Source: United Nations (Video News)
Noon briefing by Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.
Highlights:
-Secretary-General travels
-Occupied Palestinian territory
-UNRWA
-Lebanon/Israel
-Lebanon/humanitarian
-Sudan
-Ukraine
-Deputy Secretary-General
-Cuba
-Audiovisual Heritage
-Guests and Briefings today
SECRETARY-GENERAL TRAVELS
The Secretary-General is traveling back to New York from Kazan, in the Russian Federation, and he will be back at the United Nations for the Security Council meeting on Monday.
On the margins of the BRICS Summit in Kazan, the Secretary-General met last night with Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation.
The Secretary-General reiterated his position that the Russian invasion of Ukraine was in violation of the United Nations Charter and international law. He further underlined United Nations support for peace, in line with the remarks he delivered at the BRICS summit.
The Secretary-General expressed his belief that establishing freedom of navigation in the Black Sea is of paramount importance for Ukraine, the Russian Federation and for the world’s food and energy security. He fully supports the continuation of negotiations in this regard and expresses his deep appreciation for the work being done by Türkiye.
OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY
The Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs is extremely alarmed by developments at Kamal Adwan Hospital in North Gaza, one of the last functioning medical facilities for civilians who are being killed, injured and trapped by the tightening Israeli siege.
This morning’s reports of a military raid on the hospital are deeply concerning. As we have said repeatedly, hospitals must be protected, both from use for military purposes and from attack, by any party to the conflict.
The World Health Organization says that since the reported raid, the agency has lost touch with personnel at Kamal Adwan.
Yesterday, WHO – accompanied by OCHA, the UN Mine Action Service, and partners – reached Kamal Adwan. The mission took 20 hours, with the team arriving back at 3:30 a.m. this morning. While on their way, the team reported long delays at checkpoints, as hostilities continued nearby, and said that local UN staff were temporarily detained at a mobile checkpoint. The team transferred 23 patients and more than two dozen caregivers from Kamal Adwan to Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
The mission also delivered 10,000 litres of fuel, 180 units of blood, and enough trauma and surgical supplies for 1,600 interventions at Kamal Adwan. And they supplied a range of medicines sufficient for about 5,000 patients.
Kamal Adwan must be protected. It is the only minimally functional hospital providing trauma care in all of North Gaza governorate. Al Awda Hospital remains isolated due to hostilities in its vicinity.
OCHA warns that the humanitarian crisis in North Gaza is rapidly worsening, with humanitarian essentials in extremely short supply. Moreover, the vast majority of attempts to deliver critical assistance continue to be denied or impeded.
Today, Israeli authorities once again denied permission for the delivery of essential food and water supplies to Jabalya.
OCHA warns that intense hostilities persist across the Gaza Strip, including the south. Overnight, an Israeli raid on multiple neighbourhoods of Khan Younis left scores dead and many more injured, including numerous women and children. During the operation, families sought safety in An Nasser hospital, the Maan UNRWA school, and the Al Mawasi area, with most returning home after Israeli forces withdrew. Reports indicate widespread damage to homes, leaving people in urgent need of tents, tarpaulins to cover damaged shelters, hot meals, and clean water.
In the West Bank, OCHA reports that during this month alone, more than 100 incidents linked to Israeli settlers have led to Palestinian casualties and property damage. In October overall, there were some 180 settler-related incidents in almost 90 Palestinian communities across the West Bank, with more than half of these cases involving the olive harvest season.
Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=25%20October%202024