United Nations published this video item, entitled “Security Council, Gaza, Sudan & other topics – Daily Press Briefing (19 Dec 2023)” – below is their description.
Noon Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.
Highlights
SECURITY COUNCIL
GAZA
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO
TRIP ANNOUNCEMENT
SUDAN
SUDAN HUMANITARIAN
SYRIA
LIBYA
DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF KOREA
YEMEN
JOURNALISTS
ANGOLA
AFGHANISTAN
SECURITY COUNCIL
In a briefing at the Security Council this morning on the situation in the Middle East, the Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland, told Council members that 2023 ends as one of the deadliest in the history of this conflict.
He warned that, amid displacement at an unimaginable scale and active hostilities, the humanitarian response system is on the brink.
Wennesland also underscored the need to enable the parties to re-engage on the long-delayed political path to a two-State solution, noting that the UN’s efforts to support this objective has already begun through active consultations in the region.
For his part, Major General Patrick Gauchat, Head of the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO), said since 8 October, many ceasefire violations have occurred across the Blue Line between Israel and Lebanon and on the Golan between Israel and Syria. But both Israel and Lebanon, he added, indicated their willingness to improve security, and both Israel and Syria mentioned their strong will to keep the armistice in place.
GAZA
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that telecommunications and internet services in southern Gaza have been partially restored following the longest shutdown since the onset of the crisis.
These recurrent interruptions and the lack of electricity hinder access to vital information and severely affect humanitarian relief efforts.
UNRWA continues to provide health care to displaced people at shelters.
Since the beginning of December, the World Food Programme also distributed high energy biscuits to about 600,000 internally displaced people in designated shelters. In addition, WFP has distributed food parcels or wheat flour to about 110,000 internally displaced people during the past two weeks.
Between the 12th and 17th December, only two of the UN’s humanitarian partners were able to operate in the northern area of Gaza due to the security situation. They distributed food to more than 46,000 internally displaced people in shelters. In the south, 11 of the UN’s partners have provided food to some 2.5 million people over the past week.
UNICEF delivered nutrition supplements for more than 60,000 children inside shelters, as well as supplements for pregnant and breastfeeding women.
On shelter, last week, UN partners distributed 2,300 kitchen kits, nearly 57,000 blankets and more than 27,000 mattresses in the south. But there is still a significant shortage of shelter materials ahead of the winter, including tents and plastic sheeting.
The amount of aid crossing into Gaza does not meet a fraction of the needs. The UN needs uninterrupted and unconditional flows of basic commodities into Gaza – for that the UN needs the conditions to deliver aid safely inside Gaza wherever people need the UN’s support.
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO
Tomorrow, 20 December, the Congolese people will be called to choose their representatives during the presidential, legislative, provincial, and municipal elections. On this occasion, the Secretary-General reaffirms the continued support of the United Nations to the Congolese people, through his Special Representative in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and looks forward to the holding of peaceful, transparent, and inclusive elections that will consolidate the country’s democratic institutions and put it on the path of economic prosperity.
To this end, he calls on the authorities of the DRC, political leaders, civil society, and the independent electoral commission to ensure that all eligible voters have access to the polling stations and cast their ballots freely, without fear of intimidation or political persecution.
The Secretary-General deplores episodes of violence recorded during the electoral campaign and urges all political actors and their supporters to refrain from any actions that would further incite violence or exacerbate hate speech against certain communities or groups and attacks against women candidates. He encourages all parties to exercise maximum restraint in their words and actions.
Full Highlights
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United Nations YouTube Channel
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