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 Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General.
All right, good afternoon, everyone.
**Guest
Today, our guest will be Jorge Moreira da Silva, the Executive Director of the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS).
He will join us shortly from Jerusalem after spending the day in Gaza. So, you will get to talk with him in just a second.
**Secretary-General/African Union
The Secretary-General is in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where he will take part in the thirty-eighth African Union Summit. Today, he met with the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed, and he also met with our UN colleagues.
Tomorrow, the Secretary-General will have a series of bilateral meetings with the leadership of the African Union Commission, as well as Heads of State and Government from the continent. He is also scheduled to take part in meetings of the AU Peace and Security Council at the level of Heads of State and Government on the situation in Sudan and on the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.
As we mentioned yesterday, the Secretary-General will deliver remarks during the opening session of the African Union Summit on Saturday, and he is also scheduled to hold a press conference — at 3 p.m., Addis time that day.
**Central African Republic
In a statement we issued yesterday, the Secretary-General strongly condemned the killing of a Tunisian peacekeeper of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) during the night of 11 February by an unidentified armed person near the village of Zobassinda.
The Secretary-General recalls that attacks targeting United Nations peacekeepers may constitute war crimes under international law. He calls on the Central African authorities to spare no effort in identifying the perpetrators of this tragedy so that they can be brought to justice swiftly.
The full statement is online.
We have an update regarding the peacekeeper who was tragically killed in the Central African Republic. His name is Seifeddine Hamrita from Tunisia, at the age of 28. Once again, we extend our deepest condolences to his family, friends, and all members of the peacekeeping mission.
**Security Council/Yemen
This morning, our Special Envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, briefed Security Council members on the situation in the country.
He stated that the tentative reduction in hostilities, along with the release of the crew of the Motor Vessel Galaxy Leader, is a welcome relief, and we must build on this opportunity as a foundation for further de-escalation.
Mr. Grundberg said that over the past month, he continued his active engagement with all regional and international actors. His message to all remains that only a political settlement of the conflict will support the Yemenis in their aspirations for lasting peace.
For his part, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, says that almost 20 million Yemenis are in dire need of our support, right now. He asked the Council to back us to return UN operations to full capacity and give us the money to deliver for those we serve. And we reiterate our calls for the immediate and unconditional release of those arbitrarily detained by the Houthi de facto authorities.
**Occupied Palestinian Territory
Turning to Gaza, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) stresses once again that sustaining the ceasefire is crucial to keep life-saving humanitarian work going.
The World Food Programme (WFP) says that 25 WFP-supported bakeries are now operating across Gaza. Today, another bakery reopened in Rafah with WFP support. Earlier this week, WFP reopened a kitchen in Beit Lahiya that can produce 20,000 meals per day. In Rafah, the agency has opened a kitchen serving 1,500 meals each day.
WFP also notes that every week, dozens of kitchens are providing hundreds of thousands of hot meals to people across the Strip. In the north, WFP is working to further expand capacity. We and our humanitarian partners also continue to provide shelter support to people across Gaza.
Today and tomorrow, shelter bedding kits are being distributed to some 400 families living in Beit Hanoun, Beit Lahiya and Jabalya in North Gaza governorate. Meanwhile in central Gaza this week, one of our shelter partners distributed more than 400 sealing-off kits and mattresses for displaced families at a site in the Mawasi area of Khan Younis.
And turning to the West Bank, OCHA continues receiving reports of Palestinian casualties in the northern areas due to the ongoing operations by Israeli forces. To date, 44 fatalities have been recorded since the start of those operations on 21 January. Although the operation in Tubas ended yesterday, Israeli forces continue to operate in both Tulkarm and Jenin.
OCHA warns that thousands of Palestinians have been displaced during these operations. Overall, 19,000 Palestinians have been displaced in Tulkarm, with 3,000 others displaced in Tubas. In Jenin, more than 17,000 people have been displaced; this number includes those displaced during a previous operation by Palestinian forces.
**Syria
Turning to Syria, our humanitarian colleagues are sounding the alarm. As of today, they tell us, we have received less than 10 per cent of the $1.2 billion needed to assist 6.7 million Syrians through March.
We and our partners continue to provide assistance as conditions and funding allow, including winter aid to northern Syria, where the weather is particularly harsh at this time of the year. Our partners have provided emergency repairs to roads and sewage systems that were affected by past flooding in the north-west. Nine markets are currently being rehabilitated near displacement camps. And since December, more than 260,000 children in Idlib and northern Aleppo have been supported with heaters, winter clothes, and other aid.
Winter kits were also distributed to hundreds of children in Qamishli in Al-Hasakeh governorate. During the same period, health partners have deployed mobile medical teams, provided mental health support and reinforced facilities with heating and insulation, reaching 800,000 people in the north-west.
Nearly 2 million people remain displaced in the north-west, with many of them living in overcrowded sites and frail tents. This includes more than 600,000 people who remain displaced across the country since they fled their homes after 27 November. The majority are in Idlib and Aleppo. Meanwhile, OCHA says that more than 825,000 people who were displaced within Syria have returned to their areas of origin since December.
**Democratic Republic of the Congo
Our colleagues at the World Food Programme today said that a recent market assessment they carried out in and around Goma in the Democratic Republic of the Congo found a severe disruption in market prices.
Nearly half of the shops remain closed, and the prices of essential commodities have surged significantly compared to pre-crisis levels. The price of maize flour — a key staple — has risen by nearly 67 per cent. Meanwhile, the cost of salt has shot up by about 43 per cent, and palm oil increased by 45 per cent. Peanut oil has shot up by 21 per cent, while the cost of rice increased by 17 per cent.
With the rising prices, nutrition remains inaccessible for many.
WFP’s operations in Goma and North Kivu remain paused, but the agency has staff on the ground ready to resume operations as soon as it is safe to do so. WFP is also actively prepositioning supplies and is ready to resume our operations as soon as it is safe to do so.
**World Radio Day
Today is World Radio Day. The theme for this year is “Radio and Climate Change”.
In a message, the Director-General of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Audrey Azoulay, says that with frequencies that can travel across continents and receivers that use very little energy, radio can reach even the most remote locations. This makes radio a unique tool in crisis situations; by acting as an early warning system, it can reduce disaster risk and save countless lives.
**Financial Contribution
Regarding the budget, I have an easy quiz for you today. This Member State, the fifty-third Member State that has paid its dues, has as one of his nationals a friend of all of us who has been missing in action this week because he is working in his home country. Who might that person be? [response from the crowd: “France!”]
France is right, and of course the person is le Porte-parole du Secrétaire général, Monsieur Stéphane Dujarric. Exactly. And we congratulate France for being the fifty-third Member State to pay its dues in full.
**Questions and Answers
Question: Treasury just sanctioned ICC (International Criminal Court) prosecutor Karim Khan, which was expected, given the executive order President [Donald] Trump had signed. Are you aware of what this entails and stipulates? Does this mean that he can no longer enter the US?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, regarding the Host Country Agreement, obviously, we believe that as a party to the Host Country Agreement, the US will abide by all of its obligations under that agreement, and you know what that would entail. Of course, regarding the International Criminal Court, our basic point is that, as the Secretary-General has repeatedly made clear, this is a fundamental pillar of international justice, and it needs to be supported.
Question: Just one more on Lebanon. The Israeli army is saying — and also Speaker of the Parliament in Lebanon has just said that he has received information from the Americans that beyond the 18 February deadline, Israel will maintain positions in Lebanon. Do you have any comment on that?
Deputy Spokesman: Yes. I believe I do. What I can say is that we continue to urge Israel and Lebanon to honour their commitments to the cessation of hostilities understanding. In this regard, continued progress in Lebanese Armed Forces redeployment and Israeli Defense Force withdrawal is crucial. The parties must avoid any action that could raise tensions, endanger civilians, and further delay their return to their towns and villages on both sides. The UN continues to urge the full implementation of resolution 1701 as a comprehensive path towards longer-term peace, security, and stability on both sides of the Blue Line. Yes. Benny?
Question: Two questions, one follow-up on the ICC. Do I understand from your statement that the Host Country Agreement applies to the ICC, as well, or is that misunderstanding?
Deputy Spokesman: No. Look at what the Host Country Agreement says. In terms of when people need to enter the United Nations for different duties, the Host Country Agreement is designed to make sure that will be allowed to proceed.
Question: People? Because the ICC is not an organ of the UN, which is the other party to the host country, right?
Deputy Spokesman: The ICC is an independent organization. It is part of the judicial system, and there is business, including business at the Security Council, where the ICC has had to participate.
Question: You are aware that the US is not a member of the ICC, right?
Deputy Spokesman: I’m aware that it’s not a State party.
Question: Right.
Deputy Spokesman: At the same time, there are obligations that involve all States, not just States parties, and the Host Country Agreement is specifically binding on the host country.
Question: Okay, so second question. I mean, you’ve been saying in this room, you and Stéphane and WFP, that Gaza was on the verge of famine. A study that was issued that was published yesterday in Israel analysed the amount of food that went into Gaza throughout the war, and they concluded that 3,000 calories a day per person was on average entering Gaza; and even if a third never got to the people because of distribution issues and all of that, that would still leave like 2,000 calories a day per person. Does that sound like the verge of famine?
Deputy Spokesman: All I can tell you is that we have given you repeated reports by the Integrated Phase Classification (IPC) system. You’ve had briefings from different officials from the World Food Programme and the Food and Agriculture Organization, and they provided details about their reasoning, and I would just refer you back to that. We stand by all the work that they’ve done on this.
Question: 3,000 calories a day per person is famine?
Deputy Spokesman: I would just refer you to the work that was done, again, under the IPC reports. You’ll have seen what their results were, what their findings were. You’ll have seen also, by the way, the first-hand testimonies of different officials who’ve spoken to you over the months of the emaciated people that they had seen. Yes. Dezhi?
Question: Right. Let’s talk about movies. There’s a Chinese mythological animated feature called Nezha 2, smashed box office with 1.3 billion US dollars now. I think it’s now the top three of all time animated feature, and it happened to premiere in North America recently. How important do you think that this kind of cultural movies from different cultures could promote diversity all around the world?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, we welcome any sort of positive cultural exchange and, certainly, animated films fit under that rubric.
Question: If you see the trailer and you’re interested, will you try to see that?
Deputy Spokesman: I would love to. I’ve seen many of my share of children’s films over the years. So animated films are kind of my thing now. Iftikhar, you have a question? Iftikhar? Can’t hear you.
Question: Farhan, thank you.
Deputy Spokesman: Yeah. Gotcha.
Question: Any comments on today’s New York Times report that the Trump Administration has deported over a hundred migrants from Asian nations to Panama, and that Panamanian authorities will move them to Delhi and then an unsafe city; any comments on these reports?
Deputy Spokesman: Our basic comment, obviously, not on the specifics of this case, but we want to make sure that any efforts to move refugees is handled with respect for their basic rights and their basic dignity, and all relocations would need to be voluntary. And with that, let me turn to our guest, I believe we have on screen.