Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General
The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesman for the Secretary-General.
**Yemen
The Security Council this morning was meeting on Yemen. The Secretary-General’s Special Envoy, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, told the Security Council that the situation in the country remains extremely grave, with the conflict intensifying daily and the tragic humanitarian situation continuing to worsen.
He noted that for the third year in a row, Yemenis have seen the holy month of Ramadan transformed from a month of tolerance and peace into a month of violence and hopelessness, with an increase in battles of attrition.
The Envoy said he continues to engage with the parties as well as with neighbouring countries, noting he had just arrived from Saudi Arabia that morning and will depart for Egypt tomorrow.
He called on all of the parties to act for the sake of peace, stressing that their excuses are unacceptable, and their justifications are unconvincing, especially when the solution is in plain sight. The opportunity to reach peace is not yet lost, he added.
For his part, Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen O’Brien said that millions of Yemen civilians continue to be exposed to unfathomable pain and suffering, with the risk of famine and cholera and associated diseases remaining acute in all but one governorate across the country.
In the midst of all this, he said that every day, millions of people are struggling to survive the conflict, poverty and daily economic hardships.
Also speaking at this morning’s meeting was the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO).
**South Sudan
The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for South Sudan, David Shearer, spoke to the press in Juba earlier today.
He expressed grave concern about the situation in Torit, where Government and opposition forces have taken up battle positions on either side of an orphanage just outside the town. He said it is unacceptable that 250 children, and the people who care for them, find themselves in a no-man’s land between the warring parties, and he urged both sides to withdraw from around the facility. Mr. Shearer said that the UN Mission has sent a contingent of Nepalese peacekeepers from Juba to protect civilians and the UN base.
He also expressed concern about the situation in the Upper Nile region. Five thousand people from the area north of Pagak are fleeing an advance of Government troops towards the town, which is a stronghold of the opposition. At least 25 aid workers have been forced to relocate from Pagak and the surrounding areas due to growing insecurity.
**Abyei
The UN Mission in Abyei, UNISFA, today condemned the attacks perpetrated by unknown armed groups, which resulted in deaths and injuries of civilians. The Mission vowed to swiftly investigate the attacks with the Joint Peace Committee, the traditional leaders, as well as Sudan and South Sudan Governments, and bring the perpetrators to justice.
Abyei has no police service system in place and there is no functioning joint local administrative structure. The absence of these systems has resulted in the increase of criminal cases. In light of the recent incidents, the UN Mission has stepped up its security measures, particularly in and around the Amiet common market.
**Central African Republic
Our colleagues from the UN Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) report that the situation in Zémio in Haut-Mbomou prefecture remains tense. Yesterday, anti-Balaka combatants attacked Fulani civilians at a local hospital, which resulted in one child being killed. Peacekeepers are securing the area to protect civilians and prevent further attacks.
Separately, the UN Mission demanded that the Révolution et Justice armed group vacate Bang in Ouham-Pendé prefecture, following the group’s attack on the village on Monday. The attack resulted in the displacement of civilians, who fled towards a UN temporary operating base in the area. The Mission has deployed a patrol to the site to deter further attacks.
**Democratic Republic of the Congo
The UN Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO) reports that a joint investigation mission in Kamonia territory in the Kasai province discovered 38 potential mass graves in four different sites.
As of today, the UN's Joint Human Rights Office has identified 80 alleged mass graves in the Kasais.
The Human Rights Office and the UN Mission reiterate their readiness to support the DRC authorities to shed light on the crimes committed in the Kasais and the fight against impunity.
**Iraq
Turning to Iraq, our friends at the World Food Programme (WFP) warned today that, though the battle for Iraq’s Mosul has ended, damage to homes and infrastructure has left thousands of displaced families with nothing to return to and in continued need of emergency food assistance to survive.
Nine months of violent conflict in Mosul have displaced nearly 1 million people from the city and surrounding areas and to camps in northern Iraq.
Since the start of the fighting, WFP reached 1.8 million people and has also been helping to prevent and treat malnutrition among all children under the age of five.
For her part, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten, called for the safe and dignified return of women and girls from Da’esh captivity.
She also called for support for them in healing and reintegrating back into the community, as well as to address their human rights and protection needs.
**Syria
WFP in Syria has also reached two new locations in Raqqa governorate with food assistance, using a newly opened land route which has allowed access for the first time in three years to Mansoura and other areas in rural Raqqa province.
This new access allows WFP to expand its regular food deliveries to Raqqa. WFP is now delivering food every month to nearly 200,000 people, displaced in eight hard-to-reach areas inside Raqqa, as well as other areas in neighbouring governorates.
**Water
Our colleagues at the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) have issued a new report, which says that some 3 in 10 people worldwide, or 2.1 billion, lack access to safe, readily available water at home. Six in 10, or 4.5 billion people, lack safely managed sanitation.
Billions of people have gained access to basic drinking water and sanitation services since 2000, but these services do not necessarily provide safe water and sanitation. Many homes, health-care facilities and schools also still lack soap and water for handwashing.
As a result, every year, 361,000 children under 5 die due to diarrhoea. Poor sanitation and contaminated water are also linked to transmission of diseases such as cholera, dysentery, hepatitis A, and typhoid. More information online.
**UNESCO
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) informs us that 21 new sites have been added to their World Heritage List.
Some of the new additions include the Alerces National Park in Argentina, the Khomani Cultural Landscape in South Africa, and the English Lake District in the United Kingdom.
Angola and Eritrea saw their first sites join the List, which are the town of Mbanza Kongo in Angola, which guards vestiges of the former Kingdom of Kongo, and the city of Asmara, which is the capital of Eritrea and an example of modernist architectural design. More on UNESCO’s website.
**Cameroon
Matthew, I think you have asked once or twice about Cameroon.
I can say that we continue to monitor closely the situation in the north-west and south-west regions of Cameroon through the UN Regional Office for Central Africa (UNOCA), the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and our own UN country team.
The UN is concerned about the detention of Anglophone leaders, including Felix Agbor Balla, whose trial by a military tribunal has been further postponed until later in July, and has urged the Cameroonian authorities to provide an update on the status of the legal proceedings against all detained leaders.
The UN reiterates its call to the Cameroonian authorities to abide by its international human rights commitments.
With regards to the Bakassi peninsula, the UN support team to the Cameroon Nigeria Mixed Commission (CNMC) is currently on the ground working with Cameroonian and Nigerian authorities to clarify the situation and find the best ways to address the needs of the displaced Nigerian nationals.
**Press Briefings
Tomorrow in this very room at 11 a.m., you will be briefed on the launch of the World Economic and Social Survey 2017, called “Reflecting on seventy years of development policy analysis.”
My guest at noon will be John Ging from OCHA (Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs). He will brief you on his recent mission to Eritrea.
And immediately after, at 1 p.m., indigenous experts Tarcila Rivera Zea of Peru and Joan Carling of the Philippines will hold a press briefing on the progress of indigenous peoples under the 2030 Agenda.
**Honour Roll
And today, I am delighted to welcome the 112th member to the Honour Roll, having paid its regular budget dues in full. Thanks very much to our friends in Funafuti… which is the capital of which Member State? Funafuti. Come on.
Correspondent: [inaudible].
Question: Indonesia.
Spokesman: Close… Tuvalu. We'll give you the first question anyway.
**Questions and Answers
Question: About 650 family members returned from Idlib to Al Waer in Homs. They said when they returned that this was not arranged through the United Nations. But the conditions in Idlib was so bad that they could not stay there, that they were deprived of any aid of any kind for a long time, since they have left Al Waer, which was under siege for a long time, as you were… you know. What is the United Nations doing? Also, there are reports of Syrians returning from Lebanon; today more than 1,000 returned. So what's the United Nations doing? Why, also, the situation so bad in Idlib and…
Spokesman: Well, you know, I don't have the granular details to the families you're talking about, but, obviously I think, as we've said here for years now, we have struggled to get humanitarian aid in. We have struggled with the fact that the fighting has continued in so many places that it's been hard to get humanitarian aid in. Whenever an opportunity arises, we get aid through, as I've just mentioned as WFP did in and around Raqqah. So whether it's ourselves, our Syrian humanitarian partners on the ground, we try to get aid delivered as quickly as… as possible.
Question: But Idlib is very close to the Turkish border, and the access to that area is, I think, opposite…
Spokesman: As I said, we're trying to get in as much aid in as many places as possible. Carole?
Correspondent: One more question.
Spokesman: I'll come back to you. You're not going anywhere. Neither am I. Carole, go ahead. And then Masood.
Question: Stéphane, I'm wondering if the UN has a view on whether Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo should be allowed to travel abroad for treatment.
Spokesman: I don't have anything specific to say. My understanding is that there are discussions between China and a number of Governments on this issue. Masood?
Question: Thank you, Stéphane. Thank you. I've been asking this question a long time, and I've been given one reply all the time; that is, on the Palestinian children in Israeli jails and that you will give me a figure. Has the figure for resident come down or… resident from 350, which was given to us in January? And… but children are still being incarcerated in Israeli jails, which is against international law, but that doesn't apply to Israel. Can you please tell us has the Secretary General been able to…
Spokesman: I don't have an updated number on hand. I can see if I can give you one. We, obviously, stand against the detention of children anywhere it happens, but I will try to get you an updated number. Mr. Lee?
Question: Sure. Thanks a lot. And thanks for the answer on Cameroon. I wanted to ask you about Libya. There's a report of the Deputy President of the Presidency Council, Ali Qatrani… Qatrani speaking to Mr. [Ghassan] Salamé. And I just wanted to… and inviting him to visit Benghazi after liberation, et cetera. I just wanted to… has Mr. Salamé begun his work? Is he full time? Where is he working from?
Spokesman: He is full time. I'll have to check if he's actually taken office. They will work, I think, mostly out of Tunis and go into other parts of Libya as needed.
Question: Okay. And the Libya report says he's accepted the invitation. Is that… can you confirm that?
Spokesman: No, I'm not able to confirm it. Obviously, you can imagine with the security conditions as they are, we would announce his trip to Libya once they've happened.
Correspondent: I've got more but…
Spokesman: Carole. I'm not going anywhere.
Question: Stéphane, I had a request whether the Secretary-General would come and talk to us after his meeting with the Security Council next week. We'd like to have an opportunity to ask questions.
Spokesman: I would welcome for him to have that opportunity, and I will put that forward.
Question: And my question was about North Korea. The Secretary-General, in his statement last week, talked about the importance of maintaining the unity of the Security Council in addressing North Korea. Now, do we understand that to mean that there should be no vetoes of resolution, or that there should not be a situation where a resolution might be presented where there… it would be an opportunity for a veto? What… what can you say about that?
Spokesman: You know, it's no secret, at least from what we read in the press, that there are negotiations going on regarding a resolution on the DPRK [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea]. I think, as a rule, is… in any matter of conflict that we are seeing around the world or potential conflict, whether it's tense situations like North Korea or Syria, the Secretary-General would always like to see unity of views in the Council, unity of purpose, to also help us in terms of the guidance we get from the Security Council. That being said, members of the Security Council are masters of their action, and they will do what they feel is in their best interest. But we have always called for unity of the Security Council, especially on these critical issues. Nizar?
Question: Yesterday, Saudi Arabia executed three or four lads from the Al Qatif area. They were accused only of protesting against the Kingdom. What does the United Nations… how does the United Nations view that? And why Human Rights Watch has not issued any statement in this regard?
Spokesman: You can check with our human rights colleagues. I mean, our position on the use of the death penalty has… remains unchanged. Yeah?
Question: Stéphane, I have two question. The first one is, the US Secretary of State is going to Riyadh in order to try to resolve the standoff between Qatar and… and the four blockade country that are blocking and… and this Gu… about this Gulf crisis, which the US describe as a major issue. I wonder if the Secretary-General has been approached to have a mediating role to be part of the… of… of these talks? And is he willing to be part of any future talk to resolve the issue?
Spokesman: Look, as a matter of principle, in any situation, the Secretary-General, UN, is always available for people's good offices as long as all sides agree. For this current situation, I think the Secretary-General has made it clear that he is very supportive of regional mediation efforts, especially the Kuwaiti efforts, and we continue to support those efforts.
Question: And my second question is about Iraq. Amnesty International issued a report that says Iraqi and their… Iraqi forces and their US led allies, in the battle for liberating Mosul, have committed violation of International Humanitarian Laws that could amount to war crimes. What is your comments about this?
Spokesman: I would refer you back to what the High Commissioner for Human Rights said yesterday, which is to exactly express his concern and also ens… and encourage the Iraqi authorities and their allies and they look forward to make sure that everyone's human rights are respected as they rebuild Mosul physically and emotionally. Sir, you've been very patient.
Question: Can I just have one follow-up on that?
Spokesman: Yeah.
Question: Do you have any number of the… the total number of civilians that has been killed in the battle for Mosul?
Spokesman: I don't have those numbers. We can ask Lise Grande — I think she'll be here on Friday — if she has those numbers.
Correspondent: Okay. Thank you.
Spokesman: Sir?
Question: My name is Yassin; I am a Syrian journalist registered at the UN. The question is, the refugees in Lebanon or Turkey or Jordan, those States, if they come back to Syria, you think they are safe? If they stay, they are not… later on, they catch them; they put them in a jail, they starve them. Lot of people ask me that question, can we go back to Syria? Where they get protection from?
Spokesman: I think it is… refugees… people should to go home when they feel it is safe. The situation in Syria varies from place to place…
Question: What's the guarantee on this, safe?
Spokesman: It is up to…
Question: The UN will get involved with this?
Spokesman: It is up to the authorities to ensure that everyone's rights are respected. Masood ji?
Question: Thank you. Stéphane, on this situation in Yemen, which is getting bad to worse, as stated in the Security Council briefing by the United Nations, has the Secretary-General been able to talk to the Saudi Coalition about easing up on their attacks or… and whatever the… I mean, doing in… in Yemen and that has created this crisis? I mean, there's the cholera crisis, the electricity, hunger…
Spokesman: This is a message the Secretary-General passed on to the Coalition when he was in Saudi Arabia a few months ago, and it's a message that we're passing on to all the parties to ensure that civilians are protected and that we see an end to the violence.
Question: But has he spoken to anybody recently?
Spokesman: I think this is message that has been passed on through various channels to many parties. Mr. Lee?
Question: Sure. Thanks a lot. Be sure I want to ask and Zambia, Cyprus and the Ng Lap Seng case. In Zambia, I know that you'd said a few days ago that it wasn't… you used the term "other than a state of emergency," and now I… I wanted to ask you, now that the parliament has formalized and extended this whatever you want to call it for three months and the Government has also said they're going to use INTERPOL to try to get people in the diaspora to return for prosecution for what they've said, is the UN getting involved? What's the UN's view of this new development?
Spokesman: I think we, obviously, continue to follow those developments closely, and I think we continue to believe that the tensions and existing differences in the country should better [be] addressed through constructive, inclusive dialogue for all stakeholders in the political spectrum.
Question: Since… I mean, I don't know if you'll comment on INTERPOL, but there have been increasing complaints by people that States are using it basically to go after political opponents, not criminals. Is the…
Spokesman: INTERPOL is a Member State organization that is not part of the UN system. I think you'd have to ask that leadership for a reaction.
Question: And, on Cyprus, beyond… I'd asked you yesterday if there's any view of… of the beginning of gas moves by the end of the week, but also… I forgot… I mean, I wanted to ask you this. The President of Cyprus has set three conditions, he says, for any resumption of talks, including, like, time-bound agreement for the removal of all troops, various things that it seems like were clearly not agreed in Switzerland. What is… what's the Secretary General's thinking at this point of an in… a continued UN role on the talks and of these gas moves this week?
Spokesman: You know, it's clear that the positions of the various parties in Crans Montana were still… the difference is wide enough that the conference had to be closed. The Secretary-General said it himself: The UN remains willing and available and at the disposal of the parties willing to come to an agreement, and our facilitating role stands. Mr. [Espen Barth] Eide will be here, I believe, before the end of month. He will be briefing the Security Council. And we'll, obviously, have… we have to think about the next steps and the parties also. I think it's a time of reflection for all the parties.
Question: By then, Eni and Total will be in… in action on this gas issue.
Spokesman: I don't have any particular comment on that except to say that, obviously, we would want to see… we would not want to see any incidents, and we're obviously concerned about the ongoing tensions in that area. Yes, sir?
Question: I want to know what's going on in Yemen right now. You have disease. You hear about that, what's going on in Yemen. Like, over 1,500 people die, and this is getting bigger and bigger in the cholera. You know what I'm saying? What's the Secretary-General going to do about this?
Spokesman: I don't know if you paid attention, but we just had a big open meeting on Yemen in the Security Council. His Special Envoy, Mr. Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the head of the humanitarian office, Stephen O'Brien, briefed in detail on the political track. We're continuing to try to get to the parties to the table. Mr. Ismail was in Saudi Arabia. He's trying to arrange a meeting with the General People's Congress and Ansar Allah. For us, there is no solution but a political one. And I think it's clear that those who continue to espouse violence will have to be held to account for the suffering of the Yemeni people. What we're seeing in Yemen, the crisis around cholera, around acute diarrhoea, other waterborne diseases, famine, it's not an act of God. It's an act of man. And those who have their fingers on the trigger need to pull their fingers away and need to come and sit down at the table and find a political solution. Meanwhile, we continue to provide what humanitarian aid we can through ourselves, through our Yemeni partners, with the World Bank as well, to try to bring some comfort to the people while this conflict is ongoing. And those efforts are, unfortunately, underfunded. And we keep appealing to the international community to increase the funding to the humanitarian appeal. Mr. Lee?
Question: Sure. Thanks a lot. I wanted to ask you about this ongoing Ng Lap Seng/John Ashe case. My first question is, having gone down there yesterday and seen the proceedings, you said the UN is monitoring it. Does the UN have anyone watching the trial? I know the US Mission to the UN does but…
Spokesman: It's not for me to say.
Question: Can you say at all about any UN participation upcoming in the trial? Because I did hear about that, as well.
Spokesman: No, I think that will be clear as it becomes clear.
Question: Okay. My question was this. One of the things that came out yesterday was the apparent use of UN premises to sell positions for $600,000, consul general, and I wanted to ask you although it's…
Spokesman: What?
Question: Sell positions, jobs, for cash. And although it's often said that this is somehow not a UN case, would it be illegal… would the UN view it as permissible and appropriate for a President of the General Assembly to accept cash money to sell positions…?
Spokesman: Look, the case is ongoing. It is clear that, as a matter of principle, we stand against corruption and exchanging of money for positions. That's a position of principle. I'm not in the courtroom every day. I don't get an update on what's going on. I'm not going to comment on the details of the case.
Question: Does someone here get such an update?
Spokesman: I'm not at liberty to tell you. Yes, sir?
Question: Mr. Ould Cheikh Ahmed mentioned an attack on a UAE vessel near Bab el Mandab, and he did not mention whether that ship was civilian cargo ship or military. According to reports earlier, it was a military target. However, he said that this was an impediment to maritime free movement in the region. Why this ambiguity, not mentioning whether it's a civilian ship or a military ship?
Spokesman: I think you'd have to ask him, but, obviously, there is a clear… vessels have a freedom of movement in international waters.
Question: But in that… that's a conflict zone there…
Spokesman: Again, I don't have any more details to share with you. Yes?
Question: On this situation in occupied Israeli territory of Gaza, there's a report that… and that situation is going bad to worse over there, humanitarian condition, hunger and so forth. Has anybody from the Secretary-General's Office or from United Nations been able to persuade the Israelis to ease the so called blockades and so forth that they…
Spokesman: I think we've outlined our position very clearly in the report that was issued yesterday. We've, in the past, been very clear on the need for the Palestinian Authority and the Israelis to allow for greater electricity to flow into Gaza and for all others to ensure that there is aid that is needed. I mean, I think the report speaks for itself and paints a very dire situation.
Question: But has there been any… can you…
Spokesman: I think the pos… the UN's position has been made very clear by our colleagues in… our UN colleagues in Jerusalem to the Israeli authorities as well as to the Palestinian Authority. Yes?
Question: Thanks a lot. I wanted to ask about Sudan. I'd asked you yesterday. Now I'm sure you've seen that the US has decided to extend the decision to remove the sanctions. I looked at the UN country team's website. I didn't find any contact information at all. It said…
Spokesman: No, I'll… I'm happy to provide something…
Question: Are they going to put out another statement…?
Spokesman: I don't know. You'd have to reach out to them. Okay.
Question: But don't they [inaudible] the UN?
Spokesman: Oleg.
Question: Thank you, Stéphane.
Spokesman: They do, but I don't micromanage everybody. I try to micromanage a lot of people, but I can't do it for everybody.
Question: On the executives of JIM [Joint Investigative Mechanism], after getting this report from OPCW [Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons] Fact-Finding Mission, do they plan actually to go into Syria? Do you know that?
Spokesman: I think you'd have to check with them. I think they're meeting the Secretary-General later today. I think the Secretary-General greatly appreciates their work and all the effort that Mr. [Edmond] Mulet and his team have been putting in. Thank you.