Lebanon

In Tonga, following the volcanic eruption, humanitarian colleagues report that over 80 per cent of the population have been impacted by the disaster, with three confirmed fatalities to date.  Relief efforts are scaling up, including by the United Nations Children’s Fund, but it is difficult to reach remote areas.

Fifty-five journalists and media workers were killed around the world in 2021, according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) – the lowest annual death toll in over a decade.  However, two thirds of those killings took place in countries not experiencing armed conflict and impunity for those crimes remains widespread.

In Myanmar, the United Nations country team there remains deeply concerned over increasing internal displacement and more people needing humanitarian assistance as a result of conflict, political instability and COVID-19 since the military takeover on 1 February.

Marking International Human Solidarity Day, the Secretary-General said that hunger is no longer about lack of food, but largely a man-made disaster, concentrated in countries affected by large-scale, protracted conflict.  He urged the international community to do everything in its power to tackle both hunger and conflict.

Following is the transcript of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks during the meeting of the United Nations family and Prime Minister Najib Mikati and the Lebanese Cabinet, in Beirut today:

Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks on arrival at Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport, today:

The Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Lynn Hastings, has appealed for $510 million to support 1.6 million of the most vulnerable people in Gaza and the West Bank, including in East Jerusalem in 2022.  Forty per cent of Palestinians will require humanitarian assistance next year.

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ video message to the people of Lebanon, in New York today:

United Nations peacekeeping officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo continue to sound alarms over deadly attacks perpetrated by fighters — presumed to be with the militant coalition known as CODECO — against displaced civilians in Ituri Province.  There are currently 1.7 million people displaced in Ituri.

Responding to urgent and growing humanitarian needs in northern Ethiopia, almost 40 trucks with food and other relief supplies from the United Nations and aid partners departed Monday for Tigray, the first convoy since mid-October, and the United Nations Humanitarian Air Service resumed flights to Mekelle.