Lebanon

The Secretary-General is concerned at reports of increased tension and violence in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast of Tajikistan, including reported loss of life. He calls for restraint and for all efforts to be made to resolve the current situation by peaceful means. The United Nations will continue to monitor the situation closely.

The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) expressed its serious concern about armed clashes on Sunday involving indiscriminate fire and alleged use of heavy weapons in the Janzour area, a densely populated neighbourhood of Tripoli.  The current mobilization of forces by different armed groups creates tensions and increases the risk of clashes.

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

The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) today strongly condemned the widespread sexual violence, as well as killings of civilians, and attacks on aid workers in Leer County.  UNMISS has carried out 10 verification missions and says that 72 civilians were killed, and 64 cases of sexual violence have been recorded.

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

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) today released a report that says that groundwater, which accounts for 99 per cent of all liquid freshwater on Earth, is being undervalued, mismanaged and even abused.

Four peacekeepers were injured near Tessalit yesterday, following an attack on their convoy using an improvised explosive device, the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) reports.  They were evacuated to Bamako, the capital, for medical treatment.

Humanitarian affairs officials in Somalia say an estimated 4.5 million people — including 671,000 who are internally displaced — are affected by the intensifying drought emergency.  Health authorities have reported a measles outbreak, and at least nine related deaths in Jubaland state.

More than 70 per cent of South Sudan’s people will struggle to survive the peak of the 2022 lean season, amid unprecedented food insecurity due to conflict, climate shocks, COVID-19 and rising costs, the World Food Programme (WFP) warned today.  WFP says 8.3 million people could face extreme hunger within months.

According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, more than 400 civilian casualties in Ukraine have been reported since the conflict began, including more than 100 deaths.  The real figure could be considerably higher, as many reported casualties have yet to be confirmed.