Libya, Yemen, Saudi Arabia & other topics - Daily Press Briefing (18 Aug 2026) | United Nations

Noon Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General. Highlights: Security Council Yemen/Saudi Arabia Occupied Palestinian Territory Ukraine Democratic Republic of the Congo Chad Afghanistan Colombia SECURITY COUNCIL Hanna Tetteh, the Secretary-General's Special Representative for the United Nations in Libya, briefed the Security Council. She told members that Libya now enters a critical phase, that of advancing unified institutions and the conditions necessary for inclusive elections. Ms. Tetteh told Council members that the consequences of Libya's divisions are visible in daily life. Power cuts in July disrupted electricity and water supplies for hundreds of thousands of people and have continued into August, in the middle of a long heatwave. Despite these challenges, Ms. Tetteh pointed to the meeting in Sirte in July when the two Chiefs of General Staff from the West and East, who agreed on the principle to establish a joint border force and to undertake joint exercises, regular communications and harmonised training. YEMEN/SAUDI ARABIA Turning to the situation in the Arabian Peninsula, between Yemen and Saudi Arabia. We are deeply concerned by reports of attacks by the Houthis against targets in Saudi Arabia. Such attacks risk further entangling Yemen in the wider regional confrontation, at a time when the region is already facing intense pressure and regional trade and energy flows are under severe strain. Attacks and threats against shipping must also stop, and freedom of navigation in both the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden must be upheld. We again call on the parties to respect their obligations to protect civilians, to protect civilian infrastructure. The Special Envoy, Hans Grundberg, has stressed this imperative in all his engagements with the parties. OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY Turning to the Occupied Palestinian Territory. I can tell you that we are deeply alarmed by the continued deterioration of the security and humanitarian situation for Palestinian in the occupied West Bank. Our humanitarian colleagues tell us that in the northern West Bank yesterday, Israeli forces instructed about 10 Palestinian families in Jabal An Nasr neighbourhood in Tulkarm to leave their homes for seven hours, due to military activities near the adjacent Nur Shams camp for Palestine refugees. Israeli military bulldozers excavated part of a road, damaging water and sewage networks, and carried out excavation works on Palestinian land before withdrawing. Families reportedly returned to their homes, and municipal crews repaired the damaged infrastructure once Israeli security forces withdrew from the area. These incidents are taking place against the backdrop of a broader deterioration in the West Bank, where escalating violence, expanding settler presence, severe restrictions on movement and access for Palestinians, and shrinking economic opportunities have become the norm. Turning to Gaza, we and our partners continue to deliver aid, support essential services and facilitate critical humanitarian operations wherever it is possible for us to do so. Since Sunday, we and our partners have successfully coordinated with the Israeli authorities to carry out several missions in Gaza, including the Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem and Rafah crossings, to monitor humanitarian cargo, and collect fuel and support medical evacuations. The scale of needs remains immense. Our colleagues at the Food and Agriculture Organization also warned yesterday that Gaza’s agricultural capacity has been devastated. A new assessment found that only 3 per cent of cropland remains both accessible and undamaged, further undermining local food production and farmers’ livelihoods. At the same time, our humanitarian partners are concerned about the impact of continued Israeli military activities on civilians. Since yesterday and as of this morning, our partners leading on security and safety reported incidents involving Israeli air strikes, shelling, gunfire and naval fire, primarily west of the so-called “Yellow Line,” that’s where most of Gaza’s 2.1 million residents are forced to be confined, and that is less than half of the Strip’s territory. Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date=2026-08-18


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