Syrian refugees return from Turkey. Top news of the day | Tuesday: Gaza, DRC, Syria, Paris Agreement UN
The main news in the UN and in the world: the crisis in the eastern DRC is worsening, the laws adopted by Israel threaten to leave millions of Palestinians without aid, additional funds are urgently needed to help the Syrians, the US has officially notified of its withdrawal from the Paris Agreement.
The situation in the DRC
In the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the M23 rebels continue their offensive on the capital of the North Kivu province. Against this background, as reported by UN employees working there, the humanitarian situation is rapidly deteriorating. According to eyewitnesses, hospitals in Goma are overcrowded, corpses are lying on the streets of the city, and reports of sexual violence and looting have become more frequent.
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 300,000 people were forced to leave camps for internally displaced persons near Goma within days.
UNRWA chief addresses UN Security Council
New Israeli laws banning the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) are set to come into force on Thursday. They will “increase instability” in the occupied Palestinian territory, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini told the UN Security Council on Tuesday. If the agency were to close, 70,000 patients in East Jerusalem alone would lose access to health care and about 1,000 schoolchildren would be unable to attend school, he said. The situation is compounded by severe financial pressures, with key donors cutting or suspending contributions to UNRWA.
Humanitarian situation in Syria
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said today that $1.2 billion is needed to help Syrians. This amount will allow to support 6.7 million people who are in a particularly vulnerable situation over the next month. Of these, 5.4 million will receive food aid, 3 million will receive health care, and 2.5 million people will receive drinking water and sanitation services. Ongoing fighting in the northeast of the country is hindering the delivery of aid, especially in eastern Aleppo.
Paris Climate Agreement
On January 27, the United States notified the UN Secretary-General of its withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement, concluded on December 12, 2015. This was reported on Tuesday by the UN press service. The United States signed the Paris Agreement in 2016, committing to its implementation. The United States then withdrew from the treaty in 2020 and rejoined it in 2021. This decision, according to the terms of the Paris Agreement, will enter into force on January 27, 2026. “We reaffirm our commitment to the Paris Agreement and support all effective efforts to limit the increase in global temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius,” the UN press service said.