HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC
SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON
TUESDAY, 20 DECEMBER 2016
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U.N. MONITORING EVACUATIONS FROM SYRIA’S BESIEGED CITY OF ALEPPO
- Evacuations carried out by the Syrian Arab Red Crescent and International Committee of the Red Cross continued throughout the day yesterday and resumed this morning from the besieged neighbourhoods in eastern Aleppo, with operations expected to continue throughout the day.Ìý UN teams continue to be present at the Ramouseh Government checkpoint in Aleppo to observe and monitor the evacuations.
- As of today, the ICRC estimates that more than 25,000 people have been evacuated from the besieged neighbourhoods in eastern Aleppo since 15 December.Ìý The evacuated people are arriving in the reception centres in Atareb and Sarmada, where their immediate needs are being taken care of by Syrian and international humanitarian partners.
- The UN, as mandated by UN Resolution 2328 (2016), passed yesterday by the , is in the process of strengthening its capacity in Aleppo city. The UN has received authorization to send at least 20 surge staff to Aleppo to play a critical role in monitoring and the response across Aleppo city.ÌýÌý Protection of civilians leaving these areas remains the biggest concern. All remaining civilians must be allowed to safely leave should they choose to do so. Access to people in need to provide them with life-saving humanitarian assistance is also urgently needed.
- And in parallel, today, some 20 empty buses headed this morning towards Foah and Kefraya to take besieged people out of those locations. While the UN was not part of the negotiations or the reported evacuation, we remain ready to assist all civilians in need that is being evacuated.
IN LAST SECURITY COUNCIL ADDRESS, SECRETARY-GENERAL STRESSES GLOBAL NATURE OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING
- The Secretary-General this morning spoke at the ’s open meeting on trafficking in persons, in what is his last scheduled Security Council appearance during his time as Secretary-General.
- The Secretary-General said that trafficking is a global problem – but the most vulnerable people are those caught in conflict: women, children, internally displaced persons and refugees. And he said that war provides oxygen to terrorist groups. Da’esh, Boko Haram, Al Shabaab and others are using trafficking and sexual violence as a weapon of terror – and an important source of revenue.
- He said that we have to fight trafficking for the sake of the victim, and he detailed steps to pursue justice and accountability, as well as the need to move forward on human rights and stability, to deny traffickers oxygen for their acts.
- The Secretary-General added that prevention should be at the forefront, and he welcomed his successor’s focus on this very important priority.
- Also briefing the Council in this meeting are UN Office on Drugs and Crime () Executive Director Yury Fedotov and Zainab Bangura, Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict.
SECRETARY-GENERAL SPEAKS OUT AGAINST BERLIN ATTACK, ASSASSINATION OF RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR IN TURKEY
- In a statement issued earlier today, the Secretary-General condemned the terrorist attack in Berlin last night. He expresses his deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims of this horrific act, as well as to the Government and the people of Germany. He wishes a speedy recovery to those injured.Ìý The Secretary-General hopes anyone involved in the commission of this appalling crime will be swiftly brought to justice.
- In an earlier statement, the Secretary-General condemned the assassination yesterday of Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrey Karlov in Ankara. He expresses his deepest condolences to the family of Ambassador Karlov and to the Government and people of the Russian Federation.
- The Secretary-General is appalled by this senseless act of terror and emphasizes that there can be no justification for the targeting of diplomatic personnel and civilians. The Secretary-General wishes the other people who were reportedly injured in the attack a speedy and full recovery.
U.N. MISSION REPORTS ‘TENSE’ SITUATION, ANTI-GOVERNMENT PROTESTS IN D.R. CONGO’S CAPITAL
- The UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) reports that the situation in Kinshasa remains tense after anti-government protests and reports of gun-fire overnight and today.
- Since 16 December, the United Nations has documented 113 arrests in the country. The Mission has also received reports of several people killed in the capital and is in the process of verifying this information.
- Clashes between protesters and security forces were also reported in Lubumbashi in Haut-Katanga. Meanwhile, in Goma in North Kivu, the situation was reported as calm this morning.
- Separately, in Butembo in North Kivu, peacekeepers and Congolese troops engaged Mayi Mayi fighters, resulting in one captured and another killed. The two peacekeepers injured in yesterday's attack are in a stable condition.
HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES WELCOMES RELEASE OF STAFFERS ABDUCTED IN SUDAN
- The High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, today he was very pleased by the safe release yesterday of three UNHCR staff members who were abducted on 27th November in El Geneina, Sudan.
- He thanked the Sudanese Government and its personnel, as well as the members of the UN’s hostage management team.
U.N. HUMAN RIGHTS CHIEF CALLS FOR INVESTIGATION AFTER PHILIPPINES LEADER ADMITS TO KILLINGS
- The High Commissioner for Human Rights today judicial authorities in the Philippines to launch an investigation following President Rodrigo Duterte’s admission last week that, when serving as Mayor of Davao, he had killed three people and encouraged others to do the same.
- The High Commissioner said that such acts contravene the rights enshrined in the Philippine Constitution and violate international law, including the right to life, due process and innocence until proven guilty.
- He added said that the killings committed by Mr. Duterte, by his own admission, clearly constitute murder. He added that it should be unthinkable for any functioning judicial system not to launch investigative and judicial proceedings when someone has openly admitted being a killer.
U.N.-BACKED CAMPAIGN TO IMMUNIZE 800,000 CHILDREN LAUNCHED IN IRAQ
- Federal and regional authorities in Iraq, together with UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO), have launched a 12-day campaign to immunize some 800,000 children under the age of five against polio, rubella and measles.
- The campaign started on 19 December and targets children in Anbar, Salahaddin, and Kirkuk governorates, as well as newly retaken areas in Ninewah governorate, including displaced children living in camps.
- The campaign forms part of the vaccination strategy in the context of the ongoing Mosul operations; some 45,000 children affected by the Mosul operations will be receiving vaccines. Iraq was removed from the list of polio-infected countries in May 2015, but there remain resurgence risks due to surveillance and immunization coverage gaps in conflict zones. This will be the first time in two years that some of these children are receiving vaccines.
DROUGHTS COULD TRIGGER RISE IN HUNGER IN HORN OF AFRICA, U.N. AGENCY WARNS
- The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) today that countries in the Horn of Africa are likely to see a rise in hunger and further decline of local livelihoods in the coming months, as farming families struggle with the knock-on effects of multiple droughts that hit the region this year.
- Growing numbers of refugees in East Africa are also expected to place even more burden on an already strained food and nutrition security.
- Currently, close to 12 million people across Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia are in need of food assistance.
- Terms of trade are particularly bad for livestock farmers, as food prices are increasing at the same time that market prices for livestock are low.
- The FAO stresses that production outputs in the three countries are grim.
SECRETARY-GENERAL ACCEPTS ORDER OF CIVIL MERIT FROM SPANISH LEADER ON BEHALF OF U.N. STAFF
- This morning, the Secretary-General received the Spanish Collar of the Order of Civil Merit at an event attended by Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy.
- The Secretary-General said that he accepted the honour on behalf of all of the dedicated staff of the United Nations.
- He also expressed his appreciation for his wife having been bestowed the honour of Dame Commander of the Order of Isabella the Catholic.
- The Secretary-General said that he owes his wife his gratitude for being his strongest support and sternest critic all these years.
SECRETARY-GENERAL TO TRAVEL TO ILLINOIS
- The Secretary-General will travel tomorrow to Illinois.
- His first stop will be in Carbondale, where he will give a lecture at Southern Illinois University.
- The Secretary-General will then travel to Springfield, where he will visit the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, as well as President Lincoln’s tomb.
- He will return to New York tomorrow evening.
