Gaza, Ukraine, Lebanon & other topics - Daily Press Briefing (14 October 2025) | United Nations

Noon briefing by Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General. Highlights: Secretary-General/Travel Occupied Palestinian Territory Gaza-Mine Action Global Humanitarian Funding Ukraine UNIFIL Deputy Secretary-General/Travels Libya Democratic Republic of the Congo Guest Today and Tomorrow SECRETARY-GENERAL/TRAVEL The Secretary-General is now on his way back to New York, after he attended the Sharm El Sheikh Summit for Ending the War in Gaza.  During the conference, the Secretary-General had conversations with a number of key interlocutors regarding the UN increasing its humanitarian efforts in Gaza.  OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY Turning to the situation in the Gaza Strip, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tells us that since the ceasefire plan came into effect, the UN and our humanitarian partners have been able to move more freely across parts of Gaza from which Israeli forces have withdrawn, without coordination with Israeli authorities. This improved access has allowed partners to scale up the response to the most urgent needs. Yesterday, the World Health Organization said that within 24 hours of the ceasefire, an emergency medical team was deployed to Al Ahli Hospital in Gaza city, and eight trucks carrying medical supplies entered the Strip, including insulin, lab supplies and essential medicine. WHO teams also reached the European Gaza Hospital in Khan Younis to retrieve cancer and other life-saving medications, as well as intensive care unit equipment — including incubators, ventilators and patient monitors — and transferred them to Nasser Hospital, also in Khan Younis. The UN and our humanitarian partners have also installed a solar panel for a desalination unit in Deir al Balah, as well as new telecommunications hardware to improve connectivity for affected people and humanitarian operations. Efforts to clear debris from roads, particularly those leading to crossing points, are also underway. Since yesterday, the Israeli authorities facilitated four UN-led missions to collect medical, health and shelter supplies from the Kerem Shalom and Kissufim crossings. The UN and our partners are also assessing people’s needs in areas that had previously been inaccessible so that we can adjust our response efforts. Today, an OCHA team visited one of these areas, the Al Kateeba neighbourhood in Khan Younis. They reported extensive destruction, with large amounts of rubble visible throughout. Our partners have begun clearing main roads to facilitate movement and humanitarian access within the area. The UN and our partners will continue scaling up operations under our 60-day response plan to reach as many people as possible with life-saving assistance. Much more can be done, and for this to happen, as we said, we need more crossings to open, as well as the sustained entry of fuel and cooking gas; security guarantees for convoys; basic infrastructure to be restored; protection of humanitarian workers; the facilitation of NGO access, including through ensuring they are not de-registered; and the rapid injection of funding to support humanitarian operations. GAZA-MINE ACTION And we have an update from our colleagues at the United Nations Mine Action Service on the severe threat from unexploded ordinance in Gaza. As hundreds of thousands of displaced people and humanitarian workers move through affected areas following the ceasefire, the risk of encountering these deadly remnants of war is high. UNMAS and its partners are working tirelessly to protect communities and stand ready to facilitate humanitarian scale-up and mitigate explosive ordnance risks. Since October 2023, UNMAS has identified more than 550 explosive ordnance items in areas they have been able to access, though the full extent of contamination in Gaza is still unknown. Partners are also delivering risk education for communities since 2023, especially children, and training humanitarian and construction workers to operate safely. Their work is critical to saving lives and enabling aid to reach those in need. Additionally, Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Officers evaluate debris along roads and within damaged buildings to determine whether areas are safe to clear. Their guidance and technical expertise are crucial for mitigating explosive ordnance risks during these high-risk operations. Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=14%20October%202025


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