OK, let's start again. Good morning. Welcome to the press briefing.
Today is Friday, ninth of August. We are here in Geneva, the UN.
We have quite a few guests and briefer today
and I would like to start immediately by going to Rome,
where we have Mrs Valerie
who is the Assistant executive director programme
operations of the World Food Programme.
I understand you were recently in the southern Africa
and you are here to brief us about what you saw in In In In Relation with El Nino.
You have the floor and as usual,
we will have a few minutes of introduction
and then we'll open the floor to questions.
Well, thank you. Uh, thank you for the opportunity.
I'm just back from southern Africa where
27 million people across seven countries in
the region are struggling with what has been a devastating El Nino induced drought.
Uh, this past year in Zimbabwe,
uh over 70% of the crop was lost as a result of drought in Malawi and Zambia.
50% of the drought of the crops were were lost and
I visited Zimbabwe together with the
secretary general's climate crisis coordinator,
and I also visited Lesotho.
One of the seven countries affected, uh, together with,
uh with the director General of FA O and the assistant vice president for E Fed.
So a joint Rome based agency mission to to Lesotho now in Zimbabwe,
we found that families are, um, have no stores.
They've they've much earlier in the season than expected.
Uh, they have run out of, um of stocks.
Uh, the the stores and the rural areas are also empty of of grain,
and people are starting to take some very negative, um, coping mechanisms.
They're reducing the number of meals Children are being pulled out of of school.
And we're seeing that already this early in the, um in the season.
So families are making tough choices and in both Zimbabwe
to the prices of maize are going up.
And so people are really being priced out of the of the market,
unable to afford enough food to feed their their families across the region.
we are looking at a lean season that would normally go from
December to march before the next harvest starting as early as October.
So we're gearing up to be providing people with food and cash
to meet their food needs. Uh, during that le
we already started with anticipatory action 500,000
people reached with early warning messages and
cash transfers so that they could take steps to protect their own assets.
Um, and this year, for the first time, the countries in the region were able to, uh,
benefit from climate risk assurance through the African risk capacity.
That has also enabled some early, um, assistance. So families are being supported.
But we are in the process of really scaling up so
that we can be providing full support to households in,
um, in that lean season period.
the governments are mounting their own response across the region.
And as the World Food Programme,
we are supporting the governments with targeting the most vulnerable
people and also with some of the logistics
around procuring food and getting it to the
region and delivering it where it needs to to go so very much a UN response,
but also a government response that that's underway.
very important feature of the, uh,
overall effort in Southern Africa and we saw this in Zimbabwe
is the need to be investing in resilience activities supporting the populations
Water is a key issue in a drought, uh, water for consumption, water for production,
water for animals as well.
Uh, these are the key concerns that community communities are are raising.
And so WFP other UN agencies partner
nongovernmental organisations are really scaling up those
activities that have proven to help mitigate the impact of the of the drought.
And we're linking this with efforts to really help the farmers in the
rural areas adapt their livelihoods so that
they're growing more drought resistant crops.
um and they're making those changes that are needed
not just to better cope with this crisis,
but also for the recurring shocks that are coming as,
um due to the impact of climate change.
So as we scale up the response,
it's super important that we really double down on the resilience
activities which are helping to bolster the shock this year,
but also to protect the households and communities in the years to, uh, to to come.
But I should just highlight that funding is a major concern.
Um, the fiscal space for governments is tight.
The governments in the region are struggling with, uh, with high, uh, debt.
Uh, they have face arrears in some contexts,
and they don't really have the resources to buy and
bring into the country as much food as is required.
Um, and that makes the need of the response even more, uh, important.
In Zimbabwe, the UN humanitarian response plan is 25% funded.
Uh, they would still need the overall UN appeal would still require, uh,
nearly more than 300 million in order to be able to
mount this large scale response and for the World Food Programme.
regional appeal of 400 million, we've only raised 1/5 of those resources.
we are looking for the governments in the region
to do more with the resources that they have.
But we're also calling upon the generosity of
the donor community to support the UN and support
its partners to make sure that those most in need get the support that is required.
Thank you very much. Uh, Mrs Barnier,
I'll um, Open out the floor to question.
First of all, in the room, we have our correspondent of the A FP Robin.
Wait a second. Can you activate the mic?
Yes. Could you tell us a little more about these drought resistant crops? Are they?
Are they completely different crops,
or are they modified strains of the existing crops?
Um, well, both in Zimbabwe
and in Lesotho, where we visited, Um, there's a real emphasis on going back to,
uh to to grains, like sorghum,
which are not new, uh, but were more popular in the past, and lately,
the communities have just shifted their preferences towards maize,
so reintroducing sorghum, but also just looking at even some, you know,
ancient crops and local varieties that are
both more nutritious but also drought resistant.
So really supporting the countries, uh,
to be making the shift in their food systems that they're trying to do.
And the impact of the drought is showing how important that that is.
And in Lesotho, where I visited, um, right now, the country
imports about 80 to 90% of the food that it consumes.
Uh, what it wants to do is take the land that is arable
in the country and make it more productive.
re re revert to some of the crops that Lesotho used to
grow for its population and also used to export for neighbouring uh,
and then put more land into into production and
and hence some of the work on the resilience activities
in Lesotho is about restoring land that is a
result of the changing climate has been degraded over over
time. And and this is in Rome.
We work with the Food and Agriculture Organisation,
which brings the real technical knowledge on, uh on crops.
And we work with the, um the E
uh which is really helping ensure that small holder farmers that
are key for increasing the production have access to the technology,
the know how that they need in order to be more productive and have higher yields.
Other questions IN the room.
I don't see any. So let's go to the platform. Lisa Schlein,
Thanks, Alessandra. Good morning.
Uh, I, I missed the number of people overall who are being affected by this, uh,
by this terrible drought.
is malnutrition a problem, or is it still,
uh, uh, Are you somehow able to
sort of help the Children? Perhaps they don't need that. Are you
are, uh, is WFP or other agencies providing school lunches? Uh
uh, in order to help them, what is being done in terms of this situation? Thank you.
Well, thank you so much for the question.
So it's 27 million people, uh, that are affected by, uh,
by the El Nino induced drought across the region and at the World Food Programme.
We are targeting 5.9 million of those, uh,
with the relief assistance that we are providing.
So those are in far as far as the numbers are are going
in terms of malnutrition.
It is indeed still a concern
in the in the region. Across these countries, 21 million Children are stunted.
um and we are seeing 3.5 million Children who are
struggling with acute malnutrition and who require nutrition treatment.
So these numbers aren't as stark as they are in other parts of the region.
Countries, uh, that are facing,
uh, famine Sudan, for instance.
Um, however, we should not have these kind of numbers in Southern Africa.
And we know that to deal with stunting, uh, to to prevent wasting,
we need to be ensuring that all Children and all women of child bearing
age in particular have access to the nutrients that they require in order to,
So it's not just an issue of filling empty bellies and providing calories.
It's making sure that we are really optimising the opportunity to provide
good nutrition and start to make the changes in the region uh,
that help improve the ability of people to access an affordable,
Bieri, thank you very much for this for this briefing
and good luck with this huge
operation you are conducting there.
Let's stay on the catastrophic effects of
this time not the drought, but the floods with
who has a briefing on the effect of these floods in Sudan on the refugee situation.
So as a heavy seasonal rains kicking across Sudan,
refugees and internally displaced people continue to
bear the brunt in an incredibly dire humanitarian
situation after more than a year of deadly war that has now led to the
tragedy of famine conditions,
all compounded by the growing impacts of climate change.
have already impacted tens of thousands of people across Sudan,
causing further displacement, injuries and death.
including refugees hosted in the country and
local communities in the eastern Casal state,
have been impacted by several floods and heavy rains in the past two weeks.
This includes many families who recently arrived after fleeing violence in Sona
who were sheltering in five gathering sites and reception centres.
Some have been displaced three or four times
already since the start of the conflict.
They have lost their belongings, including food rations,
and are facing significant challenges in
accessing clean water and sanitation facilities,
increasing the risk of waterborne diseases.
More than 400 shelters have also been damaged
in one of a refugee camp, leaving already vulnerable people destitute.
Unh TR, the UN refugee agency and partners are on the ground,
making every effort to assist the most
vulnerable together with the state authorities.
New land has been identified where tents are
being set up to accommodate the affected families.
This new site is expected to host 800 families newly displaced due to the flooding
and some of these tents Emergency shelters have been already installed.
Despite the ongoing rain, at least 200 families have been already relocated
is planning to distribute plastic sheeting to refugees to
repair roofs that have been damaged by the storms.
More rainfall is expected in the eastern and western parts of
the country and to mitigate similar impacts in other states,
White Nile and Blue Nile states.
UN HCR is preposition in Cor relief
items shelter kids cleaning drainages and building
dikes to shore up internal roads and
protect camps and sites hosting displaced people.
Flooding in the Darfur region is also impacted.
The already limited ability of aid aid agencies to reach people in need
the humanitarian needs are reaching epic proportions in
the region as hundreds of thousands of civilian
civilians remains in harm's way and famine has
been recently confirmed in a displacement site.
conflict has already destroyed crops and disrupted livelihoods.
The climate crisis is making those displaced even more vulnerable. Now.
flooded land also means that people are unable to grow crops and graze livestock,
adding to food insecurity and hunger in areas also affected by drought and conflict
In earlier earlier in the year, about a few weeks back,
launched a regional floods appeal for nearly $40
million to assist and protect people 5.6 million refugees,
returnees and internally displaced people from extreme
weather events that are impacting East Africa.
so far, we have only received 5 million of,
uh the request that were made in that appeal,
which is impacting our capacity to actually adapt and and preposition items to
to support those that will be impacted by the by the rains.
Thank you very much. Olga.
just on how the conflict has
impacted on this situation,
could you say a little bit more about
the damage that has done to crops
and also perhaps the benefits that that might come
if this conflict were to come to an end.
So we know that conflict has impacted.
Of course, the ability of people to reach the agricultural land to
also reach their livelihoods continue with their employment.
And that is impacting food insecurity.
Indeed, in different parts,
we are very worried to see that the conflict continues to
spread to areas that are also hosting a large number of,
but also refugees. We know conflict is also
impacted our ability to move and reach those
in need in different parts of the country.
So we continue calling for a ceasefire,
the only solution to this war that is already over a year long.
It's just to stop the war and allow people to get back to their normal lives,
stop deaths, stop displacement and also continue with their livelihoods.
Uh, just maybe to add to that
Robin, I just want to refer you to the
gave to the Security Council on the situation of food in, uh in Sudan
and the need to reopen the
the access to humanitarian aid. It's pretty extensive.
We have it on the UN news website.
Olga. Um, this might be also a question for Alessandra.
Um, next week, we're expecting some, uh, Sudan talks, Um,
leading into, uh, drawing from Robin's question about the prospect of peace.
And obviously there's gonna be some talks here.
What role, if any, will UN, HCR or other UN institutions have in these talks?
Will there be any participation? I know you're not hosting them,
but will you will there be any role?
Because obviously the impact on people, um, may be a big part of this.
Look, the issue here, as we have already discussed by email,
is that this is not a UN initiative.
we welcome all initiatives that can be helpful in solving the crisis in Sudan.
of the Secretary General had held these talks before here.
As you remember, at the Palais,
this is building on this on the efforts of the African Union.
So we really hope that this is going to be bringing to advance the issue of peace.
The specific of what these talks are,
the implications with the UN We will give you more details as soon as we receive them.
As far as you know there's no UN participation
or observer status or whatever in these talks.
As far as you know, we'll let you know as soon as we can.
Hi. Uh, good morning, Olga.
still on the issue of conflict. Unfortunately, I'm
assuming that you and other agencies are unable to reach the, uh,
famine stricken area in northern Darfur.
Are you? Ha? Do you or any other UN agency have any sort of contact with
the, uh, rapid support forces? The, um,
I I in order to try to alleviate the situation there
and your inability to to access this area
are the people there are essentially doomed. I mean, do you expect this
So, indeed, uh, access to that area is very difficult because of the location.
We continue, uh, working, uh, to to bring inside relief items.
Uh, as part of the interagency response from, uh, Chad, As as you know,
uh, so we expect to be able to
to do so in the near future.
And, uh, of course, uh, we know that the reality of the conflict is making this, uh,
But it is important that humanitarian organisations and humanitarian
aid can reach people that are in dire need.
Floods and heavy rains will not make this any easier.
So indeed we continue working as part of the whole inter agency. We have items
in place and ready to support those in need in
I don't see other questions on Sudan
so thank you. Yes, go ahead. Can I just flag?
You will get the note via email shortly and there will
be also be a role and photos in case are needed
useful. Somebody has a phone on.
I hear interferences. No, it's OK.
Ok, so let's go to our next speaker who come to us from Amman.
communication officer for the Middle East and North Africa.
Salim, you are calling in from Amman.
I hope you have a good connection.
Let me see if we can get hold of you.
am here. Can you hear me?
Very well And we can see you. Thank you very much. So thank you for being with us today
and for the briefing you are going to give us on what?
It doesn't mean to live in Gaza for a child. 10 months in the conflict, please.
Uh, unfortunately, the unrelenting war in Gaza continues to inflict horrors
on thousands of Children keeping far too many separated from their loved ones. Uh,
last Saturday, I met eight months old Yah.
Four days. Uh uh. Four days and several attempts later,
Uh, after a long and dangerous drive together
through military chief points to the north of the Gaza Strip. Yah, I
met his father for the first time.
Uh, his father's a carer.
Awan Hospital on 27 November last year.
The boy was born prematurely and was transferred
to Shifa Hospital for neon
Shortly after a military operation took place around
Chifa Hospital and he was evacuated to Al aa
in the middle of the Gaza Strip.
But, uh, unfortunately, his parents were forced to stay in the north.
Yahia was eventually placed into temporary care
and kept safe with the support of UNICEF
and partners who managed to stay
in touch with his family.
Finally, the time came to reunite him with his mother and father,
who had to endure months of uncertainty and fear
before being able to hold him in their hands.
The successful mission included seven Children from
four families and was a rare moment,
really, uh, of joy in an otherwise bleak environment.
But it wasn't without its complexities.
Our mission has been denied access three times before.
Uh, despite pre co ordination and initial approvals.
Just two weeks earlier, another UN
was hit by three bullets while waiting at a holding point
But our small women seeing
Zakaria, the father, cry with joy and relief is why we persist.
Despite the many challenges,
I was shocked by the depth of suffering, destruction and widespread
The footage the world sees on TV S,
gives an important peak into the living hell people are enduring for over 10 months.
What it does not fully show is how behind the crumbled buildings,
whole neighbourhoods, livelihoods and dreams have been levelled to the ground
when you see an image of a displaced
mother carrying her child and all their belongings
on her back. You don't see hundreds of uprooted people following her up the road.
yah here is really the story of thousands
the life of a child in Gaza in a month. 10 of this conflict is not a life.
and everything is running out.
Food, water, fuel, medicines,
When you walk through the mazes of makeshift shelters, you struggle to climb
and you smell the strong odour of sewage filling The paths around
you are struck by the many Children hovering around, asking one question,
Water and waste are a huge problem
Bela, where the bulk of displaced people have played
The partially functioning functioning
sanitation system is estimated to be overloaded by
seven times its capacity due to the,
uh, massive waves of displacement to the area.
decades old sewage network is mostly clog and leaking.
Families urgently asked me for soap and hygiene supplies they are using uh,
water and salt to clean their Children or boiling water with linen
to try and treat skin rashes.
They tell me doctors don't have the capacity or medicines to treat them
with more serious medical cases arriving every hour and no supplies on the shelves.
And so the rashes spread.
There is also a serious lack of medicine for
Children with pre-existing conditions like cancer and congenital ailments.
At a lot of hospital, I met 10 year old Abdul
injury, uh, during an airstrike.
His leg never healed, and after following up with doctors,
he was diagnosed with bone cancer.
said to me with a broken voice,
I wish my child would die
and not to be suffering as he is now.
Can you believe that I was dead? Now
a child with a disease in Gaza Strip has been handed a sentence of a slow death
because he cannot receive the treatment he needs,
and he is unlikely to survive long enough to make it out.
Their only hope for survival
are still clinging to the belief that this day will come
and UNICEF shares this hope.
Achieving a ceasefire is still possible.
More necessary now than ever and way overdue.
And everyone must do everything in their power to advocate for it.
Salim, for this briefing on the appalling situation of Children in Gaza.
we really call for all parties to the
conflict to respect their obligation under international humanitarian law
and respect the life and safety of civilians.
Um, I'll open the floor to questions now in the room first.
I don't see any hand up on the plat.
I didn't see you. Go ahead.
Sally Gorky is our correspondent of the
uh thank you, sir, for your briefing.
recognition for everything you're doing for these people.
We know that the world is now watching.
seems to be able to do anything
because there is a state in the world
And my question was not to know
We know that. But you as humanitarians,
answer every question. Yeah. Go
I think it's, uh, really, uh, tough to be there. And tough to, uh, meet those Children
who are struggling and suffering day in, day out. Uh,
This testimony that I just shared is just a fraction of what you see on the ground,
Uh, in terms of suffering, uh, Children have not been in school for almost a year.
Children have not had any
normal meal. Maybe in in almost a year. Um, just walking through the the camps and,
uh, hospitals you can you can see you can hear and and you can
of of Children and their families who are incapable of providing the support and,
uh uh, the care that their Children need. So,
yes, it it is a horrible reality.
And yes, uh, we ought to Uh uh, we owe it to them, uh, to to stop this. Uh uh.
Any other question to UNICEF
on the in the room? No, on the platform.
So, Salim, thank you very much for briefing the journalist here in Geneva.
And good luck with the continuation of your work in this terrible situation.
Um, and now I'll turn to my rights. Uh, Liz is here with two points.
I think we start with Iran.
Yes. Good morning, everyone.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
is extremely concerned about reports
that in the space of two days this week,
Iranian authorities reportedly executed at least 29 people across the country.
This represents an alarmingly high number of executions
in such a short period of time.
We've also verified that 38 people were executed in July.
Now, this brings the reported number of executions to at least 345 this year
Those executed were mainly convicted of drug related offences or murder.
Nearly half of the executions since the beginning
of 2024 were for drug related offences.
Imposing the death penalty for offences not involving
intentional killing is incompatible with international human rights,
As we have repeatedly emphasised,
we also have recurring concerns about the lack
of due process and fair trial standards.
several executions were carried out with neither the
prisoner's family nor legal council being informed.
Minorities, including Kurds, hawai,
Baluch continue to be disproportionately affected by these executions.
It's time for Iran to join the
growing consensus worldwide towards universal abolition by
imposing a moratorium on executions with a
view to ultimately abolishing the death penalty.
Thank you. Li questions to,
Thank you. Just on the 29
a figure that you've been able to verify so far?
Could you say a little bit a little bit more about what we know about that figure?
Yes, thank you. As you can imagine, it is difficult to get information
Some executions are taking place without the
families or their council being informed.
Our colleagues working on Iran do obviously have many contacts
and they do try and follow up as best they can.
We're not able to verify absolutely, which is why we're saying,
But as you can see, this forms part of a wider pattern of executions.
At least 345 reported executions since the beginning of the year.
We also have information.
We didn't want to put too many figures in this note, but I'll give you another figure
It is reported that at least 87 people have
been executed since the presidential elections on 7 July,
but the government doesn't publish data on that.
It doesn't keep a tally, so that's why it makes it so difficult.
But we do think it's very important to highlight this
because it is really such an arbitrary deprivation of life.
There's the lack of fair trial guarantees and due process,
and it also feeds into the call that the High Commissioner has repeatedly made
that the office has repeatedly made towards
the universal abolition of the death penalty
So with the change of government is,
is there any indication that there might be a change of stance
or a change of policy at all when it comes to executions.
has taken place relatively recently, So I think we would probably need more time
and more monitoring to be able to really get a sense of whether there is a shift.
Precisely as I keep saying that it is so difficult to get actual information,
but it's a very good point.
And I think it's something that colleagues working on Iran
will be monitoring very closely.
Thank you, Liz. Other questions to human rights.
No, there is No, There is another question on the platform. But if
if there are no question on Iran, I'll go to the platform. Nick Nika
Yeah. Thank you. Um, I wonder if you could just say whether,
um, you've been able to determine whether the, uh
victims or or the people who have been executed in these cases,
We're seeing the same kind of disproportionate representation of, um,
minorities in the executions, as has previously been reported.
And I wonder to what extent Um, there's any concern,
um, that people are being, um,
Um, but for offences that actually had nothing to do with drugs. Thanks.
we are concerned about the fact that
minorities continue to be disproportionately affected.
We don't have a specific breakdown of figures as to which
minorities have been executed, but it is again part of the pattern that we have seen.
a lot of the executions are for drug related offences is incredibly concerning.
Whether these actually have anything to do with drugs offences or not
again is very difficult to establish precisely
because there is so little information coming out
that so many of these executions take place as it were hidden from view behind
your question about minorities,
The Human Rights Office has observed a crackdown on religious minorities in Iran,
including a series of executions of members of
ethnic and religious minority groups since mid December.
and a lot, as we said in the note, do not
amount to the most serious crimes do not amount to intentional killing.
They are very much focused on drug related
As with other information regarding around,
we are working to try and verify
figures regarding the executions of minority members.
We think we have information indicating
that around 20 per cent of those executed since
the beginning of the year belong to minorities.
And obviously that's quite a high percentage,
given that these are minorities as it were.
So that really is the information that we have.
Yuri. I suspect this is not on Iran. But if it is, I'd like to ask you a question.
Alessandra, this is not an Iran.
OK, let's wait a second because I think Jamie also has a question non related to Iran.
But Liza has another point and I'd like her to conclude her briefing and then
we take questions on everything you want.
your other points. Go ahead.
Yes, it is. Thank you for that. As you will have seen.
We issued a comment by the High Commissioner a bit earlier this morning on
Peru, and if I may, I will just highlight this.
The High commissioner deeply regrets that a law setting
a statute of limitations in Peru for war crimes and
crimes against humanity committed prior to the first of
July 2002 is now set to come into force.
The law contravenes the country's obligations under international law
and is a troubling development amid a broader backlash against
human rights and the rule of law in Peru.
Crimes against humanity and war crimes are among
the most serious violations of international law.
And neither amnesties nor statutes of limitations should extend to them.
Those responsible for atrocity crimes must be held accountable,
consistent with international law.
Lack of accountability for these crimes whenever committed,
risks endangering the rights to truth, justice,
reparations and guarantees of non recurrence for thousands
of victims of grave violations in Peru.
Thank you. These questions on
So I let you go. Let's start with Jamie.
Oh, wait, Sorry. Sorry. I think Isabel might have a question on Peru.
Yes. Yes. Excuse me. Thank you. Uh, good morning. Um,
in the, um, in what you read. Um,
Lisa is, uh, said that, uh, this, uh,
new development is happening amid a broader backlash against
human rights and the rule of law in Peru.
I would like you to describe for us. What is this broader situation? Thank you.
weeks, months we have seen a deterioration
Concerns have been expressed by our office with regard to what is happening.
So the fact that this statute of limitations has been
approved and will come into force adds to our concerns.
this is very specifically about
the crimes committed prior to 2002.
But it clearly has been pushed through in an atmosphere where, for example,
judges are feeling threatened.
Human rights defenders are feeling threatened. There is very much concern.
So that's the broader context that we're referring to.
Thank you very much, Liz. Ok, Jamie.
Hi. Um wanted to turn to, uh, the Middle East if you could, um, address.
There was some comments from the Israeli Finance Minister.
I believe it was yesterday or the day before.
Um, and just want to know if you have any comment on that,
there's been a lot of outrage obviously expressed in
Yes. Thank you for your question, Jamie.
If I may, I will hand over to my colleague Jeremy to take that question.
The, um the the high Commissioner is, uh, shocked and appalled
by the words of Minister Smore
uh according to whom letting 2 million Palestinians in Gaza starve to death
in order to free hostages.
He condemns these words in the strongest terms
against innocent civilians.
of civilians as a method of warfare is a war crime.
The collective punishment of the Palestinian population
This direct and public statement
risks inciting other atrocity crimes.
Such statements, especially by public officials, must cease immediately.
They must be investigated.
And if Fo, if found to amount to a crime, must be prosecuted
We also repeat what we have said
There must be an immediate ceasefire.
All hostages must be released
and humanitarian aid must be allowed to flow into Gaza.
Indeed. Thank you very much. Ok, Got several hands here.
Let let's, uh, you have a follow up, Jamie.
Well, yeah, I just would Thank you, Jeremy, for that,
um you said that, uh, who's gonna be responsible for monitoring whether or not
there are crimes that are follow that follow from these comments?
I mean, how do you How do you
in the first instance Jamie, it's always the state
So this is an immediate call to the Israeli authorities
that it is their responsibility to monitor this behaviour.
Beyond that, let's take it one step at a time. That's the first stage.
It's the Israeli's responsibility.
Um, I have seen Mohamed. Yeah. Please.
Alexandra. My question also will be about Gaza.
yesterday, Israeli army has called for
Also this morning, Israeli army announced that
a military offensive. My question is,
is there a safe area? People to go
Have any meaning for Gaza anymore? Thank you.
OK, so thank you very much for that. This really?
I think your question has been also tackled by Salim.
And if he's on the line, he can still is welcome to come in.
We have said it repeatedly.
There is no safe area in Gaza and there is no safe area for Children.
There is no safe area for civilians.
the Office of the co ordination of humanitarian affairs has
indeed spoken about the problem related to this further order of
moving from the Israeli forces to move these people again,
as you know it is again and again and again.
we call for all parties to the conflict
to respect their obligations under international humanitarian law.
And this includes allowing civilians to live for safer areas, really safer areas
and allowing their return as soon as circumstances allow.
People must be able to receive humanitarian
assistance whether they move or they stay.
I don't know if you want to add something, Jeremy.
Thanks, Alexandra, just to repeat what she said.
And we said it how many times
And how many times have people been told to move
over and over again? You go into another sub
The the the safe places sometimes are attacked themselves
on the on the way to the safe place
they become victims again.
the bottom line. No safe place.
Yes, sure. Thanks for your question.
So when it comes to the the mass casualties, and as you know,
Local, uh, workers as well as international
have been killed and affected by this,
Our position has always been,
um, we provide, uh, information to the public. Now that public, that information
by international, uh, mechanisms.
So those mechanisms, as you know,
and the the Commission of Inquiry.
it's, uh the information we've been providing has been widely used already,
and I imagine will continue to be used.
I'm sorry, I speak English, but Musa raised
guess maybe it's on Gaza. So I'd like to ask Musa
to ask this question first, and then we'll come to you.
On the first question he is asking,
Um, and it's been, uh, with
um That the Our office, uh, the work that we've contributed, and it has been cited
in the hearings that have taken place.
OK, thank you very much. Let me go to
Yin now, who has been very patient.
Sandra. The first question will be on Gaza. This is not really a question.
Uh, Jeremy, if you can share with us, uh, what you said about, uh,
of the Ministry of Finance of Israel because I didn't. So I see this, uh, release.
Or maybe I missed it. I don't know,
Uh, and my question is, maybe for Liz. Uh, it's on, uh, Russia,
uh, numerous testimonies with video to support, uh,
show civilians targeted by Ukrainian soldiers in the Coast Oblast.
A dozen were killed for now, and about 60 were wounded.
Uh, the cars are wiled with bullets. We can see from all the video that are published.
Do you follow this information on social networks and the media?
And do you conduct this investigation for human
rights violation or potential human rights violations.
Jeremy, I don't know if you can
take care of sending the notes. I
think we have already received the notes of what Liz said.
I've seen it in the mail. Maybe I can share with you. Thank you.
Liz. On the second question.
Yes. With regard to what has been happening in
We are concerned about the reports of civilian casualties in the Kirk
colleagues have been trying to follow up on this.
Now it is a challenge to obtain information as the UN Human
Rights Office does not have a monitoring presence in the Russian Federation.
Clearly, colleagues are looking at the information that they can gather.
And you mentioned some video so clearly these the kind of things that they
They're trying to obtain more information,
and they will report findings
in the next periodic report, which is planned to be released in late September.
Thank you very much. Um uh, I'll, uh, let me Sorry,
Maria. Uh, yeah. You You have a follow up?
Yes. Thanks. It's just a quick follow up.
You mean that what is happening now will be reporting in the next
in the next report that will be present on the conflict
between Russia and Ukraine in September this year.
So, you mean in one month maybe we will have some updates by your office on that?
That's my understanding from the information that I've been
given by colleagues that they're trying to obtain information
on the civilian casualties and related harm connected with the attacks
And they will aim to report their findings in the next periodic report
that is planned to be released in late September. Yes,
Thank you, Liz. Uh, Maria
Uh, Arita, uh, the correspondent of the National. I don't know if you know her.
Yes. Thank you. Alessandra, My question is, uh, Fist.
It's regarding any comments that the office may
have on the situation in Venezuela in the
aftermath of the presidential election,
where there's been a new wave of repression
that includes 1000 people that have been arbitrarily detained.
And, uh, we have, uh, journalists and protesters that are being charged
as terrorists because they're using WhatsApp. I don't know if, uh,
uh, the office is aware of this and uh if they would have any comments on it, thank you,
Thank you for that. Clearly, our office and the high commissioner
have been and are following very closely events developments in Venezuela.
has expressed concern about the numerous cases
of arbitrary detention of peaceful protesters,
including Children and adolescents as well of journalists,
members of political parties, human rights defenders and
other voices deemed of dissent
The High Commissioner is calling on the authorities to
release all those who have been arbitrarily detained immediately
and put an end to this practise.
So we are monitoring it very, very closely. As you can imagine,
everyone has the right to protest peacefully and express their views freely
including in connection with the electoral process
that has now passed and obviously the
the issue, the situation in the wake of the elections that were held in Venezuela
and I would add to that Maria Alejandra that the
secretary general spoke by phone with Secretary of State Blinken
to discuss the situation in Venezuela.
Our basic point is always the same, I think has been repeated several times
the need to resolve electoral disputes in Venezuela peacefully
and ensure the complete transparency of election results.
figure I might as well throw you a curveball.
the, uh or a Google for those who prefer other sources,
Um, the, uh, quick question, Uh, we've seen that, uh,
some concerts that were supposed to be held in Vienna.
for Taylor Swift, um, have been cancelled,
wondering if there are any human rights implications, freedom of assembly,
or various other comments that the United
Nations could provide about the cancellation that which
has affected a lot of people and made a lot of people very sad.
Yeah, that is that is something which has really been making the headlines.
It's definitely a good demonstration of the fact that radicalization of
people through the use of social media is really a concern.
there has been yesterday. I don't know if you saw it, Jamie.
A long briefing by the head of the Office of Counter terrorism of
the UN who spoke about the daesh and the dangers of the ADA
and its associates. If you need the text of his briefing. We can provide it to you.
he specifically spoke about this threat. But maybe you have something to add.
I wouldn't really have anything specific to add on that.
I would say, I think that covers it.
we do look at the kind of issues that may come up with regard to human rights.
Taylor Swift was not on our list of issues that we were looking at.
But we know how hugely important it is globally for so many people.
But really, if you want the notes from Mr Vonk,
Yeah, he was in front of the Security Council.
Yeah, he gave the briefing.
He was a briefing to the Security Council on the threats of daesh
affiliations or whatever they call it.
I don't see any other hand.
So that brings us to my final notes.
Just to remind you that the commission sorry the commission,
the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
is finished now or is finishing now?
The report examining the report of Pakistan,
the next country on the list of Bosnia Herzegovina,
United Kingdom, Iraq and Belarus.
Just to inform you that next Monday
the Committee on the Rights of Persons
With Disabilities will open its 31st session,
during which he will review the reports of Burkina Faso, Vienna, Netherlands,
Ghana, Belarus, Belgium, Denmark,
Mauritius and Ukraine along a list.
I'm happy to send it to you if you need.
We don't have the date of the next conference on this amendment meeting,
but we will let you know as soon as we get it.
Any other question to me or
any other question in general,
To the colleagues connected? No,
thank you very much. So have a nice weekend and I'll see you on Tuesday. Thank you.
