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Da’esh remains resilient amid global pressure, Africa is now epicentre of activity | United Nations

Source: United Nations (video statements)

“The threat posed by Da’esh remains volatile and complex,” UN counter-terrorism chief Vladimir Voronkov told the Security Council, as members convened to discuss the Secretary-General’s latest report on the extremist group.

The Council met today (Aug 20) for a briefing on António Guterres’ 21st biannual strategic-level report on Da’esh (S/2025/496), which concludes that the group remains resilient despite sustained counter-terrorism pressure. The report highlights Africa as the epicentre of Da’esh activity, with Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) estimated to have 8,000 to 12,000 fighters and Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS) consolidating itself in the Niger-Nigeria border area.

Voronkov said affiliates are demonstrating “resilience despite sustained counter-terrorism efforts,” noting a resurgence in ISGS activity and ISWAP’s growing propaganda output, which has drawn in foreign fighters. He added that reports suggesting Da’esh is seeking to recruit cyber security experts are “gravely concerning.”

The Secretary-General’s report also warns that Da’esh-Khorasan, with some 2,000 fighters, remains one of the most serious threats in Afghanistan and Central Asia, while in Iraq and Syria the group maintains up to 3,000 fighters and has staged major attacks, including a June assault on a church in Damascus that killed more than 80 people. Camps in northeastern Syria continue to house nearly 35,000 people, mostly women and children, under dire conditions that the UN says risk becoming incubators of radicalization.

“Focusing solely on the leadership of groups such as Da’esh is not sufficient,” Voronkov told the Council. “Prioritizing long-term, principled responses that tackle the drivers of terrorism and the conditions conducive to its spread remain the most effective response.”

Natalia Gherman, head of the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, warned of Da’esh’s exploitation of artificial intelligence. “Da’esh’s use of artificial intelligence and social media for recruitment, fundraising and propaganda demands innovative responses,” she said, while stressing the same tools could help states disrupt terrorist activities.

Elisa De Anda Madrazo, President of the Financial Action Task Force, said the financing threat has shifted dramatically since 2001 but remains central to countering terrorism. “By turning off the money tap, we can cut off the blood supply of terrorism,” she said. She added that digital platforms are increasingly abused for financing and that younger lone actors are relying on microfinancing and “technology-enabled methods, including gambling online” use of social media.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiD6-ZRm5iM

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When war comes home, with Yacoub El Hillo | Regional Director for Africa at UN DCO | Awake at Night

Source: United Nations (video statements)

Yacoub El Hillo spent more than thirty years serving refugees and displaced people in some of the world’s worst conflict zones. But when cataclysmic war erupted in his hometown of Khartoum, Sudan, the Regional Director for Africa at the United Nations Development Coordination Office (DCO) had to help his own family flee the violence.

“I don’t think there’s any home in Khartoum that was spared … the assumption is that everything is gone.”

Having served in more than 16 duty stations, from Liberia to Syria, Somalia and Afghanistan, Yacoub El Hillo has rarely seen any conflict as devastating as the one currently decimating Sudan.

In this episode, he reflects on the scale of the human suffering there, looks back on a rich and varied career with the UN, and shares why all nations deserve a chance to strive for a brighter future.

[00:00] Introduction
[01:21] A war like no other
[06:04] When war comes home
[11:21] His family’s flight to safety
[15:27] What’s left behind
[16:28] What keeps Yacoub awake at night
[17:36] Holding onto hope
[19:08] Returning to serve after retirement
[21:23] Yacoub’s starting point
[23:54] A mission, not a job
[24:50] Liberia’s transformation
[27:26] Darkest days in Syria
[30:38] Taking risks to save lives
[32:45] His hopes for Syria’s future
[33:59] Family and sacrifice
[37:36] Closing remarks

Listen to more Awake at Night episodes https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwoDFQJEq_0b6hu1e8oxsch9W0D7vkNqt

#podcast #unitednations #awakeatnight #DCO #Sudan

About Awake at Night
Hosted by Melissa Fleming, UN Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications, the podcast ‘Awake at Night’ is an in-depth interview series focusing on remarkable United Nations staff members who dedicate their career to helping people in parts of the world where they have the hardest lives – from war zones and displacement camps to areas hit by disasters and the devastation of climate change.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRXeJ7IVaYk

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Palestine, Sudan & other topics – Daily Press Briefing (20 August 2025) | United Nations

Source: United Nations (video statements)

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

Highlights:
Secretary-General/Travels
Occupied Palestinian Territory
Sudan
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Security Council
Financial Contribution

SECRETARY-GENERAL/TRAVELS
This morning, the Secretary-General addressed the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development, which is taking place in Yokohama this year. The Secretary-General said that for more than three decades TICAD, as the Conference is known, has embodied the spirit of multilateralism grounded in mutual respect, shared responsibility and a deep belief in Africa’s potential.
This meeting, he added, comes at a time of interconnected crises and deep inequalities. Tackling these crises, he said, "requires a clear focus not only on development for Africa, but development with Africa."
On the sidelines, he met with the Prime Minister of Japan, Ishiba Shigeru. They exchanged views on a number of issues, including global and regional issues.
Mr. Guterres also met with Dr. Tanaka Akihiko, the President of the Japan International Cooperation Agency, which is the organizer of the Conference.
In all his meetings and exchanges, the Secretary-General emphasized that enhanced cooperation needs to focus on areas where strategic partnerships can drive inclusive growth in Africa, creating decent jobs and accelerating progress towards Agenda 2063 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
His schedule for tomorrow in Yokohama includes more bilateral meetings with attendees of the Conference, and a press encounter in Yokohama.

OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is increasingly dire, with children and adults killed, injured and displaced every single day. Starvation and malnutrition continue to deepen.
And as an example, the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has just shared the latest malnutrition data. They are the largest provider of nutrition screening and treatment in Gaza. They have, since March of this year, when the ceasefire collapsed, UNRWA has screened over 95,000 children aged 6 months to 5 years old for malnutrition across the Gaza Strip. The prevalence of acute malnutrition has risen 15.8 per cent in the first half of August. This means that according to UNRWA’s data, malnutrition has tripled across the Gaza Strip since the ceasefire collapsed. And in Gaza City, acute malnourishment has reached 28.5 per cent, meaning more than one in four children in Gaza City is now considered malnourished.
According to UNRWA screenings, malnutrition in Gaza City is now almost six times the level it was since the ceasefire.
But despite the impediments and the systematic restrictions, the UN and its partners are sparing no effort to bring critical food and supplies into the Gaza Strip to avoid an even further deterioration of the situation.
Today, OCHA released an update on what we delivered in Gaza between August 3rd and 16th. A few highlights:
On food: Teams brought in about 12,000 metric tons of wheat flour and other supplies and supported more than 80 community kitchens providing over 400,000 meals every day.
That’s twice as much as in late July but less than half of what we were able to bring in April.
On nutrition: the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) brought in enough therapeutic food for 30,000 acutely malnourished children for one month; infant formula sufficient for 1,250 babies; and over 3,500 cartons of high-energy biscuits. Partners also continued screening thousands of children for malnutrition.

Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=20%20August%202025

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42utH1Fxa98