Press Conferences
Briefing by Spokesperson for Secretary-General
The Secretary-General this morning addressed the Security Council on children and armed conflict this morning, telling Council members that in places such as Iraq, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria and Yemen, children suffer through a living hell, and in many cases, it is getting even worse. He said that even wars have rules. Hospitals and schools should be protected. Civilians should be spared. Children should not be used to fight.
The Secretary-General will leave New York tomorrow evening to begin a series of travels to Brazil, Argentina, the West Coast of the United States and Canada.
The United Nations is deeply disturbed by the ongoing destruction of civilian infrastructure, particularly medical facilities, across the country. Over recent days, the UN has received reports of five hospitals hit by airstrikes, including three in Aleppo governorate and one each in Dara’a and Idleb. Dozens of casualties and injuries resulting from these strikes have been reported, including to pregnant women and children.
The World Food Programme (WFP) is scaling up its assistance to reach more than 1.5 million people in desperate need in the Lake Chad Basin. A brutal insurgency by Boko Haram has increased humanitarian needs in what was already a deeply vulnerable region.
The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) reports that with new fighting erupting in Juba, the situation in South Sudan has been getting increasingly tense.
The UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) reports that it has intensified its patrols in and around the Protection of Civilians sites as well as in the wider Juba city area, following reports of sexual violence, including rape.
The UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the African Union-United Nations Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) report today that the EU has contributed 800,000 Euros help the ongoing internal dialogue process in Darfur.