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.
**Secretary-General’s Travel
Good afternoon, everyone. The Secretary-General is currently near Geneva, Switzerland, where he is meeting with his Special and Personal Representatives and Envoys. Following these meetings, he will return to New York and has cancelled his planned trip to Davos due to a bad cold.
On Saturday, the Secretary-General was in London, where he addressed a special commemoration of the eightieth anniversary of the first meeting of the General Assembly. The event, organized by the UN Association of the UK, took place in Methodist Central Hall, the very place where the first meeting was held.
In his remarks, he said that we must ensure full respect for international law and defend multilateralism and strengthen it for our times. Mr. [António] Guterres pushed for reform of the UN system to reflect the world of 2026 and not 1946. He said: “As global centres of power shift, we have the potential to build a future that is either more fair — or more unstable.” He added that it is manifestly in the interests of those who hold the most power to be on the frontlines of reform. He warned that those trying to cling to privileges today risk paying the price tomorrow.
As we move forward in a moment when the values of multilateralism are being chipped away, he said, it is up to us, in our capacity as professionals, as voters, and as members of civil society, to take a stand. Later that day, the Secretary-General was hosted by the UK Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper, for a working lunch, during which they discussed a wide range of issues, including Ukraine, Sudan and UN reform.
**Occupied Palestinian Territory
Turning to the Gaza Strip, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that the ceasefire agreement — which has crossed the 100-day mark —must hold so that more civilian lives can be saved. As we have been telling you, the scale-up of humanitarian work continues to be held back by restrictions and impediments, with recent harsh weather also setting back some of the progress.
In a statement issued today, the World Food Programme (WFP) warned of how fragile the situation remains, even as the agency reaches more than 1 million people every month through food parcels, bread bundles, hot meals and school meals — making real progress in pushing back famine. WFP called for additional safe humanitarian corridors from Egypt and Jordan, and along the Salah Ad Din Road inside Gaza, to increase volumes and reduce insecurity.
Yesterday, our colleagues from the World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) launched the second round of a routine immunization catch-up campaign, together with our partners and in collaboration with the Ministry of Health. This round will run until next Thursday and aims to further protect children under three from vaccine-preventable diseases. The campaign is being delivered by 170 teams at nearly 130 health facilities, with seven mobile teams deployed to hard-to-reach areas. A third and final round is planned for April.
Turning to the West Bank, OCHA says Israeli forces have placed an estimated 25,000 Palestinians under curfew in parts of the Israeli-controlled H2 area of Hebron City, as they launched a large-scale operation today. Initial reports point to a heavy deployment of military vehicles and snipers on rooftops, as well as the closure of six internal roads.
As a result, four bakeries have been forced to suspend their operations, and two shops where about 4,000 people regularly obtain essential supplies through UN-issued vouchers remain closed. Education in more than a dozen schools has also been suspended, affecting thousands of students.
OCHA adds that the area has been affected by a major electricity cut since the weekend, following damage to a local power station. With a curfew now in place, efforts are under way to allow technicians into the area to restore electricity. Steps are also being taken to facilitate emergency medical evacuations and for students to attend school online where possible. Meanwhile, families are confined to their homes, making it difficult for them to obtain food, medicine and other essential supplies.
**Syria
From Syria, OCHA is telling us that we and our partners continue to provide humanitarian aid, following recent clashes in Aleppo, Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor and Al Hassakeh Governorates. In Deir ez-Zor City, public services have been suspended and key transport routes temporarily closed, cutting civilians off from education and healthcare. In Raqqa, damage to critical infrastructure has curtailed access between neighbourhoods and disrupted the main water supply.
People continue to flee the cities of Raqqa and Tabqa, as well as Thawra, towards Al-Hasakeh and Qamishli Governorates. Hundreds of families remain unable to leave Tabqa and are sheltering in public facilities. Newly displaced families are facing harsh winter conditions, as well as acute shortages of food, shelter, tents and heating fuel. We and our partners continue to respond where we have access and are providing trauma care, water and hygiene support, as well as psychosocial support. Humanitarians are also conducting assessments, and continuing to call for sustained, safe humanitarian access.
**Ukraine
From Ukraine, OCHA tells us that over the weekend, attacks on energy infrastructure continued amid freezing temperatures. Between 16 January and today, authorities reported at least nine civilians were killed and more than 50 injured across multiple regions. Strikes further damaged energy infrastructure, leading to widespread power outages, including in Russian-occupied parts of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson. Nationwide scheduled power outages continue as temperatures have dropped to around -20°C.
In front-line areas, attacks have also driven more people from their homes. More than 1,300 people — including 170 children — were evacuated from the Donetsk region in the past four days. Across Ukraine, we and our partners continue providing support — including hot meals, winter clothing, psychological help and other assistance at warm up tents.
**South Sudan
In South Sudan, the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) is deeply concerned by reports of significant military confrontations between armed forces aligned with the main parties to the peace agreement in Jonglei and Eastern Equatoria. This surge in conflict, which includes aerial bombardments of civilian areas, comes in the aftermath of efforts to diverge from the peace framework established by the Revitalized Peace Agreement.
The Mission urges South Sudan’s leaders to immediately cease hostilities, de-escalate tensions, and to advance reconciliation and peace through inclusive dialogue under the framework of the peace agreement. Strong leadership and decisive, consensus-based action is needed now, more than ever, to prevent the current crisis from deepening and to ensure that the peace and prosperity so deserved by the people of South Sudan is finally delivered, the Mission added.
And on the humanitarian side, our colleagues at OCHA warn that an already dire humanitarian crisis, marked by food insecurity, disease outbreaks and the impact of catastrophic floods, is worsening following renewed fighting in Jonglei State over the past week.
Since late last month, more than 180,000 people, mostly women, children and older people, have been forced to flee their homes in Jonglei, according to the Government. Many have sought refuge in remote areas, while others have fled to neighbouring states. As humanitarian needs continue to rise, already overstretched operations are under increasing strain. At least four health facilities have been looted, leaving more than 100,000 people without access to essential services. Restrictions on movement by air, river and road in several areas have obstructed the delivery of life saving assistance.
While several humanitarian organizations have temporarily relocated staff, around 15 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) continue to be present in the area. We and our partners are engaging with local authorities to ensure the protection of civilians and aid workers, as well as to secure safe, unhindered humanitarian access to people in need.
**Mozambique
From Mozambique, our OCHA colleagues tell us that more than half a million people have been affected by recent floods in southern and central provinces. Heavy rains since mid-December have caused widespread flooding in the provinces of Gaza, Maputo and Sofala. Authorities report that more than 510,000 people have been affected so far, with major damage to health facilities and roads.
Nearly 5,000 kilometres of roads have sustained damage across nine provinces of Mozambique, with the main road connecting the capital, Maputo, to the rest of the country now inaccessible. Supply chain lines are significantly disrupted, and authorities report the loss of more than 27,000 heads of livestock.
The Government is leading the response. On Saturday, it formally requested UN support for search-and-rescue operations, preventative evacuations, damage assessment and the provision of temporary shelters. Evacuations continue and 50 temporary accommodation centres nationwide are hosting more than 50,000 people.
We and our partners are scaling up life-saving assistance, focusing on easing overcrowding in accommodation centres, particularly in Gaza Province, as assessments continue in hard-to-reach areas. Additional funding is urgently needed to sustain the humanitarian response. Meanwhile, OCHA is engaging with countries across Southern Africa — including Mozambique, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Zambia, Tanzania, Botswana, Lesotho and Eswatini — which are also experiencing severe flooding.
**Capital Punishment
Our human rights colleagues say that while the overall global trend continues to move towards universal abolition of the death penalty, last year, the world has witnessed a sharp increase in the number of executions. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) says the global increase is driven in particular by a growing number of executions for drug-related offences not involving intentional killing.
Our colleagues also point out that several States took encouraging steps in 2025, including by reducing the number of offences punishable by death. In a statement, the High Commissioner, Volker Türk, reiterated his call for all States that retain the death penalty to establish an immediate moratorium on executions, commute all existing death sentences, and move towards full abolition.
**Contingent-Owned Equipment
I wanted to flag that starting today and until 30 January, we are hosting the Contingent-Owned Equipment Working Group, here at UN Headquarters. This meeting of Member States reviews policies on equipment and services in support of uniformed personnel deployed to peacekeeping missions. And as you can imagine, the goal is to ensure that operations remain effective, safe, and cost-efficient.
The working group is chaired by Major General Silver Moses Kayemba of Uganda, and their discussions will address innovative proposals, from counter-drone systems and modular hospitals to advanced monitoring technologies. All of this with the aim of enhancing safety, transparency, and cost-effectiveness, including rates of reimbursement for equipment based on utilization indicators. The proposals recommended from this meeting will shape peacekeeping capabilities for the next three years, when the next Contingent-Owned Working Group meeting is scheduled.
**Guest
Tomorrow, our guest will be Kaveh Madani, Director of the UN University’s Institute for Water, Environment and Health and lead author of the report entitled “Global Water Bankruptcy: Living Beyond Our Hydrological Means in the Post-Crisis Era”. He will be here to speak to you about that report.
**Honour Roll
And last, we would like to say thank you to our friends in Bridgetown and Amsterdam for their full payment to the Regular Budget. The payments from Barbados and the Netherlands brings the number of Member States on the Honour Roll to 17. Yes, Dezhi?
**Questions and Answers
Question: Several questions on the Board of Peace. First, has the Secretary-General received any invitation to be on that board?
Deputy Spokesman: I’m not aware of any communication that we’ve received on any of this.
Question: Secondly, what’s the reaction from the Secretary-General that, if you want to maintain a permanent member in that board, you have to pay up to… not up to, but actually $1 billion in the first year of the membership?
Deputy Spokesman: We’ve seen these reports. We can’t confirm this. Obviously, the United Nation has no…
Correspondent: This is charter of the Board of Peace.
Deputy Spokesman: Obviously, different groupings have their own rules, their own bylaws, and so forth. We don’t comment on other groups and their rules. Obviously, that’s something for anyone participating in those groupings to consider.
Question: Is that the right approach here? This is the Board of Peace that has been welcomed by the Secretary-General, right, if I remember correctly?
Deputy Spokesman: The Board of Peace has been authorized by the Security Council for its work on Gaza — strictly for that. We’re not talking about the wider operations or any of the aspects that have been in the media for the last several days. What we’re talking about is the work on Gaza. As you know, we have welcomed the ceasefire in Gaza and measures to support it, including the Board of Peace, and we’ll continue to work with all parties on the ground to make sure that the ceasefire is upheld. That is about Gaza. The larger aspects are things for anyone wanting to participate in this grouping to consider. Obviously, the UN has its own Charter, its own rules, and you can do your own compare-and-contrast between the respective organizations.
Question: Since you mentioned about the assertion lately in the media, is this Board of Peace can be a substitute or replacement of the Security Council or UN itself? How would you define the relationship between the UN body and this Board of Peace now?
Deputy Spokesman: As you’re well aware, the UN has coexisted alongside any number of organizations. There are regional organizations, subregional organizations, various defence alliances around the world. Some of them, we have relationship agreements with. Some of them, we don’t. We would have to see in terms of details what the Board of Peace becomes as it actually is established to know what sort of relationship we would have with it.
Question: Does the Secretary-General intend to work with the Board of Peace on the particular issue of Gaza?
Deputy Spokesman: You’ve seen what the Security Council resolution has been, and obviously we work in line with that resolution. Yes, Pam and then Sinan.
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Since the Secretary-General’s speech in Davos, the speech on the eightieth anniversary talked about the… and his interview talked about, and you mentioned it, the inefficiency of the Security Council. Is there a plan that he favours? I know it’s up to the Security Council itself, but is there a plan that he feels would be more efficient in terms of membership in the Security Council? Has he stated any preference?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, you’ve heard him state several times the need for greater inclusiveness of the Security Council. But, there are…
Question: But, there are a lot of plans out there. Is it permanent members, non-voting?
Deputy Spokesman: It’s not the role of the Secretary-General to advocate for one Member State plan over another Member State plan. Obviously, under the Charter, the Member States themselves have to agree on any amendments to the Charter, which would include any changes in the composition of the Security Council. They’ve…
Correspondent: And I…
Deputy Spokesman: Excuse me. Please. Let me continue.
Correspondent: Sorry.
Deputy Spokesman: They’ve done that in the past. The Security Council started with 11 members, when the UN was created. It went up to 15. That entailed one set of reforms. It’s clear and indeed overdue that there’s time for another set of reforms. It’s been discussed for many years, but the Secretary-General wants there to be a broader representation so the more countries can feel that they are included in the Security Council. The specifics [are] left to the Member States.
Question: And since he did go ahead and call it inefficient, is there any sense of what he considers that they would do that would make it more efficient to certain countries? No specifics?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, just go over what he’s been saying. He’s made many different speeches and remarks about the Security Council — about the ways that its small representation, the heritage in terms of the World War II era composition of the Council has created and the need to adapt to the changing times. He’s also talked, as you’re well aware, of the difficulties that occur when the vetoes have been used and have created disunity in the council. From there, you can see that there are ways to deal with those issues, and Member States have proposed different ways, and we leave the matter in their hands. Okay, Sinan?
Question: Thank you, Farhan, from Spot Press Corp. I have a few questions. First thing, as you know, there was a ceasefire agreement was signed between SDF [Syrian Democratic Forces] and Damascus yesterday, but the Syrian Democratic Forces say that they were forced to sign this agreement because of the war imposed on them by regional powers and actors in Syria, which disregards them and eliminates their rights. What does Secretary-General think about the agreement signed at the gunpoint in Syria?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, obviously, we are thankful for the leaders both of the Syrian Government and the Syrian Democratic Forces for working together to reach an agreement. From our standpoint, the Secretary-General calls for all violence to cease, for civilians to be protected, for a focus on ensuring security and countering Da’esh, and for the parties to move forward in good faith with a determination to ensuring the full implementation of the agreement. I do expect that we may have a statement later today with more on this.
Question: Just a follow-up. Basically, the Kurds in Syria says what we see is like a jungle laws in Syria happening. What does the Secretary-General think about that?
Deputy Spokesman: Anytime we can get parties to come to the negotiating table together and work out agreements, that is a step away from the laws of the jungle. And so, we encourage those sorts of negotiations.
Correspondent: One more and then I’m done.
Deputy Spokesman: But your colleague would also like a question, I think. Let’s go to him first. Namo?
Question: Thank you. He has some very good questions that I had, as well. So, I’m going to ask two questions that he didn’t ask. SDF says it’s lost control of a major prison in Syria, which houses thousands of ISIS prisoners or suspected ISIS members. Does the United Nations know anything about this? And how concerned are you — is the Secretary-General?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, I mean, we want to make sure that nothing that’s happened in last weeks of fighting impedes the unified effort to deal with Da’esh. And so, we don’t want to see any sort of outcome which would allow Da’esh fighters to escape or to reorganize in different parts of Syria. We don’t have any firsthand information about any escapes.
Question: Just like a broader kind of question. What’s the Secretary-General’s view of the role that Kurdish fighters played in the fight against the Islamic State? And how does he feel now seeing them, that these same men and women being attacked by forces, Islamist forces really affiliated with the Damascus Government, the interim Damascus Government?
Deputy Spokesman: We’ve stated again and again that we wanted the fighting to stop between the Syrian Armed Forces and the SDF. And, obviously, if this measure holds and can be implemented fully, we hope that that would lead to an end to that sort of fighting. Yes?
Question: Thanks, Farhan. What is the Secretary-General doing to mediate the growing crisis between the United States and Europe?
Deputy Spokesman: This is not some situation in which the Secretary-General has been given a role to play. Obviously, it’s very clear from his standpoint what he believes needs to happen. You know that the UN Charter enshrines the sovereignty of Member States and the territorial integrity of Member States, and it also speaks about the right of self-determination, and those are important things to preserve and protect as we move forward. Before we go to you, we’ll go to the screens. Abdelhamid?
Question: Yes. Thank you, Farhan. In Lebanon, the geography book of sixth grade that run by UNRWA, they discovered that the word Palestine has been completely removed, and they replaced it with the West Bank and Gaza. There is riots in Lebanon. They started burning the book. How could that happen under the eyes of the Secretary-General and he let it go? And if not, why not? Why he didn’t follow such a major development that attacks the Palestinian with their culture and history?
Deputy Spokesman: These books are worked out by educators on the ground who work with the UN Relief and Works Agency. So that’s really a question to ask for UNRWA on the ground, and they can provide you with some details about how they interact. But, those are decisions being made by the educators and by the people who write those textbooks.
Question: My second question, Farhan, although your answer is not satisfactory because the SG has to say something about this development, I don’t accept that’s UNRWA alone should give me the answer, but the SG himself. And the second is every single day, Israel attacks Libya. Every single day. And it’s becoming normal. Are the UN living with this development that it’s okay if Israel attacks Lebanon the way they attack Gaza, every single day?
Deputy Spokesman: It’s clearly not okay. We have mentioned repeatedly the violations of the Blue Line. We have urged the parties to adhere to the ceasefire agreement and respect the Blue Line, and we’ll continue to monitor the situation, including through the special coordinator in Lebanon as well as through our peacekeeping force, UNIFIL [United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon]. Yes. Sinan, and then Linda.
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Civilians says, I mean, some civilians yesterday since yesterday, they say they’ve been displaced fifth time since the war has started in Syria. What is Secretary-General’s message to civilians in Syria?
Deputy Spokesman: Our message to them is, we are working to alleviate the humanitarian conditions on the ground, and we are hoping that this ceasefire agreement, that this agreement will be respected, will be implemented, and that they can all return to their homes. Linda?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Regarding the SG, I gather he’s not feeling great at the moment. But, are there any plans whatsoever for him to travel to Washington to perhaps meet, try again to meet with top US officials or Congress?
Deputy Spokesman: He always visits Washington, D.C., each year and meets with officials there and we expect that to happen. I don’t have announcement to make at this point. Yes?
Question: Does the Secretary-General have anything to say on the high-speed train crash in Spain?
Deputy Spokesman: Our hearts go out to the families of those who have lost loved ones in this crash, and our thoughts and prayers go to them and to the Government and people of Spain. Have a good afternoon, everyone.