Lebanon, Security Council, Haiti, Gaza, & Other Topics - Daily Press Briefing (12 March 2024)

Noon briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

Highlights:
-Haiti
-Haiti/Humanitarian
-Gaza
-Occupied Palestinian Territory
-UNRWA
-Security Council
-Lebanon
-Deputy Secretary-General/Trip Announcement
-Democratic Republic of the Congo
-Mozambique
-Chad/Refugees
-Costa Rica
-Briefings

HAITI
The Secretary-General takes note of the agreement reached yesterday by Haitian stakeholders on a transitional governance arrangement, including the establishment of a Presidential Council and the appointment of an interim Prime Minister. He also takes note of Prime Minister Ariel Henry’s announcement that he would resign immediately upon the installation of a Transitional Presidential Council.
The Secretary-General expresses appreciation to CARICOM, and other international partners, for facilitating a solution to Haiti’s political crisis and calls on all Haitian stakeholders to act responsibly and to take steps towards the implementation of the agreement in order to restore the country’s democratic institutions through peaceful, credible, participatory and inclusive elections. The United Nations, through its mission, will continue to support Haiti on its path towards elections.
The Secretary-General reiterates his unwavering solidarity with the people of Haiti who are in need of safety, shelter, food and medical care, and to live their lives in dignity.

HAITI/HUMANITARIAN
The United Nations agencies continue to deliver assistance despite the risks.
The International Organization for Migration and its partners continue to run mobile medical and psychosocial clinics at sites for displaced people and are making referrals for more vulnerable cases.
The capacity of the health system remains a major concern, with many health facilities forced to shut down. Blood shortages persist at the National Blood Transfusion Center and efforts are underway to bring in blood that is currently in neighboring Dominican Republic.
The total number of displaced people – including the 15,000 people newly displaced in Port-au-Prince, has reached to more than 360,000 people, according to IOM. More than half of them are children, a particularly vulnerable group.
The lack of goods and resources is worsening an already precarious economic situation, with water and basic services being stretched to the limit.

GAZA
Sigrid Kaag, UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza, and Jorge Moreira da Silva, the Executive Director of the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS), jointly welcomed the opening of a maritime corridor to deliver much-needed additional humanitarian assistance by sea to Gaza. They commended the leadership of Cyprus and the support extended by the European Commission, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States and others.
They added that for aid delivery at scale, there is no meaningful substitute to the many land routes and entry points from Israel into Gaza. The land routes from Egypt, Rafah in particular, and Jordan also remain essential to the overall humanitarian effort. The maritime corridor brings, however, much needed additionality and is part of a sustained humanitarian response to provide aid as effectively as possible through all possible routes, the two officials said.
A joint UNOPS-UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator technical team is currently in Cyprus, working with national authorities and partners, pursuant to the new UN Mechanism for Gaza established under Security Council Resolution 2720 (2023).

Full highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=12%20March%202024