Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General
The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesman for the Secretary-General.
Alright, good afternoon. Thank you for your patience.
**Briefing
And I also want to thank the patience of our Under-Secretary-General of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Li Junhua, who will brief you as soon as we are done, and he will be presenting to you the World Economic Situation and Prospects 2025 report. So, stay tuned for that.
[And today, the Secretary-General was in Washington, D.C., where he attended the funeral of former US President Jimmy Carter.]
**United States
As you saw this morning, we issued a statement in which the Secretary-General expressed his shock and sadness by the widespread devastation caused by the fast-moving wildfires in Los Angeles. The Secretary-General extends his sincere condolences to the families of those who lost their lives. His thoughts are with the tens of thousands of people who have been forced to evacuate, as well as with the residents whose homes have been destroyed by the fires. The Secretary-General commends the courage of the firefighters and all the first responders who are responding to this devastation. The United Nations stands ready to provide assistance if required or needed by the United States.
**Lebanon
You also saw this morning that there was an election in the Parliament in Lebanon, and the Secretary-General congratulates General Joseph Aoun as he takes function as President of the Republic of Lebanon. This is a critical step towards overcoming Lebanon’s political and institutional impasse after over two years of presidential vacuum. The election of the President provides an important opportunity to empower the state institutions to address the country's multi-faceted crises.
We encourage the swift formation of a new Government to provide Lebanese people with functioning state institutions that address their needs and aspirations. As stated by our Special Coordinator, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, “The election of a President offers renewed hope and an opportunity to pave the way for progress towards consolidating the cessation of hostilities and preserving the country’s security and the country’s stability.” We underscore the United Nations’ continued commitment and support in this regard. And we obviously look forward to working with President and relevant authorities to support Lebanon as it takes meaningful and measurable steps in this direction.
**Gaza
Turning to the horror of the situation in Gaza, which shows no signs of stopping: According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, over 46,000 Palestinians have now been killed in the Gaza Strip since October 2023, most of these people were women and children. Tragically, eight newborn babies died of hypothermia in the last month alone. Hostilities are continuing, with relentless operations by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), causing mass casualties and widespread destruction. The conditions are particularly alarming in besieged North Gaza, where the movement of humanitarian personnel is geavily restricted. Rocket fire by Palestinian armed groups towards Israel also continues, endangering civilians there, as well.
The Secretary-General again strongly condemns the widespread killing of — and injury to — civilians in this conflict. He calls on all to respect international humanitarian law and demands the protection of all civilians. Civilians must be protected and respected at all times and their essential needs must be met. There must be an immediate ceasefire and the immediate and unconditional release of all the hostages being held in Gaza.
**Occupied Palestinian Territory
And just to dig down a little deeper, our humanitarian colleagues are telling us that the hunger crisis across the Gaza Strip continues to worsen, amid critical supply shortages, severe access restrictions and violent armed looting. In central and southern Gaza, OCHA [Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs] reports that, as of Sunday, our humanitarian partners had exhausted all supplies at their warehouses, at a time when Israeli authorities continue to deny most requests to bring food assistance from the Erez West crossing to areas south of Wadi Gaza.
Meanwhile, about 120,000 metric tons of food assistance — enough to provide rations for the entire population for more than three months — remains stranded outside Gaza. Our partners warn that if additional supplies are not received, the distribution of food parcels to hungry families will remain extremely limited. More than 50 community kitchens providing over 200,000 meals a day to people in central and southern Gaza would also be at risk of shutting down in the coming days.
Our World Food Programme (WFP) colleagues tell us that, as of Monday, only five of 20 bakeries supported by WFP are still operational across the Gaza Strip — all of them in Gaza governorate. To stay up and running, these bakeries rely on continued fuel deliveries by partners from southern Gaza. Our humanitarian colleagues warn that the lack of fuel to power generators is also crippling Gaza’s health system, putting the lives of patients at risk. Despite ongoing challenges, we and our partners are working to reach people throughout the Strip with critical support. Across Gaza, between 22 December 2024 and yesterday, our partners report that some 560,000 people received primary and secondary healthcare services.
Meanwhile, ongoing attacks and hostilities in North Gaza governorate have severely disrupted healthcare services for survivors who remain there. Access to Al Awda Hospital in Jabalya – the only hospital in North Gaza that is still partially functioning – is extremely limited. OCHA reports that Israeli authorities continue to deny UN-led efforts, including the most recent attempt yesterday, to reach North Gaza governorate. Across the Strip yesterday, out of 15 coordinated humanitarian movements, the Israeli authorities facilitated only 5 missions, while 4 were impeded, 3 were denied and another 3 were cancelled due to security or logistical challenges.
**Syria
Turning to Syria. I think you heard extensively yesterday Tom Fletcher, our Humanitarian Chief about the situation on the ground. He spoke at the [Security] Council. Our colleagues in Syria today tell us about the immense challenges that remain in the country. The Office for the Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs reports that restoring the water and electricity supply, among other basic services, remains challenging across the country due to insecurity and infrastructure damage.
In Aleppo, the Tishreen Dam remains non-operational since it was damaged in conflict a month ago. Clashes continue in the area, cutting off regular water and electricity access for more than 410,000 people in the cities of Menbij and Kobani. OCHA also reports that ongoing hostilities in parts of Aleppo Governorate are resulting in reports of civilian casualties, damage to infrastructure and of course, disruptions to aid operations.
On the health front, we and our partners continue to support the responses including the delivery of medicine, trauma kits and vaccines, but health needs remain a huge challenge across Syria. Many health and nutrition facilities in the north-west of the country remain closed, with many having been severely damaged due to shelling in recent months while others have just run out of money.
Meanwhile, in the north-east, medical mobile units are facing a staffing shortage due to the lack of health workers. Our health partners are also reporting critical needs for pharmaceuticals and medical supplies. And as you will recall, nearly 15 million people require humanitarian health support, and close to 13 million people are still facing acute food insecurity. We and our partners continue to help as security and logistical conditions permit.
**Yemen
From Yemen, today, our Special Envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, concluded his visit to Sana’a. During his discussions with senior political and military officials there, the Special Envoy stressed the importance of national and regional de-escalation to foster an environment that is conducive to dialogue. He also urged the need to agree on concrete actions to pave the way forward for a political process to achieve sustainable peace and stability across Yemen.
In his discussions, the Special Envoy strongly urged Ansar Allah to release — immediately and unconditionally — the detained personnel from the United Nations, NGOs [non-governmental organizations], civil society and diplomatic missions. He echoed the Secretary General’s message that the arbitrary detentions are unacceptable and constitute a violation of international law.
Just to remind you, a total of 16 of our colleagues remain detained, and their whereabouts and status are still unknown. While he was in Sana’a, Mr. Grundberg visited the family of one of those detainees. He expressed solidarity with all the detainees' families and acknowledged their shared anguish and the urgent need for their loved ones' release. We reiterate once again that those detained must be treated with full respect for international humanitarian law and human rights, including by allowing them contact with their families, legal representatives and organizations.
**Libya
In closed consultations this morning in the Security Council, Rosemary DiCarlo, our Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, briefed the Council members on Libya, specifically on the work of the UN political mission in Libya, UNSMIL. She told Council members that UNSMIL has begun work on its initiative for an inclusive, intra-Libyan and multi-track political process. UNSMIL has continued consultations with Libyan stakeholders, including women groups and youth groups, to ensure their constructive engagement and input to the process. Overall, Libyan stakeholders have expressed broad support for the initiative. She urged Security Council members to continue supporting UNSMIL's efforts.
**Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
And yesterday afternoon, Khaled Khiari, the Assistant Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations, briefed Security Council members on non-proliferation in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. He said the launch of yet another ballistic missile by the [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] on 6 January is of serious concern. Mr. Khiari added that the [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s] persistent pursuit of its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes continues to undermine the global nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation regime. It also escalates tensions and contributes to the further isolation of the [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] from the international community. Mr. Khiari said that we continue to call to the [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] to fully comply with its international obligations.
**Ukraine
Turning to Ukraine, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs condemns yesterday’s deadly attack in Zaporizhzhia City. Authorities reported dozens of casualties when a glide bomb struck vehicles, a tram and an industrial facility. The Humanitarian Coordinator in Ukraine and Resident Coordinator, Matthias Schmale, said the attack marked yet again the intolerable killing and injuring of civilians in the country.
Humanitarian partners and first responders in Zaporizhzhia mobilized emergency assistance, including first aid. Humanitarian workers also helped transport the injured to hospital, clear debris and provide psychological assistance to people impacted by the attack. Hostilities in other front-line areas of southern and eastern Ukraine yesterday also damaged homes and energy infrastructure, further impeding people’s access to basic services, including in the Dnipro and Kherson regions.
**Honour Roll
And lastly, letters were sent out yesterday. Does anyone know what that means? Money. The assessment letters for the 2025 regular budget dues have been sent to Member States following the approval on Christmas Eve of a budget of $3.72 billion. And we have been told this morning that five Member States have read and answered our letters with checks. We are delighted to thank Equatorial Guinea, Kazakhstan, Papua New Guinea, Senegal and Kuwait for their contributions. We take the opportunity to invite the remaining [188] Member States to pay by 6 February if they want to be included on the true “Honour Roll”.
**Questions and Answers
Correspondent: Happy New Year.
Spokesman: Yeah. Thank you.
Question: When you spoke about collecting money, anything from the United States and China, since I believe the two of them have the largest…?
Spokesman: As you know, we announced at the end of last year that China had paid its dues.
Correspondent: I'm sorry.
Spokesman: And the US had paid a large part of its assessed contributions.
Question: Okay. Second question. On the Erez West in Gaza, refusal was to let the aid trucks go through; was there any reason given?
Spokesman: Well, I mean, as you know, it has been challenged, to say the least, to work in the way that we want to work with the Israeli authorities to get as much humanitarian aid in. And I think the reasons have been, I think we've gone through the reasons quite a bit here in the last briefings. Thank you. Madame?
Question: Thank you, Stéphane. It is reported in Cyprus that Secretary-General's office had some contacts and meetings with the Greek Cyprus side in the last two days here in UN headquarters. So two things. Do we have any update? And when will a senior UN official be visiting Cyprus?
Spokesman: I can confirm to you that yesterday, Rosemary DiCarlo, our Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, met with the Greek Cypriot negotiator, Menelaos Menelaou. And as for a possible travel date, we will announce that when we're ready to announce it. Okay. Pam?
Question: Sorry, Steph, I know you've been asked this, but any comment on sovereignty with regard to the proposed purchase of Greenland or retaking of the Panama Canal?
Spokesman: I mean, I think I’ve answered those questions in a way that hasn't changed. As I said, one administration at a time. I also reiterated the fact that the Charter has very clear language on sovereignty and territorial integrity and the status of the Panama Canal, I think, is very clear in a number of treaties, ratified by both the US and Panama. Okay. Thank you. Oh, I don't see any questions online. I will get our guests. Don't move.