Noon Briefings

High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein today expressed concern about alleged violations committed by Turkish military and security forces in the south-east over the past months, including a deadly fire that killed 100 people in shelters.  He urged authorities to give investigators full access to the area.

The Office of the Special Envoy for Yemen confirmed that the parties had resumed discussions today at the working group level.  Talks in the three working groups dealing with political issues, security issues and prisoners are ongoing in Kuwait and being held under United Nations auspices.

The Secretary-General today established the United Nations Zika Response Multi-Partner Trust Fund to finance critical unfunded priorities in response to the Zika outbreak.  The Fund will provide a rapid, flexible and accountable platform to support a coordinated response from the United Nations system and its partners.

The Secretary-General, opening the Climate Action 2016 summit in Washington, D.C., said rising to the challenges of climate change required strong partnerships.  Addressing representatives from Governments, businesses, civil society, academia and philanthropy, he said no sector of society and no nation can succeed alone.

The United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process said today that he was concerned about security incidents that have taken place along the border with Gaza over the past 24 hours.  He called upon all to exercise restraint and take all necessary action to prevent the risk of escalation.

The Secretary-General told the Security Council’s open debate on the protection of civilians in armed conflict this morning that intentional, direct attacks on hospitals are war crimes and inexcusable.  No government should stand by and all must take concrete action to uphold norms to safeguard humanity.

Over the weekend, the head of the United Nations Peacekeeping Department was in Mali visiting MINUSMA.  During his discussions with the Government and the signatory armed groups, he urged them to accelerate the pace of the implementation of the peace agreement.

The High Commissioner for Human Rights said today that the latest reports of civilian deaths and injuries in Syria revealed a “monstrous disregard for civilian lives by all parties to the conflict”.  He urged all sides to step back from a return to all-out war.

The Secretary-General addressed both houses of the Austrian Parliament in Vienna today, saying that, while he recognized the generosity shown so far by the people and Governments of Europe to migrants and refugees, he was concerned that they were now adopting increasingly restrictive immigration and refugee policies.

The Food and Agriculture Organization has warned that food production in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has fallen for the first time since 2010. Total food production is estimated to have declined by 9 per cent from 2014, and the production of rice, the country’s main staple, has dropped by 26 per cent.