UN Daily Press Briefing: Climate, Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine, Haiti & More (22 July 2025)

Secretary-General's Address on Clean Energy

• 💡 The Secretary-General highlighted the unstoppable energy transition, noting that global solar and wind emissions savings are nearly equivalent to the EU's annual output.
• ⚡ This transformation is framed as crucial for energy security, people's security, and smart economics, though it's not yet fast or fair enough.

Security Council and International Law

• ⚖️ The Secretary-General warned of a disregard for international law, including human rights, refugee, and humanitarian law, with a lack of accountability.
• 🌍 He called for the Security Council to reflect today's geopolitical realities, urging improvements in its working methods for inclusivity, transparency, efficiency, and accountability.
• 🤝 The Black Sea Initiative's three-year anniversary was noted as an example of successful mediation and UN good offices.

Humanitarian Crisis in Gaza

• 💔 Intense hostilities and the collapse of lifelines continue in Gaza, with local health authorities reporting over a dozen deaths from hunger in 24 hours.
• 🚶 Civilians are collapsing in streets and risking their lives for food, facing gunfire from troops despite assurances of safety.
• 🏥 Hospitals are overwhelmed with trauma injuries, facing shortages of supplies and fuel, with the Nasser Medical Complex at risk of shutdown.
• ⚠️ UN facilities, including WHO's main warehouse, have been struck and looted, with staff facing detention and interrogation, described as a pattern of systematic destruction of health facilities.
• 🏠 Approximately 88% of Gaza is under displacement orders or within militarized zones, with the remaining 12% overcrowded and underserved.

Global Humanitarian Concerns

• 🇸🇩 In Sudan, revised plans aim to assist 380,000 displaced people, with an urgent need for $120 million for food, healthcare, and shelter.
• 📈 Health situations in North Darfur are deteriorating, with surging cases of cholera, measles, and malaria, hindered by internet outages and insecurity.
• 📉 Market prices in South Darfur are reeling from floods and cut-off supply routes, with significant price increases for sugar and wheat flour, deepening food insecurity.
• 🇨🇩 UN peacekeepers intervened in the DRC to protect civilians from militia violence, leading to looting and destruction.
• 🇦🇫 $10 million from the CERF will scale up life-saving assistance for a surge of returns from Iran, with nearly 600,000 people receiving food and health support at borders.
• 🇺🇦 In Ukraine, hostilities killed at least five civilians, including a child, and injured 76 others, with widespread damage to residential buildings and infrastructure.
• 🇭🇹 In Haiti, escalating violence has triggered a new wave of displacement, with nearly 1.3 million people displaced nationwide, facing severe restrictions on humanitarian access.

UNESCO Withdrawal and UN Operations

• 🇺🇸 The Secretary-General deeply regrets the US decision to withdraw from UNESCO once again.
• ❓ Regarding allegations of aid diversion by Hamas, the UN stated they have not seen evidence of mass aid diversion.
• 🗣️ The UN emphasizes that humanitarian operations in Gaza are being strangled by a system that denies them space and safety.
• ⚖️ The UN calls for accountability for perpetrators of sectarian violence in Syria, urging the government to bring them to justice.