Noon Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.
Highlights:
- Occupied Palestinian Territory
- Yemen
- East Africa/Floods
- Haiti
- Myanmar
- Ukraine
- Financial Contributions
- Guests Today
OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) continues to warn about the potentially devastating consequences of a ground operation in Rafah.
Today’s evacuation orders for East Rafah will only worsen civilians' suffering. They are being instructed to relocate to Al Mawasi, which is already overcrowded and lacking safety and essential services.
A mass evacuation on this scale is impossible to carry out safely. OCHA says the area of Rafah under evacuation orders covers more than 30 square kilometres.
There are nine sites sheltering displaced people in the area. It is also home to three clinics and six warehouses.
As of today, more than three-quarters of the Gaza Strip is under evacuation orders. Any escalation of hostilities resulting from a full-scale incursion into Rafah will push residents and displaced people currently living there past their breaking point.
UNICEF says that children account for half of the more than a million people sheltering in Rafah.
In a statement today, the agency called for children not to be forcibly relocated, saying there is nowhere safe for them to go. UNICEF said that potential evacuation corridors are likely mined or littered with unexploded ordnance, and shelter and services in areas for relocation are likely to be limited.
In war, there is an obligation to protect civilians. One fundamental way to do this is to allow civilians to leave for safer areas. But they must have enough time to leave, as well as a safe route and place to go.
Importantly, displaced civilians’ basic needs must be met, and they must be allowed to return as soon as the circumstances allow.
The United Nations is not taking part in involuntary evacuations or in the setting up of any displacement zones in southern Gaza.
As we have said repeatedly - any operation in Rafah would also push an already fragile aid operation to a breaking point.
Until now, all fuel entering Gaza comes through the Rafah crossing. Any disruption of this fuel supply would halt our humanitarian work.
And regarding the closure of Al Jazeera in Israel, the United Nations stand firmly against any decision to roll back freedom of the press. A free press provides an invaluable service to ensure that the public is informed and engaged.
YEMEN
In a joint statement today, more than 190 organizations, including UN agencies, appealed for sustained support for the more than 18 million people in need in Yemen, warning that this year’s humanitarian appeal for the country is just 16 per cent funded, with only $400 million received of the total $2.7 billion.
Despite access and funding constraints, the United Nations and its partners continue to reach millions of people each month.
The group noted that the Sixth Senior Officials Meeting on Yemen is taking place in Brussels tomorrow, 7 May, and this should be a critical opportunity to galvanize more support to address the worsening crisis in the country.
Full highlights: www.un.org/sg/en/content/ossg...