Budget, Occupied Palestinian Territory & other topics - Daily Press Briefing (17 Oct 2025) | UN

Noon Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General. Highlight: - Budget - Occupied Palestinian Territory - Lebanon/Israel - South Sudan/Abyei - Central African Republic - Nigeria - Türkiye - Climate/Poverty - Eradication of Poverty BUDGET The Secretary-General spoke to the General Assembly’s Fifth Committee this morning to introduce the proposed programme budget for 2026. He said the proposed budget demonstrates an enhanced focus on mandate delivery. Over 70 percent of planned quantitative targets now aim for a 10 per cent or greater increase in performance, he said. The Secretary-General said that the proposed programme budget for 2026 of 3.715 billion US dollars is slightly below the 2025 approved budget, and it provides for 14,275 posts. Ultimately, the Secretary-General said, effective delivery in 2026 will depend on the timely and full payment of assessed contributions. Despite earlier hopes, the downward trend of collections has continued. OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY Turning to Gaza, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, entered the Strip a few hours ago. He crossed from Egypt through the Israeli side of Kerem Shalom crossing. He then drove to Deir al Balah, where he visited the Castle Bakery, which is one of nine bakeries that the World Food Programme supports with fuel and ingredients across southern and central Gaza. This bakery used to be the largest bakery in Khan Younis, where it served thousands of families until it had to relocate following a displacement order by Israel. The ceasefire has meant that the bakery can access fuel and four, allowing it to produce up to 300,000 loaves of pita bread per day. Also in Deir al Balah, Mr. Fletcher met with those leading the Gaza offices of UN agencies there. He is set to meet more humanitarian workers later this evening and spend the night in Gaza. In a post, Mr. Fletcher said humanitarian teams are delivering on our 60-day plan to massively scale up life-saving work. He noted that the challenges ahead are immense, but said we are determined to deliver on the humanitarian possibilities created by President Trump’s peace deal. Before heading to Gaza, Mr. Fletcher was in Egypt. While in Rafah yesterday, he witnessed trucks full of aid heading to Kerem Shalom. He thanked humanitarian teams, the Egyptian Red Crescent, the authorities and everyone involved in getting the peace deal in place. Mr. Fletcher also visited Al Arish Hospital in Egypt yesterday, which has treated hundreds of Palestinians evacuated from Gaza for medical care. Yesterday, the UN and partners continued to collect medical supplies, food, fuel and other cargo from the Kerem Shalom and Kissufim crossings. This includes 20 trucks carrying tents, diapers and hygiene kits, as well as three others loaded with personal hygiene kits, eight tankers loaded with diesel, and two trucks carrying animal fodder, which will be distributed to herders in Deir Al Balah and Khan Younis. OCHA reports that much more can be done once more crossings are opened, basic infrastructure is restored, NGO access is facilitated, and looting further reduces. Meanwhile, families in Gaza continue to move towards newly accessible areas. Our partners monitoring the flow of people across the Strip report that on Wednesday, more than 17,600 movements were recorded from south to north, and 12,900 movements from western to eastern Khan Younis. LEBANON/ISRAEL A quick update from the peacekeepers in southern Lebanon who are actively monitoring and reporting violations of resolution 1701 in its area of operations. The peacekeepers continue to discover unauthorized weapon caches in the area of operations. On Thursday, mortar shells were found in Sector West, while on Tuesday, a joint patrol with the Lebanese Army discovered damaged rockets and their launchers in Sector East. UNIFIL also continues to observe Israel Defense Forces (IDF) military activities in the area of operations, including on Wednesday, where mortar fire from south of the Blue Line was detected, impacting near Yaroun in Sector West. Also on Wednesday, in Sarda in Sector East, IDF soldiers pointed infra-red lasers at UNIFIL patrol vehicles. We once again stress these acts of interference must stop. Meanwhile, UNIFIL’s Maritime Task Force conducted training this week with Lebanese Navy personnel aboard a Maritime Task Force vessel. Separately, peacekeepers in Sector East trained with Lebanese Army personnel to address threats posed by explosive remnants of war. Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date=2025-10-17


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