International News
The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:
In South‑East Asia, severe, widespread flooding and landslides due to recent heavy rains have killed more than 100 people and displaced over 111,000, according to the United Nations, which is working with partners in Viet Nam to assess affected areas and support the Government’s aid response by providing food and other items.
Although hand-washing with soap is critical to anti-coronavirus efforts, millions of people around the world lack ready access to a place to wash their hands, UNICEF) warned today, reporting that, according to the latest estimates, only three out of five people worldwide have basic hand-washing facilities.
The United Nations is increasingly concerned about the impact of Syria’s economic downturn. Food prices there have more than tripled in the past year, a record 9.3 million people are food insecure, and without future support, over 2 million more risk being pushed further into hunger, according to the World Food Programme.
Following explosions in Beirut on 4 August, the United Nations is requesting $565 million to help Lebanon move towards recovery and reconstruction. Peacekeepers with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) are also donating blood and have joined the “#UN4Beirut” initiative to clean up devastated city streets.
The World Food Programme (WFP) today said swift action is needed to avoid severe food insecurity in Latin America and the Caribbean, the world’s most coronavirus‑affected region that also faces a relentless rise of hunger, deepening inequality and an active hurricane season.
The members of the Security Council condemned in the strongest terms the murder of five aid workers in Borno State, Nigeria, on 22 July 2020. They expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims and to the Government of Nigeria.
Exceptional and prolonged heat in Siberia has fuelled devastating Arctic fires, the World Meteorological Organization said today, noting that temperatures in Siberia again topped 30°C this week. The heat will influence weather and climate in lower latitudes, where hundreds of millions of people live, it warned.
The World Health Organization warned today of the threat that COVID-19 poses to health workers across Africa, with more than 10,000 in 40 countries having been infected with the virus so far. The warning comes as COVID-19 cases in Africa appear to be gathering pace, with more than 750,000 cases and over 15,000 deaths.
The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres: