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Briefing by Spokesperson for Secretary-General
The Security Council held an open debate and then consultations this morning on Yemen.
Briefing Council members via videoconference, the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy, Martin Griffiths, said that the situation on the ground in Yemen is changing with great pace and that we need to seize the opportunities for progress.
He provided an update on the implementation of the Stockholm and Hudaydah Agreements.
Regarding the situation in Aden and Abyan, the Special Envoy said that a continuation of this current situation is simply untenable, warning of grave risk of further damage to Yemen’s social fabric and the spread of violence to other southern governorates.
He stressed that the UN remains committed to inclusive dialogue to resolve differences and address the legitimate concerns of all Yemenis.
Also briefing the Council was Ursula Mueller, Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs. She said that we urgently need de-escalation across Yemen – ideally through a nationwide ceasefire that will end the violence. But a ceasefire or not, she stressed, all parties must uphold international humanitarian law. All feasible steps must be taken to avoid harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure. This includes verifying targets, taking precautions in the choice of weapons and cancelling an attack if it is expected to cause disproportionate civilian harm.
This afternoon, at 3:00 p.m., the Polish Presidency has organized an open debate on the situation in the Middle East in the Security Council. The Chef de Cabinet, Maria Luiza Viotti, will represent the Secretary-General and deliver remarks.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that at least 90 civilians have been killed and more than 200 injured since hostilities escalated earlier this month in and around the town of Murzuq in the country’s south-west.
This figure includes some 45 people killed in an airstrike on August 4th and the death or injury of six children on August 8th after a mortar landed on a house hosting internally displaced people.
Casualties on all sides of the fighting have continued as a result of air strikes by planes and drones, indiscriminate rocket attacks and shelling, and direct fighting on the ground.
Although nearly 10,000 people have been displaced by violence in the area since the start of August, some families are reluctant to leave the affected areas because they are afraid of reprisals.
The UN and humanitarian organizations are responding with emergency health care, food distribution, shelter, and non-food items, but access remains difficult due to the active fighting.
We call on all parties to the fighting to urgently ensure the conditions for safe and unimpeded access to people in need and to make sure civilians can leave if they wish. We also remind the parties of their obligations to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure at all times.
The Humanitarian Response Plan for Libya has called for $202 million, but it has only been funded by 30 per cent so far.
In Geneva, the Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, had a productive meeting with the Chinese Envoy for Syria, Mr. Xi.
They shared similar concerns about the humanitarian issues and the situation on the ground. They had reviewed the progress on the constitutional committee, in line with Security Council resolution 2254. Mr. Pedersen said he was grateful for the support of China.
He also noted that moving forward with the composition and rules of procedures were among his priorities and hoped that the work could be completed soon.
The Special Envoy is also very concerned about the continuing fighting in Idlib and stressed that there was no military solution to the conflict.
The Director General for the International Organization for Migration, António Vitorino, is in Mozambique today to meet with authorities to support the humanitarian response to cyclones Idai and Kenneth.
He was also in Beira, where the Secretary-General went earlier this summer and he said there were still urgent humanitarian needs to be met, especially with regards to food, shelter and livelihoods.
As 500,000 people continue to live in destroyed or damaged homes in the country, Vitorino reiterated IOM’s commitment to support the people of Mozambique.
Today in a video message, the Secretary-General congratulated the young people that have won a green ticket to attend the Youth Climate Summit on 21 September here at Headquarters. The Youth Summit is a platform for young leaders who are driving climate action to showcase their solutions at the UN, and to meaningfully engage with decision-makers on the defining issue of our time. The Secretary-General also appealed to youth around the world to follow the Summit online and to be drivers of climate action in their own countries.
100 Green Tickets were given out. They consist of fully-funded, carbon-neutral travel to New York to enable youth from all walks of life to attend the Summit. More than 7,000 applications were received.
Japan has paid its budget dues in full. The payment takes the Honour Roll to a total of 111.
For further details please see SOURCE below.
Office of the Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General