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.
**Briefing
Good afternoon. Apologies for the delay. We will try to get done here as quickly as you allow me to. After we are done, there will be a press briefing on the upcoming UN Ocean Conference, which is taking place in Nice, France. And you will hear from Li Junhua, the Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs. He is also the Secretary-General of the UN Ocean Conference; along with Ambassador Jérôme Bonnafont, Permanent Representative of France to these United Nations; and Ambassador Maritza Chan Valverde, Permanent Representative of Costa Rica to these United Nations.
**Deputy Secretary-General
Our Deputy Secretary-General will be travelling to Dushanbe, Republic of Tajikistan, later today to take part in the International Conference for Glaciers’ Preservation and she will be doing that on behalf of the Secretary-General. At the Conference, Ms. Mohammed will emphasize the need to accelerate climate action to achieve the 1.5°C target, in order to reduce the impact of melting glaciers on people and planet. During the trip, the Deputy Secretary-General will also meet with senior Government officials to strengthen the UN-Tajikistan partnership, youth and women’s groups and other constituencies to discuss priority action for SDG acceleration.
On 31 May, she will travel to Marrakech, in Morocco, to attend the 2025 Ibrahim Governance Weekend where she will deliver a keynote address at the Opening Ceremony and meet with senior government officials and other stakeholders. The Deputy Secretary-General from there will go to Geneva, [Switzerland], to deliver opening remarks at the Global Platform on Disaster Risk Reduction 2025. The platform is a critical mechanism, held every two years, to identify ways to further accelerate the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. She will also meet with senior Government officials of Switzerland and heads of delegation at the Global Platform. She will be back in New York on 4 June.
**Occupied Palestinian Territory
Turning to the situation in Gaza. And I can tell you that we have been watching the video coming out of Gaza around one of the distribution points set up by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, and frankly these images are heart-breaking to say the least. As the Secretary-General noted last week, we and our partners have a detailed, principled, operationally sound plan — supported by Member States — to get aid to a desperate population. We continue to stress that a meaningful scale-up of humanitarian operations is essential to stave off famine and meet the needs of all civilians, wherever they are.
Our Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) colleagues report that continued bombardments and shelling across the Gaza Strip has had a horrific impact on civilians. Today, the Ministry of Health reported dozens of people killed and over 150 injured just in the past 24 hours. On Sunday night, a school sheltering displaced people in Ad Daraj, in eastern Gaza City, was hit, with the attack igniting a fire and reportedly killing 36 people, including women and children. Many of the bodies were reportedly severely burned.
Amid hostilities that are continuing, thousands of people continue to be displaced. Yesterday, another Israeli displacement order was issued, covering about 155 square kilometres of Rafah, Khan Younis and central Gaza and affecting more than 60 neighbourhoods in the Gaza Strip. This represents over 40 per cent of the Gaza Strip, which overlaps with previous displacement orders.
In North Gaza, our partners tell us that sites for internally displaced people in Beit Hanoun, Izbat Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya, are nearly empty, in the wake of the displacement orders issued for these areas. In Khan Younis, displaced people continue to live in the open, where they are exposed to the heat and elements. Many are physically exhausted and frail having walked long distances on damaged roads with no food to sustain them.
Since the renewed escalation of hostilities in March, our partners estimate that more than 632,000 people have been forced to flee yet again. They are left to survive with a very small part of Gaza, with barely anything to survive on. We continue to underscore that civilians must be protected, including those fleeing and forced to leave through displacement orders and also those who decide to remain despite those orders. Civilians who flee must be allowed to return home as soon as circumstances allow. Civilians must be able to receive the humanitarian assistance they need, wherever they may be. All of this is obviously required under international humanitarian law.
Meanwhile, our partners working in health report that there are even fewer health facilities operating this week. Since last Monday, more than two dozen health centres and mobile clinics and one hospital have suspended their services because of hostilities, attacks or displacement orders in their areas. On the water and sanitation front, some 200,000 litres of fuel are needed per week across Gaza to sustain those critical facilities. However, the situation in the south of Gaza is particularly concerning, as no fuel is currently available there, and only one third of the required supply was received last week. Meanwhile, northern Gaza has managed to secure sufficient fuel to sustain water and sanitation operations for two weeks.
Our colleagues at OCHA, and as we all do, continue to call for the opening of all crossing points for humanitarian aid and commercial goods. We and our humanitarian partners stand ready to deliver at scale, which is something we’ve repeated over and over and over again. International law must be respected and humanitarian operations must be enabled without any further delay.
**United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)
Moving to southern Lebanon. Our peacekeepers there continue to work in coordination with the Lebanese Armed Forces to detect and dismantle unauthorized weapons, ammunition, and infrastructure. On Monday, the peacekeepers observed a loaded rocket launcher south-west of Yaroun village in southern Lebanon, which was subsequently reported to, and removed by, the Lebanese Armed Forces. And yesterday, the peacekeepers from UNIFIL’s Sector West met with religious leaders of the Muslim and Christian faiths in Yaroun; this village was devastated by the conflict. The leaders acknowledged the essential role the UN had in maintaining and restoring stability in the village.
Since Friday, peacekeepers observed ongoing IDF [Israel Defense Forces] operations in Lebanon in violation of Security Council resolution 1701 (2006), including patrols and activities involving vehicles and tanks, and several outside of areas already occupied by the IDF. On Saturday, the IDF planted an Israeli flag in Lebanese territory, outside of one of their occupied positions. The flag was later removed by UN peacekeepers, who were followed by an IDF drone and subjected to electronic interference in which radio and communications were temporarily jammed putting them at even greater risk.
**Sudan
Turning to Sudan and the worsening humanitarian situation there. Our humanitarian colleagues are warning that the crisis there is deepening, as sustained fighting, ongoing displacement and rising health emergencies continue to fuel humanitarian needs. In North Darfur State, artillery shelling continues to impact residential areas of El Fasher and the Abu Shouk camp for internally displaced people. Local sources report daily civilian casualties, and recent days have seen an intensification of bombardments at night.
In South Kordofan State, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported last week that about 2,800 people, primarily women and children, fled renewed fighting in the town of Dibebad. They are now scattered across the locality of Al Quoz in South Kordofan, as well as other localities in neighbouring West Kordofan, with limited access to basic protection and services.
The situation in the state capital, Kadugli, has also very seriously deteriorated in recent weeks, with intense shelling and humanitarian access largely cut off. In Northern State, authorities report that about 6,000 people who fled from North Darfur, Khartoum and West Kordofan states, due to insecurity, arrived in Dabbah locality in the Northern State between 12 and 22 May.
Meanwhile, the cholera outbreak in Khartoum State is worsening at an alarming rate we are told. Our humanitarian partners in the state report an 80 per cent increase in suspected cases over the past two weeks, bringing the total number of cases to more than 8,500. The World Health Organization (WHO) has supported the delivery of medical supplies to some hospitals in Khartoum, but much more is needed to contain the outbreak.
In addition, a recent inter-agency assessment by our partners and ourselves found high rates of acute respiratory infections, malaria and skin conditions among these returnees. The lack of mosquito nets, the lack of proper shelter, the lack of water, the lack of sanitation and the lack of hygiene facilities is significantly increasing the risk of disease outbreaks.
With the approach of the rainy season, which typically runs from June to September, we and our partners are racing to preposition aid. We have established storage facilities with a combined capacity of 30,000 metric tons in Geneina, in Nyala and in Tawila in Darfur to support operations in the Kordofan and Darfur regions. West and Central Darfur states will be served via cross-border operations from Chad.
Amidst all this, our humanitarian partners on the ground report that access to education remains severely constrained in North Darfur. Since the conflict began in April 2023, some 250,000 children have lost access to learning — that’s a quarter of a million kids. As of last month, our partners in the state had only reached 14 per cent of the children targeted for education support, due to insecurity, access challenges and critical funding shortfalls. Across Sudan, millions of children have been cut off from formal education.
We once again call for increased, flexible and timely funding to scale up the humanitarian response, as well as unimpeded access via all necessary routes, so that aid workers can reach people in need wherever they may be.
**Myanmar
Turning to Myanmar, another horrific situation to flag. A new report by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) which found that the vast majority of the people of Myanmar are united in their defiance of military authoritarianism and violence, and calls for renewed international resolve to end the military’s stranglehold on power and to support the democratic aspirations of the Myanmar people.
The report will be presented to the Human Rights Council on 1 July and underscores the importance of tackling the root causes of the crisis, including unchecked political and economic power concentrated in the military’s hands, generalized impunity, instrumentalization of laws and institutions to serve military interests, and an overall system of governance, based on structural racial discrimination, exclusion and division. The report identifies four key areas to the path forward: accountability, good governance, sustainable development and the actions of international and regional stakeholders. More is available online.
**Cyprus
I want to give you a quick update regarding Cyprus. As you know, the Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General, María Angela Holguín, is in Cyprus, where she will stay until 31 May. On Saturday, she had a meeting with the Greek Cypriot leader, Nikos Christodoulides, and yesterday, Ms. Holguín met the Turkish Cypriot leader, Ersin Tatar. Ms. Holguín said that in both meetings she heard the concerns of the leaders and also reviewed the group of initiatives to build trust agreed by the parties during the last meetings in Geneva, which took place in March. The Personal Envoy said that the aim is to work with the parties to achieve results on the agreements by the end of July, when the next meeting with the Secretary-General will take place. While in Cyprus, Ms. Holguín will also meet other actors on the Cyprus issue. She plans to subsequently engage with the guarantor powers of Greece, Türkiye and the United Kingdom.
**Ukraine
And also an update on Ukraine for you. I can tell you that the Secretary-General condemns the large-scale aerial attacks by the Russian Federation that caused numerous civilian casualties across Ukraine over the weekend. The Secretary-General is also concerned about the impact of reported Ukrainian drone strikes on the civilian population in the Russian Federation. Attacks against civilians and attacks against civilian infrastructure are prohibited under international law. We once again condemn all such attacks, wherever they occur.
We reiterate the Secretary-General’s call for a full, immediate and unconditional ceasefire in Ukraine as a first step towards a just, comprehensive and sustainable peace, in line with the UN Charter, international law and UN resolutions.
And just to give you a bit more granularity, our humanitarian colleagues tell us that recent waves of air strikes across the country have killed and injured civilians, and damaged civilian infrastructure. In the last five days, authorities reported more than 160 civilian casualties across Ukraine. The city of Kyiv and towns in the Donetsk, Kherson, Kyiv and Zhytomyr regions have been most affected. Matthias Schmale our humanitarian coordinator, said that no place is safe across the country, and yet again, civilians, including children, were killed in these attacks. That’s it for me, I’ll take some questions before we go to our guests. Edie then Dezhi.
**Questions and Answers
Question: Thank you, Steph. As a follow-up on Gaza, you said the images from the site operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation are heart-breaking. Could you give us a little more detail on that? And could you also tell us whether the UN is still trying to deliver aid anywhere in Gaza?
Spokesman: Anyone who watches the images of people desperate to get aid in the way that it’s been set up, and not be moved, to me is questionable. They are hard to watch these pictures. I can tell you that obviously, we’ve just seen the videos. We don’t have any independent confirmation of what happened at these distribution points as we’re not there and we’re not involved in them. Dezhi? Oh, sorry. Yes. Your second question. We are continuing to try to pick up from the crossing at Kerem Shalom. Today, we had teams trying to pick up more supplies from the Palestinian side of the Kerem Shalom crossing. The Israeli authorities had cleared about 100 trucks for us. We had prepared for more. At this point, we don’t have any… I don’t have any clarity as to what is going on exactly at that loading area. On Saturday, the crossing was closed. Yesterday, another batch of about 100 trucks were sent in. But, obviously, as a reminder for us, to reach that loading dock with empty trucks, to reach that loading dock with staff is an arduous process, which demands, obviously, coordination with the Israeli forces, which demands our own assessment that those routes are safe.
Question: And are any of those, the goods from those trucks actually getting to warehouses and getting to Palestinians?
Spokesman: Not as far as I’ve been briefed today. Dezhi and then Linda. And then we’ll go back.
Question: I’m just wondering a follow-up also in Gaza. I’m just wondering what is the difference between the US-run humanitarian aid operation and the Gaza Humanitarian [Foundation]? I mean, logistically speaking, because you say it again and again about how difficult it is to have trucks in the, you know, in the border area to pick up those things to the warehouse and extra. But, for the other side, for the Gaza Humanitarian [Foundation], it feels easy. Why is this difference?
Spokesman: Well, I will let you do the compare and contrast, Dezhi. You’re the journalist. I can only speak to what we’ve been trying to do. I can only speak to the very clear principles that the Secretary-General talked about on Friday. I can only speak to the very clear vision that Tom Fletcher outlined, more than 10 days ago, in his plan to ensure the safe distribution of aid, to ensure the unimpeded distribution of aid to people who need it, where they need it. You know, the system that we had, right, was not perfect. Nothing in Gaza is perfect. We’re not claiming that. But, it’s a system that worked, and we saw how it worked during the ceasefire.
Question: Wouldn’t you feel it would be better if UN cooperated with the Gaza Humanitarian [Foundation] so that this chaotic thing couldn’t happen?
Spokesman: It’s not a matter of us crossing our arms saying we’re not cooperating.
Correspondent: Well, you’re experienced.
Spokesman: What we are saying is that for us, humanitarian aid needs to be distributed in a way that is safe, under principles of independence, impartiality, in the way we’ve always done it. We saw the plan that they’ve published, and that they presented to us, and it is not done with the parameters that we feel match our principles, which we apply across the board, from Gaza to Sudan, to Myanmar, to anywhere you want to talk about. I’m going to move on. I’ll be… yes, please. Go in the back. Oh sorry, and then Linda, sorry. Go ahead then Linda. I’ll get to you.
Question: No problem. So, sources say Hamas recently agreed to yet another ceasefire deal, but Israeli officials and the US Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, rejected the deal as unacceptable. So, my question to you is, to the best of your knowledge, is the UN participating in any of these negotiations or discussions?
Spokesman: No, we are not. We are not. Linda Fasulo, NPR.
Correspondent: Thank you, Steph. Back to the Gaza question. We know that the Trump Administration has accused Hamas of taking some of the food that’s been given throughout time. And of course, you’ve mentioned that no system…
Spokesman: You could put your microphone a little closer.
Question: And you’ve said that no system is perfect, whether it’s Gaza, Sudan, South Sudan or Myanmar. The question is that since there’s… I mean, with women and children, you clearly know with women and children. But, in terms of men who are getting aid, since Hamas, I gather, doesn’t wear… they don’t wear uniforms, it’s hard to differentiate who’s in the military, who isn’t. I mean, what does the UN say about that in terms of perhaps Hamas fighters getting some of the aid?
Spokesman: No. We distribute aid based on a system that has worked for a long time, that has fed people who are hungry, that has given water to people who are thirsty, that has given medicine to people who are sick. No system is fool-proof. None. Right? But, I think to stop all aid in Gaza based on random accusations is just putting more, it’s just placing more suffering on the people of Gaza. Sorry. Yes. Volodymir, do you have a question?
Question: I got a very short question. Do you agree with President [Donald J.] Trump’s assessment of Russian [Federation] ruler [Vladimir V.] Putin that he’s gone crazy killing large numbers of people and that he’s playing with fire?
Spokesman: I’m not going to be dragged into commenting on that. But, thank you for asking the question and trying. Yes, madam.
Question: Stéphane just a little clarification. Now that the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation is delivering aid, does that mean the UN cannot, at all deliver aid?
Spokesman: No. I mean, we’re still trying, we’re still trying, desperately trying to deliver aid based on our system that has worked and we’ve outlined it. And it’s very challenging. And it’s, as the Secretary-General said, it’s teaspoon by teaspoon. But it is, it’s not one or the other. We’re continuing to try. We’re just not involved in terms of what they’re doing. Sinan, please, and then we’ll go to the screen.
Correspondent: Thank you, Steph. I have a question on Syria. According to media reports, the French-Alawite Collective has accused Syria…
Spokesman: Sorry could you do a little louder?
Question: Sure. The French-Alawite Collective has accused Syria’s Interim President Ahmed al Sharaa to the ICC [International Criminal Court] of having orchestrated massacres in March and May that caused more than 1,700 people. So, does Secretary-General have any reaction to this?
Spokesman: I have not seen that report. I would get a confirmation. I would ask you to get a confirmation from the ICC. Not for us to comment. Obviously, we do believe in accountability and the protection of the rights of all Syrians, especially those who need more protection, ethnic and national minorities. Let’s go to the screen, Michelle and then Mike.
Correspondent: Hi, Steph. I just want to clarify what you were saying about, Kerem Shalom and UN trying to get aid. You said yesterday…
Spokesman: Michelle, Michelle…
Question: A hundred trucks were cleared?
Spokesman: Michelle, hold on. We got to lower the volume.
Question: Okay. I wanted to clarify the numbers you were giving us about Kerem Shalom. You said about 100 trucks came in yesterday. Do you mean crossed the border at Kerem Shalom and are still in the loading area, or do you mean left Kerem Shalom and went into Gaza?
Spokesman: The information I’ve been given is that they’ve crossed in from Israel into Kerem Shalom, but still at the loading dock.
Question: Okay, and did any trucks cross the border today?
Spokesman: Today, some were… more were cleared today, but we don’t have the update as of yet.
Question: Okay. So, basically, Israel is still allowing the UN to deliver aid into Gaza?
Spokesman: Under extremely difficult circumstances with quite a lot of obstacles, if not many. All right. Mike.
Question: Number one, on the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and the UN efforts running on a parallel track here, is there any interference that you know of that the UN is running into because of the GHF’s efforts? Is the UN having to yield, any routes, or any pickup times, or anything like that? Is there any conflict between the two?
Spokesman: Not that I’m aware of, but that’s a level of granularity you may want to check with our colleagues in Jerusalem, but I’m not aware of that.
Question: Okay. I’ll check with them. Second topic, your Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, has been a [inaudible] of misinformation as of late, and I wanted to get comment from the SG or his representative, you. So, Mr. Fletcher is refusing through his office to correct his 14,000 dead babies in 48 hours comment. Actually went on CNN a couple days ago, was given a softball opportunity to correct it, didn’t do it then and also added a piece of misinformation about 10,000 trucks waiting at the border to deliver aid. Where is the… A, where is the credibility? And where is the accountability for giving such substantially consequential pieces of misinformation and not making any effort to correct himself?
Spokesman: I think, mister… I would encourage you all to watch his answer to Christiane Amanpour on CNN, which I think clarified the intent of what he was saying, and what remains the headline and what remains a true fact is that the humanitarian situation in Gaza is catastrophic. On the issue of the trucks, my understanding is that there’s enough material to fill about 10,000 trucks. And I can tell you that the Secretary-General has full confidence in Mr. Fletcher and the work that he’s doing. Any more questions? Yes. Abdelhamid, and then we’ll need to go to our guest.
Question: Thank you. Three days ago, Stéphane, Dr. Alaa al-Najjar lost her nine children in one shot. They were burned to the… and I think that’s also, as you mentioned in your briefing, should be a heart-breaking development. However, I haven’t seen any statement from any official, correct me, especially from Virginia Gamba [Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict] and [UNICEF Executive Director] Catherine Russell who deal with children. When some of those people rush to issue a statement on the two diplomats killed in Washington, which is not in their mandate, but children in the heart of their mandate, yet such a crime passes without any statement, any condemnation from any UN official. I could be wrong, so please correct me?
Spokesman: These things do not pass without any mention. We mentioned it today. There is tragically a cavalcade of horrors going on in Gaza, and we condemn all killings of civilians. You have another question?
Correspondent: Specifically talking about the crime of killing nine children for Dr. Alaa al-Najjar. This is… it’s not just like bombing and killing civilians. It’s a specific incident. That’s what I’m asking about.
Spokesman: I’ve heard your question. I’ve answered it to the best of my limited ability. On that note, I will leave you with our guests. Thank you very much.