Middle East

In Ukraine, local authorities and humanitarians on the ground report that an attack in the residential area of Sumy City overnight resulted in a number of fatalities. Humanitarian partners mobilized an emergency response, complementing the efforts of first responders and the authorities.

Nearly half the population in Myanmar lives below the poverty line and less than 48 per cent had access to electricity last year — the lowest access rate in Asia, according to a UN Development Programme report released today highlighting the severe challenges dramatically reshaping the country.

In Syria, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that humanitarian needs across the country remain massive. The UN and its humanitarian partners will need $1.2 billion to reach 6.7 million of the most vulnerable people through March 2025.

The implementation of Isreal’s legislation on 30 January — curtailing the operations of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) — will undermine the ceasefire and sabotage Gaza’s recovery and political transition, a senior UN official told the Security Council today.

Meeting a week after a ceasefire paused the war in Gaza, after it raged for almost 470 days, the Security Council discussed the plight of children, with speakers calling for their needs to be prioritized, through the rebuilding of educational infrastructure, the provision of psychosocial support and ensuring a surge of humanitarian aid to the Strip.

In Sudan, the World Food Programme (WFP) reports the first cross-border barge convoy from South Sudan to Sudan via the White Nile on 22 January, in Kosti. The four-barge convoy of WFP food assistance travelled from Renk in South Sudan, carrying 1,000 metric tons — enough to feed 80,000 people for one month.

In Mali, the UN and its partners, together with the country’s transitional authorities, today launched a $770 million Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan to support millions across Mali. The Plan aims to address the needs of 4.7 million people affected by conflict, displacement, health emergencies and climate shocks.

In the wake of profound changes across the Middle East — including new Governments in Lebanon and Syria and a recent agreement for a ceasefire and release of hostages in Gaza — speakers in the Security Council today, during a day-long debate, offered their visions for how to ensure that these developments usher in positive changes for the region.

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks to the Security Council’s quarterly open debate on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question, in New York today:

As the ceasefire in Gaza entered into force yesterday, the World Health Organization (WHO) and its partners have a 60-day plan to increase bed capacity across some hospitals in the north and south — and deploy professional health workers from abroad. WHO notes that some 30,000 people in Gaza have sustained life-changing injuries and need specialized care.