Syria since late November and as of 12 January, which is two days ago. Our partners have identified 120 areas with explosive remnants of war in Idleb, Aleppo, Hama, Deir-ez-Zor and Lattakia. Since 26 November, our partners have carried out 516 clearance operations.
Today, UNICEF called for increased humanitarian demining efforts to remove the deadly remnants of war and to make communities safe once again. 
Meanwhile, OCHA is concerned about rising fuel costs, which make it difficult for people who need to travel to safe spaces and health facilities. Increasing fuel prices are also affecting humanitarian operations due to the surging cost of running generators, vehicles and heating equipment. 

OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY
Turning to Gaza, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tells us that the past five days have seen ongoing attacks on displacement shelters in Gaza, with significant casualties reported in Jabalia al Balad and Khan Younis. Meanwhile, OCHA also informs us that Israeli authorities continue to deny UN-led efforts to reach people with vital assistance.
Today, two attempts to reach hospitals in North Gaza governorate were denied. The missions were meant to evacuate patients from the Al Awda and Indonesian hospitals – and to deliver food, water, fuel, hygiene kits as well as cleaning supplies, which are critical to hospitals.
You’ll recall that access to Al Awda Hospital in Jabalya remains extremely limited as the Israeli siege in North Gaza governorate continues. Al Awda is the only hospital that is still partially functioning in North Gaza governorate, but it faces critical shortages of the most basic items including fuel and medical supplies. 
Meanwhile, the Indonesian Hospital remains out of service. Essential equipment has been destroyed, and the facility lacks water, lacks electricity, it lacks hygiene supplies and it lacks adequate staff. The last time we were able to reach the hospital with limited supplies late last month. 
In Gaza governorate, five bakeries supported by the World Food Programme are now operational, after one reopened last week. However, these bakeries are functioning at half capacity due to lack of fuel. Partners are distributing flour to households, but access constraints and supply shortages could jeopardize future deliveries. 
Also in Gaza governorate, the World Health Organization reached Al-Shifa Hospital earlier this week. The agency tells us that they delivered 9,700 liters of much needed fuel, as well as blood and plasma units for distribution to other hospitals in the vicinity. 
The WHO team also transferred three patients and eight companions for onward medical evacuation outside Gaza.
Meanwhile, UNICEF and the Palestinian Water Authority distributed more than 8,000 hygiene kits to some 50,000 people in shelters and other areas where displaced people have sought safety. 
We and our partners are doing everything possible to reach Palestinians in need with extremely limited resources. However, ongoing hostilities and violent armed looting – as well as systematic access restrictions – continue to severely constrain our efforts to reach those in need. Road damage, unexploded ordnance, fuel shortages and a lack of adequate telecommunications equipment are also hampering our work.
It is imperative that vital aid and commercial goods can enter Gaza through all available border crossings without delay and at the scale needed. 

SIGRID KAAG
And Sigrid Kaag who as you know is our Senior Humanitarian Relief Coordinator held meetings in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv over the past two days, where she met with the Israeli Ministers of Defense and Strategic Affairs. She also met in Ramallah with the Deputy Palestinian Prime Minister and a Minister in the presidential cabinet. 
In her meetings, she discussed the possible ceasefire and any related UN engagement. 
She also spoke by phone with the Foreign Minister of Egypt this morning to discuss the same issue. 

HAITI
Just to flag some, frankly, eye-popping numbers in Haiti, the International Organization for Migration is telling us that more than a million people are now internally displaced in the country. Half of those displaced are children, that’s what IOM data is saying.
To give you a better sense of how much the situation has deteriorated, in December 2023 – so just over a year ago, 315,000 men, women and children were displaced. There are now three times more people uprooted in Haiti, including many who have been displaced multiple times. 
In the capital alone, displacement has nearly doubled - rising by 87 per cent. As you can imagine, the majority of those displaced originate from Port-au-Prince and its surrounding areas. Many are seeking refuge in Haiti’s provinces, overwhelming host communities and straining limited resources that exist there. 
In the capital, IOM reports there are now 108 displacement sites, which are severely overcrowded and lack adequate access to essential services such as food, clean water, sanitation, and education.
Compounding this crisis, 200,000 Haitians were deported back to Haiti last year. 
Floods in November and December last year also impacted more than 315,000 people across the country. 
Despite these challenges, we and our partners continue to respond. The World Food Programme assisted 1.7 million people across Haiti in 2024 with all sorts of support. IOM today reported that they provided access to 18 million liters of clean water to uprooted people in camps. They also rehabilitated water pumps in local communities. However, much more is required to meet the needs in Haiti. In 2025, we and our partners will need $900 million to support 4 million people. 

FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION
Lastly, this is appropriate just before lunch, we have another Member State that paid its dues in full, that brings us up to eight. This country is the location of the first ever street food stall to be awarded with a coveted Michelin star. And the name of the stall is the Chan Hon Meng’s Hong Kong Soya Sauce Chicken Rice & Noodle Stall. Singapore. We thank our friends in Singapore, we wish we could have some of that food for lunch.