The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees today reports some success in the first two years of a five-year programme aimed at ending the detention of children who are asylum seekers. Twelve countries had made important progress that had contributed to an overall decrease of 14 per cent of children who are detained.
In progress at UNHQ
Noon Briefings
The Government of Uganda, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the World Food Programme have appealed to donors to speed contributions to the humanitarian response to assist around 200,000 refugees from South Sudan to end a funding shortage that has forced a reduction of rations.
The Secretary-General condemned the reported coalition air strike on a hospital supported by Médecins Sans Frontières in Hajjah, Yemen. He noted that the parties to the conflict in Yemen have damaged or destroyed over 70 health centres, including three other Médecins Sans Frontières-supported facilities.
The United Nations continues to call for a weekly 48-hour humanitarian pause in the fighting in Syria to provide life-saving assistance and remains deeply concerned over the plight of up to 2 million people around Aleppo City, where 250,000 people remain trapped after the closure of the last access route.
The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights is extremely concerned about recent serious allegations of violence, sexual assault and degrading treatment of detainees in Nauru and calls for the allegations to be properly investigated and the responsible parties held to account.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Iraq signed an agreement in Baghdad today to help the Government to detect, investigate and prosecute corruption. The agency said that with Da’esh nearly defeated, strengthening governance is a top priority.
The Secretary-General welcomes the 8 August signing of the Roadmap Agreement for Ending the Conflicts in Sudan by the Sudanese opposition groups. He is encouraged by this valuable step towards ending the war and resolving the crises in the country.
Today is the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. On this occasion, the Secretary-General said that indigenous peoples face a wide range of challenges including systematic discrimination, denial of their land and territorial rights and inadequate access to essential services.
The Secretary-General condemns the terrorist bombing today at the Civil Hospital in Quetta, Pakistan. The targeting of mourners at a civilian hospital makes the attack particularly appalling. He urges the Government to do its utmost to ensure safety of the population and bring to justice the perpetrators of the attack.
The UN refugee agency reported today that aid convoys have reached conflict-affected populations in the non-government controlled area of Luhansk in eastern Ukraine – the first delivery in five months for thousands of people who had their homes damaged or destroyed during the conflict.