Syria

New estimates indicate that nearly 67 million people in Eastern Africa are now in need of humanitarian assistance, accounting for more than 20 per cent of the total number of people in need globally. Humanitarians continue to provide assistance to millions of people.

The Special Coordinator for Lebanon is in Israel where she is meeting with Israeli authorities to discuss the latest situation and the Head of the UN Peacekeeping Mission is in contact with both Lebanese and Israeli parties, stressing the urgent need for de-escalation. Efforts are ongoing to reduce tensions and halt shelling.

All key stakeholders in Syria’s 13-year conflict must engage with the United Nations in a single format as the country remains in “a profound state of high conflict and territorial division,” the Organization’s senior mediator told the Security Council today, rejecting “piecemeal” diplomacy conducted by different groups.

In Somalia, the Acting Emergency Relief Coordinator has allocated $3 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund for an urgent response to displacement in the country.

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

Insufficient information provided by Syria regarding potentially undeclared chemical-weapons activities resulted in the opening of two new outstanding issues with Syria’s declaration under the Chemical Weapons Convention, a senior United Nations official told the Security Council today, noting that 19 of the now 26 such matters remain unresolved.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) reports that a vicious cycle of climate change, wildfires and air pollution is having a spiralling negative impact on human health, ecosystems and agriculture.

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that another wave of deadly attacks struck Ukraine today. In Lviv — a regional centre in western Ukraine and home to many displaced people — that city suffered one of the deadliest attacks since the escalation of the war.

In Syria, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports in the north-east of the country the UN carried out a cross-line inter-agency assessment mission to Al-Kisrah district in Deir-ez-Zor, and that is the first such mission since 2018.

Violence this last month in Syria and the surrounding region has not only taken a toll on civilians but has also presented new threats to international peace and security, United Nations officials warned the Security Council today as they expressed deep concern about the ongoing tense situation across many fronts in that country.