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 Colombia.
Lampedusa, Gaza & other topics – Daily Press Briefing | United Nations
Source: United Nations (video statements)
Noon Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.
Highlights:
Lampedusa
Senior Personnel Appointment – Children and Armed Conflict
Senior Personnel Appointment – BINUH
Gaza
Occupied Palestinian Territory
UNIFIL
Colombia
Somalia
Food Price Index
International Day and Week
Financial Contribution
LAMPEDUSA
Twelve years ago today off the coast of the Italian island of Lampedusa, 368 human beings lost their lives at sea while searching for of a better life.
At the time, UN Agencies said that there was a widespread call for change and a commitment to ensure that such a tragedy would never happen again. Yet today we continue to mourn lives lost at sea. Since that day, our colleagues at the UN Refugee Agency, the International Organization for Migration, and UNICEF tell us that an average of 42 people have lost their lives every week along the central Mediterranean route, and we estimated that one in five of them are children.
With over 32,700 deaths since 2014, the Mediterranean has become a death trap for those seeking safety, a dramatic reminder of the risks faced by migrants and refugees.
The UN Agencies stressed that it is important that international cooperation remains strong, that conflicts are addressed, and that safe and regular migration channels are strengthened to reduce dependence on dangerous sea journeys organised by traffickers.
SENIOR PERSONNEL APPOINTMENT – CHILDREN AND ARMED CONFLICT
Today, the Secretary-General is appointing Vanessa Frazier of Malta as his Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict. She succeeds Virginia Gamba of Argentina, to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for her dedicated service and commitment to the United Nations.
The Secretary-General also wishes to extend his appreciation to Najat Maalla M’jid, his Special Representative on Violence against Children, who is serving as his Acting Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict until Ms. Frazier assumes her post.
You, of course, all know Ms. Frazier, who recently served as Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Malta to the UN from 2020 to 2025. She brings multilateral diplomatic expertise, crisis management skills, consensus building and dedication to child protection, with the ability to navigate complex global negotiations and broker agreements among diverse stakeholders, having played a pivotal role as Chair of the UN Security Council Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict.
And I believe she is the first UN senior official ever to have been on an Olympic team.
SENIOR PERSONNEL APPOINTMENT – BINUH
Also today, the Secretary-General is appointing Nicole Flora Boni Kouassi of Côte d’Ivoire as his new Deputy Special Representative for the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti, which you all know as BINUH. She will also be the Resident Coordinator in Haiti. Ms. Boni Kouassi will also serve as the Humanitarian Coordinator.
She succeeds Ulrika Richardson of Sweden, to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for her dedicated service and steadfast commitment to the UN.
Ms. Boni Kouassi brings over 22 years of UN experience to this position, with extensive experience in development, peace and security, and humanitarian work.
She has been most recently the UNDP Resident Representative in Niger since 2022. We welcome her and congratulate her on this appointment.
GAZA
Turning to Gaza, you will have seen that Tom Fletcher, the Emergency Relief Coordinator, said today that we are ready and eager to act on the window of opportunity provided by the US initiative on Gaza.
He said that we have some 170,000 metric tonnes of food, medicine, shelter and other desperately needed supplies poised to enter Gaza from across the region.
For the humanitarian plan to succeed, Mr. Fletcher said that we need open crossings; we need safe movement for civilians and aid workers; unrestricted entry of goods; visas for staff; the space for humanitarians to operate; and the private sector to be revived. He called on the parties to agree to a ceasefire, to give us access, and just let us work.
Full Highlights
https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=03%20October%202025
Gaza, Lebanon & other topics – Daily Press Briefing | United Nations
Source: United Nations (video statements)
Noon Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.
Highlights:
Migrants Risks
Appointments
Gaza
lebanon
Full Highlights
https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=03%20October%202025
The Goals Lounge: A Lasting Space for Action on the Global Goals | United Nations
Source: United Nations (video statements)
During High-Level Week at the UN General Assembly, the Goals Lounge became a space for dialogue, collaboration, and new ideas. Over 28 sessions and 4 major announcements, leaders, youth, innovators, and partners came together to accelerate action for the Global Goals.
And this is only the beginning. The Goals Lounge is here to stay — as a space to connect, create, and advance the promise of a better future for all.
Gaza: Nearly 42,000 people have life-changing injuries – Press Conference | United Nations
Source: United Nations (video statements)
The World Health Organization’s (WHO) Representative in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Rik Peeperkorn called on “many more countries” to accept medically evacuated patients from Gaza, as well as “the restoration of the West Bank and East Jerusalem medical referral pathway.”
Discussing the data from the WHO’s new injuries and rehabilitation trends in Gaza report, Peeperkorn said, “nearly 42,000 people in the Gaza Strip have life-changing injuries caused by the ongoing conflict.”
According to the report, released today, “one in four of those injuries are in children.”
Peeperkorn, briefing reporters in New York from Deir al-Balah, in the Gaza strip, said “as new injuries mount and health needs rise, the health system teeters on the brink of collapse.”
He said, “probably 12 or 13 of Gaza 36 hospitals remain partially functional,” and “none are fully functional despite the efforts of WHO, the emergency medical teams and other health partners.”
Peeperkorn noted that Gaza “once had around 1,300 physiotherapists at 4,000 occupational therapists,” but many have been displaced, and “at least 42 have been killed.
As the Israeli incursion into Gaza City intensifies, he said, WHO evacuated 180 patients and companions, and added that “Gaza’s health system is unable to provide specialist care or services beyond the most basic emergency treatment,” and “15,600 people, including 3,008 children, need to be medevac’d.”
Peeperkorn who has worked in many health emergencies and conflict zones in a career spanning over 20 years, said, “what I’ve witnessed in Gaza, I’ve never witnessed before.”
He said, “you’ve seen the health system disintegrating incredibly rapidly. And I’m still actually surprised that with a partly or minimally working health system, how much is done.”
Asked about malnutrition, the WHO official said, “if you talk to the physicians and medical specialists in hospitals, and I’ve seen so many patients, I mean, severe trauma patients. They’ve said even the simple trauma; their wounds didn’t recover that quickly because almost all of them had a level of malnutrition.”
According to the report, life-changing injuries account for one quarter of all reported injuries of a total of 167,376 people injured since October 2023. Over 5,000 people have faced amputation. Based on a larger pool of data, the findings are consistent with WHO’s previous analysis.
Other severe injuries, including to arms and legs (over 22,000), to the spinal cord (over 2,000), to the brain (over 1,300), and major burns (more than 3,300) are also widespread, further increasing the need for specialized surgical and rehabilitation services and deeply affecting patients and their families across Gaza.
The report also highlights the prevalence of complex facial and eye injuries, especially amongst patients listed for medical evacuation outside Gaza, conditions often leading to disfigurement, disability, and social stigma.
The updated analysis draws on data from 22 WHO-supported Emergency Medical Teams (EMTs), Gaza’s Ministry of Health, and key health partners, providing a more comprehensive picture of rehabilitation needs as a result of severe trauma injuries.
United Kingdom, Jane Goodall, Occupied Palestinian Territory & other topics – Daily Press Briefing
Source: United Nations (video statements)
Noon briefing by Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.
Highlights:
United Kingdom
Jane Goodall
Occupied Palestinian Territory
Ukraine
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Central African Republic
Haiti
Myanmar
International Day of Non-Violence
Guest Tomorrow
UNITED KINGDOM
The Secretary-General strongly condemns today’s deadly terrorist attack on a synagogue in Manchester, in the United Kingdom.
Houses of worship are sacred places where people can go to find peace. Targeting a synagogue on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, is particularly heinous.
The Secretary-General extends his deepest condolences to the victims and their families and wishes a swift recovery to the injured. He stands in solidarity with the Jewish community and calls for those responsible to be brought to justice.
The Secretary-General is deeply concerned by the alarming rise in antisemitism worldwide and stresses the urgent need to confront hatred and intolerance in all their forms.
JANE GOODALL
The Secretary-General said in a social media post yesterday that he was deeply saddened to learn about the passing of Jane Goodall, who had served as a UN Messenger of Peace since 2002.
The Secretary-General said that she has left an extraordinary legacy for humanity and for our planet. He said he is grateful for her lifelong environmental protection efforts and her strong support for the United Nations.
As a UN Messenger of Peace for over two decades, Dr. Goodall’s voice brought global attention to the urgency of protecting our environment. Her legacy will continue to guide and inspire humanity’s collective efforts for peace, sustainability, and harmony with nature.
OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY
The Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, said today that as fighting continues in Gaza City, getting aid to the north is difficult. He stressed the need for humanitarians to be able to work unimpeded, noting that many have been forced to suspend their work in the area. Mr. Fletcher stressed that issuing displacement orders does not take away the parties’ obligations under international humanitarian law; many civilians remain in Gaza City and must be protected.
Meanwhile, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that people continue to be displaced from northern Gaza. In the span of just 10 hours yesterday, our colleagues tracking population movements counted 6,700 people fleeing from the north to the south. Since mid-August, more than 417,000 such displacements have been recorded.
But conditions in the south remain unsafe. OCHA has received reports of intense strikes in recent days in parts of Deir al Balah, one of the places where people have been told to move. Tents, houses and even a crowded market have been hit, with the UN Human Rights Office reporting that many of those killed appear to be civilians.
Between Saturday and Tuesday, some 127,000 people arrived in nearly 360 displacement sites that our partners have been able to monitor in Deir al Balah and Khan Younis. Altogether, those sites are hosting more than half a million people.
Families in southern Gaza are squeezed into these and other overcrowded shelters or makeshift tents along the coast. Many others are sleeping out in the open, often amid rubble. New arrivals in the south face poor sanitation, no privacy or safety, and a high risk of children being separated from their families – all while being exposed to explosive ordnance.
Our partners also warn of the financial burden of displacement, as families are selling their essential belongings to pay for transport. Those who can’t afford it are forced to walk, which is especially hard for families with mobility challenges.
To support people in the south, the UN and our partners have expanded services. For example, in Khan Younis, UNRWA has recently rehabilitated nine medical points, alongside the Japanese Health Centre and Hamad Health Centre – more than doubling the number of functioning health facilities there. Work also continues to rehabilitate shelters and other medical facilities.
And, of course, the UN and our humanitarian partners continue to operate in the north, to the extent possible. Just today, humanitarians successfully transferred some fuel to that area to power critical facilities that people rely on for their survival.
Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=02%20October%202025
Russia’s Presidency in the UN Security Council (October 2025) – Press Conference | United Nations
Source: United Nations (video statements)
Press briefing by Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia, Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations and President of the Security Council for the month of October, on the Council’s programme for the month of October.
#UNGA80 High-Level Week recap – General Assembly President’s Press Conference | United Nations
Source: United Nations (video statements)
Press Conference by Annalena Baerbock, President of the 80th session of the General Assembly, on the UN General Debate High-Level Week (23-29 September 2025).
Remembering Dr. Jane Goodall | United Nations
Source: United Nations (video statements)
Dr. Jane Goodall (1934-2025) began her landmark studies on chimpanzees in 1960. For over 60 years, she dedicated herself to wildlife conservation and animal welfare. Her Roots & Shoots programme fostered young conservation leaders in over 60 countries.
In 2002, Dr. Goodall was appointed as a United Nations Messenger of Peace. She continued to speak about the threats facing endangered species and environmental crises and urged people to take actions for a more sustainable world.
Rohingya: Deserve justice, dignity & return home – Briefing on behalf of UN Chief | United Nations
Source: United Nations (video statements)
Opening remarks by Courtenay Rattray, Chef de Cabinet, on behalf of António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, at the High-level Meeting on the Situation of Rohingya Muslims and Other Minorities in Myanmar.
Secretary-General António Guterres said that the Rohingya, and all of Myanmar’s people “deserve justice, dignity, and a safe return home,” reiterating “there can be no durable peace without a genuine cessation of hostilities and a path to de-escalation and dialogue.”
Courtenay Rattray, Chef de Cabinet of the Executive Office of the Secretary-General delivered the UN chief’s remarks at the High-level Conference on the Situation of Rohingya Muslims and Other Minorities in Myanmar today (30 Sep).
The Secretary-General called on the international community to “contribute to efforts for a comprehensive, innovative and concrete plan for a sustainable resolution of this crisis.”
Chef de Cabinet Courtenay Rattray reiterated the UN chief’s demand for immediate action in three crucial areas: “First, all parties must respect international humanitarian law and human rights law. The protection of civilians must be an immediate priority.”
Second, Rattray said, “unhindered humanitarian access inside Myanmar must be guaranteed. No community should be cut off from food, medicine, and lifesaving assistance.”
And the third, “we need reinvigorated humanitarian and development investment. To meet basic needs. To help refugees transition from dependence to self-reliance. And to ease the strain on host communities,” Chef de Cabinet Courtenay Rattray added.