HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STÉPHANE DUJARRIC
SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES
WEDNESDAY, 9 JULY 2025
DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL
The Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed, is in Yaoundé, Cameroon, where she is attending the International Conference on the Blue Economy in the Gulf of Guinea. She is doing that on behalf of the Secretary-General.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, she highlighted the vast potential of the Blue Economy in the region, stressing the importance of protecting the ocean, unlocking its economic power, and ensuring maritime security to deliver benefits for people. She also underscored that the Blue Economy is not only central to SDG 14 — which as you all know is Life Below Water — but is also a powerful enabler of the entire 2030 Agenda and the African Union’s Agenda 2063.
During her visit, the Deputy Secretary-General also held bilateral meetings with senior government officials, including the Prime Minister of Cameroon, Joseph Dion Ngute.
They discussed regional challenges, strengthening the cooperation between Cameroon and the United Nations, and accelerating progress on the Sustainable Development Goals.
YEMEN
Hans Grundberg, our Special Envoy for Yemen, briefed the Security Council today and expressed his grave concern at the escalation in the Red Sea with attacks on two commercial ships earlier this week by Ansar Allah that resulted in civilian loss of life and casualties as well as the potential for environmental damage to the Red Sea.
He said that freedom of navigation in the Red Sea must be safeguarded, and civilian infrastructure must never become a target in conflict. Above all, he warned, Yemen must not be drawn deeper into regional crises that threaten to unravel the already extremely fragile situation in the country.
Mr. Grundberg reiterated his call for the unconditional and immediate release by Ansar Allah of all those who are arbitrarily detained from the United Nations, national and international NGOs, civil society organizations, as well as diplomatic missions in Yemen.
For his part, Tom Fletcher, our Under Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, also briefed the Council and he told the fifteen members that the food security crisis in Yemen has been steadily accelerating since late 2023. Today, he said, more than 17 million people in Yemen are going hungry and that number could climb to over 18 million by September. He called for increased funding now to scale up emergency food and nutrition support for all those who need it.
SUDAN
Turning to the situation in Sudan, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that the situation in North Darfur State remains alarming, as fighting continues to drive families from their homes.
Yesterday, shelling reportedly hit the market area inside the Abu Shouk camp, killing three civilians and injuring many more. As a reminder, this is a displacement camp where famine was confirmed last year. This tragic incident is another reminder of the toll this conflict is taking on civilians.
Prior to yesterday’s incident, the International Organization for Migration reports that more than 3,200 people had fled Abu Shouk camp and parts of El Fasher between June 26th and July 6th, and that they were seeking safety in places like As Serief, Tawila and At Tina.
In the Kordofan region, the humanitarian situation is also deteriorating.
Ongoing violence is forcing more people to flee, often into areas with little or no assistance. IOM says that on July 5th, nearly 800 people were displaced from Bara, in North Kordofan State, and are now sheltering in White Nile State.
Despite the challenges, our humanitarian partners are doing everything they can to keep services running. In North Darfur, they are supporting over 1.7 million human beings with basic healthcare, using both remaining health facilities and mobile clinics. However, medical supplies are running critically low.
We and our partners are rushing assistance to the Darfur region.
A humanitarian convoy that crossed into Darfur from Chad on July 6th – and that convoy was led by our Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator, Antoine Gerard – is carrying 180 metric tonnes of life-saving relief items for almost 400,000 conflict-affected and displaced people both in the East and South Darfur states.
Meanwhile, flash flooding threatens to make it more difficult for humanitarians to reach people in need. Today in eastern Sudan, heavy rains triggered flash floods in the Northern Delta locality of Kassala State. This comes as authorities began releasing water from several major dams to manage rising floodwaters. OCHA is closely monitoring the situation and will provide updates as they come in.
Our OCHA colleagues reiterate the need for the safe and the unimpeded humanitarian access and calls on the international community to scale up support for the most vulnerable people in Sudan.
This year’s $4.2 billion response plan for Sudan is less than 25 per cent funded, and that is halfway into the year, and it has just $917 million in the bank.
OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY
In Gaza, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tells us that during this past week, mostly in Gaza City and Deir al Balah, there were reports of attacks on tents and residential buildings, with scores of people reportedly killed, including medical staff and their families. Since October 2023, more than 1,500 medical staff have reportedly been killed– that's what the local Ministry of Health is telling us.
Meanwhile, as people across Gaza try to find food, mass casualty incidents continue to be reported. Our partners working in health are providing services to those injured during these mass casualty incidents, despite very limited resources. The lack of supplies is putting more pressure on hospitals already operating under severe strain and facing critical shortages of fuel, medicines and medical supplies, as well as blood and blood products.
Yesterday, the World Health Organization said that 11 trucks carrying medical supplies entered the Gaza Strip.
These were surgical supplies, assistive devices, orthopedic instruments, and other essential medical items. They will be distributed to health facilities in Gaza. This is obviously a positive development but meets just a fraction of what's needed in the Gaza strip.
Again, we call for the opening of all crossings, corridors and routes to ensure the consistent, frequent and large-scale distribution of aid to people in need, wherever they are.
The lack of fuel continues to severely affect life-saving operations. Today, the Ministry of Health announced that the generator at the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis is about to shut down. The lives of dozens of patients, especially those on ventilators, hang in the balance if no fuel is delivered urgently.
In the north of Gaza, 10 water wells have stopped operating due to shortages of fuel. Another 25 wells that are functioning but only partially could also shut down soon.
Shorter pumping hours, reduced water production and limited solid waste collection provide fertile ground for diseases to spread – especially among vulnerable people including children, older people and pregnant women.
Our partners on the ground have expressed concerns over an increase in suspected cases of meningitis among children under 5, particularly in Khan Younis and Gaza governorates. Cases of bloody diarrhea and acute jaundice syndrome have also been reported at overcrowded displacement sites.
The shortage of medical and cleaning supplies has severe health repercussions and impedes a proper response. We are calling for the entry into Gaza of hygiene kits and cleaning supplies. And just as a reminder, since early March, no hygiene items have entered.
Meanwhile, humanitarian movements inside Gaza remain limited.
Yesterday, out of 10 attempts to coordinate movements with the Israeli authorities, only three were fully facilitated for the collection of medical supplies and the removal of debris. Another three attempts were denied outright, including one to collect supplies from the Kerem Shalom crossing. The remaining four had to be cancelled by the organizers.
SYRIA
From Syria, UN humanitarian operations along with partners are continuing to support the response led by national and local authorities to respond to wildfires, which are continuing to spread in the country’s coastal areas.
UNICEF and its partners have deployed mobile teams, including healthcare and nutrition support to children under the age of five. It is also, along with the UN Population Fund, offering psychosocial support and distributing dignity kits to women, girls and children. We also have distributed solar lamps, jerry cans and buckets.
In the province of Lattakia, local authorities report that over 14,000 hectares of agricultural land have been burned, directly impacting more than 5,000 people. Thousands have fled high-risk zones, resulting in the need for shelter, clean water and basic services, as people seek safety.
Meanwhile, a bit of good news from OCHA. They tell us that on Monday, the Syrian Arab Republic extended its consent for the United Nations to deliver humanitarian assistance through three crossings for another six months and these crossings are Bab al-Hawa, Bab al-Salam and Al-Rai. So that will take us up to early February 2026.
This remains an important and cost-effective route for the delivery of humanitarian assistance, which is now being used to provide assistance to a range of areas inside Syria. This year, more than 1,500 trucks have delivered critical assistance through these routes, which is more than five times the number for the same period last year.
ETHIOPIA
In Ethiopia, Tom Fletcher, the Emergency Relief Coordinator, today allocated $3 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund to provide life-saving assistance to South Sudanese refugees arriving in the Gambela region, in the western part of the country.
At least 35,000 people fleeing escalating violence in South Sudan have crossed the border into Ethiopia’s Gambela region. This influx is stretching already limited resources, and refugees face extremely difficult conditions – without access to adequate food, shelter, and other basic services.
The new funding from the Central Emergency Response Fund will support both refugees and the communities that are generously hosting them. It will also be prioritizing food, protection, shelter, clean water, sanitation, health and other critical support for vulnerable groups, including women and children who have yet to receive any assistance.
