Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

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Occupied West Bank, Lebanon & other topics – Daily Press Briefing (17 August 2026) | United Nations

Source: United Nations (video statements)

Noon briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

Highlights:

– Occupied Palestinian Territory
– Lebanon
– Yemen
– Sudan
– Central African Republic

OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY

In the Occupied West Bank, UN humanitarian colleagues on the ground report that UN teams reached families in Qusra village in the northern West Bank, a village where Palestinian families had been trapped in following the establishment of an Israeli settlement outpost next to their homes and much tighter access restrictions imposed on them.

UNICEF team delivered water, food, medicines and hygiene items, as well as recreational kits for children.

As of earlier today, OCHA reports that three Palestinian families in the village remained surrounded by a heavy presence of Israeli forces as well as settlers.

Meanwhile, UN humanitarian colleagues say that separate efforts by municipal workers to repair water and electricity connections damaged over the past week faced serious impediments but were ultimately successful. Israeli settlers did attack the municipal workers, and Israeli forces detained some of them.

Israeli forces had also reportedly ordered a nearby Palestinian factory to suspend operations, affecting people’s livelihoods.

Elsewhere in the West Bank, UN humanitarian colleagues say that multiple people were injured over the weekend, including by live ammunition, in two incidents in Hebron governorate involving Israeli forces, settlers as well as Palestinians.

UN Deputy Special Coordinator Dr. Ramiz Alakbarov, who also serves as the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator said that recent developments in the West Bank underscore the urgent need to protect civilians, safeguard homes and property, and ensure access to essential services. He stresses that what is happening in Qusra must not become the new normal.

In Gaza, UN humanitarian partners remain concerned about the impact of continued Israeli strikes on civilians.

Over the weekend, UN partners leading on security and safety have reported multiple air strikes and incidents of shelling, gunfire and naval fire, primarily west of the so-called "Yellow Line," which is where most of Gaza’s 2.1 million people are now confined, that is an area that is less than half of the Gaza Strip’s land. Civilians were reported among some of the casualties.

UN humanitarian partners also say that preparations for the coming rainy season are facing funding shortfalls and other limitations. It is critical that these preparations take place now.

They estimate that ahead of winter, the UN and its partners have been able to buy less than 30,000 tents, most of which are still stuck outside of Gaza. That’s compared with an estimated need of 80,000 to 130,000 tents, which depends on whether more durable supplies are allowed in.

Less than 40 per cent of the $4 billion required for humanitarian support across Gaza and the West Bank has been secured this year.

Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date=2026-08-17

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCoKdtwXnjg

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US Pardon Attorney, Ed Martin Federal Firearms Rights Restoration Overview

Source: United States Department of Justice (video statements)

US Pardon Attorney Ed Martin discusses the recent announcement of a final rule regarding the Attorney General’s authority to restore federal firearms rights to deserving citizens, discusses the initial stages of an application process, and invites the public to learn more at FFRR’s website: www.justice.gov/ffrr.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZTBi872luk

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AI for trade in action: monitoring crops from space

Source: World Trade Organization – WTO (video statements)

How can AI, satellite technology, and real-time data transform agriculture and supply chains?

Ahmad Hamwi, Founder and CEO of Rinato Space, explains how the company combines satellite imagery, weather intelligence, and information from the ground to monitor farms at scale. The Zambia-based company, one of the winners of this year’s Small Business Champions competition, helps farmers, buyers, insurers, regulators, and exporters make informed decisions.

In September, the WTO hosts its first ever World Trade and Tech Day to look at how AI is impacting international trade. The event will feature several use cases. Learn more:
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/reser_e/dtech_1409202609_e/dtech_1409202609_e.htm

Download this video from the WTO website:
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/webcas_e/webcas_e.htm

Transcript:
Hello, everyone. I’m Ahmad Hamwi, founder and CEO of Rinato Space. At Rinato Space, we use satellite technology combined with weather data and ground truth to monitor sites. Every site gets its own e-agronomist, which is an AI that has learned each crop phenology by itself, through a lot of research, and can figure out what’s happening on every farm. Whether in germination or flowering, or making cobs or cotton, we understand all that. And through that, we are able to predict if it’s going well or there’s something wrong. So your efforts and your resources can be directed to the right place. Farmers are one of the biggest beneficiaries of this project because, at the moment, farmers cannot afford to have the equipment and the skills to provide traceability for their sites. Farmers and buyers are able to prove that they are up to standard when it comes to the European Union’s anti-deforestation regulation. This helps a lot of people, helps insurance companies, helps regulators and helps exporters and buyers figure out who to work with and when. In today’s age of really fast tech growing, AI and innovation, I think policies are not catching up fast enough. We still fall under certain regulations in countries where there are no policies that can help support what we do. You find that on the other side of the world, people do not trust the data that you produce because it’s not up to their standards or just because your company is African-based. Although we are in Zambia, currently, on our platform, we are monitoring sites all the way from Australia to Africa to Brazil. And this is the beauty of using satellites, that you are not really limited or bound by anything. Earth is your oyster.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdZM_ak8kr0