Israel

The World Food Programme (WFP) says its operational costs for West Africa are expected to expand by $136 million as a result of rising fuel and food prices.  Some 43 million people are expected to face acute food insecurity by June.  Before the Ukraine conflict WFP had already forced to cut rations in Nigeria, Central African Republic, Chad, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Mali and Niger.

The United Nations team in Myanmar remains alarmed by deteriorating humanitarian conditions amid continued fighting, particularly in the country’s south-east and north-west.  Across Myanmar, more than 900,000 people are displaced, including more than 560,000 people who remain uprooted since the military takeover in February 2021.

Somalia faces a risk of famine in six areas through June 2022 if the rainy season from April to June fails as predicted, if food prices continue to rise, and if humanitarian assistance is not scaled up to reach the most vulnerable populations.  An estimated 4.9 million people across Somalia have been impacted.

Nearly half of all pregnancies worldwide, about 121 million a year, are unintended, a report by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) says, warning the Ukraine and other conflicts are expected to drive an increase through disruption of access to contraception and growing sexual violence.

The following statement was issued by the Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:

Speakers in the Security Council today denounced Israel’s continued settlement activities, evictions and demolitions of Palestinian-owned structures, as the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process expressed regret that there had been “little progress” made by the sides in upholding obligations under the landmark resolution 2334 (2016).

The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said they are closely following reports about the mobilization of forces and movement of large convoys of armed groups that have increased tensions in and around Tripoli.  The Mission calls on all parties to refrain from any action that could lead to armed clashes.

Some 14.6 million Syrians need humanitarian assistance in 2022, the Syria Humanitarian Needs Overview for 2022 says, 9 per cent more than in 2021.  More households are turning to negative ways of coping, including child labour, child marriage and the sale of productive assets.

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks to the opening meeting of the 2022 session of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, in New York today:

Intensified efforts are urgently needed to resolve the Israel-Palestine situation with a view to reaching the overall goal of two States living side by side in peace and security, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said today at the first formal meeting of the Palestinian Rights Committee in 2022.