Noon briefing of 2 February 2026

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC

SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES

MONDAY, 2 FEBRUARY 2026

OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY 

Turning to the Occupied Palestinian Territory, we welcome the re-opening of the Rafah crossing. As we have said before, civilians must be allowed to leave and return voluntarily and safely, as international law requires. Ultimately, essential humanitarian supplies must enter in sufficient quantities and with fewer restrictions through Rafah and all other crossings.

Also today, WHO supported medical evacuation efforts from Gaza. The limited re-opening of the Rafah crossing allowed some patients and companions to exit directly to Egypt, while others transited through the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom/ Kerem Abu Salem crossing.                           

The World Health Organization tells us that the last medical evacuation through Rafah crossing dates back to May 2024.   

Over the weekend, the UN system, including our colleagues from OCHA, UNDP and the Department of Safety and Security, undertook an advance mission to assess road conditions, and the World Health Organization carried out a technical mission to examine the compound area and access roads, to ensure appropriate and dignified conditions.  

OCHA – together with several UN entities and NGO partners – has set up a reception area at the Nassar hospital in Khan Younis.                                                                                                                         

We also saw the reports of violence over the weekend and we are very concerned about the killing of civilians and Israeli airstrikes. Again, we condemn all killings of civilians.

And just a note on the reception centre at the Nassar centre. It is staffed with psychologists and protection specialists and equipped with food, information materials and internet access to provide returning people with support. Our colleagues from the World Food Programme and the UN Human Rights Office are among those operating the reception.  

SYRIA/HUMANITARIAN 

The UN and its humanitarian partners continue to reach thousands of people in the northeast with critical assistance.  

Today, a convoy consisting of two dozen trucks and one mobile clinic arrived in Ain Al Arab/Kobani in Aleppo Governorate, delivering ready-to-eat food, health supplies and fuel. This is the second convoy to reach the area in a week, as the city continues to face shortages of water, communications, medical supplies and food, among other basic services, with communities relying on bakeries as the primary source of sustenance.  

Since the fighting broke out in Aleppo in December, more than 150,000 people have received humanitarian assistance. Yesterday, a 50-truck UN convoy carrying humanitarian aid from Damascus reached the city of Qamishli in Hasakeh Governorate.                      

That is the third such convoy in a week. 

As of 25 January, more than 170,000 people have been forced to flee their homes across 178 communities across the northeast of Syria, mostly in Al-Hasakeh governorate. The vast majority of these people are women and children, who face heightened risks of violence and abuse. 

Nearly three quarters of displaced families are living with host communities, putting additional strain on housing, water, basic services, and livelihoods in already challenging situations for the hosts.

While some have returned home, many remain displaced due to explosive ordnance, infrastructure that is damaged, winter conditions, and limited access to the most basic of essential services. 

 SYRIA 

You saw that late on Friday, we issued a statement welcoming the agreement between the Syrian government and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). 

The Secretary-General appeals to all sides to work swiftly to ensure the implementation of the agreement, particularly with regard to the peaceful integration of northeast Syria, the rights of Syrian Kurds, the safe, dignified and voluntary return of the displaced, and coming together in efforts to rebuild the country. 

Furthermore, he urges all sides to fully uphold their commitments, to prioritize the stabilization of Syria as well as the wider region, and to ensure that civilians are protected and able to live safely, in dignity, and free from fear.  

LEBANON/ISRAEL 

Moving to Lebanon. Yesterday morning, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) informed UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon that they would be carrying out an aerial activity dropping what they, the IDF, described was a non-toxic chemical substance over areas near the Blue Line. The IDF said that peacekeepers should stay clear of the area, forcing the suspension of more than a dozen activities. Normal operations, including patrols along the Blue Line, resumed only after more than nine hours. UNIFIL supported the Lebanese Army in collecting samples of what was dropped and testing for toxicity. 

We continue to remind the Israel Defense Forces that flights across the Blue Line into Lebanon are violations of resolution 1701. Any activity that may put peacekeepers and civilians at risk is of serious concern. We reiterate our call on all parties to fully comply with their obligations under said resolution, and that is 1701.    

SOMALIA 

From Somalia, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tell us that severe drought conditions continue to displace people across Somalia. According to authorities and our partners, nearly half a million people have now abandoned their homes since September of 2025. Families are on the move in search of water, in search of pasture for their livestock and in search of food.  

Our humanitarian colleagues note that this is putting additional pressure on already overcrowded displacement sites. Authorities estimate that more than 4.6 million men, women and children have been impacted by the drought. This is nearly one in four people in Somalia.  

Education has also been impacted, with 150 schools in the northern regions closing or attendance declining as families migrate in search of water and livelihoods.  

This has forced more than 45,000 students -45,000 young people- to drop out of school. 

We, along with our humanitarian partners, are providing food, cash, water, health, shelter and nutrition assistance, but we are severely constrained by, you will have guessed it, funding issues.  

The situation is projected to get worse as rains are not expected until April, this is at the earliest. Widespread crop failure, which would compromise the summer harvest, is anticipated. 

This year, we and our humanitarian partners need $852 million to support 2.4 million people in Somalia. 

ETHIOPIA 

And over the weekend, we issued a statement on Ethiopia, regarding developments in the Tigray region of Ethiopia, where renewed tensions and clashes have contributed to a worsening security environment. The Secretary-General is deeply concerned about the potential impact on civilians and the risk of a return to a wider conflict in a region still working to rebuild and recover from past tensions.

The Secretary-General calls on all parties to exercise restraint and to resolve differences through peaceful dialogue and measures aimed at rebuilding trust. He urges the full implementation of the Permanent Cessation of Hostilities Agreement and underscores the importance of safeguarding the gains made since 2022. The full statement is online. 

MADAGASCAR 

In Madagascar, UN humanitarian colleagues say that Tropical Cyclone Fytia, which hit the country over the weekend, caused significant flooding and damage, particularly in north-western districts.   

According to preliminary reports from local authorities, at least seven people died. More than 20,000 people have been displaced. 

There has also been extensive damage to homes, with more than 14,000 flooded, damaged or destroyed. Some 250 classrooms have also been damaged or destroyed. 

Flooding also reported in the capital. 

The Government is leading the response and has deployed food assistance to affected areas.  

For our part, our humanitarian partners are mobilizing available, though limited, pre-positioned stocks to reach accessible areas.                                                                                                    

On the food security front [our parters report] that they currently have no food stocks available to support the response. 

Access to the most affected districts, notably Soalala and Mitsinjo, remains severely constrained. Both areas are currently only accessible by air.  

An aerial assessment is planned for tomorrow to determine priority needs. 

Continued rainfall and rough sea conditions are constraining assessments and the delivery of humanitarian goods.   

UKRAINE 

Turning to Ukraine, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that attacks over the weekend killed more civilians and triggered additional electricity and heating disruptions, as temperatures dropped to as low as –26°C, which is about –15°F.  

Between January 30th and this morning, some 30 civilians were killed and around 90 injured, mainly in the regions of Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson and Donetsk. That's what local authorities are telling us. 

Yesterday, in the Dnipro region, drone strikes hit a bus carrying coal miners, killing over a dozen of them and injuring many others. Also yesterday, WHO reported that attacks in the city of Zaporizhzhia damaged three health facilities, including a maternity hospital that is being supported by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), and it also injured staff and one patient. The hospital suffered major damage. The patients had to be relocated.  

The central, western and southern regions of Ukraine, including Kyiv, were hit by a massive blackout, which also impacted heating and water supply. According to the local Energy Ministry, this was due to technical failures of the strained energy system, severe weather as well as resumed attacks on energy facilities. 

Aid workers provided emergency shelter and protection assistance in Zaporizhzhia and Dnipro and supported heating centres across the country where people can warm up, have hot meals and charge their devices. 

Our colleague Edem Wosornu, who as you know is OCHA’s Director of Crisis Response, is currently in Ukraine. Yesterday, she was in Odesa and Mykolaiv to discuss humanitarian priorities, including winter assistance amid continued attacks on critical infrastructure, with humanitarian partners and regional authorities. 

NEW RESIDENT COORDINATORS – NEPAL AND IRAN  

The UN Development Coordination Office (DCO) tell us that, following their respective host Government approvals, Lila Pieters Yahia of Canada assumed her role as United Nations Resident Coordinator for Nepal; she started on 1 February, which was yesterday. Christine Weigand of Austria also assumed her role as Resident Coordinator in the Islamic Republic of Iran, starting today, although she is currently here in New York but will be making her way to Tehran.  

Ms. Pieters Yahia brings over 25 years of experience in public service and UN leadership.  

Ms. Weigand brings extensive expertise in development cooperation and senior leadership roles with UNICEF, including service in Armenia, Turkmenistan and Iran. 

Both Coordinators will support development priorities for the Sustainable Development Goals, in line with the Secretary-General’s vision to bolster coherence, partnerships and impact at the country level.   

WORLD WETLANDS DAY 

Today is World Wetlands Day. Wetlands, ranging from rivers, lakes and marshes to mangroves, coral reefs and human-made sites, are vital ecosystems where water shapes life. They support biodiversity, protect the climate, and sustain the livelihoods of over one billion human beings worldwide.  

HONOUR ROLL 

We thank Georgia, Ethiopia and Bhutan for their full payments to the UN regular budget. 

**Briefing 

Ambassador James Kariuki, Chargé d’Affaires of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and President of the Security Council for the month of February, briefed reporters on the programme of work for the month of February.