HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC

SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES

TUESDAY, 19 FEBRUARY 2019

SECRETARY-GENERAL’S TRAVELS
The Secretary-General will travel next week to Geneva, where, on Monday, he will speak at the opening of the 40th session of the Human Rights Council. He will also speak at a special session of the Conference of Disarmament on that day.
Later in the afternoon, the Secretary-General and the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Peter Maurer, will deliver a joint statement on sexual and gender-based violence against in conflict.
In the evening, the Secretary-General will address the Geneva Association of the UN Correspondents (ACANU) on “Press Freedom and Journalists under Attack”.
On Tuesday, he will convene a high-level pledging conference for the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, co-hosted by Sweden and Switzerland, which you heard quite a bit about today. This event is an important opportunity for the international community to make clear its continuing commitment to save the lives of starving and vulnerable people in Yemen.

YEMEN
The Special Envoy for Yemen, Martin Griffiths, briefed the Security Council by video conference this morning on what he called the significant progress made in implementing the agreements reached in Stockholm. He welcomed the agreement on the redeployment of the parties -- first from Saleef and Ras Issa and then from the port of Hudaydah -- as a first step. Mr. Griffiths said that despite deadlines being missed, the parties have constantly showed their commitment to the agreement.  
He added that he has continued to work on the release of prisoners by the parties, saying that the watchword for the process is a release of “all for all”. He expressed hope that the release of the first batch of prisoners could take place soon.
Mark Lowcock, the Emergency Relief Coordinator, for his part said that about 80 percent of the Yemeni population – that’s about 24 million people - need humanitarian assistance and protection. Some 20 million people need help securing food, including 10 million who are just a step away from famine. In sum, he said, things are very bad; and unfortunately, aid agencies are running out of money. 
Mr. Lowcock said that we expect current resources to be used by the end of March, just six weeks from now. He noted next week’s meeting in Geneva on funding for Yemen and urged Member States to attend the meeting at a senior level and, of course, to pledge generously. Together, he said, we can save millions more lives in Yemen, but only if we have the resources that we need.

YEMEN HUMANITARIAN APPEAL
The UN and our humanitarian partners today issued a call for $4.2 billion to help up to 19 million people in need in Yemen.
After four years of conflict, the humanitarian crisis in Yemen is the world’s worst, with 10 million people being one step away from famine. 
Since 2015, nearly 15 percent of the people in Yemen have been forced to flee their homes, the vast majority of whom are still displaced.

SYRIA
The United Nations condemns the reported bombing in the city of Idlib yesterday, which resulted in civilian deaths and injuries, many of whom of women and children. 
At least 17 people were reportedly killed in twin explosions in the Al-Qusour neighborhood in Idlib, and nearly 100 people reportedly injured, including civilians and aid volunteers. 
The UN is gravely concerned by reports of what seems to be an instigation of hostilities and an increasing number of casualties in the northwest part of Syria.
Meanwhile, 130 schools in Idlib Governorate remain suspended due to hostilities, impacting nearly 50,000 children.
The United Nations continues to call on all the parties to the conflict to respect their obligations under international humanitarian law and international human rights law, and to ensure the protection of civilians to put an end to the destruction of hospitals and other civilian infrastructures that are essential for the civilian population.

CIVIL SOCIETY ADVISORY BOARD
The Secretary-General announced today that he has appointed seven experts to serve on the newly established Civil Society Advisory Board on the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse. The aim of the Board is to foster closer interaction with civil society and external experts and organizations as part of the UN’s efforts to combat sexual exploitation and abuse.  

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC
In response to questions on the UN peacekeeping mission’s role during the violence that took place in Batangafo, in the Central African Republic, in late October last year, the Spokesperson said the following: 
When the violence erupted on 30 and 31 October 2018, including setting fire to the internally displaced people’s (IDP) camp by ex-Seleka, peacekeepers intervened by removing the ex-Seleka fighters and helping to protect humanitarian and local administration officials as well as hundreds of IDPs who fled towards the mission’s temporary base. 
As the tensions continued in beginning of November, peacekeepers patrolled the Batangafo-Bouca and Batangafo-Kabo axes to deter violence by armed groups and protect civilians. The Mission also deployed additional troops to restore security in the city.
The peacekeeping mission immediately launched an internal investigation to look into the events and the response of the Mission. This report is currently being finalised and its outcomes will be shared publicly. 
Should the investigation into allegations conclude that the peacekeepers’ performance was insufficient in Batangafo, appropriate remedial actions will be taken to improve the delivery of the protection mandate. 

UNMOGIP 
In response to questions on a recent incident involving the UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan, known as UNMOGIP, the Spokesperson said the following:
The observer group reported on 16 February that a UN vehicle in the city of Jammu was surrounded by a group of protesters who placed a Pakistan flag in front of the vehicle. The vehicle attempted to bypass the flag but was unable to do so. 
The Mission has informed both Indian and Pakistani authorities of this regrettable and unavoidable circumstances of the incident. The Mission also requested India to provide additional escorts and will be conducting an investigation. 

REFUGEES
New data released today by the UN Refugee Agency shows that despite record levels of forced displacement, just 4.7 percent of global refugee resettlement need were met last year. This means that out of 1.2 million refugees in need of resettlement in 2018, only 55,692 were resettled. 
Most refugees referred for resettlement are from Syria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea and Afghanistan, and 68 percent of referred refugees were survivors of violence and torture, had legal and physical protection needs, or were women and girls at risk.