HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY FARHAN HAQ,
DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON
MONDAY, 14 NOVEMBER 2016
 
IN MOROCCO, SECRETARY-GENERAL TO PRESS FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF PARIS AGREEMENT ON CLIMATE CHANGE

• The Secretary-General has arrived in Marrakech, Morocco, today to attend the Climate Change (COP22) conference.
• Tomorrow morning, he will address the opening of the conference, where he is expected to tell the participants that now that the Paris Agreement has come into force, it is the time to translate words into effective policies and actions. He will add that the choices we make today and in the coming decades could lock in catastrophic climate impacts for thousands of years to come.
• The Secretary-General will also attend a luncheon hosted by King Mohammed VI for the conference participants and hold a bilateral meeting with the King.

2016 ON TRACK TO BE HOTTEST EVER, U.N. AGENCY FINDS

• This year, 2016, is on track to be the hottest on record, with preliminary data showing that global temperatures are approximately 1.2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, according to a new assessment by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), which says that 16 of the 17 hottest years on record have been in this century.
• The WMO also says that long-term climate change indicators are record-breaking, with concentrations of major greenhouse gases in the atmosphere continuing to increase to new records. Arctic sea ice remains at low levels, and there has been significant and early melting of the Greenland ice sheet.
• The WMO’s Secretary-General, Petteri Taalas, says that because of climate change, ‘once-in-a-generation’ heatwaves and flooding are becoming more regular.
• He added that the Paris Agreement came into force in record time and with record global commitment.

COLOMBIA: SECRETARY-GENERAL HAILS EFFORTS TO REACH MODIFIED PEACE AGREEMENT

• In a statement yesterday, the Secretary-General commended the efforts by the Government of Colombia and the FARC-EP to conclude a modified peace agreement that incorporates many of the proposals of the groups representing Colombians who voted “No” in the 2 October plebiscite.  
• The Secretary-General also acknowledged the many groups and individuals in Colombian society who came forth with proposals to modify the texts and who took part constructively in the dialogue process.  
• Throughout this exercise, Colombians have listened to one another and have reaffirmed their collective desire for peace.  They now have a new opportunity to go forward on this road to peace more unified than before, he said.

MORE THAN 54,000 UPROOTED BY MILITARY OPERATIONS TO RETAKE IRAQ’S MOSUL, U.N. AGENCY STEPS UP FOOD DELIVERIES

• As of today, more than 54,000 people have been internally displaced in the context of military operations to retake Mosul in Iraq. This is an increase of 6,600 people since 11 November. About three quarters of the displaced families are sheltered in camps and one quarter in host communities. Available spaces in formal camps are still keeping pace with displacements.
• The World Food Programme (WFP) has provided urgently-needed food assistance to more than 100,000 people fleeing the conflict in Mosul, Iraq, including a distribution on Sunday to 25,000 people in Gogjali, the first neighbourhood retaken inside Mosul city. In addition to providing such assistance, WFP and its partners are working tirelessly to reach families that remain trapped in Mosul and newly recovered areas.  WFP is providing ready-to-eat food rations to families wherever safe access is possible. WFP then provides family food rations, giving a family of five a one-month supply of staple foods, including rice, wheat flour, chickpeas, vegetable oil, sugar and salt.
• Delivery is challenging, as the security situation remains fluid and many villages are highly contaminated with improvised mines and other explosive devices.

U.N. AGENCY SPEAKS OUT AGAINST KILLING OF STAFF MEMBER IN SYRIA

• The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) strongly condemns the killing of one of its staff members, Husein Ali Muhsen, and his uncle, Ahmad Mahmud Muhsen, in Syria yesterday.
• Reports indicate that Mr Muhsen and his uncle were killed by an airstrike that hit a mosque during morning prayers in the Palestine refugee camp of Khan Eshieh in the south-west of rural Damascus. At least 12 people were injured in the incident.
• Mr. Muhsen is the twentieth UNRWA staff member killed since the beginning of the conflict in Syria. The thoughts and condolences of all UNRWA staff go out to his bereaved family.  

U.N. GOLAN MISSION BEGINS LIMITED RETURN TO CAMP FAOUAR

• In response to a question on the the UN Disengagement Observer Force’s (UNDOF) departure from Camp Faouar, the Deputy Spokesperson said that its incremental limited return to the Camp commenced today, in accordance with Security Council resolution 2294 (2016) of 29 June, which requested the Secretary-General to expedite preparations for the return of an UNDOF presence to Camp Faouar, conditions permitting, following its temporary relocation from a number of positions in September 2014. Both parties to the Disengagement Agreement continue to support UNDOF’s return to Camp Faouar.

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION’S ANTIBIOTIC AWARENESS WEEK KICKS OFF

• Today marks the first day of World Antibiotic Awareness Week.
  With this campaign, the World Health Organization (WHO) aims to increase awareness of global antibiotic resistance and to encourage best practices among the general public, health workers, policy-makers and the agriculture sector to avoid the further emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance.

MARKING WORLD DIABETES DAY, SECRETARY-GENERAL URGES PREVENTION, STRENGTHENED HEALTH SERVICES

• Marking World Diabetes Day today, the Secretary-General said in a message that the disease is a leading cause of poor eyesight and blindness worldwide, and that it is often too late for people to restore or improve their vision because the changes are painless and gradual.
• He stressed that it is vital that all people with diabetes have their eyes examined regularly.
• The Secretary-General noted that some 422 million people live with diabetes, which shortens lives and, if not, managed, can cause severe complications such as amputations, strokes or kidney failure.
• He emphasized that we must focus on both prevention and strengthening health services so that everyone who has this debilitating disease can receive the support he or she needs.

MORE THAN 200 PROMINENT WRITERS LEND THEIR VOICES TO SPOTLIGHT UNIVERSAL CHILDREN’S DAY

• UNICEF said today that over 200 prominent writers including novelists, playwrights and poets, have joined a global literary campaign this week, penning ‘tiny stories’ of around seven lines each to highlight Universal Children’s Day.
• The short story series kicks off UNICEF’s commemoration of its 70th year working to bring help and hope to every child.
• Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Paulo Coelho, Christina Lamb and Nuruddin Farah are among the participating authors.