The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
UN Geneva Press Briefing - 16 August 2024
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1:16:50
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Michele Zaccheo, Chief of Radio, TV & Webcast Section at the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid briefing, which was attended by the spokespersons and representatives of the United Nations Human Rights, the World Food Programme, the World Health Organization, the United Nations Refugee Agency, and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
Bangladesh transition - a historic opportunity
Ravina Shamdasani, for the United Nations Human Rights (OHCHR), stated that the transition in Bangladesh was an historic opportunity to ensure governance would be anchored in human rights, inclusivity, and rule of law, stressing the need for accountability for all those responsible for human rights violations and violence. “The transition ahead presents an historic opportunity to reform and revitalize the country’s institutions, to restore fundamental freedoms and civic space, and to give all in Bangladesh a part in building the future,” the High Commissioner for Human Rights said, as his issued a preliminary report on the protests and unrest in the country in recent weeks. “Accountability for violations and justice for the victims are key for the way forward and will need to be accompanied by a national healing process,” Türk said. “A comprehensive, impartial and transparent investigation into all human rights violations and abuses that have occurred will be a critical first step.”
Ms. Shamdasani stressed that there were strong indications, warranting further independent investigation, that the security forces had used unnecessary and disproportionate force in their response to the situation. Additional, alleged violations, that also warranted thorough, impartial, and transparent investigations, included extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, and detention, enforced disappearances, torture and ill-treatment, and severe restrictions on exercise of freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly. Following the resignation of the Government on 5 August 2024, there were also reports of looting, arson and attacks on members of religious minorities, as well as reprisals against and revenge killings of members of the former ruling party and police. On 15 August, mobs armed with bamboo sticks, iron rods and pipes had reportedly assaulted supporters of the former Prime Minister. Journalists had also been reportedly attacked and threatened preventing them from filming at the scenes. All those responsible for human rights violations, including those who had used or ordered the unnecessary and disproportionate use of force, had to be held to account and victims provided reparations and effective remedies.
This week, the High Commissioner had spoken to the Chief Adviser to the Interim Government, Muhammad Yunus, assuring him that the OHCHR stood in solidary with the people of Bangladesh at this time and were committed to supporting the Interim Government for a successful transition that is inclusive and advances the rights of all the people in Bangladesh.
Full OHCHR report can be found here.
Ms. Shamdasani, answering a question, said that the OHCHR report was based on media reports, open sources, and other reliable sources from within the country. The report did not speak of definite proofs or evidence, but it was clear that hundreds of people had been killed. The following week, the OHCHR was going to deploy a working level mission to Bangladesh to look into the violence in more depth, engage with actors from across the society, and aim to support the ongoing transition with accountability and inclusiveness. It was important that there be independent investigations regardless of who the perpetrators and the victims were.
Hunger in Sudan
Leni Kinzli, for the World Food Programme (WFP), speaking from Nairobi, said that the WFP welcomed the news that the Adre border crossing from Chad into Sudan would be opened, as there was a race against time to save lives in war-torn Sudan. Across the country, WFP was scaling up assistance to 14 areas either in famine or at risk of famine, largely located in Darfur, Kordofan, Khartoum, and Gezira, with the aim to support up to 8.4 million people by the end of the year. WFP was immediately mobilizing vital food and nutrition supplies to be transported via the Adre corridor over the coming weeks. Trucks had to be moving across this border every single day to get a consistent flow of aid into the region. Right now, two convoys, with nearly 6,000 metric tons of food and nutrition supplies for around half a million people were being loaded, destined for risk of famine areas in the North, Central and West Darfur states as soon as official Government communication and clearances were received.
This development came at a crucial time, as the only other border crossing from Chad into Darfur (via Tine) had become largely impassable due to heavy rains, where around 30 trucks full of WFP assistance had been unable to cross a flooded seasonal river for nearly a month.
Across Sudan, what little hope the Sudanese were holding onto after 16 months of war was being swept away by heavy rainfall and floods. The rainy season was exacerbating the already devastating food security situation in Sudan. Floods were forcing more people from their homes, increasing humanitarian needs, and cutting off communities from vital assistance. Heavy rains had destroyed key bridges and made it extremely difficult for aid convoys to pass through muddy, flooded roads. Ms. Kinzli stressed that it was the time for all actors, especially parties to the conflict, to come together and act in the interest of the Sudanese people. The ongoing Geneva peace talks offered a vital opportunity for the international community to address widespread operational challenges and access impediments directly with the warring parties obstructing aid delivery. It was critical for that warring parties leave the battlefield and show up at the negotiating table, so that food could get moving to hunger-struck communities across the country in time before it was too late.
Replying to questions from the media, Ms. Kinzli said that the Geneva talks were focused on solving some of the most pressing humanitarian challenges. Sudan was the world’s largest hunger crisis, with 54 percent of the population not being able to eat adequately every day. Some 755,000 people were now in the highest category of food insecurity. WFP had food prepositioned in Chad. Darfur was the size of Spain, she explained, and inside Darfur there were several large areas which were at risk of famine; a number of roads were currently not passable because of the rains.
Margaret Harris, for the World Health Organization (WHO), responding to a question, explained that the WHO was pleased to see the opening of the Adre crossing, which had been advocated for for a long time. Without access, no aid could be provided. Malnutrition could have very grave health consequences, she stressed; this was especially dangerous for children. Access to healthcare was also very constrained because of insecurity; there was shortage of medicine and materials, and health workers were not being paid. People were dying from the lack of access to basic medications. There were reports form numerous states of cholera, dengue, measles, meningitis, and other diseases. Olga Sarrado, for the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), noted that the UNHCR had not seen an increase of arrivals from Sudan to Chad, which still stood at around 1,300 arrivals per day. People crossing into Chad said that they were fleeing hunger. Those people had been living in the conflict areas for over a year, which had severely restricted their access to livelihoods. UNHCR welcomed the opening of the Adre crossing, and some of its trucks were now moving into Adre. Continued cross-border access and unimpeded movement inside Darfur were needed.
Mpox
Bronwyn Nichol, Senior officer for public health in emergency at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), gave an example of an ill man in rural Democratic Republic of the Congo, who had visited a traditional healer, who had then correctly identified mpox symptoms and the man had eventually been referred to medical facilities, provided adequate care and recovered. Ms. Nichol emphasized the importance of awareness raising and fighting stigma surrounding mpox. The IFRC was ramping up response efforts over the surge of mpox cases across Africa, which had triggered WHO and Africa CDC to declare the epidemic a public health emergency of international and continental concern over the past three days. With more than 17,000 suspected or confirmed cases and a devastating death toll of 500 deaths in at least 12 countries, the epidemic had surpassed the scale of previous years. The case fatality rate was at 3.2 percent. Volunteers were looking for possible mpox cases and reporting them to local health authorities. Shortages of vaccines and treatment were affecting adequate response, and without them the epidemic would continue to spread. IFRC volunteers came from the communities and understood well local intricacies. Fight against mpox was also about supporting communities to protect themselves. The most vulnerable should not be left alone in their response. Ms. Nichol stressed that this was a continental crisis which required a coordinated global response. The IFRC was at the forefront of the response to the mpox outbreak in Africa, with extensive experience managing previous disease outbreaks, such as Ebola and COVID-19. With a vast network of more than four million volunteers and 14,000 staff across the continent, the IFRC network was providing critical support to governments, including community-based surveillance, risk communication and community engagement, and mental health services.
More information is available here.
Responding to questions, Ms. Nichol stated that most vaccine stocks were with wealthier nations, and far away from those who needed them the most. Many people were turned away from treatment because those were not covered by their governments. Rich countries should share their vaccines without delay. Vaccines existed, stressed Ms. Nichol, and access to them ought to be broadened. Stigma associated with mpox should also be properly addressed. The illness spread quickly and did not care for borders, but there was no room for panic. There was no need to close borders, as people would continue to cross borders, whether it was allowed or prohibited. Mpox was spread through close personal contact, she explained.
Margaret Harris, for the World Health Organization (WHO), said that mpox now was spreading more rapidly than before, and there was a high fatality rate. It was particularly dangerous for those with weak immune systems, and for small children. There was currently no specific treatment, but supportive treatments did help, stressed Ms. Harris. WHO had initiated an emergency listing process so that vaccines could be provided to countries which did not have their own vaccine regulatory frameworks. Manufacturers needed to scale up; vaccination was not the only tool but could be considered the most important available tool. On another question, Ms. Harris explained that there were two mpox vaccines: 0.5. million doses of NVA were currently available, and an additional 2.5 million doses could be produced quickly if there were buyers. There was a considerable stock of the other, LC16 vaccine, which was owned by the Japanese Government, some of which would hopefully be donated. WHO was working with GAVI and UNICEF on organizing vaccine donations. WHO did not recommend closure of borders, said Ms. Harris.
She reiterated that mpox was spread through close personal contact, usually when blisters were visible or when they burst. The key was to know if you had it, trace personal contacts, not be afraid, but do everything possible to stop further spread. Ms. Harris said that the identification of one case in Sweden demonstrated that vigilance and tracing system worked. Sweden had been transparent on the first identified case, and other countries should follow its lead.
Russia-Ukraine war
Responding to a question, Ravina Shamdasani, for the United Nations Human Rights (OHCHR), confirmed that the OHCHR had sent a letter to the Russian authorities, seeking access to Belgorod and Kursk, the two regions of the Russian Federation currently affected by the conflict. No response had been received yet. Olga Sarrado, for the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), said that the UNHCR was concerned about civilian casualties. UNHCR carried out regular visits across Russia to places that temporarily hosted Ukrainian refugees. UNHCR had an office in Moscow but not in Belgorod or Kursk, she explained.
Settler violence in the West Bank
Replying to a question, Ravina Shamdasani, for the United Nations Human Rights (OHCHR), said that the killing in the Palestinian village of Jit the previous day was not an isolated attack. This was a direct consequence of Israel’s settlement policy and the prevailing climate of impunity. Since 7 October 2023, at least 609 Palestinians had been killed in the West Bank, including over 140 children. This needed to stop, and the key would be accountability for perpetrators. There had been very few investigations, and even those had not concluded with justice for victims and their families. There was clearly a state responsibility in this regard.
Announcements
Michele Zaccheo, for the United Nations Information Service (UNIS), informed that the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination was concluding this morning its review of the report of Belarus.
The Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities would begin on 19 August review of the report of Ghana.
On 19 August, the World Humanitarian Day would be marked at UN Geneva and around the world. Mr. Zaccheo reminded that on 19 August 2003, a bomb attack on the UN compound in Iraq had killed 22 UN staff, injuring many others. A solemn ceremony would be held at the Palais des Nations, in front of Room XX at 4 pm, which would also be webcast live. At 3 pm, a “stand in solidarity” event would be held on the stairs near the C.21 door of the Palais des Nations. These would be symbolic events to draw global attention and reject the normalization of civilian suffering and the targeting of humanitarian workers. WHD this year would put spotlight on the heavy toll of conflicts on humanitarian workers and reject the normalization of targeting of aid workers and civilian suffering, explained Mr Zaccheo.
Teleprompter
bourgeois
press,
says
Des
technique.
I'll
start with some announcements, and then
we'll see.
I
think Ravenna is on her way, so
we'll
probably start with Ravenna.
And if we've established a zoom connection with WFP in Nairobi,
we'll go to them and then
to IC. Who is here in the room.
Uh, and, uh,
but we may need to change that order, depending on how things go.
So,
just a quick word about meetings coming up,
Uh, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
as concluding this morning its review of the report of Belarus.
upcoming, Um, upcoming reviews include,
um, include, uh, well, no, that's it. The Belarus is is the is. The last one is, uh
was yesterday afternoon and today this morning,
the Committee on the Rights of persons with Disabilities
will begin next Monday at 3 p.m. Its review
of Ghana,
and,
the next meeting of the Conference of Disarmament will take place on Thursday.
Sorry. That's, uh, sorry. That's an old one.
My apologies.
so
I'm going to,
uh, say a word about, um,
next Monday, which is world humanitarian day.
Um, as you know, uh,
it's observed here in Geneva as it is in locations around the world.
It's commemorated on the 19th of August
by General Assembly resolution because it was
on the 19th of August 2003 that a bomb attack
on the Canal Hotel in Baghdad, Iraq,
killed 22 humanitarian aid workers wounded many others.
Among the victims was UN special representative
Secretary General for Iraq Sergio Vila de
Mayo
and, um
and we will be observing,
uh,
that,
uh, with a solemn commemoration, as as we do every year
at 4 p.m.
on Monday
outside Room 20.
And we will hear on that occasion from our director General EOG Taiana
Valo
via
we will hear from the permanent representative
permanent representative of the Republic of Iraq at
the United Nations office of Geneva is excellently
Abdul
Karim
Hashi Mustafa.
We will hear from the chief of staff of NR,
a Ben majik
me
from the executive secretary of the
staff union, Laura Johnson,
and from the head of the
office,
Mr Ramesh Raja
Singham. So that's
a
that's a wreath laying and and a candle lighting
ceremony with a minute of silence.
Uh, as you know, probably,
um, every year World Humanitarian Day has a special theme,
the term and is led by the O
a the office for coordinate
coordinations of humanitarian affairs.
Uh, and this year,
uh,
in addition to the 4 p.m. ceremony on Monday, there is a
3 p.m. stand in solidarity moment
for UN staff and humanitarian organisations
which will be held here at the Palais de N.
And you're all invited to attend that event as you are
the commemoration
ceremony.
The aim this year is to spotlight the horrifying toll of armed conflicts
on our colleagues and recognise the courageous efforts of
thousands of aid workers on the front lines.
It will be a symbolic moment to draw attention
to the issue and to reject the normalisation
of civilian suffering and the targeting of aid workers.
Similar events are taking place in many countries around the world on Monday,
and it's going to be, um,
outdoors just here at the stairs just outside this briefing room.
So, um, it will be very easy for
for all of you to find,
should you wish to
on that note, uh, I'm going to invite Ravina from, uh,
the Office of the High Commissioner
for human rights to join us. And she has, uh,
an important message.
Uh,
on Bangladesh.
Thank you. Good morning.
Good morning, everyone.
You should have just received a press release, Uh,
from the high Commissioner on this.
The transition
in Bangladesh is a historic opportunity
to reform and revitalise the country's institutions
to restore fundamental freedoms and civic space
and for inclusive governance.
Giving all the people in Bangladesh a part in building the future.
Accountability for violations and justice for the victims are key for the way
forward and will need to be accompanied by a national healing process.
All those responsible for human rights violations,
including those who used or ordered
unnecessary and disproportionate use of force,
must be held to account
and victims must be provided with reparations and effective remedies.
A comprehensive,
impartial and transparent investigation into all human rights violations and
abuses that have occurred will be a critical first step.
As you're aware,
The protests were triggered in mid June in Bangladesh by the
reinstatement of a quota system for allocation of civil service positions.
These initially peaceful student protests were followed
by violence and serious human rights violations
committed by security forces with hundreds of people believed to have been killed,
including at least 32 Children
and thousands injured.
In a preliminary report we are issuing today,
we note that there are strong
indications warranting further independent investigation,
that the security forces used unnecessary and disproportionate
force in their response to the situation.
Additional alleged violations that also warrant thorough,
impartial and transparent investigations
include extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests and detention,
and forced disappearances, torture and ill treatment,
and severe restrictions on the exercise of
freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly.
Following the resignation of the government on the fifth of August 2024
there were also reports of looting,
arson and attacks on members of religious minorities,
as well as Reprisals against and revenge killings of
members of the former ruling party and police.
On the 15th of August, mobs armed with bamboo sticks,
iron rods and pipes reportedly assaulted supporters of the former prime minister.
Journalists were also reportedly attacked and threatened
preventing them from filming at the scenes.
The report emphasises the importance of rapidly restoring law and order
and the need for effective measures to prevent further loss of life,
violence and acts of Reprisals.
Law enforcement agencies need to receive clear instructions and training on
the use of force in line with international human rights standards.
They must protect populations at risk
against any retaliatory or revenge violence,
including minority communities.
The High Commissioner welcomes the initiative by various student organisations,
faith leaders and other people forming groups to protect
minorities and religious sites belonging to minority communities.
The interim government has also strongly condemned these acts.
We also welcome the release of thousands
of detainees and longer term political prisoners,
including some victims of enforced disappearances.
And we urge the release of all those arbitrarily detained.
A team will visit Dhaka next week to explore areas in
which the UN Human Rights Office can support the transition.
The team will also discuss the modalities for an investigation into human
rights violations in the context of the recent violence and unrest.
As the High commissioner assured the chief
adviser to the interim government Professor Muhammad Yunus
in their phone call this week,
we stand in solidarity with the people of Bangladesh at this time
and we are committed to supporting
the interim government for a successful transition
that is inclusive and advances the rights of all the people in Bangladesh.
Thank you very much, Ravina. I'm going to go to questions now I see a hand up from
Uri from Rian
Novosti.
The floor is yours.
Yes, thank you, Michael.
But this is not about Bangladesh. So maybe if you have questions on it before
I ask it to
Rana, is it a question for Ravina on another subject? Is Did I
understand
correctly,
but
another
subject?
Yeah, maybe we'll see if there are questions on Bangladesh first.
I'm looking around the room and online.
I don't see any at the moment. Perhaps we'll come back to those later, then.
Uh, Yuri, go ahead.
Uh, yes. Uh, thank you, Ravina.
Uh, my question is, uh, one more time about, uh, the situation in Russia because, uh,
yesterday
Maria
Zakharova, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia.
Uh, so, uh, the fact that, um, your office asked for,
uh, access to Brian's
courses
and the Belga
Oblast,
and she said that you Your office?
I don't know who will be invited to the Russian mission in Geneva.
I wanted to know if you already received an invitation.
If you have seen the declarations
And, uh, if you know when it will happen. Thank you.
Thanks. Yuri.
We did send a letter, um, to the Russian authorities on Wednesday, Um,
seeking access.
As you point out, we have not yet received an official response.
Uh, thank you, Ravi.
Uh, I, you know, this is not directly related, but generally related.
the spokesman's office of the Secretary General
said yesterday that the Secretary General remains greatly concerned
regarding the worsening impact on civilians from increased fighting
both in eastern Ukraine as well as the Ukrainian Russian border, including
in
Kursk and Belgorod
regions of the Russian Federation.
And he once again urges all to
act responsibly and ensure the protection of civilians
and civilian infrastructure.
Peter, Kenny, uh, question four on Bangladesh
over.
Peter, I'm afraid
we can't hear you at the moment.
Um, perhaps you're You're still muted. I see your hand up.
We cannot hear you, Peter. I'm afraid
perhaps you can type your question in the chat.
No,
I don't see anybody there.
I
don't think we have a connection with Peter, and I don't see his question in the chat.
perhaps what we'll do. Um, then if you don't mind.
Ravina just staying for a little while and then, uh,
you know, in case the we can re-establish the line for additional questions. Yeah.
Sorry. Please, go ahead.
Thank you so much.
Um, my question about yesterday's attack
attack in
West Bank
And how, uh, how you see this attack. And if you have, uh, some details about
this attack. Thank you.
Thank you, Moussa. No, it was it was horrific.
what is striking and important to remember is that
yesterday's killing in jit is not an isolated attack.
And it is the direct consequence of Israel's policy of settlement
in the West Bank.
We have been reporting for the past years about settlers attacking
Palestinian communities in their land in the West Bank with impunity.
And this, really, is the crux of the matter. The impunity that,
uh, the perpetrators of such grave violations have been enjoying.
We have verified that since the seventh of October.
Um, and until yesterday, 609 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank,
including east Jerusalem,
and including
146 Children,
eight women and at least four people with a disability.
Clearly this needs to stop.
Um, and key to this, uh, will be accountability for the perpetrators.
How you see the
responsibility of Israeli army
and government in this attack of settlers. Thanks.
So, as I pointed out, the key issue here is impunity.
There have been attacks by settlers by Israeli security
forces as well against Palestinians in the West Bank.
And by and large, we are seeing impunity.
There have been some very few investigations, but even in those cases,
most of the times these do not conclude with
justice for the victims and for the perpetrators.
There are reports of Israeli security forces standing by as attacks take place.
There are even reports of weapons being distributed
to the settlers. So there is clearly a state responsibility in this regard.
And, yes, go ahead.
Yes, thank you. So, in fact, it's a question on Bangladesh.
Um, you mentioned that there are strong indications
showing that Bangladesh security use unnecessary forces.
What? Can you tell us more about those strong indications?
What is it?
Thanks, ANAs, Um,
in the so what we have shared with you today is actually just a preliminary report.
It's not a comprehensive report of what's happened.
Um, and we are deploying a team, uh,
next week to really take a comprehensive look at what needs to be done next.
the reports that we received and what we've documented in
this preliminary analysis is based on open source information,
media reports, some credible sources that we were in touch with,
and there are clear indications of excessive use of force by security forces.
There were reports of also,
in addition to security forces of Awami League supporters who
were rallied and who carried out attacks using batons,
in some cases using revolvers as well against student protesters,
in some cases leading to them being killed.
As I said, there were hundreds of killings that took place.
So this is a kind of these are the kinds
of reports that need to be very carefully assessed,
analysed, investigated
and the perpetrators held to account
subsequent to the fifth of August.
There have unfortunately, also been attacks and further violence,
and this time there have been some indications of revenge attacks against
people who are seen to be affiliated with the Awami League,
and there again, it's important that there is an independent investigation
regardless of who the perpetrators are, which part of the
political spectrum they belong to,
that the victims receive justice.
Otherwise again, as we see in many situations,
we are worried that a cycle of violence will resume.
Thank you very much,
Robin. OK,
I didn't see the
strong indications. Do you mean, uh, elements of proofs or,
um, it's an
an analysis of Of what you think.
I mean, it's not very clear, strong indications what it means.
Strong indication means that we have received
reports that we have managed to corroborate.
To some extent,
I wouldn't use the word proof or evidence because we're not there yet.
And that's where there needs to be an investigation.
What is clear is that hundreds of people were killed.
There was a lot of footage captured on camera
and including on, you know, disseminated on social media.
But that needs to be carefully assessed in
order to come to identify individual criminal responsibility,
but also the responsibility of those who may have
ordered such attacks to take place against the student protesters
and on the mission. What can you tell us? How many days they will stay there?
Who they will meet
if they know already that And if they will meet the the journalist there as well.
Yeah. So this is not it's not a high Commissioner mission.
It's a working level mission that our colleagues are doing
so on that we usually don't have a press conference or publicity around it.
And the purpose of the mission really is to engage with, you know,
people from across Bangladeshi society, civil society, the government,
and
to try to identify what it is we can do to support
this transition and to ensure that it is anchored in human rights.
in the phone call that the high Commissioner had with, uh, Mohammad Yunus,
this was discussed.
Um, and it was very much welcomed by the interim authority as well.
So providing support on perhaps accountability on ensuring inclusiveness, um,
in the way forward.
Um, quite often what we have done in in other countries, including in Bangladesh,
is to serve as a bridge builder.
in some ways, between the government and,
um aspects of civil society.
So we will we'll see what we'll assess. What, um, are
you know how we can contribute in the most helpful way?
Thank you. Very much Ravina.
I'm looking to see whether there are any
additional questions. Uh, I think Yuri's got his hand up. Is this for Ravina?
Go ahead.
Yes, this is for Rabina, not on Russia, but on Belarus.
Uh, because, um
uh,
Theia's, uh um
from the 16 August. Uh, will, uh, put, uh,
no,
uh, to go into the country for the cars with, uh, Belarusian. Uh, plate,
is this something that is violating the human rights, Uh,
from the bell for the Belarusian people.
Because now they can't with their cars. Uh, go mo moving just between countries.
Thank you
on that, Uri. We'll have to get back to you.
I'll have to check with colleagues What the specifics are of this.
Thank you, Ravina.
Um I see there's a question in on the chat. Um, it's on a different subject.
Uh, just wanna make sure that you know the questions. We're done with the questions.
for avina.
the
in the chat. There's a question for Peter Kenny for
Anadolu
about the visit of the Palestinian president, saying
saying he will pay a visit to Gaza.
Can the UN facilitate his visit to Gaza
and provide security does this necessitate a UN?
Security Council resolution?
I,
I You know, I I'm gonna
I don't have any information on this, Peter. What I will say,
um, is that, uh, you know,
I? I find it, um,
you understand what the security situation is in Gaza,
and we've heard about this day after day from our humanitarian colleagues.
So I think that, you know, uh,
the idea that the UN could provide security is is probably
not not so realistic at this stage.
Um, I'm going to go out on the limb on the Security Council resolution.
I can I can, um I will double check this, but,
uh, I, I don't think that in and of itself,
it would require a Security Council resolution, even though,
you know, presumably this Would you know this This would give, you know,
greater weight
of the of the, uh, the international community to such a
such an exercise. But again,
you know, I think that, um, Security Council members and and, uh uh, um, the UN
family are all, uh,
very aware of the problem with, you know, security
in Gaza,
and, uh, and that the principal responsibility
for providing security
in the occupied territories is
lies with the occupying powers. That's simply the way it is.
Thank you. Thank you, Ravina, if you don't mind,
you know, staying around a little bit longer in case, um
you know, there there are further questions for you, but if not,
and if we've managed to establish a connection with Nairobi
Um, looking for a for a thumbs up from our
from our studio? Yes. Uh, Then we will go to
the World Food Programme in Nairobi. Where,
uh, Laney, Kinsley,
uh,
is, uh is, uh, uh, the spokesperson for
WFP in Sudan.
And she will be talking about the critical hunger
situation
there.
Lenny, uh, welcome to the Geneva briefing.
Thank you so much for having me.
So today,
the United Nations World Food Programme welcomes
the news that the Adri border crossing
from Chad into Sudan will be opened
as we are in a race against time to save lives in war torn Sudan
across the country,
WFP is scaling up assistance to 14 areas either in famine or at risk of famine,
largely located in Darfur, coran,
Khartoum
and Jazeera, with the aim to support up to 8.4 million people by the end of the year.
The opening of this critical humanitarian corridor through
Adri will enable us to deliver aid into Sudan's conflict rattled Darfur region
where famine was confirmed just two weeks ago.
In Zam Zam ID P camp near Al
Fasher, north Darfur's capital,
WFP is immediately mobilising vital food and nutrition supplies to
be transported across the Adri corridor over the coming weeks.
We need to see trucks moving across this border every single day
to get a consistent flow of aid into the region
and to urgently save lives
as we speak.
Two convoys with nearly 6000 metric tonnes of food and nutrition supplies for
around half a million people are being loaded destined for risk of famine.
Areas in north, central and west are four states
as soon as official government communication and clearances are received.
This comes at a crucial time as the only other border crossing from Chad into Darfur
via
Tina
has become largely impassable due to heavy rains where around 30 trucks full of WFP
assistance have been unable to cross a flooded
seasonal River river bed for nearly one month
across Sudan. What little hope the Sudanese are holding on to
after 16 months of war
is being swept away
by heavy rainfall and floods.
The rainy season is exacerbating
the already devastating food insecurity situation in Sudan.
Floods are forcing more people from their homes, increasing humanitarian needs
and cutting off communities from vital assistance.
Heavy rains have destroyed key bridges and made it
extremely difficult for aid convoys to pass through muddy,
flooded roads.
Currently, more than 50 trucks
carrying an estimated 4800 metric tonnes of W
a
food
and nutrition assistance enough for around half a
million people are stuck in various locations across Sudan
and unable to move toward their final
destinations due to flooded and impassable roads.
That is why it is ever more
critical that additional humanitarian corridors are open
and humanitarian access massively expanded.
WFP urgently needs all other border crossings into Sudan
to open,
to be able to use every possible supply
route to deliver urgently needed food and nutrition assistance
as shifting front lines
and now severe flooding means that we must constantly
negotiate and secure new routes for aid convoys.
This would include a formal agreement between south Sudan and Sudan to
transport aid from the south into Darfur,
Coran
and Blue Nile.
As the Sudanese people continue suffering
the unimaginable
bearing the brunt of the ongoing war and now also at nature's whim
as the heavy rains are setting off a disaster on top of the disaster,
it is the time for all actors, especially parties,
to the conflict to come together and act in the interests of the Sudanese people
who are now seeing the little hopes they had left drowned by downpours nationwide.
The ongoing Geneva peace talks offer a vital opportunity
for the international community to address widespread operational challenges
and access impediments directly with the warring
parties who are obstructing a delivery.
It is critical for the warring parties to leave
the battlefield and show up at the negotiation table so
we can get food moving to hunger struck communities across
the country in time before it is too late.
Thank you very much. And I'm available for any questions.
Oh,
thank you very much, Lenny,
For for that report and for the important work that you're doing in in Sudan.
Um, I'm going to, um let's see,
there's a question from Lisa Schlein from the Voice of America.
Lisa, the floor is yours. Go ahead.
Uh, thank you. OK, L a good morning. Good morning to you, Lenny.
I have questions for you, but I also have questions. Uh, if I may
For, uh, I see that Margaret of WHO is there. And also olga
of, uh, the UN HCR. OK,
so, um, first, I'd like to know whether whether you think whether the ad
opening
is a consequence of the, uh, peace talks that are going on in Sudan.
You mentioned that right now which are going on.
And, uh
uh,
yeah, if you could, um,
sort of fill us in on the latest information you have
regarding how many people are acutely hungry whether you believe that,
uh, famine,
uh, might occur in, uh, I think there are about 13 areas that are at risk of famine,
whether that that is getting closer and so forth and
generally talk about the, uh, consequences of of, um,
uh,
people possibly dying.
And, uh, should I continue for my others to to, uh, to Margaret, Uh, WHO.
Maybe we'll just Maybe we'll just take it one at a time if you do. Do you mind?
Lisa so
So
II. I presume it was for Lenny Kinsley WFP. And then we'll
we'll come back to
further questions for Margaret and, uh,
Olga potentially go ahead.
Thanks so much, Lisa, for your questions, uh,
to your first question whether the Geneva talks,
um helped, uh, this, uh, the announcement of the ad border opening,
we know that the Geneva talks are heavily focused on
solving some of the humanitarian access and operational challenges.
Um, so I'm sure that this helped support, um,
some of the advocacy efforts that have been going on now for eight months for that
order to reopen.
Um, so that is critical. Um, but this is also sustained
a sustained advocacy.
Um, over months that has led to this, uh, decision.
And we very much welcome it and are, um, hopeful that we'll be able to use that,
But we need to see those trucks, um, moving across the border as soon as possible.
Um, and for that actual, um, for the actual opening of that corridor to materialise.
and then secondly, to your question, the scale of the hunger crisis in Sudan
it is the world's largest hunger crisis.
Uh, 25.6 million people are in acute hunger are facing acute hunger.
Uh, that's 54% of the population.
So basically,
that means one in two Sudanese is not able to put a
basic meal on their plate every day or struggling every day.
just to eat, uh,
of those around 755,000 people are in the highest stage of food insecurity.
Catastrophic hunger,
Uh, which basically means they've run out of all options,
um, and and are surviving in whatever way they can eating leaves, um, off trees, uh,
eating grass.
And we have, in fact, already received reports of
people dying of hunger. Famine was confirmed just two weeks ago in Zam
Zam ID P camp,
which is around 12 kilometres away from Al
Fasher, uh, North D
Force Capital, where fighting continues and it continues to intensify
week by week, with more and more people fleeing.
Um, and so you can imagine the desperation that is there, um, people
trapped by conflict and, uh, the difficulties in getting
aid into those areas.
Um, but WFP is doing our utmost to scale up assistance, um,
to to those affected by famine or famine like
conditions and particularly to prevent the spread of famine
to the other 13 areas that are at risk of famine.
Um, which, as I mentioned, are largely in Darfur,
Kan
Jazeera
and three specific localities. Um, south of Khartoum.
Thank you very much.
Lisa, Uh, I don't know if you have a follow up or if you want to, uh,
ask you a question to Margaret Harris, who's
I believe is online. Go ahead.
Yeah, Yeah, to Margaret, And then I'll I'll get off.
But then I have a question for Olga, if I may.
And of course, uh, Lenny, if you have anything to add
while the others are speaking, please, please do.
Also, please send your notes as soon as possible. It would be very helpful.
Um, Margaret, uh, I'd like to ask you about the health situation, uh, in, uh,
the Sudan
whether you are able to get, uh, medication and, uh,
uh, the necessary drugs into the country.
But if you if you could speak specifically about the,
uh, health situation what your greatest concerns are, uh, how it you know, hunger,
I'm sure adds to it.
The malnutrition situation of Children.
Uh, and the concern about outbreaks of diseases. I'm not sure whether I read that.
Uh, cholera is now,
uh,
AAA problem that is growing
in the country. Uh,
all of that good stuff. Thank you.
And are are you are you, uh, pleased about the, uh, uh, opening of the ad?
Uh,
crossing that? Will this help your situation?
Thanks.
Thanks. Uh, Lisa And indeed, we are very pleased to see this.
This the opening of the crossing.
It's something we have been advocating all the age.
Um, I don't know if that's just me or if, uh, but I, I don't hear Margot anymore.
I
yes. Do we have audio?
No.
The war. You?
No, No. Good.
Margaret.
Yeah, go ahead. Now
you can
hear me.
We can
hear you now. We just dropped out for a minute,
OK? Sorry about that.
OK, I'll start again.
Yes, we are very, very happy.
Very pleased to hear that to see the crossing being opened because,
as you know, without access, we can talk about needs.
We can talk about what needs to be done, but
nothing can be done unless
you can actually
reach the people in need.
The needs are indeed dire.
Uh, I already mentioned, uh, and need has outlined the the issues with starvation.
And, of course, malnutrition. Starvation have very, very important
health consequences that anything that's a mild infection
in somebody with good nutrition a good immune system becomes a, uh,
a a catastrophic illness in in somebody who's malnourished, particular child.
And, uh,
they can die very, very quickly from what might be a minor,
uh, infection.
Uh, if they are malnourished and dehydrated, uh,
access to healthcare has been really constrained due to the insecurity.
So we also want to see
the, um
the violence and the conflict stopping. And we're seeing,
uh, many, many attacks on healthcare.
Uh, there's a shortage of medicines and medical supplies,
shortage of health personnel
and also shortage of cash.
Uh, health workers are not being paid, so they are trying to manage.
They're not being paid,
and they can't buy supplies because there is a shortage of cash.
Uh, S in the conflict hotspots, 70 to 80% of the hospitals are nonfunctional,
so people are are dying simply from a lack of
access to basic and essential health care and medication.
Uh, you mentioned cholera I'm just looking for our latest numbers, sis.
With outbreaks,
we are seeing reports of cholera me
as
malaria, dengue
meningitis from several states.
So far, we've had 11,327 cholera cases reported from 12 states with 316 deaths.
Now the reporting is slow.
Uh, so we expect that there is more than that, but that's what we've had reported.
We've also had 4937 suspected cases of measles with 100 and nine associated deaths.
Remember, as I said, this is in very malnourished population.
So you're going to see, sadly, a
lot of deaths from measles.
Uh, also 9476 suspected cases of dengue with 75 associated deaths reported from
seven states,
and dengue has been graded for us.
It's been graded as a global G grade three emergency.
That's the highest level of our emergencies.
Internally, that's our internal system.
Since December 2023
and there are also 1.7 million clinical malaria cases with
again 100 and 73 deaths reported from 15 states,
and 100 and 49 cases of meningitis with 19 deaths from 10 states.
But remember,
confirmation of all these cases is challenging because we
don't really have a functional public health laboratories.
So again, those numbers are highly likely to be an underestimate.
And And as I said, the the reporting is very slow.
Uh, I think does that not too quick, or
they said,
uh, Lisa, go ahead. And also, if you,
um, have an immediate follow up Otherwise, I I see another handoff. And with your,
uh,
yes, yes, Margaret, Brilliant. As usual, thank you very much.
And,
uh, uh,
flattery will get me somewhere, right?
Uh, I have a question for you, Olga.
Uh,
if you don't mind, if you don't mind, Lisa, just bear with me.
I I've got two other hands up
in, in case there.
But this this I'm
on a
flow.
And this
just on a flow,
OK,
you're on a flow, and it's on. It's on Sudan.
Yes, it's on Sudan, which is
all right. So we'll take this one, and then we'll go to Yuri and Nick, uh,
in that
order, please.
Thank you.
Thank you. I appreciate that. Uh, Olga,
I would like
to ask you, uh,
I had read that, uh, hunger.
Uh, it was a motivating force. A trigger for more,
um, people fleeing the country.
And so, I, I I'd like
to get your perspective on that, whether
indeed this is happening whether you've been seeing an
uptick in the number of people who have been fleeing
across the border into, uh uh uh into Chad, uh, and elsewhere. And?
And what? You what you regard to be the significance of the opening of the ad
border from Chad?
Because I think you, uh your organisation has been very concerned about
its, uh, being closed for such a very long time. Thank you.
Thank you, Lisa, for your question.
So, uh, I will need to come back to you with the concrete figures, but we've seen, uh,
we we haven't seen a, um a major update
on on arrivals, for instance,
2000 and I. I un I understand. We continue to see around 1300 on average,
uh,
in the arrivals. And but in that, uh, I will need to come back to you on on the figures.
What we hear,
uh, from, uh,
from people that are actually at the moment living in Sudan is that indeed, uh,
hunger, Uh, and the lack of access to to food.
It's It's, uh it's something that is, uh,
making them to take the decision to leave the country.
But we have to remember,
uh, what are the reasons behind?
Uh, the situation is the ongoing conflict that has been
already lasting over a year.
Uh, is the lack of access to the agricultural lands, uh,
is the lack of access to employment the lack of, uh, of, of, of, of,
of income to actually
purchase goods and food that they need?
Uh, and also, our colleagues were also now talking about about the floods.
Now, the rains are not, uh, helping and very catastrophic situation.
Indeed. Uh uh, I join colleagues in welcoming the the the opening
of the of the border crossing.
We also have tracks that are loaded that are, um, ready to get into into dur
and other areas where where there is need
for human
aid and there are three
items and
regular
in,
uh, circling
the buckets. The hiking fees, et cetera. To support those vulnerable
families,
teach
steps as well, uh, to be able to cook the food that will be provided by our partners.
And so,
Olga Olga.
I'm sorry, II. I want to interrupt you just briefly.
Just like I feel like the audio that's coming from your end is is, uh,
is difficult to understand. We have a We have a poor audio connection.
Um, So I'm just wondering whether do you have a quick fix?
There might seems like there might be a sort of feedback loop or something.
Or perhaps try a different microphone.
Uh,
just so that
I
can
call
you
back.
And maybe maybe we'll just try. Try to come back to you in a little bit.
Maybe you can try to test that because
because it's we're straining a little bit to To understand you there.
My apologies. Yeah.
Um let's go to Let's go to UI,
please.
Yes, but my question, thank you is also for Olga
and other subjects. So maybe I will wait for Nick or better
or the connection. Welcome back to you then. Yuri.
Nick, do you have is your question also for Olga
or
Yeah. Thank you. My question is actually for Lenny. Um,
I'd like to come back to the the the border crossing opening
and just get a little bit more clarity from her, if possible, on
one of the benefits that are going to result from this.
I mean, my understanding is that the
it's the crossing point is opened
of a green light from staff.
But, um,
a basher is,
you know, being sieged by
the RSF. So
what?
Where are you going to be able to reach as a result of this border crossing opening?
Um, are you going to be able to get supplies to Zan
Zan?
Uh, do you have a lot of food stockpiled in Chad?
Because, you know, again, the reporting we have is that
even in the camps that are accessible to UN agencies now
in Chad and in other locations, there's a lot of hunger. So
what What exactly is it that you've got available to distribute
and where do you think you'll be able to get it?
Thank you.
Thanks so much. So, yes, we have food prepositioned in chad.
Uh, and as I mentioned, uh, 6000, uh, metric tonnes as an initial, um,
as an initial, um, assistance that we're mobilising now that that, uh,
border has been, uh, announced as open.
Um, so Darfur, you can imagine, is about the size of Spain.
Um, so even if we struggle to get to, uh, areas where active conflict is ongoing,
like Al
Fasher, there are actually, uh,
several risk of famine areas in different parts of
Darfur that we will immediately be able to get into
via the ad border.
Um, into Janina, for example, um, which is the first kind of, um,
area that you cross into after you cross from Andre into West
Darfur?
Um, there are two,
risk of famine areas there. One is called
SBA. The other one is called
Kick
um, where both residents and people who are internally displaced,
uh, are facing catastrophic levels of hunger.
Um, and then other areas in central Darfur
like
jebo
Mara, uh, is is where we'll be able to much
quickly, uh, get food assistance across.
because the road conditions via that Andre border crossing
are just so much better than via Tina,
the border crossing that we've been allowed to use or the only other
border crossing that was open to us in the last six months.
Um, which is now completely flooded?
Uh,
So we like I mentioned we have at least
30 trucks stuck there at that other border crossing,
which is 200 kilometres north of the Adri crossing.
for for one month not able to cross because
there are these big watties which are seasonal rivers,
um, that are not passable at the moment because of the rainy season.
Um, whereas the road conditions on the ad road crossing into West
Darfur are, uh, much more passable in the rainy season because they're paved roads.
and also just the distances that we would need to cross to get
food to their final destinations when we cross from Andre is much shorter.
Uh, in many cases, up to it. It takes, um, more than two weeks. If we cross via Tina
and some in some cases, if we cross via
Andre, it just it takes a few days, Um, for the food to arrive, its final destination.
Um, so we will be providing assistance to parts of northwest and central Darfur, Um,
and doing everything we possibly can
to get assistance into the, um, famine areas like
Samsung.
Thank you, Lenny.
Unless Nick has a, um, follow up, maybe we can come back to Olga and and test that
test your A
and see whether, um, whether it's coming through
a
little bit better.
Uh,
Olga, can you hear me?
I think we may have, Uh,
we
Ah, There you are. Hi.
Let's try now.
I don't know if the colleagues can open the
mic on the phone so I can connect on my phone for the audio. If it works better,
I'm not able to add.
I see. OK, but you're not connected on your phone now, right?
I am.
I know now now
to
do.
But now it's fine, So
All right.
OK, OK.
I don't know. I
don't know if we can hear you there, but we'll try.
Uh, let's see if let's see if Yuri can. Let's
Yeah. OK, great. So let let, uh, let's hear from Yuri then.
OK, go ahead.
Ok, so, uh, Lisa, What I was, uh,
mentioning is that I can come back to you
with the concrete figures for these past weeks,
but, uh, we've been observing an upward trend, uh,
with an average of 3100 weekly arrivals since june,
uh, into into Chad,
uh, for instance, south Sudan. We continue at about 1300 arrivals a day. So indeed,
the situation continues to be to be worrying. Uh,
people that are crossing into each other are telling us that. Of course they are.
They are fleeing hunger that they are not getting sufficient food into the table.
But we cannot actually
get the reasons behind that. People have been in a conflict area for over a year.
This has severely impacted their their access to agriculture, uh, lands, uh,
to crops.
Also, their access to livelihoods, the possibility of actually
getting income and buying
and buying food.
Uh, and of course, now, as the colleagues were mentioning, like,
the flats are not making things any easier as they are also impacting uh, uh,
agricultural land and access to it.
So, uh, indeed, uh, the opening of the agriculture
border is something that we really welcome.
We have, as well trucks that have been, uh, that are being loaded, uh, with with, uh,
cor relief items with relief items, which include blankets, tur
paulines, but also also kitchen sets.
So people can actually, uh,
cook the food that will be provided by by WFP and and partners.
Uh, we are moving some of the trucks that were in TM
into Adri.
Uh, because, as as our colleague from WFP mentioned, uh,
the the T border crossing at the moment is a It's flooded.
Uh, so So yes, indeed. Uh, good news. But, uh, we insist that we need
that, uh, cross border access and also cross line access to be to be able to reach, uh,
the millions of people that continue in a very vulnerable situation.
Uh, let me know, Lisa, if, uh, this replies to
all your questions
in case I forgot something.
Well, thank you very much, ge
that came through loud and clear. Uh, Lisa, unless you have, uh,
an additional follow up. Uh, let's go to you
and hear his question now.
Yes. Thank you. Olga.
My question is just to know if your
HR
is working with the Russian authorities because more than 100,000 people
had to
leave their house after the Ukrainian attack on the Kos
Klas.
So just to know,
if you are in contact with Russian authorities and if you are working with them
Thank you.
Thank you. Uh, jury.
So, indeed, we are really deeply concerned about the reports of civilians.
Authorities, uh, of civil civilian causal
causalities in the Russian Federation.
Uh, as as we are concerned about civilian casualties, uh, everywhere else.
at the moment, I mean, unity intervenes at the request of the national authorities.
and unit
R and its partners, uh,
in Russia are conducting regular information provision
and psychosocial support and protection activities,
uh, to refugees and asylum seekers.
Uh, so I think that's everything I can, uh, tell you at the moment.
Uh, jury, I hope that answers your your question.
Uh, your I see your hand is still up.
I don't know whether it's, uh just just to be sure that I have understand?
Understood? What you said is that
you are already providing some help to people there
if I understand. Well,
not to the, uh, to the area. I.
I understand that we don't have a full access to that area,
but I can come back to you with concrete details on that, if that's fine.
All right. Thank you very much. Um,
yes, go ahead.
And
this is
on which topic and for which speaker?
It's a follow
up of
your question.
The answer wasn't clear at all to me.
Sorry,
Olga.
You say that
you are helping refugees but
refugees from which nationality and in where they are? Are they in Russia?
Are they in Ukraine? Are they elsewhere?
It wasn't clear which kind of refugees you are.
Thank you.
Thank you. Uh,
so, uh, yes.
I mean, I un IE, uh, carries out regular visits to temporary accommodation points
that host some refugees, some of them from Ukraine.
Uh, we have carried out since 2022. Uh, about 60 visit in 40 regions.
Uh, but especially of
on, uh, course
I, I would need to come back to you, uh, on our on our access at the moment.
I think K
is another follow up. Go ahead. Yes, 60 or 16 regions were in Russia.
Yeah, Yeah, yeah. I, um So it's 66 0 visits
in 40 regions in, uh, in Russia. Yes,
but I can follow up, uh, with with you ans
and your specific on on
on on of
Kursk. Uh, and yeah, we
as UN a TR.
We have an office in Moscow, but no,
we don't have a permanent or regular person at the border
or in other regions. So I'll come back to you on that.
Yeah, Maybe Perhaps it might be useful if you could send a clarification, you know,
writing.
Um
so
So that we can
so that we can. So everybody's straight on this.
If
if we can move on, then I'm just looking to see whether we have any more questions to
some of the various topics that have been, um,
that that we've talked about
here, including, you know, Sudan, Ukraine, Russia.
If not,
our friends from the IRC have been patiently waiting here
and they're with us. We're happy to have them here.
Tomaso
de la Longa
and Bronwyn
Nicol.
They're here to talk to us about
the IRC response on the
box outbreak. As you
all know,
this was recently declared a public health emergency of international concern.
By who?
So I hope also that Margaret Harris can stay online for this.
The floor is yours.
Thank you. Thank you very much, Michael,
before giving the floor to Bronwyn just to say that
you should have received a press release from our end.
It should be on your mailbox already
and on our response in the African continent.
And if you want, we also have and will circulate later. Same
material to be used about our response,
in particular of the Red Cross of the Democratic Republic of Congo
that
please.
All right,
so in late June,
kendy, this is not his real name. Uh, a man from Borro
in Ecuador
province in the Democratic Republic of Congo visited a
traditional healer and he presented with some unusual symptoms.
The healer had taken part in an
ox awareness session with the DRC Red Cross a few days prior,
and he told the man that he may have
ox and encouraged him to visit the nearest health centre.
The man was scared and refused to do so.
So the healer then contacted the Red Cross volunteers and Geer.
They visited the man at his house
and with care and patients.
They persuaded him to overcome his fear and seek treatment.
After 21 days in an
ox treatment centre, he made a full recovery and he's now at home.
So this is how we fight
ox. By building trust and working with local communities,
Africa is facing a rapidly escalating health crisis as
ox continues to spread across the continent.
Over the past few days, the World Health Organisation and Africa CDC
have declared the outbreak a public health
emergency of international and continental concern,
with more than 17,000 suspected or confirmed cases
and over 500 deaths reported across 12 countries.
The epidemic has far surpassed previous outbreaks,
making it one of the most significant health
threats Africa has faced in recent years.
The Democratic Republic of Congo is currently bearing the brunt of this crisis,
accounting for over 90% of the total cases.
The IFRC, along with the DRC, Red Cross and other national societies,
have been preparing for moments like this for many years
through epidemic preparedness and response programmes.
We have been equipping communities and partners with
the knowledge and tools needed to quickly detect,
prevent and respond to disease outbreaks.
Volunteers on the ground are conducting community based surveillance,
health promotion and providing psychosocial support to affected families.
Kennedy's story demonstrates this Clearly,
volunteers are looking for potential
amox cases,
reporting them to local health authorities and
supporting the rapid response once detected.
Despite these efforts, we are facing significant challenges.
There is a critical shortage of testing
treatment and vaccines across the continent.
These shortages are are severely hampering the ability to contain the outbreak.
We are calling for urgent international support to increase access to vaccine
stocks and treatment options and to scale up testing and alert investigation.
Without these resources, the epidemic will continue to spread.
As we have learned in other outbreaks,
equitable access is key to supporting global health security.
Ox hits marginalised communities the hardest.
The IFRC and national societies are uniquely positioned to
help our volunteers come from the communities they serve,
and they understand the local context, challenges and needs.
This deep connection allows us to deliver targeted support,
reduce stigma and promote behaviours that can help stop the spread of the virus.
As we continue our response, we must remember that the fight against
ox is not just about providing medical care.
It is about supporting communities to protect themselves
and to access the information and resources they need
to reduce stigma.
The IFRC and national societies are committed to working alongside governments,
partners and communities to ensure that the most
vulnerable are not left behind in this response.
This is a joint effort that takes deep collaboration across all partners.
The spread of
ox in Africa is a continental crisis that demands a co ordinated global response.
The IFRC Network is on the ground working tirelessly to contain this outbreak
alongside ministries of health and remains ready to ramp up mobilisation efforts.
But again, we cannot do this alone.
Thank you.
Uh, thank you very much. Uh, Bronwyn, I see a question from Isabel.
Saco
Isabel. The floor is,
um Good morning.
Um, I would like, um to know if you can, um,
elaborate on the lack of access to medicines and to
vaccines, uh, that you referred
to. And because, um
uh I read that, uh, last in the last year, 2022 outbreak.
We already saw
that the rich countries kept a lot of, uh, resources like this
to to be sure that they were
going to have enough if they need it. So,
what are your fears about, uh, these situations and that we repeat
that, uh,
that what we already saw during the covid pandemic? Thank you.
Yeah, it We know it's a clear learning from covid.
Um, but it seems sadly we never really seem to learn our lesson.
Um most of these stocks are still in with wealthier nations.
Uh, where the stockpile sit.
Some have been sent to support response in Africa, but it's just a drop in the bucket.
It's not nearly enough as to where we
need to have a co ordinated response that's gonna
reach everyone that needs vaccination and as well as treatment.
These are a lot of these communities are quite remote.
Where we have treatment, treatment is not always easy.
Uh,
there's a lot of people being turned away
for treatment because it is not actually available,
Uh, in terms of being paid for by governments because they're struggling.
So having this support
come more broadly, uh, through partners will really, I think, help the situation.
Um, we're already seeing We've seen there is a confirmed case of the new clad one B uh,
in Sweden.
Um, I'm sure this will
make some governments think a bit more as well about if they're gonna
share the vaccines they were hopefully planning to send to support Africa.
CDC, uh, and partners in vaccination efforts.
Um, and hopefully that doesn't change.
Um, some of the planned donations that were happening ha
uh, were about to happen, I think for some of the vaccines,
But I think WHO can probably speak
better about some of the vaccine issues. Uh, than IFRC.
Uh, thank you. Uh,
no, sir. Go ahead.
I have a question for Margaret in this term,
Margaret,
for
what is the level of danger of this
virus today? And
are we facing an epidemic or not yet? Thank you.
With
Brown.
I
Margaret.
Me,
I
confess
the
mon
the
en,
um
Brandy
Nichol. Margaret Harris.
Thanks. Um, just you can hear me this time, I hope.
Yes.
OK. Yeah. So on how dangerous it's, uh,
spreading much more rapidly than we had seen. Others spread. So that's one issue.
It does have quite a high case fatality rate.
At the moment, as mentioned, we've seen more than 500
pe, uh, deaths.
And, uh, it's particularly dangerous for those with a weak immune system.
So people who've maybe have HIV or who are malnourished and, as you know,
in the area that it's spreading very rapidly.
The eastern, uh, Democratic Republic of Congo.
There are a lot of people who are displaced because of conflict.
They are under all kinds of stress It's also dangerous for small Children. So,
um, and again we're seeing deaths among small Childrens. It,
uh, currently, there is no specific treatment.
Uh, and of course, a lot of work is going on in that area,
but their supportive treatment does help.
Uh, I,
I think you mentioned the vaccines.
There was some discussion of vaccines,
so I thought I should also give you some numbers on the vaccines.
Uh, we have, uh,
initiated something called the our emergency use listing
process so that the vaccines can be provided in
the countries that don't have their own regulatory framework.
They rely on the WHO regulatory framework and also so that
G and UNICEF
can procure, procure those vaccines
and provide them.
And indeed, we have had promises of, um, vaccines being provided.
And I am sure that those, um,
that
those promises will be kept.
But we do need the manufacturers to really scale up so that we've got access to many,
many more vaccines.
Because vaccination, it's not the only tool.
Uh, good community engagement that's been outlined by my colleagues from,
um uh, uh IF MC is is probably the most important tool.
A good understanding of what to do of how to isolate yourself. Separate yourself.
Inform any of your contacts. These are the things that really matter.
And vaccines are another tool. A good preventive tool, but not the only tool.
Thank you. Doctor Harris. Uh, Lisa Sin
and then Isabel. Lisa, Go ahead.
Thank you. Um, yeah. Question for Bronwyn and also you, Margaret. Um
um, Bron. When you you were speaking about, uh the stigma attached to
Ox,
uh,
is the IC RC Are you concerned about governments
perhaps closing borders or barring people from Africa for,
uh, entering their country, uh, stopping trade.
As far as that goes you there is this case in Sweden, which probably is alarming.
And Margaret, uh, what is the WHO position in this regard?
In terms of closing borders? Uh, this
was a big problem. A big concern during covid.
Uh, And also, um, I had heard on an interview with someone that actually
just touching a person's hand if the person happens to have a lesion,
and it may the the lesion may not even be,
uh, recognisable, visible in a way that a person could get
ox from that, I mean, that
sounds really totally scary.
Thanks.
So in terms of international travel, um, from IFRC side,
we do stand with what is recommended under international health regulations,
which is that
there's no need to close borders.
Uh, when we are in disease outbreaks, diseases don't recognise borders.
People will continue to cross a border,
whether it is a legal crossing or a not an illegal crossing,
it doesn't stop a disease from spreading.
And instead, we need to focus on having proper messaging around the diseases.
So people understand how they can protect themselves from
ox. As you mentioned, it is spread through close personal contact.
Um, so under making sure people understand what the signs and symptoms are of
ox, where they can go to seek early treatment and testing
what they can do to protect themselves, whether that's hand washing,
whether that's distancing, making sure that this is clear to people so that they
are not panicking unnecessarily, so that they're
there is access to early services.
Thank you, Margaret. Did you want to add to that?
Yes, indeed. Uh,
I wouldn't over emphasise that.
You know, the we always get these these fierce sort of mongering kind of uh,
the, uh, examples. But it
is through spread through close contact. We see it in households.
We see it, mother to child. We see it after S, uh, as a result of sexual contact.
And we also see it
as as a result of contact with bedding That's been, um,
bedding or clothing from someone who has been infected.
Usually it's when the blisters are visible, and, uh, when they when they burst,
particularly cos the the fluid in the blisters is is filled with virus.
So again,
as as as it's just been so well described, it's about knowing
that you have it
knowing what to look for,
knowing how to separate uh each other and and to to do proper contact, tracing
and not being afraid.
So there's always a balance but not being sort of terrified.
It's more a matter of shutting down the infection so that
those who are most at risk from severe illness the young,
the immunosuppressed don't get infected.
That's really what we're talking about,
I think. But was there another question? I think that was it. Yeah.
Yes. Good morning, Margaret.
Um, I, uh I don't know if you can give us some clarity on
the vaccine stocks that the world has
in terms of, uh, do you have any estimations of how many doses?
Uh uh, governments have,
Um, mostly, I suppose, in in developed, uh, in developed countries.
And also in, for example, how many doses are available in Africa.
How many doses are have, um,
can have can be, um, have or And if, uh, WHO have any stocks.
I mean something that really a breakdown of how many
doses and who has these doses?
Sure, sure, actually.
So, yeah, we've got two main vaccines that have been used, uh,
that have been used in the last two years for control of monkey pox.
They've got great names. M, VA and LC 116 LC 16. So sorry about that.
Uh,
for M VA,
there are currently 0.5 million doses available in stock.
Now, an additional 2.4 million doses could be produced if they're a buyer.
So if we are dependent on market forces here a bit,
for 2025 an additional 10 million doses could be produced again.
If there's a firm procurement requests
now, LC 16 is a vaccine that's not commercial.
It has not been commercialised but was produced
on behalf of the government of Japan.
There is a considerable stockpile of this vaccine,
and Japan has been very generous in the past with donations.
So we're working with Japan
and other countries to facilitate donations of this vaccine.
We are also working with partners like
Gavi and Unison
through the Interim Medical Countermeasures Network to enable
donations from countries that have got existing stockpiles.
So that has that mechanism has been triggered
and the partners are building a donation scheme.
So what we've got available the limited ones
we've got are used where they're needed.
So I mean you everybody's raised the concern
that they won't be used where they're needed.
We have got commitment that they will be.
And, uh, and it is critical that they used where the the the virus is raging
instead of being worrying about it coming to elsewhere.
Because if you stop it where it's raging, then it doesn't go elsewhere.
so we're requesting countries with existing vaccine stockpiles
to work through our It's called again.
Sorry about the name the I MC M net
and donate them to countries with ongoing outbreaks.
Uh,
and again, we are supporting, uh,
with preparations for roll out of vaccines in the countries that are affected.
II,
I realised I didn't answer something else on travel yet outstanding
recommendations are exactly as was outlined by my colleagues from IRC
that, um,
we do not recommend, uh, closure of borders. We do not want to see closure of borders.
And we will be putting out the, uh,
temporary recommendations to countries from the emergency committee.
That should be coming out later today.
Uh, thanks again, Margaret.
Uh, we've got a question from, uh, uh DP a Albert or T, please. You, um disclosures.
Sorry. Sorry.
Sorry. Albert Isabel in the room had a follow up, which I did not see. Thank
you very much. Just to because it's on the same issue of the vaccine. So
apologies if I didn't understand well, but
what you meant is what is that apart from the from the
stocks that Japan has and can be donated later?
Do we have half a million doses?
And where are these doses in developed countries and or how many doses are in Africa?
So, I, I said, um
for M VA. That's the first one.
Currently 0.5 million doses are available in stock.
And, uh,
as I said,
an additional 2.4 million doses could be produced
quite quickly if there's commitment by buyers.
Uh, I do not have information with me on what countries have got them where,
but some countries do have stockpiles,
and we are working with partners like Gabby and UNICEF
through something we call the Interim Medical Countermeasures Network.
That's called I MC M net to enable
the donations from the countries with existing stockpiles.
So we're building a scheme and asking those countries to bring them.
I hope that that helps clarify.
Do you have a further question, or can we go to
Albert
just to say that it is the same that you, you, you, firstly said
It's,
uh I mean,
I
have
a
I
have
you.
Can
you Can you obtain this breakdown and send this
breakdown to the to the press corps here?
I.
I think it's unlikely because we'll be working
with different countries about what they've got,
where and that that that that detail will not
be just sitting there in some kind of table
so I think that's highly unlikely.
I will ask my vaccine colleagues, if that's possible,
but I'm going to say right now I think it's unlikely.
Thanks very much. Uh, I think that's clear. Now.
Uh, uh, Albert, uh, thank you for your patience.
Uh, the floor is yours.
Uh, thank you. Uh, I also have a question for Margaret Harris. Uh,
on, um, first of all, on the detection of the case in Sweden.
Um, how worried are you about this? How worrying is this?
And is this, uh, have there been other clade one B cases detected outside of Africa?
To your knowledge,
and the second question is specifically on the measures that China has announced,
as far as I understand,
um, China has said that people coming from countries with,
uh infections or with cases as well as people with
symptoms need to be tested at entry in China.
Is this something you condone or this is something Also you, you,
you think is not a good idea.
Thank you.
So in Sweden, and in fact,
this is in, in a sense of really good news.
I mean, it's not good news for the person who's got the infection,
but it shows the system is working
and that countries have really stepped up their vigilance.
They know what to look for.
And we'd expect that, um, you know, we will see cases elsewhere,
because this is a very large outbreak.
And one of the main reasons for calling the public health emergency
of international concern is to get the country of the world,
pay attention to
W and look. And Sweden has shown us,
um, what they are really leading by example.
And we really want to thank Sweden for
being quick and open and transparent and reporting.
And we'd like to see their example
being followed by other countries that they really
pay attention.
And and, of course,
we're actively engaging with the Swedish health
authorities on how best to manage this.
This first person, um, with
blocks,
um, on the measures, the travel and trade measures, uh, that, uh,
as I said,
the temporary recommendations will be available later today
and you can see what it is exactly.
We'll be recommending that countries do.
Thank you very much, Margaret. Um,
I think
there may not be any further questions. In which case I thank you all for
your participation in this briefing.
And, um
and would like to remind you all to join us on Monday,
uh, for World Humanitarian Day to advocate for the survival,
well-being and dignity of people affected by crisis
and for the safety and security of aid workers. Thank you very much.