Colombia, Occupied Palestinian Territory, Lebanon & other topics - Daily Press Briefing

Good afternoon, everyone. First, I'd like to start with Colombia, and we actually have a guest for you on that. I have the following statement attributable to the spokesperson. The Secretary General is saddened by reports that more than 160 people have lost their lives with many others injured following the 7.4 magnitude earthquake that struck Colombia yesterday. He expresses his solidarity with the people and government of Colombia and extends his condolences to the families of the victims and wishes for speedy recovery to all those affected as reports emerge of collapsed homes and other significant damage and as the authorities work to assess the full impact. The United Nations is in close contact with the Colombian authorities and is supporting the government-led response as requested. And with that, I'm pleased to turn to my guest, Maria Jose Torres Macho, who is the UN Resident Coordinator in Colombia. She is joining us from Bogota to speak about the humanitarian situation in the country following the earthquake yesterday. Mrs. Torres-Macho, welcome. The floor is yours.

Thank you very much. Thank you for having us this morning. This is indeed a tragic way of starting a week and a new government. Actually, we had an earthquake of a magnitude 7.4. The epicenter was in the Pacific area in Choco. and it is affecting already 14 of Colombia's 32 departments, so we are talking about the western area of country. And we have so far an updated account of fatalities from the statement of the Secretary General, we have now 182 fatalities, 2,500 people injured and 195 people reported missing. We had this morning a conversation in the humanitarian country team with the Foreign Affairs Minister and Tom Fletcher, our emergency relief coordinator, and what was expressed is that the impact of this earthquake is bigger than they were expecting. Just to give you a bit of context, in '99 Colombia experienced a huge earthquake in Armenia, in the coffee region, and it was 6.1. This time has been 7.4. So everything that I'm reporting right now is going to be evolving as we speak and we are constantly updating. There have been already two SITREPs produced. We are updating this morning another SITREP. In terms of coordination, I have to say I have been many years working in humanitarian responses. It's the first time that I see a foreign affairs minister and Tom Fletcher, helping the humanitarian country team to come together. It was a great manifestation of solidarity and response in a coordinated fashion. Since yesterday, I received also the call of the Foreign Affairs, Mr. Omar Boula, and OCHA has been representing the UN team and the humanitarian community in the emergency response cell. So the assessment is, it is very much ongoing. And I have to say the main areas affected is shelter, health, food security protection. And there are already humanitarian partners in the field responding. For instance, we have a big presence articulated in two regions, the Chocor region, as well as the Valle del Cauca in Cali. People are already responding. The main operation right now is search and rescue, but we have already prepositioned emergency kits to respond to all these initiatives. Also, we have an imaginary remote sensing methodology to assess structural damage and socioeconomic impact that was already used in the case of Venezuela. And this is producing the first results in terms of economic damage and structural damage. Everybody is really in a very important effort to be coordinated both here in headquarters as well as headquarters meeting in Bogota, as well as in the regions. We are also dispatching staff who is based in Bogota to support the efforts at the local level. And in terms of resources, we are doing four different things. One is to realign existing resources. We are implementing an important humanitarian operation right now. We know more about what is the impact in the capital cities, but less in the rural remote areas. They're also affected by, um, by the situation of conflict in, in Colombia, so we are very much following up on that. And, um, um, Tom Fletcher announced the possibility of mobile license serve, we have been. invited by the national authorities to complement the national response. Therefore, there is a declaration of catastrophe and response in a coordinated way. And we are also operating a new link in the regional humanitarian fund of OCHA in case there are donations by the private sector, which is already happening. I mean, we have been approached by many actors of the private sector who really want to provide support through our mechanism. Thank you very much for now.

Now turns to questions. Namo.

Thank you so much for this briefing. I have two questions. I know it was felt widely around the country, but did it have any impact in Bogota? I know Bogota is a little farther away from the west. And secondly, do we, what are the authorities, local authorities telling you Are we going to see a lot more people die in the coming days? And that we don't know, are a lot of people missing? Can you please shed more light on that? Thank you.

Absolutely. Thank you. I mean, in Bogota, we felt it. Everybody felt it. But it was nothing in terms of structural damages and people's affectation. So I think that's the good news. it was really widely sensed. I think the affectation is in the regions, as I mentioned, particularly in Choco, Cali and Pereira that are the most affected areas, as well as Buenaventura. Thank you for the question about the local authorities. I think this is one of the strengths of our humanitarian country team. We have a presence right now that is constantly in touch with the local authorities, both the alcaldias, so the mayors, and the governors because we absolutely want to make sure that any response is complimentary and we are not duplicating efforts. So there is this ability of the UN team and the humanitarian partners to work together. It's important to note that in Colombia, in addition to the humanitarian team, we also have a verification mission of the United Nations that has presence in these very areas and we are extremely well coordinated with the SRSG and his team. And this afternoon I'm going to participate with the local colleagues in a meeting to make sure that everything that the UN has is put at the service of this emergency response.

Ephraim.

Thanks, Farhan. This is Ephraim Qoseifi with Arab News Daily. You spoke of resources. What kind of resources do you have at hand right now? What are people in need of, mostly those who are affected by the earthquake? And what is it that you would need in terms of funding and additional resources?

Thank you for the question. I think it's great. So the first thing that we need is to evaluate how much exactly we need to respond. As I mentioned, needs are evolving. I'm connecting to the previous question. We have 182 fatalities, people injured, 2,000. 570 and 195 people missing, but we don't know exactly what is the impact in the rural remote areas. So we are actually, there is a big effort by the humanitarian team to compliment the initial assessment by the national authorities. So there might be much more to report and to respond to. In terms of the priorities, temporary shelter, many people lost their homes, including some people working for the UN. Uh, food security, uh, protection, we are very much discussing the situation of children and women, uh, that are particularly in areas that are extremely vulnerable, and, uh, this is the areas that have been most affected. So this is what exactly we are going to focus first. And focus first means realigning existing resources. So we have already a lot of capacities existing locally. For instance, the whole medical response is being coordinated with the Ministry of Health. This is something already ongoing and very important. This morning, we had the Spanish cooperation and the US attending our humanitarian country team, both are very attentively supporting the UN team. And in terms of mobilizing CERF, I think we are going to have data in terms of how much, much better organized by the end of the week as the situation is evolving, as I was mentioning.

One more quick one please. What about the situation of women there now, especially pregnant women, let's say, we know this is a part of the population that gets most affected when some disaster of this magnitude happens. Are there any services tailored to them? Is UNFPA there on the ground? Are there any other local agencies that take care of vulnerable population like that? Thanks.

Excellent question, thank you for that, actually this is one of the lessons learned from Venezuela that was, uh, presented this week. the importance of taking into account the issue of pregnant women and small children. Indeed, UNFPA and UN Women are both members and very active and present in the areas. So we are very quickly coordinating with other partners, including WHO, that is also deploying and supporting staff on the ground to take into account this very issue. And also partners from the international community were discussing this morning the possibility of activating mobile units to be able not just to attend pregnant women and small children in their local area in the in the capital cities but also go to the most remote areas UNICEF by the way is also a big partner of this country team also taking into account this this issue thank you for the question thanks uh Howard.

Yes um Howard LaFranki with the Christian Science Monitor thank you so much for doing this um a couple of questions one when you uh you put an emphasis on realigning resources um and um I'm interested in specifically what that means for UN resources. And also, you've referred a couple of times to the tragic earthquake in Venezuela. And very early on, there were reports out of Venezuela with local people saying they felt like no one was coming around. They were on their own. And I'm just wondering if this is sort of resonating And if your very quick response here in some way is a response to that experience of some people in the case of Venezuela?

Well, thank you for the question on realigning resources. Colombia has a humanitarian response plan that has been supported by different donors through the regional humanitarian fund, including the US, but also Echo, Spain, Germany, and Switzerland. So we have those resources. And for instance, this morning, the colleagues were speaking about kits, emergency kits that have to do with wars, shelter, some kits that are related to protection. And therefore, what we are doing is choosing those that are already in storage to bring it very quickly to the areas. We have the capacity of warehouses that are operated by WFP, but at the service of the entire humanitarian community. And this is what I'm talking about when I'm speaking about realignment. Not everything we are going to be able to do within existing resources. This is the reason why upon the request of the national authorities, formal request, the ERC has authorized the possibility of mobilizing SERF that may go into areas that are very critical, such as protection, such as education in emergency, SDVV, protection of, as the colleague was asking, women in general that are maybe out of job and having a family, but also are pregnant. So this is the type of things that we are talking. And I cannot... I can confirm that we are receiving lessons learned from Venezuela, but I think the quick reaction of this team in Colombia in particular has to do with two factors. First, that the state of Colombia, even in the middle of this disaster, having a new government, all the institutions have worked. and our ability to be working with them has not been affected by the change of government. On the contrary, we were called upon immediately to be part of the response. So, and the second thing is that we have a presence in the ground. Therefore, our ability to be there, present with the people, I think has increased exponentially. The area that we are less present is the,, like the coffee area, Pereira, and we are sending immediately a colleague to support coordination there.

Okay. Okay. I think that is it for questions as far as I can see. So I'd like once more to thank our guest, Maria Jose Torres Macho, the resident coordinator in Colombia. Thanks very much for your extremely quick and timely briefing to us and good luck in the days ahead.

Thank you. Thank you very much. We will continue to update. Thank you for having us.

Thanks. Have a good day.

You too. Bye-bye.

And I have a few further details on Colombia for you. In addition to what the resident coordinator said, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says assessments continue and authorities report thousands of injuries and the death toll continues to rise. Initial reports indicate that 12 departments have been impacted by the earthquake with thousands of homes damaged and hundreds destroyed. Health and education facilities, as well as roads and airports have also been impacted. The government is leading and coordinating the response and shelter, food, safe drinking water and health care are among the most urgent needs, as the resident coordinator also pointed out. For its part, the World Food Programme is closely monitoring the situation and remains in contact with national authorities and humanitarian partners as assessments continue. Following the government of Colombia's request for international assistance, WFP has started mobilizing support and stands ready to assist impacted populations with food assistance and cash-based response mechanisms. WFP notes that approximately close to 4,500 metric tons of food are available through pre-positioned stocks in Colombia, located close enough to affected areas to enable a rapid response if needed, with additional supplies available through WFP's regional and global supply networks. Remis Al Akbarov, the deputy special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, warned the Security Council today that while the fragile ceasefire in Gaza and regional tensions consume much of the international community's attention, the West Bank is at the breaking point. He said that settler violence has reached unprecedented levels. So far this year, the UN has documented more than 1,430 incidents involving Israeli settlers that resulted in casualties, property damage, or both. affecting approximately 260 Palestinian communities. Many incidents occurred in the presence of Israeli forces. The pattern is clear, Mr. Al-Akbarov said. Palestinian populations are increasingly being forcibly displaced from villages across the West Bank before settlers seize the vacated land. He said that the situation in the West Bank must be treated as an emergency requiring urgent action. The concern is not only the continued expansion of settlements, but the speed and systematic manner in which new facts are being created on the ground. He added that these are interconnected steps, not isolated developments. They're reshaping the West Bank, weakening Palestinian governance, and advancing de facto annexation. UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Hannes Lehmann told the Security Council that between January 2024 and the end of July this year, 174 Palestinian children were verified killed by the UN in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. That is more than one child every week. More than 1,500 were injured. Nearly half of those injured were wounded by live ammunition. Over the same period, she said, three Israeli children were killed and 15 injured. And further on the occupied Palestinian territory, The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that most of the population lacks sufficient water, sanitation, and hygiene access. The population in Gaza, that is. More than 1.3 million people, over half the population, have less than six liters of water per person per day, well below the 15-liter emergency standard. A further 700,000 people have less than nine liters of domestic water per day. affecting hygiene and household needs. Three in four people rely on water trucked in, with partners reaching over 2,500 collection points daily. Only half of households have access to basic sanitation, and more than 900,000 people report exposure to accumulated garbage. Consistent funding and greater access for spare parts and landfills remain essential. Turning to the West Bank, OCHA also reports continued settler-related violence. On Sunday in Nablus Governorate, Israeli settlers installed a gate isolating several Palestinian families, including children, from essential services such as emergency healthcare. Meanwhile, attacks on healthcare have spiked, with the World Health Organization recording 37 in July alone, up from a monthly average of 10 earlier this year, and nearly 100 for the year so far, mostly affecting health transport. In 25 cases, health workers or patients were arrested. The UN reiterates its call for the protection of civilians, health workers, and health facilities, unimpeded access to healthcare, and accountability for perpetrators of unlawful attacks. Today marks the 20th anniversary of the unanimous passage of Security Council Resolution 1701 concerning Lebanon and Israel. The core elements of the resolution remain as relevant today as ever. The need for a complete cessation of hostilities, the extension of Lebanese state authority and a monopoly over weapons, the withdrawal of the Israel Defense Force, respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, and negotiations towards a permanent ceasefire and long-term solution to the conflict. The United Nations, including through the Office of the Special Coordinator and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, remains committed to supporting Lebanon and Israel implement their obligations and the full implementation of Resolution 1701. Special Coordinator Officer-in-Charge Jean Arnaud is continuing his diplomatic engagement with all actors to support implementation of the ceasefire and Resolution 1701. Meanwhile, UNIFIL peacekeepers remain in position throughout southern Lebanon, implementing their mandate under Resolution 1701. A commemorative ceremony will be held today at UNIFIL Headquarters in Naqoura. The UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander, Major General Diodata Abagnara, lead a tribute to the seven peacekeepers who lost their lives in the line of duty amidst hostilities in recent months. The High Commissioner for Human Rights commended the Lebanese Parliament today for its decision to abolish the death penalty. And turning to West Africa, yesterday was the first day of the Ministerial Humanitarian Forum of the Alliance of Sahel States, which comprises Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger. The forum, which is the second to be held, is taking place in Burkina Faso's capital, Ouagadougou, with UN agencies, non-governmental organizations, donors, civil society organizations, academics, and government officials taking part. The event seeks to take stock of the complex humanitarian situations impacting these three countries, as well as adopt concrete actions to address humanitarian needs and invest in long-term solutions. This year's forum also includes a high level segment on gender. With women among the most impacted in humanitarian crises, they're critical to finding solutions to emergencies. Our colleagues at the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tell us that this year, more than 12 million people need humanitarian assistance in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger. But the humanitarian needs and response plans for each country received limited funding. Violence and insecurity restrict humanitarian access, while food insecurity, disease outbreaks, and climate shocks continue to drive the protracted humanitarian crises in the three countries. The $658 million plan for Burkina Faso is 28% funded, while the $578 million plan for Mali is 20% funded, and the $675 million plan for Niger is just 16% funded. In South Sudan, our colleagues at the UN mission in South Sudan have condemned deadly attacks by armed groups on communities in Tonj North, Wadab State on Sunday, which reportedly left more than 60 civilians dead and 50 others injured, along with widespread displacement. The nearly simultaneous attacks on Alabek and Akuk Bayams also led to the destruction and looting of property, including the theft of large numbers of cattle. The UNMISS officer in charge, Graham Maitland, said the intercommunal violence is causing immense harm to communities that are already vulnerable and risk further fueling further revenge attacks. The mission is launching a long duration peacekeeping patrol to the impacted area to assess the security situation, investigate human rights violations, and help deter further conflict through protective presence and direct engagement with communities. The mission stresses the importance of this and other patrols to conflict hotspots being carried out unimpeded and without delay. The mission is engaging intensively with officials at all levels to de-escalate tensions and is urging the government to strengthen security in the area and hold those responsible for these atrocities accountable. Turning to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, our colleagues at the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tell us that efforts to expand treatment and surveillance continue as the Ebola outbreak has reportedly claimed more than 2,000 lives. According to national health authorities, the number of reported deaths has doubled over the past 20 days, with an average of about 50 deaths recorded each day. The World Health Organization reports that between 60 and 70 percent of Ebola-related deaths occur in communities, with many patients reaching health facilities too late or unable to access care in time. We, along with our partners, continue to support the response, but our work is hindered by insecurity. OCHA tells us that according to local sources, at least 13 civilians were killed, several others were abducted, and homes were burned during an attack on August 7 in the village of Banane Akol in Ituri. More than 28,000 people fled their homes towards Mombasa Centre, where 36,000 people are already seeking shelter since April. OCHA and our partners continue to support the authorities and assess needs in impacted areas. We reiterate our call on all parties to the conflict to protect civilians and facilitate safe and sustained humanitarian access to communities impacted by both violence and the outbreak. Turning to Myanmar, the Independent Investigative Mechanism released its annual report today, showing a pattern of deliberate attacks on civilians by the Myanmar military. These include aerial strikes on homes, schools, medical facilities and camps, as well as arbitrary detention, torture and sexual violence, which escalated ahead of January's elections and has continued since then. The mechanism is also investigating alleged atrocities involving armed groups opposed to the military. The report covering July 2025 to June 2026 says the military's growing use of paramotors and drones has made attacks harder for civilians to detect or flee, and that some responsible units have been identified. It also documents detentions under 2025 law criminalizing election criticism, under which numerous individuals have been arrested and now face up to 20 years imprisonment or the death penalty for activities such as posting critical comments on social media. Further information is available online. The Secretary-General announced today the appointment of Major General Javed Ahmed of Pakistan as the new Force Commander for the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara. Major General Ahmed succeeds Major General Muhammad Fakhruddin Hasan of Bangladesh, who completed his assignment on 2 August 2026. The Secretary-General is grateful to Major General Hasan for his exemplary service and leadership of MINURSO. Major General Ahmed brings to this position over 35 years of leadership and operational experience in the Pakistani Army and United Nations peacekeeping. He served as Director General in the Ministry of Defense in Rawalpindi, overseeing command and control, local governance, and administration of all cantonment areas nationwide, comprising over 5.3 million citizens. Prior to this, he was the general officer commanding of an infantry division, director general of the inspection and evaluation directorate at general headquarters and force commander northern areas. More information online. I just want to flag that today is World Steel Pan Day. Originating from early 20th century carnival percussion groups in Trinidad and Tobago, the steel pan is played with a pair of straight sticks tipped with rubber. and is celebrated today for its cultural and historical significance. And last, we would like to say thank you to our friends in Pyongyang and Male for their full payments to the regular budget. The payments from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Maldives bring the number of fully paid up member states to 126. And with that, the floor is now yours. Yes, Idie.

Thank you, Farhan. Does the Secretary General have any comment on these drone strikes in western Libya that have attacked energy and other oil facilities, including recently setting off a very large fire?

Well, it's critical that no attacks target civilian infrastructure, including the crucial civilian infrastructure such as oil plants that the country needs to keep going. But we have also, of course, across the range of different conflicts, pointed out the problem of drones and other technologies being used for such attacks as well. Yes, Ephraim.

Hello, Farhan. You mentioned very quickly, fleetingly, the story of the abolishment of death penalty in Lebanon. Can you tell us more what the Secretary-General thinks of this move, how significant it is, for him that this is happening, understanding is the first country to do so in the region.

It's very significant. As you know, we've called for all countries to have a moratorium on the death penalty and move towards a progressive abolition of the death penalty. So for the Lebanese parliament to take this step is a big step forward. And our High Commissioner Volker Turk has come out with a statement today that gives praise to the Lebanese authorities for this step. Yes, Namo.

Thank you, Farhan. Any statement from the Secretary General on the legislation passed in Turkey on the Kurdish peace process, on how to go forward.

We're studying this as this progresses, but obviously we encourage all steps by the government of Turkey to forge ahead on peace with Kurdish groups, including with the PKK. Yes, Efraim.

Okay, one more Farhan on the sentencing to death in absentia for war crimes of the former Syrian President Bashar Assad. Any comment on that?

Well, yes, we certainly take note of the decision. And what I can tell you is that addressing longstanding demands for justice, accountability, and truth can contribute to restoring confidence in institutions and laying the foundations for healing, national reconciliation, and sustainable peace. We recall the General Assembly's call to establish a moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty, and we encourage the Syrian authorities to pursue accountability through a victim-centered transitional justice process that upholds human rights and the rule of law, strengthens national institutions, and contributes to national unity and sustainable peace. And the United Nations is committed to supporting transitional justice efforts in Syria in line with relevant mandates and in accordance with applicable legal frameworks. Yes, in the back. You've asked? Okay, then, Idit, you have the next question. Oh, she's asking.

Farhan, at the Security Council meeting that just ended, The Palestinian ambassador said the annexation by Israel in the West Bank is already taking place and he urged UN member nations to take action along with the UN. What is the Secretary General's specific reaction to this?

Claim uh well you'll have heard what ramiz alabrov had to say and I I mentioned it at the start of this briefing that he is extremely concerned uh about uh the the seizure of territory in the West Bank uh he's he's uh he's made it uh he said that the pattern is clear that Palestinian populations are increasingly being forcibly displaced across the West Bank before settlers seize vacated lands. And he said that it should be treated as an emergency requiring urgent action. And so the Secretary General wants member states to take steps to ensure that the two-state solution will not be placed in danger by the steps being taken.

And what specifically is he urging them to do?

Ultimately, the agreements and the status of the West Bank is such that this territory cannot be seized. It's not legal to take over Palestinian territories in the West Bank. And the Security Council has, as you know, made clear in its resolutions the status of those territories, and they have to make sure that these current facts on the ground do not overcome our efforts and the Council's efforts to ensure the continuation of the two-state solution. And you have a question.

Thank you, Farhan. Also, a question on the West Bank. Listening to both Mr. Al-Akbarov and UNICEF executive, Deputy Executive Director, Hanan Suleiman, you get a sense of how profoundly this settlement violence is affecting an entire generation of Palestinian children. So we also keep repeatedly hearing that it is pushing the two-state solution further away. So beyond the political aspect of the two-state solution, how does the UN see these two populations eventually coexisting in the future, especially when questions of justice and accountability remain unresolved for these children. And thank you.

Ultimately, Israelis and Palestinians have no choice but to find a way to live peacefully with each other. Both populations exist and exist in large numbers, and they exist side by side. The United Nations, and other parties through their support for the two-state solution have devised a system where the two parties, the two peoples, the Israelis and Palestinians, can live side by side in peace and security with each other. That is the core of what peace efforts for decades have been, and those need to be supported and not undermined. All right, have a good afternoon, everyone. Thank you.