Food aid in Gaza. Daily Top Stories | Friday: Gaza, Lebanon, Sudan, Nigeria. UN
The main news of the day in the UN and in the world: victims in Gaza, Secretary General visited peacekeepers’ positions in Lebanon, ethnically motivated violence in Sudan, mass murder in Nigeria.
Gaza Strip
The World Health Organization (WHO) welcomed the announcement of a ceasefire and the release of hostages in Gaza. WHO representative in the occupied Palestinian territories Rick Pieperkorn said that in the coming weeks it is planned to increase the volume of aid arriving in the enclave to 500-600 trucks per day. He also noted that according to the results of a study published in the scientific journal The Lancet by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and Yale University, the official number of people killed in Gaza is underestimated. Researchers estimate the figure to be closer to 70 thousand.
Secretary-General in Lebanon
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres arrived in Beirut on Thursday. Today, the UN chief visited several positions of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), which was targeted by Israeli forces last year. Speaking at the mission’s headquarters in Naqoura, he praised the peacekeepers’ bravery, dedication and resilience amid attacks on both sides of the Blue Line. Guterres is expected to meet with the country’s president, as well as the newly appointed prime minister and the speaker of parliament during his visit to Lebanon.
Violence in Sudan
The conflict in Sudan is becoming even more dangerous, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk has warned, amid reports of brutal killings and ethnically motivated attacks in the country. Türk recalled that the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Reaction Force have been fighting for almost two years, with ethnically motivated attacks becoming more frequent. In the past week alone, the UN Human Rights Office has recorded at least 21 deaths in two such attacks in Gezira state.
Killings in Nigeria
The Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria, Mohamed Malik Fall, said he was appalled by the recent killings of at least 40 fishermen and farmers in the Kukawa area of Borno state, reportedly by members of a non-state armed group over an alleged violation of a ban on agricultural activities. He said the attack was another reminder of the grave dangers that people in conflict-affected areas of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states continue to face. The UN, Fall said, remains committed to supporting those affected.