Aid has continued to flow from Türkiye across three border crossings into the embattled northwest and the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said that it had opened community kitchens in Aleppo and Hama – cities now reportedly occupied by HTS fighters. In neighbouring Lebanon, meanwhile, senior UN aid official Edem...
Renewed fighting last week led by the terrorist group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and other armed factions has engulfed parts of Aleppo, Idlib and Hama, destabilising frontlines that had remained unchanged since 2020. UN human rights office (OHCHR) spokesperson Jeremy Laurence told reporters in Geneva of “a number of extremely...
“The latest developments follow the already disturbing reports of troops from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) being deployed to the conflict zone,” Miroslav Jenča, Assistant Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, told ambassadors. He said the Ukrainian city of Dnipro was hit by a ballistic intermediate-range Russian missile...
Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the UN chief, said in a statement that António Guterres is “deeply alarmed” by the continued escalation across the region. “All acts of escalation are condemnable and must stop,” the statement read. The Secretary-General reiterated his urgent appeal to all parties to cease all military actions,...
The crisis is unfolding as Yemeni Government forces, who are backed by a Saudi-led coalition and Houthi rebels – also known as Ansar Allah – continue their nearly decade-long war. Mr. Grundberg urged the Council “to unite in stopping the bloodshed and supporting every effort to bring peace to a...
In the Lebanese capital, UN humanitarians reported “another night of strikes” and ongoing attacks, as aid workers continued trying to help all those in need. This was “despite their own families being displaced and searching for safety”, said the UN’s top humanitarian coordinator in Lebanon, Imran Riza. “Another sleepless night...
UN humanitarians launched a $426 million appeal for Lebanon on Tuesday to support one million people uprooted by widespread Israeli shelling amid what Israel has described as a “limited, localised and targeted” ground operation into Lebanon, across the UN-patrolled line of separation....
“We are witnessing the deadliest period in Lebanon in a generation and many expressed their fear that this is just the beginning,” said Imran Riza, the UN’s top aid official in Lebanon. “The UN and its partners are closely coordinating with the Lebanese government to support the response efforts. This...
“The series of explosions across Lebanon and rockets fired toward Israel in recent days adds to the volatility,” said Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process. He urged all sides “to refrain from steps that will further exacerbate the situation and take immediate steps to de-escalate.” Settlement...
The UN chief’s appeal came a day after the United States and the United Kingdom, with the support of other countries, launched airstrikes across multiple parts of Yemen in response. The UN Security Council is meeting in New York to discuss the crisis, just days after adopting a resolution demanding...
“Rather than doubling down on failed approaches of violence and coercion that have singularly failed in the past, I urge everyone involved to step out of the illogic of escalation that has only ended in dead bodies, shattered lives and utter despair,” he said in a statement. Record killings...
Mr. Pedersen feared the ramp-up in military operations has the potential to unravel a strategic stalemate in the war that has brought relative calm for almost three years. ‘Escalatory dynamics’ “In repeated briefings, I have warned of the dangers of military escalation in Syria. I am here in person today...