UN Assistant Secretary-General for Middle East Khaled Khiari said that strengthened cooperation between the United Nations and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is “imperative.”
Addressing the Security Council on its first-ever consideration of cooperation between the UN and the GCC, Khiari said, “This Council demanded the immediate cessation of all attacks by Iran against Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Jordan. These attacks, condemned by this Council, must stop now. Escalating hostilities are posing an acute and rapidly growing threat to international peace and security.”
He also said, “Disruptions to maritime routes in the Gulf and surrounding waters are also having global economic repercussions. They heighten the risk of broader confrontation. All parties must respect freedom of navigation, which is a cornerstone of international maritime law. The United Nations system is fully mobilized to mitigate the consequences of this spiraling conflict. However, the most effective way to do so is clear: the fighting must stop now.”
He concluded, “The ongoing escalation and its consequences underline the urgent need for coordinated multilateral action. In this regard, strengthened cooperation between the United Nations and the GCC is imperative.”
A solemn ceremony took place today at the Beirut International Airport to pay tribute to three fallen peacekeepers from UNIFIL. They are Captain Zulmi Aditya Skandar, First Sergeant Mohammad Nur Ichwan, and Private First Class Farizal Rhomadhon.
Noon briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.
Highlights:
Middle East
United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon
Lebanon/Humanitarian
Occupied Palestinian Territory
Democratic Republic of the Congo
South Sudan
UN-GCC/Security Council
Stephen Lewis
Guinea-Bissau
International Days
Financial Contribution
MIDDLE EAST
Earlier this morning the Secretary-General spoke to you at the onset of the second month of the Middle East crisis, and he warned that we are on the edge of a wider war that would engulf the whole Middle East with dramatic impacts around the globe. He said that when the Strait of Hormuz is strangled, the world’s poorest and most vulnerable cannot breathe.
The spiral of death and destruction must stop, Mr. Guterres said, and diplomatic efforts deserve the space and support to succeed — anchored firmly in international law, including the Charter of these United Nations.
He said that he remains in close contact with the parties and is dispatching his Personal Envoy, Jean Arnault, to the region to support these efforts.
Once again, he told the United States and Israel that it is high time to stop the war and told Iran to stop attacking their neighbours.
Also, Jean Arnault, the Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General on the Middle East conflict and its consequences, is finalizing arrangements to travel to the region. He will visit countries affected by the conflict and meet with authorities there. He also plans to meet the facilitators of the diplomatic track to discuss ways and means for the UN to contribute to efforts to bring about a comprehensive and durable settlement to this conflict.
UN INTERIM FORCE IN LEBANON
Earlier today, in Lebanon, in Beirut, there was a solemn ceremony that took place at the Beirut International Airport to pay tribute to our three fallen peacekeepers from the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). They are Corporal Farizal Rhomadon, Major Zulmi Aditya Iskandar and First Sergeant Muhammad Nur Ichwan. All are from the Indonesian Armed Forces, and they lost their lives in two incidents. One on March 29th and another on March 30th. And they lost their lives while bravely implementing their mandate and peacekeeping duties as part of UNIFIL. The three peacekeepers were posthumously awarded the UNIFIL and Lebanese Armed Forces medals in recognition of their dedicated service to UNIFIL’s mission in south Lebanon.
Meanwhile the picture on the ground remains concerning and bleak. UNIFIL reports continuing rocket fire towards Israel, and airstrikes and artillery shelling impacting several locations in southern Lebanon coming from Israel. The Israel Defense Forces have expanded their incursion into the area towards the west, with a tank and clashes seen in areas in Sector West, located about 12 kilometers north of the Blue Line.
The hostilities continue to endanger the peacekeepers. This morning one peacekeeper was wounded in the shoulder by a bullet at a UN position near Meiss Jebel in Sector East. UNIFIL immediately issued a stop-fire request. The peacekeeper received treatment in the positions on medical facility. The falling bullet likely originated from clashes between Hizbullah and the Israel Defense Forces in that area.
Meanwhile, in a separate incident, the peacekeepers demanded that the Israel Defense Forces remove an Israeli flag they have erected near a UN position in Kafer Kela that is in Sector East. The flag undermines the perception of UNIFIL’s impartiality and risks drawing fire toward peacekeepers amid the ongoing clashes that we are seeing. The UN reminds all actors again of all their obligation to avoid any action that could put the lives of peacekeepers at further risk.
Full highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight
Families in #gaza struggle to protect their children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) amid war, displacement and the collapse of rehabilitation services. They say the challenge goes beyond addressing ASD to securing the bare minimum of safety and stability for their children.
The region needs a success story — #syria could be it, according to the administrator of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) who briefed journalists from Damascus. Addressing to UN correspondents, De Croo and UN Humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher spoke about the situation in Syria and the launch of the Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan for the country this year.
Informal comments to the media by António Guterres, UN Secretary-General, on the continuation of the US-Israel-Iran conflict and its impact on the Middle East.
Press Conference by Jamal Fares Alrowaiei, Permanent Representative, Mission of Bahrain to the United Nations and President of the Security Council in April 2026, on the programme of work during the month of April.
On Iran, Ambassador of Bahrain Jamal Fares Alrowaiei told reporters that his country will “reserve the right of self-defense as stipulated in article 51 in the UN Charter.”
Speaking in his national capacity, the Baharian diplomat reiterated, “Iran’s continuing to attack us since February 28th is a flagrant violation of the UN charter and international law principles. Iran continues to breach resolution 2817, which was presented by Bahrain on behalf of GCC countries and Jordan, and has been co-sponsored by 136 countries from the wider UN membership.”
Asked about Bahrain has submitted a draft resolution focused on ensuring security in the area of the Strait of Hormuz, Ambassador Alrowaiei said, “we cannot accept economic terrorism affecting our region and our and the world. The whole world is being affected by the developments,” adding that this resolution is “of paramount importance, and it comes at a critical juncture.”
He explained that this resolution aims to protect maritime security. “It is one of the most fundamental principles of international law,” Ambassador Alrowaiei said, reiterating that it is “anchoring the principles of not using maritime corridors and international corridor as a strategy to build pressure in conflicts. This would be a flagrant violation of international law and the rights of all countries that depend on those corridors.”
Asked about Lebanon, the Bahrain diplomat stressed that the country “must be spared. It should not be dragged into this conflict,” adding that “Lebanon needs considerable support. These adventures are unacceptable. They must stop to serve the interests of Lebanon, and we must support the Lebanese government in its efforts.”
He noted that Lebanon is making “significant efforts” in the field of disarmament to ensure the stability of Lebanon. “So why should Lebanon be dragged into this conflict?” Ambassador Alrowaiei said.
He reiterate that the “Council is aware of these matters, and the Council will continue to be apprised of the developments in Lebanon.”
Jamaican Ambassador Brian Wallace said that resolution A/RES/80/251 is not “primarily about cost, but it will result in more efficient use of resources. This is really about becoming more targeted and therefore more impactful.”
The United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday (31 Apr) adopted a landmark resolution entitled ‘Mandate creation, implementation and review for an efficient and effective United Nations’ to strengthen how UN mandates – the decisions taken by Member States that guide the Organisation’s work – are created, implemented and reviewed across the system.
The Co-chairs of the UN80 working group on workstream II – Carolyn Schwalger, Permanent Representative of New Zealand, and Brian Wallace, Permanent Representative of Jamaica, briefed reporters today on their work and on the resolution.
Schwalger said, “So, the resolution does call for change, change on the part of member states, and change on the part of the Secretariat as well. When it comes to member states, the resolution is very clear that member states have the sovereign right to bring whatever issues they want to the United Nations, but with those rights come responsibilities, and so the resolution also speaks to discipline and to accountability. And on the Secretariat side of the house, there are firm messages there about effective use of resources, but also giving member states the support, the advice and the tool that we need to be successful.”
She also said, “When we took on this job as cochairs, we knew the UN was facing really unprecedented challenges, and we knew that this mandates resolution process was an opportunity to show our political decision makers, our citizens, but also ourselves as a UN family, that we’re up to the challenge of reform, and we’re up to transforming in a way that we can better take on contemporary global challenges.”
Wallace said, “The adoption of the resolution by such an overwhelming majority of member states has demonstrated the willingness of the membership of the organization to hold itself to account for its decision making. This reflects a clear recognition by member states of the need for us, to be better, to be more efficient, to be more effective, so that the UN can become more impactful for the people we serve.”
Answering a question, the Permanent Representative of New Zealand said, “Some of the issues in the period ahead are the thorny ones, but some of them are just simply issues that required more technical input as we as member states can make decisions on them, but I think – if you have followed the working group’s progress – you will know that mandate review was one of the most difficult and thorny issue. It really speaks to the heart of member states prerogatives and so establishing the modalities of how we’ll do mandate review across the system and the GA in particular – General Assembly and its bodies – will be one of the big issues to resolve in the period ahead. And of course, we as member states require the input of the Secretary General on a number of other issues.”
The Permanent Representative of Jamaica stressed, “The UN remains a political organization. This is, for me, the biggest value of the organizations, it’s convening power of member states, where we all sit in a room together and make decisions about what to do with the great challenges of humanity. That will remain so. But what this resolution does is it creates somewhat of a different atmosphere around that decision making that will encourage more discipline around it, that creates the visibility that allows us to make better decisions.”
He also said, “This is not primarily about cost, but it will result in more efficient use of resources. This is really about becoming more targeted and therefore more impactful. After all, that’s what the UN was made for, not for us to simply sit in a room and discuss problems, but to find solutions that can be implemented on the ground.”
The current conflict in Iran and the Middle East has the potential to multiply the current global crisis on affordability and access to housing, according to Anacláudia Rossbach, the Head of the housing and urban development agency, UN-Habitat. UN-Habitat.
