"PALESTINIAN REFUGEES"

UN Secretary-General António Guterres told the Security Council, “we need a true humanitarian ceasefire,” adding that a failure of establishing a two-State solution “will condemn Palestinians, Israelis, the region and the world, to a never-ending cycle of death and destruction.” UNIFEED

Humanitarian Chief Martin Griffiths called for a cessation of hostilities in Gaza for an “indefinite period” in order to “facilitate an unimpeded humanitarian response” and to “give the people of Gaza a breather upon the terrible things that have been put on them on these last few weeks.” He also called “without conditions” for the release of all hostages. UNIFEED

Following his visit to the Rafah crossing, in Egypt, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, in Cairo said, “in Rafah I have witnessed the gates to a living nightmare.” OHCHR

“The Rafah crossing has been the symbolic lifeline for the last month for the 2.3 million people in Gaza,” UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk said during a visit to the Rafah Border Crossing and El Arish Hospital in Egypt. OHCHR

The High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, said that the 114 million refugees and displaced people worldwide are a tangible “but sometimes neglected symptom of the world’s current extreme disorder.” UNIFEED

Media stakeout by Filippo Grandi, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, on refugees and the situation in Gaza.

The Director of Communications at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), Juliette Touma, reported that 14 UN facilities have sustained damage due to Israeli airstrikes since 7 October, including its Gaza headquarters and an UNRWA school. UNIFEED / UNRWA

Following a Ministerial Meeting on UNRWA co-hosted by Jordan and Sweden, the Head of UNRWA Philippe Lazzarini and Jordan’s Minister of Foreign affairs Ayman Safadi called for increased and predictable funding for Palestinian refugees. UNIFEED

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

The United Nations held on Friday a pledging conference for the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) as an opportunity for Member States to match their political commitment with sufficient and predictable financial contributions. UNIFEED