• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General

Department of Public Information . News and Media Division . New York

31 July 2025

The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today's briefing by Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

**Myanmar

Happy end of July, everybody, and we will start off with a note on Myanmar.

We remain concerned by ongoing violence in Myanmar, including aerial bombardment hitting civilians and civilian infrastructure. Civilians and humanitarian workers must be protected. Any pathway out of the deteriorating situation in Myanmar requires an end to the violence and unimpeded access of relief workers and supplies to meet the enormous humanitarian needs exacerbated since the 28 March earthquakes.

The Secretary-General reiterates his concern over the military's plan to hold elections amid ongoing conflict and human rights violations and without conditions, including safety and security, that would permit the people of Myanmar to freely and peacefully exercise their political rights.

Security Council resolution 2669 (2022) calls for immediately releasing all arbitrarily detained prisoners, including President Win Myint and State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi; upholding democratic institutions and processes; and pursuing constructive dialogue and reconciliation in accordance with the will and interests of the people of Myanmar.

The United Nations is committed to staying and delivering in Myanmar and to working with all stakeholders, including ASEAN (Association of South-East Asian Nations) and other regional actors, to attain sustainable peace.

**Helsinki Final Act

Today, the Secretary-General addressed via a video message the High-level Conference commemorating the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Helsinki Final Act. He noted that we are witnessing a dangerous drift away from commitments that have safeguarded peace for generations. Yet, he said, in this moment of peril, the values enshrined in the UN Charter and echoed in the Helsinki Final Act — sovereignty, territorial integrity and peaceful coexistence — remain our moral and strategic compass.

The Secretary-General called on all to recommit to the spirit of Helsinki by strengthening regional partnerships to renew multilateralism, by principled leadership to uphold international law, and by forging unity of purpose to build a future of mutual respect, resilience and shared prosperity.

**Occupied Palestinian Territory

Turning to the Gaza Strip, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warns that hostilities continue, including multiple air strikes on residential buildings that have reportedly killed entire families. A high number of additional fatalities and injuries has been reported among those trying to secure food and other essential supplies for their families. That's over the past few days.

Meanwhile, amid deepening starvation, the UN and our partners continue to seize every opportunity to collect supplies from the Israeli-controlled crossings and replenish those platforms with new supplies from outside. This is something our teams are doing every single day through multiple missions.

Our colleagues say that, despite Israeli announcements regarding the designation of convoy routes as secure, trucks continue to face long delays that expose drivers, aid workers and crowds to danger. The long waits are because a single route has been made available for our teams exiting Kerem Shalom inside Gaza, and Israeli ground forces have set up an ad hoc checkpoint on that route.

In recent days, our teams have managed to collect wheat flour, ready-to-eat rations, high-energy biscuits, nutrition items, hygiene kits and other critical supplies from the Israeli-controlled crossings. But OCHA warns that, under the current conditions, much of the food is taken by people on the way, rather than reaching community-based distribution points where those at highest risk of death due to malnutrition can be prioritized, alongside older persons, women, those with illnesses or disabilities and other groups.

OCHA urges the Israeli authorities to allow the consistent and simultaneous entry of large volumes of diverse humanitarian and commercial supplies through all crossing points and multiple routes. To ensure that no one is left behind, aid must be distributed at the community level.

You'll recall that one of the challenges we face is having to coordinate humanitarian movements across most of the Gaza Strip with the Israeli authorities. Yesterday, OCHA published cumulative figures covering the week between last Wednesday and this Tuesday. Out of 92 attempts to coordinate aid movements, nearly 16 per cent were outright denied. An additional 26 per cent were initially accepted but faced impediments, including blocks or delays on the ground; and in many cases, this resulted in missions being aborted or partially accomplished.

Another 47 per cent were fully facilitated, and the remaining 11 per cent had to be withdrawn by the organizers for logistical, operational or security reasons.

OCHA stresses again that unimpeded humanitarian access within Gaza is essential. Without it, time and resources are wasted, lives are lost, and the response cannot match the scale of the needs.

Yesterday, the World Health Organization (World Health Organization) reported it supported the medical evacuation of 47 patients and 129 companions from Gaza, despite the ongoing challenges to humanitarian operations and access constraints.

**Syria

On Syria, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tells us that a first UN inter-agency mission went to Sweida Governorate today.

The team went to Sweida City, as well as the districts of Shahba and Salkhad, where they met with local community representatives and partners and visited displacement sites and reception centres. The team also conducted assessments in the three districts of the Governorate.

A fifth humanitarian aid convoy organized by the Syrian Arab Red Crescent arrived there today as well. The convoy, which included UN assistance, delivered medical supplies, flour, fuel, canned goods, hygiene kits and shelter materials, among other assistance. This was the largest convoy so far with 40 trucks.

Yesterday, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent also delivered four tankers carrying more than 120,000 litres of fuel to Sweida Governorate.

**Lebanon

This morning, peacekeepers of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) observed illumination fire originating from south of the Blue Line and impacting a forested area one kilometre from the mission's headquarters in Naqoura. It caused a bushfire, which was extinguished by UNIFIL peacekeepers.

UNIFIL continues to report Israel Defense Forces (IDF) military activities, including air violations and small arms fire, in the area of operations.

Also, yesterday, a UNIFIL patrol with the Lebanese Army found two unexploded ordnances in Sector West. On Tuesday, another UNIFIL patrol found an unguarded weapons cache with nine rockets in Sector West. As per usual practice, all of these were referred to the Lebanese Army.

Meanwhile, the UN flag was raised once again at a UNIFIL observation post along the Blue Line in Labbuneh, which was damaged during the last round of hostilities. The post became operational after restoration efforts by UNIFIL peacekeepers, in coordination with both the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and the Israel Defense Forces. Over a 15-day period, specialized engineering units of UNIFIL worked to restore the post, including by clearing 1,358 square metres of surrounding land of mines and unexploded ordnance. This post being operational again means enhanced UNIFIL capacity to monitor potential violations of Security Council resolution 1701.

**Ukraine

Turning to Ukraine, our colleagues from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tell us that overnight attacks that continued this morning in the capital, Kyiv, killed several civilians and injured many, including children. The drone and missile strikes also damaged dozens of apartment buildings, as well as health and education facilities.

Nationwide, between today and yesterday, over a dozen civilians were killed and more than 160 injured in the regions of Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Sumy and Zaporizhzhia, according to authorities. Aid workers, complementing the efforts of first responders and local services, have mobilized emergency support in Kyiv and other impacted areas, providing shelter materials, psychological support and other essential services.

The Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine, Matthias Schmale, condemned the attack and said that no community should have to treat missile strikes and casualties as routine. He added that last night's attack is a stark reminder that this is the reality millions face daily across the country.

**Haiti

Turning to Haiti, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs warns that a rapidly escalating crisis in the Artibonite region, where gangs are expanding their presence and activities, is triggering new waves of displacement.

On 22 July, violence linked to gangs flared in the town of Liancourt, in the Artibonite department. A vehicle and several homes were set ablaze. This incident followed a week of violent clashes in this area.

As of 19 July, the International Organization for Migration reported that nearly 15,000 people have been displaced across four communes in the Artibonite department. All are staying with host families, many of whom were already struggling to meet basic needs.

Response efforts are under way, led by our local humanitarian partners. Over the past week, our partners distributed hundreds of hot meals, and more than 500 displaced households and host communities received hygiene kits.

Humanitarian workers have also set up child-friendly spaces to provide mental health and psychosocial support.

**Briefings Tomorrow

Tomorrow, at 11:30 a.m., Ted Chaiban, the Deputy Executive Director for UNICEF, will join us here in the room to brief on his recent travel to the Middle East.

Then, at 12:45 p.m., there will be a briefing by Ambassador Eloy Alfaro de Alba, Permanent Representative of Panama to the United Nations and President of the Security Council for the month of August. He will, of course, brief on the Council's programme for the month of August.

That's it for me; are there any questions? Yes, Edie.

**Questions and Answers

Question: Thank you, Farhan. Were any of the 47 people evacuated from Gaza, did they include malnourished children, to try and get them out to places where they might survive?

Deputy Spokesman: I'm not aware. As far as I know, normally, these evacuees are for people who need particular forms of outside medical care. So, it's more than simply malnourishment, but I can check.

Correspondent: Well, one would assume that at this point, malnourished children are not getting the nutrition they need to survive in Gaza.

Deputy Spokesman: Yeah. That's certainly the case. Although for us, what we're trying to do is make sure that they get the nutrition they need inside Gaza. So, we haven't, as a general rule, been evacuating them from Gaza. But I'll check it to see who the evacuees contained.

Question: And is it still the case that only the two crossings are open?

Deputy Spokesman: Yes. Right now, the crossings being used continue to be Kerem Shalom and Zikim East, and we need to have more crossings operational than that. Dezhi?

Question: On the Two-State Solution International Conference, there's obviously a declaration, New York Declaration. Is there any participation of the United Nations in that?

Deputy Spokesman: No. I mean, obviously, we provided the venue for these talks, but this was a conference co-sponsored, as you know, by France and Saudi Arabia. So, they were the ones organizing this event.

Question: So, I think they are opening up that declaration for Member States to support until, I think, early September. What role would the UN play for this process, and what's the position from the Secretary-General on this declaration?

Deputy Spokesman: Well, as I mentioned over the last few days, we welcome all efforts to reenergize the process for a two-State solution. The Secretary-General has been warning for some time now that two-State solution is on the brink of collapse. And so, the sort of show of support we've been seeing from Member States in recent days towards advancing this cause is indeed very welcome. Yes. Edie?

Question: Just to follow-up to that, we've now seen France, the UK, Canada and Malta, in the past few days, announced their support for recognizing the State of Palestine. Does the Secretary-General believe that these recognitions put further pressure on the need for a two-State solution?

Deputy Spokesman: We certainly believe that anything that can bolster the idea that there needs to be a two-State solution will be helpful. And it's very clear that a number of States who have been taking these actions have announced it in the context of wanting to support the two-State solution; so, we see it in that light. And with that, I wish you all a good afternoon.