Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Source: United Nations (video statements)

Briefing by Ramiz Alakbarov, Deputy Special Coordinator and Resident Coordinator, Office of the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process (UNSCO), on the situation in the Middle East.

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The Security Council also heard calls for investigations into recent deadly strikes. Ramiz Alakbarov, UN Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, said an Israeli airstrike on Aug. 10 killed six journalists in Gaza City. He noted the Israel Defense Forces said they were targeting Al Jazeera correspondent Anas al-Sharif, who they described as the head of a Hamas cell. He added that on Aug. 25, Israeli strikes on Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis killed at least 20 civilians, including medical staff and journalists. “I reiterate the Secretary-General’s call for an independent and impartial investigation into these killings,” Alakbarov said.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kb4PknCsbBM

Source: United Nations (video statements)

Briefing by Joyce Msuya, Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, on the situation in the Middle East.

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“Over half a million people currently face starvation, destitution and death,” a senior UN humanitarian official told the Security Council, warning that this number in Gaza could climb above 640,000 by the end of September.
Joyce Msuya, the UN Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator also added that at least 132,000 children under five are expected to suffer acute malnutrition between now and mid-2026, with more than 43,000 at risk of death.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Lud7Jc-zZg

Source: United Nations (video statements)

The United Nations Security Council today met on the situation in Gaza, with speakers calling for an end to fighting, the release of the hostages and a halt to man-made famine, destruction and death. Among those addressing the Council were senior United Nations officials, a released hostage and the Permanent Observer of the Permanent Observer Mission of the State of Palestine to the UN.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0g1yzQ7IvO4

Source: United Nations (video statements)

The UN Interim Force in Lebanon’s mandate is up for renewal by the Security Council at the end of this month. UNIFIL Spokesperson, Andrea Tenenti, says that UNIFIL remains committed to supporting stability efforts between Lebanon and Israel and will work based on the outcome of the mandate.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70OHgSl3VMs

Source: United Nations (video statements)

The UN Interim Force in Lebanon’s mandate is up for renewal by the Security Council at the end of this month. UNIFIL Spokesperson, Andrea Tenenti, says that UNIFIL remains committed to supporting stability efforts between Lebanon and Israel and will work based on the outcome of the mandate.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70OHgSl3VMs

Source: United Nations (video statements)

Joint Press Encounter by Trishala Simantini Persaud, Chargé d’affaires and Deputy Permanent Representative of Guyana to the United Nations, and Ondina Blokar Drobic, Chargé d’affaires and Deputy Permanent Representative of Slovenia to the United Nations, on behalf of Guyana, Slovenia, Algeria, China, Denmark, France, Greece, Pakistan, Panama, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, Sierra Leone, Somalia and the United Kingdom, on the situation in the Middle East.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmHJYiqu5V0

Source: United Nations (video statements)

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

Highlights:
Security Council/Middle East
Occupied Palestinian Territory
Lebanon/Israel
Sudan
Security Council
World Lake Day
Guest Tomorrow

SECURITY COUNCIL/MIDDLE EAST
This morning, the Security Council held its monthly meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian Question. Briefing the Council members via videoconference were Ramiz Alakbarov, our Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, and Joyce Msuya, the Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator.
They both expressed their ongoing deep concern about the situation on the ground in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
Mr. Alakbarov described the situation in Gaza as one that is sinking deeper into disaster, with mass displacement, high human casualties and now famine. Hostages held by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups continue to languish in appalling conditions, Mr. Alakbarov reminded Council members.
He urged all sides to put an end to this brutal war immediately.
Ms. Msuya, for her part, called for safe, rapid and unimpeded humanitarian access through all entry points into Gaza and to all people in need across the Gaza Strip.
She said that in order to meet the needs of 2.1 million hungry and starving people, we need to bring in, and deliver, greater volumes of life-saving assistance. We need the restrictions on essential items to be lifted. And we need to halt the delays and the denials that impede and hamper our work on the ground every single day.

OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) today said that ongoing strikes have intensified especially in and around Gaza city, killing and injuring people, causing destruction, and forcing displacement.
While some medicines and medical supplies have reached Gaza, medical equipment and spare parts, which are items subject to Israeli restrictions, are urgently needed. As mentioned yesterday, hospitals are reporting shortages of blood, placing more lives at risk as hospitals continue to receive mass casualties.
Colleagues working on water, sanitation, and hygiene warn that access to water remains extremely limited.
With the majority of infrastructure destroyed over the course of the war, the entry of spare parts, generators and equipment must be facilitated so it is to rehabilitate critical water facilities. Partners have also noted that ongoing operations in northern Gaza and the recent displacement orders mean that people could be forced away from areas where facilities indispensable for their survival are actually accessible. The facilities themselves could also be damaged or destroyed.
Meanwhile, multiple organizations’ attempts to bring shelter items into the Gaza Strip are being rejected by the Israeli authorities. As we repeatedly said here, many tents and tarpaulins that are being used by civilians who are being forced to move and been displaced multiple times, those items have worn out and must urgently be replaced. In addition, high tides overnight have submerged tents on the beach, which impacted about 200 families, according to what our colleagues are telling us.
Tents and other shelter equipment must be allowed into all parts of Gaza, including directly to northern Gaza and into Gaza city, where they are desperately needed.
And just to mention an occasion that is supposed to be a happy one in the lives of children and their families: the new school year, is approaching. Gazan children for the third consecutive year will miss this occasion. Education is a fundamental right, and no child should be denied this right. Access to education must be protected, it must be restored, as the current crisis threatens the future of an entire generation of children in Gaza.
UN mine action partners also tell said that the expansion of military operations in Gaza will put more people at risk of harm due to explosive ordnance. Explosive ordnance risk education is an important part of ensuring people’s safety, and partners continue to offer these sessions to communities and carry out explosive hazard assessments to reduce the risks to all aid workers.
Finally, the UN reiterates once again that a permanent ceasefire and an immediate and unconditional release of all hostages being held in Gaza and those arbitrarily detained remains paramount.

Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=27%20August%20202…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCIou1EfDhM

Source: United Nations (video statements)

Briefing by Miroslav Jenča, Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and Americas, Departments of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations, on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question.

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The United Nations Security Council discussed the ongoing investigation into the 2022 explosions that damaged the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea.

Briefing the Council, Miroslav Jenča, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and the Americas, said a joint letter from Denmark, Germany and Sweden had transmitted new information about the probe.

“According to this communication, the Federal Public Prosecutor General of Germany continues to conduct criminal investigations on the sabotage against the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines,” Jenča said. He added that the German authorities had stressed the inquiry was being carried out “impartially, independently and in line with fundamental principles of the rule of law.”

Jenča noted that a Ukrainian national had been arrested in Italy on 21 August based on a European arrest warrant requested by German prosecutors. He said the United Nations was not in a position to comment on ongoing investigations or legal proceedings but underlined that “any intentional damage to critical civilian infrastructure is of serious concern.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KBsf7bX9Nc