Description
Noon Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.
Highlights:
- Myanmar
- Western Sahara
- Personal Envoy For Sudan
- Sudan
- Yemen
- Yemen/Humanitarian
- Occupied Palestinian Territory
- UNIFIL
- Ukraine
- Humanitarian / Insurance
- UN Biodiversity Conference
- Senior Personnel Appointment – UNTSO
- New Resident Coordinators – Uruguay And Yemen
- Financial Contribution
INTERNATIONAL DAY TO END IMPUNITY FOR CRIMES AGAINST JOURNALISTS
Today is the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists.
In his message today, the Secretary-General says that at least 34 journalists were killed over the past year, six of every seven such killings go unpunished. In conflict settings, the rate of impunity is sadly close to 100 per cent.
The Secretary-General calls for every case to be investigated, and every perpetrator to be prosecuted, and brought to justice.
MYANMAR
The Secretary-General is deeply concerned by the airstrikes in Rakhine and Kayah States that took place over the weekend. Those strikes reportedly killed at least a dozen civilians, including children, and wounded many more people. The airstrikes reportedly hit civilian infrastructure including a maternity clinic, a school and a bridge. The level of violence the UN has seen in recent months has escalated, and the UN’s thoughts are with all civilians affected and with their families.
The Secretary-General strongly condemns the violence and calls on all parties to end hostilities immediately, to protect civilians and comply with all of their obligations under international humanitarian law, this includes human rights law. The Secretary-General also calls for the perpetrators of these attacks to be held to account.
WESTERN SAHARA
Sunday, November 1st, marked the start of the liquidation period for the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara, otherwise known as MINURSO, which ceased its operations following the non-renewal of its mandate by members of the Security Council.
On the ground and with support from Headquarters, a smaller team reporting to the UN Department of Operational Support will now oversee the orderly and environmentally responsible closure and handover of 13 sites that were operated by MINURSO. The liquidation of the Mission will be carried out in a phased manner, in line with the UN’s established resolutions.
Key activities of the liquidation include the repatriation of approximately 160 Military Observers, the drawdown of 180 civilian and affiliated personnel, and the closure and handover of 13 mission facilities and Team sites, the disposal or transfer of United Nations property and equipment, also the drawdown of communications and logistical support systems, the management of mission archives and records and the closure of contractual agreements on the ground, all of this will be done in accordance with the UN’s rules and regulations that it follows when it closes Missions.
The UN is also taking the necessary measures to ensure continued administrative, financial and security oversight throughout this liquidation period, while maintaining the safety and well-being of all its personnel.
In the statement the Secretary-General issued over the weekend, he said that he counts on the full cooperation of the parties to ensure this process is completed as soon as possible.
MINURSO was established to protect and serve the people of Western Sahara, in particular to allow them to realize their inalienable right to self-determination. The Secretary-General underscores that the departure of MINURSO does not abrogate these inalienable rights and calls upon all parties to respect and promote the rights of the people of Western Sahara.
The Secretary-General calls on all concerned to exercise maximum restraint and to refrain from actions that could further increase tensions and undermine regional stability.
Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date=2026-11-02