Noon briefing of 8 December 2025

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC

SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES

MONDAY, 8 DECEMBER 2025

CENTRAL EMERGENCY RESPONSE FUND 

Tomorrow, at 10 a.m. here at UN Headquarters, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs will be hosting a High-Level Pledging Event for the Central Emergency Response Fund 2026. That will be done in collaboration with the Governments of Ireland and the Philippines. 

The Secretary-General, António Guterres, is expected to deliver remarks, as well as Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Mr. Tom Fletcher. 

As humanitarian crises around the world outpace the funding available to address them, this pledging event for the UN’s Global Emergency Fund, managed by OCHA, which is also celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, seeks to mobilize greater financial commitments so that humanitarians can keep fast-tracking life-saving support for people in need.                            

Looking back to 2025, CERF has allocated more than $311 million to enable humanitarian action in over 30 countries and territories, including Gaza after the ceasefire and for people fleeing violence in the Darfur region of Sudan. 

The event will take place in ECOSOC, and it will be broadcast by UN Web TV.  

GLOBAL HUMANITARIAN OVERVIEW 

Today, the UN and its partners launched the 2026 global humanitarian appeal to save millions of lives where shocks hit the hardest – in wars, climate disasters, earthquakes, epidemics and wherever crop failures may occur.  

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says the immediate priority is to save 87 million lives with $23 billion in funding. Ultimately, the aim next year is to raise a total of $33 billion to support 135 million people through 23 country operations and six plans for refugees and migrants.  

The UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said this appeal sets out where we need to focus our collective energy first: life by life. He noted that the Global Humanitarian Overview 2026 is grounded in reform, evidence and efficiency, emphasizing that we are shifting power to local organizations and putting more money directly into the hands of the people who need it.         

We will now take this appeal to Member States and ask for their backing, which means asking for their money.

As you know, a brutal funding crisis cut this year strained and even snapped humanitarian lifelines. The funding received so far for the 2025 appeal, which comes to an end in a few weeks, $12 billion, was the lowest in a decade, with humanitarians reaching 25 million fewer people than in 2024. 

UNRWA 

Early this morning, Israeli police accompanied by municipal officials forcibly entered the United Nations compound used by UNRWA in East Jerusalem. Police motorcycles, as well as trucks and forklifts were brought in, and all communications were cut. Furniture, IT equipment and other property was seized. The UN flag was pulled down and replaced by the Israeli flag. 

In reaction to this event, I can tell you that the Secretary-General strongly condemns the unauthorized entry into the United Nations Sheikh Jarrah compound held by UNRWA, located in occupied East Jerusalem by Israeli authorities.  This compound remains United Nations premises and is inviolable and immune from any other form of interference. 

As recently confirmed by the International Court of Justice, any executive, administrative, judicial or legislative action against United Nations property and assets is prohibited under the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations.   

The Secretary-General urges Israel to immediately take all necessary steps to help restore, preserve and uphold the inviolability of UNRWA premises and to refrain from taking any further action with regard to UNRWA premises, in line with Israel’s obligations under the Charter of the UN and its other obligations under international law, including those concerning privileges and immunities of the United Nations. 

OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY 

Turning to the situation on the ground in Gaza, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tells us that conditions remain dire and needs far outpace the humanitarian community’s ability to respond, given the persistent impediments we continue to face.  

These obstacles include insecurity, customs clearance challenges, delays and denials of cargo at the crossings, and limited routes available for transporting humanitarian supplies within Gaza. Such constraints are especially challenging to the UN and our partners’ efforts to bring in sufficient shelter, water, sanitation and hygiene items, as well as education supplies.   

Colder weather is increasing already immense needs for shelter and winterization materials. Our partners leading on child protection support have distributed winter clothes to over 217,000 children across the Gaza Strip since October.   

In the ongoing effort to restore access to healthcare, 30 partner organizations are now providing services in northern Gaza, nearly double the number prior to the ceasefire. Plans are also underway to add more health service points in North Gaza governorate, given the lack of accessible facilities there and repeated denials for the UN and our partners to access the Kamal Adwan Hospital. Across the Strip, the number of routine vaccination sites has risen from 22 before the ceasefire to 33 now.   

Meanwhile, our partners leading efforts to improve access to water and sanitation report that work continues to repair and restore water and sanitation networks. Eleven teams are currently deployed across flood-prone areas to empty storm drains and reduce the risk of flooding.  

Since the beginning of the month, our partners managed to reach an additional 100,000 people with regular food assistance, which consists of one 25-kilogram bag of wheat flour and two rations containing basic food supplies.   

Our humanitarian partners working on improving access to education reported that as of last Thursday, 65 classrooms have been fully rehabilitated across Gaza, with repairs of another 18 classrooms nearing completion. Additional repairs are planned to enable children to restart their education after more than two years.   

Meanwhile, OCHA warns that access and movement constraints within Gaza remain a serious issue. Between 13 October and last Thursday, 295 contractors, 28 UN staff and 21 healthcare personnel were denied by the Israeli authorities from taking part in UN missions within Gaza; that’s an average of nearly seven per day.   

These denials disrupt humanitarian planning and force ourselves and our partners to make last-minute adjustments that can reduce our capacity or lead to missions being canceled altogether if substitute personnel cannot be identified.   

We continue, of course, to call for unimpeded access to humanitarians, for humanitarian goods and services and for all impediments to be lifted so that the we and our partners can scale up assistance and reach every single person who needs help.     

SUDAN 

Following the horrific reports of three separate drone strikes, two on a kindergarten and one on a hospital in South Kordofan on 4 December, the Secretary-General condemned all attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure. You will have seen the statement we issued over the weekend, in which he noted that targeting schools and hospitals may constitute serious violations of international humanitarian law. He stresses that all parties must respect civilians and allow for rapid and unfettered humanitarian access, including medical care, wherever it is needed.  

The World Health Organization tells us that 114 deaths in these attacks were reported. That includes 63 children, with 35 others injured. WHO said paramedics and responders came under attack as they tried to move the injured from the kindergarten to the hospital. 

Violence has continued in other part of Sudan.                                      

On Friday and Saturday, renewed clashes displaced as many as 600 people from Kadugli in South Kordofan, and over 600 people fled Omran village in Rahad locality, in North Kordofan, according to the International Organization for Migration. Fierce fighting in West Kordofan has further imperiled civilians. 

In West Darfur State, a suspected aerial strike triggered a fire near the Adré border crossing, destroying parts of a market and a neighbouring village along a critical humanitarian and commercial supply route. Meanwhile, in Blue Nile State, a strike on a major electricity station over the weekend caused widespread blackouts across the capital Damazin, disrupting water and health services.  

In North Darfur, insecurity continues to force people to flee villages around El Fasher amid acute shortages of food, water and essential services inside the city.    

Our humanitarian partners report that nearly 15,000 people arrived in Tawila in recent weeks, severely straining overstretched host communities. 

Our humanitarian partners are scaling up assistance at Al Afad camp in Dabbah, which is now hosting around 11,000 people, by providing shelters, food, and expanding water, sanitation, nutrition, and education services. Critical gaps remain because of funding shortages.  

The Secretary-General continues to call on all States with influence over the parties to take immediate action to halt the fighting and stop the arms flows fueling this conflict. He also renews his appeal for the parties to agree on an immediate cessation of hostilities and to resume talks toward a lasting ceasefire and a comprehensive, inclusive, Sudanese-owned political process. 

SYRIA 

We issued a statement marking one year since the fall of the Assad government, in Syria and the end of decades-long repression in that country. 

In his statement, the Secretary-General paid tribute to the resilience and courage of the Syrian people, and added that today is a moment to honor their sacrifices and to renew the aspirations that drove such historic change. 

Mr. Guterres said that what lies ahead is far more than a political transition; it is the chance to rebuild shattered communities and heal deep divisions in Syria. A future in which every Syrian, regardless of ethnicity, their religion, gender or political affiliation, can live in security, in equality and in dignity.  

The Secretary-General reaffirms our commitment to working with Syrians to make this transition a success.                           

He calls on the international community to stand firmly behind this Syrian-led, and Syrian-owned transition.   

SENIOR APPOINTMENT 

Today the Secretary-General appointed Claudio Cordone of Italy as his new Deputy Special Envoy for Syria.  

Mr. Cordone, will start on 1 January 2026, and he succeeds Najat Rochdi of Morocco to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for her dedication, her hard work and leadership during pivotal moments of the UN efforts to support the political transition process in Syria. 

Mr. Cordone brings over 40 years of experience in international relations, international human rights and humanitarian law.   

He has been serving as the Deputy Special Representative for Political Affairs and Electoral Assistance with UNAMI, the UN Assistance Mission in Iraq. He also oversaw our efforts to address the fate of missing persons in the 1990-1991 Gulf War. 

He has also worked for UNRWA in Lebanon.    

SYRIA/REFUGEES 

A part of the challenges that will come up in Syria are immense. Forced displacement was among the deep wounds inflicted by this conflict, and return is critical to end years of suffering and ensure stabilization.  

Our colleagues at the UN Refugee Agency say that a year on, over 3 million refugees and displaced Syrians have returned to their homes. UNHCR is working to improve conditions for returnees.  

Around 4.5 million Syrian refugees remain in neighbouring countries, most living below the poverty line. They need continued support, as do the countries who are generously hosting these populations of refugees.

UNHCR is calling for increased donor support to close this critical funding gap, with its $1.5 billion 2025 appeal only 33 per cent funded.                                  

UKRAINE 

Turning North to Ukraine, our colleagues from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs warn that in recent days, an alarming pattern of intensifying hostilities in front-line areas and persistent attacks on critical civilian infrastructure has continued across Ukraine, resulting in more power outages and disruptions to vital services nationwide. 

Between Friday and the early hours of this morning, authorities reported over 100 civilian casualties, including nearly 20 deaths. Two children were reportedly killed, and several more were injured. The regions of Sumy, Kharkiv, Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia have been hit the hardest. 

Ukraine’s Energy Ministry also reported new attacks over the weekend on critical facilities in at least eight regions in the north, in the east and the south of Ukraine.  

The strikes caused emergency outages and prolonged the duration of scheduled power cuts nationwide. 

Apart from electricity, heating and water supplies were also interrupted in the cities of Chernihiv and Kremenchuk, as well as other parts of the regions of Chernihiv and Poltava. 

In Kherson City, our friends at the World Health Organization reported that an attack on Thursday damaged and disrupted the water and gas supply to a maternity ward. 

Hostilities are also causing widespread damage to homes and civilian infrastructure. In the Kyiv region, an attack in Fastiv Town destroyed a railway station.

In the wake of these attacks, the UN and our partners have continued to provide emergency aid and winter-related assistance. Yet these latest developments raise concerns about the worsening humanitarian situation in Ukraine as colder weather sets in. During the latest trip to the Sumy and Chernihiv regions, our humanitarian colleagues reported a growing need for generators, fuel, and other winter-related supplies. 

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO 

OCHA tells us that fighting is continuing to intensify in the South Kivu province – particularly around the localities of Kamanyola, Luvungi and Katogota. 

Our humanitarian partners tell us that more than 200,000 people have been displaced across the province since December 2nd. Over 70 people, mostly civilians, have been killed, and more than 80 others have been injured since the violence escalated. 

Displaced families have fled with no belongings and are now contending with overcrowded shelters, heightened risks of gender-based violence, outbreaks of cholera and measles, and limited access to healthcare, partly due to an ongoing nurses’ strike in the area. 

Civilians have also crossed into Burundi to escape the fighting. Shelling was reported in the town of Rugombo, in the north-west of Burundi, raising concerns about the conflict spilling over more into Burundian territory. 

UNHCR in Burundi says that some 3,000 people are currently living in difficult and precarious conditions at the Cishemere transit centre, far exceeding its intended capacity. 

The National Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons in Burundi is calling for urgent action, particularly in the areas of food, health, and water, sanitation and hygiene. 

OCHA is closely coordinating with local authorities and partners to prepare for and support a potential response.                                                         

We reiterate yet again our urgent call on all parties to the conflict to uphold their obligations under international humanitarian law, and ensure the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure. Humanitarian access must be guaranteed so that life-saving assistance can reach those in need. 

We also need additional money to scale up the response. The Humanitarian Response Plan for the DRC is only 22 per cent funded, with only $562 million received out of $2.5 billion needed.  

BENIN 

Last night, we issued a statement in which the Secretary-General expressed his deep concern at the attempt to unconstitutionally seize power in the country of Benin.    

The Secretary-General unequivocally condemns any attempt to undermine democratic governance in Benin, which could also further threaten the stability of the region, calling for full respect for the rule of law and the Constitution. 

And our Special Representative for West Africa and the Sahel, Leonardo Santos Simão, is actively engaging with national authorities and other stakeholders, as well as regional, and international partners, to support efforts to restore peace and stability in Benin.                          

He reaffirmed our commitment to supporting national and regional institutions in safeguarding constitutional order, in the country and across the region. 

To this end, he is also working closely with ECOWAS and the African Union to promote a regional approach.

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO/CHOLERA 

UNICEF is telling us that the DRC is facing its worst cholera outbreak in the past 25 years.  

Over 64,000 cases have been recorded since the beginning of the year, including nearly 1,900 deaths and one in four people impacted is a child.   

UNICEF is working across multiple sectors to prevent and respond to the disease, and requires about $6 million next year to ensure that the cholera rapid response mechanism is properly funded.