Secretary-General

Noon briefing of 11 September 2009

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY MARIE OKABE

DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Friday, September 11, 2009

BAN KI-MOON CONDEMNS ROCKET FIRE INTO ISRAEL FROM LEBANON

  • Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemns the firing of at least two rockets against Israel from southern Lebanon on 11 September.

  • The Israel Defense Forces returned fire with artillery rounds towards the direction of where the rockets were launched.

  • There were no reports of casualties on either side.

  • The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) is investigating the circumstances of the incident in close cooperation with the Lebanese Armed Forces. The Secretary-General urges all parties to exercise maximum restraint. The parties must fully adhere to Security Council resolution 1701 (2006) and respect the cessation of hostilities agreement.

LEBANON MISSION LAUNCHES PROBE INTO ROCKET FIRE

  • The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) says that, according to preliminary reports, at least two rockets were fired from the general area of Qlaileh, in southern Lebanon, around 15:45 today and impacted in northern Israel. The Israeli Army retaliated with artillery fire aimed at the area from where the rocket fire originated. The firing stopped shortly thereafter.

  • UNIFIL has no reports of casualties on either side. UNIFIL is in contact with both sides, urging them to exercise maximum restraint, uphold the cessation of hostilities and avoid taking steps which would lead to further escalation.

  • UNIFIL, in coordination with the Lebanese Armed Forces, has deployed additional troops and reaction force in the area to prevent escalation. It has also immediately launched an investigation into this incident.

  • Asked whether the rocket fire would affect the talks underway concerning the formation of a government in Lebanon, the Spokeswoman noted that the two separate incidents had been dealt with separately by the Secretary-General and the UN system.

LEBANON: U.N. REGRETS FAILURE TO REACH AGREEMENT ON FORMING NEW GOVERNMENT

  • Michael Williams, the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, today met with Lebanese majority leader Saad Hariri. Speaking to the press afterward, Williams said that the United Nations regrets the failure of the different political sides to reach an agreement on forming a new government in Lebanon.

  • He hoped that the consultations which President Michel Sleiman will resume with the different parliamentary blocs will be successful in placing the process of government formation back on track. “If the Lebanese remain committed to the objective of a national unity government and work towards this goal, I believe it will be achieved,” Williams said.

U.N. AGENCIES ASSESS HUMANITARIAN SITUATION IN PAKISTAN

  • The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), UNICEF and non-governmental partners visited the Jalozai Camp in northwestern Pakistan this week, to assess the situation and identify existing gaps for further action on a range of water and sanitation issues.

  • In Sultanwas village, in the district of Buner, UN-HABITAT completed the first rapid assessment of shelter needs and shelter damage, as well as humanitarian assistance priority needs. Of the 280 houses surveyed, 90 were totally or partially destroyed, and more than 1,500 people need shelter. An assessment is underway to find temporary shelter locations.

  • Also, between 1 and 7 September, the World Food Programme distributed nearly ten thousand metric tons of food to more than 600,000 people, both inside and outside of camps.

YEMEN FLASH APPEAL REMAINS UNFUNDED

  • The Yemen Flash Appeal, which was launched on 2 September for $23.75 million, has still not received any funding, says the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Some agencies are using funds from the Central Emergency Response Fund to finance their relief efforts. Meanwhile, The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has approved a $2.5 million loan for the emergency in Yemen, pending response to the Flash Appeal.

  • As of 8 September, a total of 170 metric tons of food had been distributed to 14,917 internally displaced people in camps in Hajjah and Sa'ada town. The World Food Programme has completed one month's food distribution for all 12,404 internally displaced persons registered around Hajjah.

  • Yemen’s Ministry of Health, UNICEF and partners have concluded, after conducting an assessment in the al-Mazrak camp, that 7 per cent of children under the age of five are severely malnourished. UNICEF will help local health authorities set up a therapeutic feeding centre at the Harad District Hospital for severely malnourished children who need inpatient treatment.

SOMALIA: FOOD INSECURITY EXPECTED TO GET WORSE

  • Food insecurity is expected to get worse for the remainder of this year in some drought-affected regions of Somalia, according the latest update from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

  • Specifically in the regions of Hiraan, Galgaduud, Mudug, Nugaal, Sool, Sanaag, and Togdheer, income and food sources for poor urban households are strongly linked to livestock markets and trade, which are seriously affected by the drought.

  • In the meantime, the World Food Programme, (WFP) is prioritizing life-saving interventions such as targeted supplementary feeding programmes for many affected people. But as a result of the precarious food aid pipeline WFP is having to phase out support to Maternal and Child Health Nutrition programmes in 12 centres in Somalia’s Lower Shabelle, Bay and Bakool regions.

  • About 3.76 million Somalis - or 50 percent of the country’s population - are still in need of livelihood and humanitarian support in Somalia.

TIMOR-LESTE: NATIONAL POLICE ASSUMES RESPONSIBILITY FOR TRAINING CENTER

  • In Timor-Leste today, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Timor- Leste, Atul Khare, and the Secretary of State for Security, Fransisco Guterres, presided over a ceremony marking the resumption of responsibilities by Timorese national police over the Police Training Center in the capital, Dili.

  • The Police Training Center is the 4th place, after 3 Districts, where the national police have resumed primary responsibility since the handover process from the United Nations Police started in May 2009.

  • The Government of Timor-Leste and the United Nations Mission in Timor-Leste are jointly implementing the resumption process in a gradual manner – district by district, unit by unit.

  • The decision for the national police to resume primary responsibility for the Police Training Center was made based on the result of joint assessments conducted by the Government and the UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste.

  • The Police Training Center in Dili, responsible for the training and development of national police officers, receives support from Australia, Japan, and Portugal, as well as from the United Nations.

U.N. AGENCY CONCERNED BY GUATEMALA HUNGER CRISIS

  • The World Food Programme (WFP) today expressed its deep concern about the current hunger crisis in Guatemala.

  • According to WFP, women and children are in a desperate struggle for survival. The agency adds that the combination of the world economic crisis, high food prices, a drop in remittances, unemployment and poverty, plus a lack of rain, has led to a situation that is threatening the lives of the rural poor.

  • Nearly 50 per cent of Guatemalan children under the age of 5 suffer from chronic undernutrition, also known as stunting, WFP says.

U.N. WORKING CLOSELY WITH CYPRIOT LEADERS TO HELP THEM FIND A NEGOTIATED SETTLEMENT

  • Asked about a leaked document that purportedly described the views of Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Lynn Pascoe on Cyprus, the Spokeswoman declined to comment specifically on the leaked document.

  • Speaking about the general UN approach on Cyprus, the Spokeswoman emphasized that the United Nations is working very closely with the Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders to help them find a negotiated settlement, all the while respecting -- as the United Nations has said repeatedly -- that for this process to succeed it cannot be imposed from the outside; it must be a Cypriot-owned and Cypriot-led process.

  • Okabe said that the message is the same to both sides and to everyone else: that the leaders have a critical opportunity before them to arrive at a settlement and we encourage them strongly to seize that opportunity while it exists. The Secretary-General, she said, is expected to meet with each of the leaders in the coming weeks and will reinforce that same message with both.

NEW STUDY LISTS LEADING CAUSES OF DEATH FOR YOUNG PEOPLE

  • The leading causes of death for young people between the ages of 10 and 24 are road traffic accidents, complications during pregnancy and child birth, suicide, violence, HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.

  • That’s according to a new study supported by the World Health Organization (WHO). Nearly three million young people are dying each year, with 97% of these deaths taking place in low- and middle-income countries, the report adds.

  • Meanwhile, in other health-related news, WHO is today issuing advice on measures that can be undertaken in schools to reduce the impact of the H1N1 influenza pandemic.

BAN KI-MOON STANDS BEHIND PROPOSAL TO STREAMLINE U.N. WORK ON WOMEN’S ISSUES

  • The Spokeswoman, in response to questions about General Assembly consideration of what had been called a “super-agency” for women in the United Nations, said that the Secretary-General and Deputy Secretary-General stand firmly behind a proposal to streamline the work that the United Nations does on women in one entity.

  • She recalled that the Secretary-General, speaking to Assembly members in June, had said, “It is clear that there is strong support for a ‘composite’ entity.”

  • The Secretary-General had added: “Such an entity would be best positioned to support the UN system and hold it accountable for gender mainstreaming.

  • “It would also combine a strong and strategic field presence with a formidable analytical, policy, normative and research capacity. This would strengthen collaboration between Member States, the UN system and civil society, particularly women’s networks and non-governmental organizations.”

  • The Secretary-General had said that funding is crucial, and he urged Member States to muster the political will to create the composite entity during the current session, and to fund it properly.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

BAN KI-MOON TO RAISE STAFF ISSUES WITH SRI LANKA PRESIDENT: Asked about a UNICEF staff member who was being expelled from Sri Lanka, as well as two UN staff who were detained by the authorities there, the Spokeswoman said that the Secretary-General would raise both matters with Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa in the near future.

NEW PRESS KIT FOR 64th GENERAL ASSEMBLY: The Department of Public Information informs that hard copies of the press kit for the forthcoming 64th session of the General Assembly are now available at UN Headquarters. The kit, which contains a range of materials, including the provisional agenda of the session and a biography and photo of the GA President-elect, has been produced in three languages -- Arabic, English and French. Electronic versions of the press kit will be available online -- in all six official languages -- on opening day next Tuesday afternoon, 15 September, at www.un.org/ga.


THE WEEK AHEAD AT THE UNITED NATIONS
12 - 18 September 2009

Monday, 14 September

The guest at the noon briefing will be B. Lynn Pascoe, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, who will brief on political issues on the UN agenda.

This morning, the Security Council will hear a briefing on the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Sierra Leone (UNIPSIL). It will then hold consultations on the same subject as well as on resolution 1874 (2009).

The Human Rights Council will hold its twelfth regular session until 2 October in Geneva.

In Geneva, the Committee on the Rights of the Child will hold its 52nd session, starting today and until 2 October.

The Secretary-General will convene a discussion of the book of the United Nations Intellectual History Project, UN Ideas that Changed the World, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Trusteeship Council Chamber. The discussion will be moderated by the Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, Helen Clark.

Starting today, the governing Trade and Development Board of the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) will meet in Geneva. The meeting will last until 25 September and will begin with a high-level discussion on The global economic crisis and the necessary policy response.

Tuesday, 15 September

The General Assembly will open of its sixty-fourth session at 3 p.m. today.

The Security Council will hold consultations on its 1591 Committee, concerning the Sudan. It is also expected to adopt resolution on the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) and on the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Sierra Leone (UNIPSIL).

Today is the International Day of Democracy. In commemoration of the Day, the Inter-Parliamentary Union will hold a press conference in Room-S226 at 11 a.m. to present the findings a World Public Opinion global survey on political tolerance.

The guests at the noon briefing will be Alain Le Roy, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, and Susanna Malcorra, Head of the Department of Field Support.

In Geneva, Radhika Coomaraswamy, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, will brief the press on her report to the Human Rights Council.

From 1.15 to 2.45 p.m. in the Trusteeship Council Chamber, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), in partnership with the UN Bookshop, will organize a panel discussion on Half the sky: Turning oppression into opportunity for women worldwide. The Secretary-General will deliver opening remarks. UNODC Executive-Director Antonio Maria Costa and New York Times Pulitzer Prize winning authors/journalists Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn will be present.

Wednesday, 16 September

Today is the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer.

The Secretary-General will attend the monthly luncheon with members of the Security Council.

At 11 a.m. in Room S226, Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro will hold a press conference to launch the 2009 report of the MDG Gap Task Force entitled Strengthening the Global Partnership for Development.

The guests at the noon briefing, Annabeth Rosenboom from the UN Treaty Section and Craig Mokhiber from the New York Office for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, will brief on the upcoming 2009 UN Treaty Event (23-25 & 28-29 September).

At 2.30 p.m. in Room-S226, John Holmes, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, will provide a general humanitarian overview, focusing on situations in Sri Lanka, Yemen, some Horn of Africa countries and Guatemala.

Thursday, 17 September

The Secretary-General will hold his monthly press conference at 11 a.m. in room S-226.

At 2.30 p.m. in Room-S226, there will be a off the record technical briefing on media arrangements for the upcoming High-level Event on Climate Change (22 September) and 64th General Debate (23-28 September).

This morning, the Security Council will hear a briefing and then hold consultations on the Middle East.

The UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) will launch its World Investment Report 2009: Transnational Corporations, Agricultural Production and Development.

In Vienna, experts from the private sector and anti-corruption agencies will gather at the Vienna International Centre for a panel discussion on the subject Is corruption just part of doing business? The meeting will also launch a report entitled Anti-Corruption Policies and Measures of the Fortune Global 500 produced in cooperation between PricewaterhouseCoopers and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

Friday, 18 September

At 10.30 a.m. in Room-S226, Karen Koning AbuZayd, Commissioner-General of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), will brief the press on the upcoming High-level UNRWA 60th Anniversary Commemoration (24 September) as well as launch a commemorative publication.

The guests at the noon briefing will be Tibor Tóth and Annika Thunborg from the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO). Tibor Tóth, CTBTO’s Executive Secretary, will highlight the current political momentum for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty in light of the upcoming Ministerial Conference (24-25 September) and the High-level Security Council meeting (24 September).

Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General

United Nations, S-378
New York, NY 10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055

Transcript

The Secretary-General condemns the firing of at least two rockets against Israel from southern Lebanon on 11 September.

Full transcript All transcripts