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HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BYSTEPHANE DUJARRIC,

SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

THURSDAY, 13 AUGUST 2015

SECRETARY-GENERAL SADDENED BY LOSS OF LIFE IN DEADLY EXPLOSIONS IN CHINA

• The Secretary-General was deeply to learn of the loss of life and the injuries to scores of people as a result of deadly explosions in Tianjin, China.
• The Secretary-General extends his condolences to the families of the victims, including the fire fighters who made the ultimate sacrifice. He expresses his sympathies to the people and Government of China, and pays tribute to all involved in the emergency response.

SECRETARY-GENERAL DISCUSSES HOW TO ADRESS MISCONDUCT IN PEACEKEEPING WITH HEADS OF MISSIONS

• The Secretary-General had a video conference this morning with the heads of operations, Force Commanders and Police Commissioners. Line departments were also represented.
• He gathered the senior leadership on an urgent basis to speak directly to them about the ongoing sexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeepers and problems of misconduct. The Secretary-General said that he would be sending the same message to others beyond peacekeeping. The zero tolerance policy applies to the entire United Nations system.
• He stressed that zero tolerance means zero complacency and zero impunity and that when allegations are substantiated, all personnel whether military, police or civilians - must be held accountable.
• The Secretary-General expressed his resolve to help the affected individuals and preserve the integrity of the UN flag.
• He underlined the existing guidelines as well as the obligations of the senior leadership to address sexual exploitation and abuse. He also said that Heads of Mission were directly accountable for maintaining conduct and discipline within their mission, with the support of the senior mission leadership.
• The Secretary-General also discussed the importance of prevention, training, risk assessment and risk mitigation, continuous education for and awareness-raising in the local communities to stop this problem. He called on the senior leadership of missions to use every opportunity to reinforce the message that the United Nations will not abide any misconduct, including sexual exploitation and abuse.
• Finally, he stressed that Troop and Police Contributing Countries are responsible for ensuring that their personnel are properly trained, on mandatory standards of conduct and discipline, and that if their peacekeepers are also found to have committed abuse, that they be prosecuted to the full extent of the law and that the United Nations would be kept updated on the status of those cases.
• The Secretary-General will discuss the situation in the Central African Republic with the Security Council in consultations this afternoon.

U.N. MISSION IN IRAQ CONDEMNS BOMB ATTACK ON BAGHDAD MARKET

• The Acting Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (), Deputy Special Representative Gyorgy Busztin, condemned in the strongest possible terms the devastating truck bomb attack that took place today at Jameela market in Sadr City, east Baghdad. The attack killed at least 45 people and has wounded scores more. Da’esh has reportedly claimed responsibility for the attack.
• Mr. Busztin said the bombing was an indiscriminate act of terrorism aimed at weakening the resolve of the Iraqi people. He extends his profound sympathy and condolences to the victims and their families and has called for the perpetrators of the crime to be swiftly brought to justice.

YEMEN: CIVILIANS BEAR BRUNT OF CONFLICT, SAYS U.N. HUMANITARIAN CHIEF AT END OF VISIT

• The UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, Stephen O’Brien, has wrapped up his visits to Yemen and Djibouti.
• Speaking to reporters today in Djibouti, where he arrived by sea from Aden, Yemen, overnight, he said that he has seen for himself the devastating impact of the conflict in Yemen and the dire needs of the Yemeni people.
• What he has taken away with him, Mr. O’Brien said, was an overwhelming sense that it is civilians – as in all conflicts – who are bearing the brunt of this conflict.
• He said that everywhere he went in Yemen, he saw homes, hospitals, markets, roads and bridges which had been damaged or destroyed by airstrikes, shelling or ground fighting.
• Mr. O’Brien said that he was appalled by the disregard for human life shown by all parties to the conflict, calling on all parties to abide by their responsibilities under international law to protect civilians and refrain from targeting civilian infrastructure.
• In the last four months, the United Nations and humanitarian partners have assisted nearly seven million people with humanitarian assistance, in all governorates affected by the fighting.
• Despite the tireless efforts of UN and partners, the Coordinator said that this is not enough, with more funding urgently needed and commercial imports needing to be resumed.

UNRWA RECEIVES ASSISTANCE PACKAGE BUT STILL NOT ABLE TO BRIDGE DEFICIT

• The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, or UNRWA, said that Saudi Arabia has approved an assistance package worth $35 million.
• The Agency’s Commissioner-General, Pierre Krähenbühl, said that at this time of severe crisis, the donation is received as a strong message of solidarity towards Palestine refugees and UNRWA.
• However, even with such a generous donation, UNRWA has not been able to bridge the $101 million deficit in its general fund. If this is not achieved by the middle of this month, the Agency will have to make a painful decision about whether it will be forced to delay the start of the next school year.
• Such a decision would affect some 500,000 students and 22,000 teachers in 700 schools across the Middle East.
• There have been an increasing number of demonstrations in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and the occupied Palestinian territory, adding to a sense of instability in a region.

HEAD OF WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME WRAPS UP VISIT TO SYRIAN REFUGEES IN JORDAN AND LEBANON

• The Executive Director of the World Food Programme (), Ertharin Cousin, concluded a visit to Jordan and Lebanon today by calling upon the international community to continue support Syrian refugees displaced in neighbouring countries.
• Major funding shortfalls have forced WFP to cut its food assistance by up to fifty percent. During her four-day visit, Ms. Cousin met with Syrian refugees and government officials, bringing attention to the plight of millions facing extreme hardship as a result of these cuts.
• She said that for people hurt by the war in Syria and refugees around the region, WFP food assistance provides stability. To provide this assistance, the World Food Programme relies on the generosity of the international community. Ms. Cousin said of the Syrians she had met, "We simply cannot let them down.”

SECURITY COUNCIL DISCUSSES GLOBAL EBOLA RESPONSE

• The Security Council held a meeting on Ebola this morning.
• The Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Ebola, David Nabarro, underlined the decisive leadership of the as well as the importance of community ownership of that response.
• He however underlined that the outbreak was not over and that there was still a need for technical, operational and financial solidarity. He also said that the coming years will see unexpected new outbreaks of disease and that reducing the risk of health crises contributed to a peaceful and secure future for all.
• The Director-General of World Health organization (), Margaret Chan, stressed the importance of regional arrangements, saying that innovative initiatives at the regional and sub-regional level had a critical role to play.
• She also said that the Ebola outbreak had shocked the world out of its complacency about the infectious disease threat and that we had seen the decisive role of vigilance and readiness in countries that experienced an imported case and stopped onward transmission or held it to just a few cases.

WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME STARTS CASH DISTRIBUTION IN UKRAINE’S LUHANSK AND DONETSK REGIONS

• The World Food Programme () said today that it has started cash distributions in government-controlled areas to 60,000 people – most of whom are internally displaced – in Ukraine’s Luhansk and Donetsk regions.
• WFP’s Representative in Ukraine said that it is using cash transfers in areas where there are functioning banks and markets to restore some normalcy to people’s otherwise shattered lives.
• As the conflict continues, people are experiencing food shortages and the deterioration of their nutritional status. WFP has expanded its emergency operation to provide food assistance for more than 575,000 people until the end of the year.

SECRETARY-GENERAL APPOINTS ELIA ARMSTRONG OF CANADA AS DIRECTOR OF ETHICS OFFICE

• United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced today the appointment of Elia Armstrong, a national of Canada, as Director of the . She succeeds Joan Elise Dubinsky of the United States, to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for her dedicated service to the Organization.
• Ms. Armstrong brings to the position over 20 years of extensive experience in the field of governance and public administration, as well as organizational ethics, having served in different capacities in the United Nations since 1999, the Government of Canada and non-governmental organizations.
• Currently Chief of the Development Management Branch, Division for Public Administration and Development Management, United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) (since 2013), Ms. Armstrong was Director of the Ethics Office, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) (2008 to 2012) and Senior Ethics Officer a.i. during the establishment of the United Nations Ethics Office in 2006.
• Ms. Armstrong holds a master’s degree in Social Policy and Planning in Developing Countries from the London School of Economics and a bachelor’s degree in Social Work from the University of British Columbia.
• Born in 1961, she is married and has two children.

SECRETARY-GENERAL APPOINTS JEAN ARNAULT OF FRANCE AS DELEGATE TO THE SUB-COMMISSION ON END OF CONFLICT ISSUES WITHIN THE COLOMBIAN PEACE PROCESS

• United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed Jean Arnault of France as his Delegate to the Sub-Commission on End of Conflict Issues within the Colombian Peace Process. The appointment follows a 12 July request by the parties to the peace talks in Havana, the Government of Colombia and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
• Most recently, Mr. Arnault was appointed by the Secretary-General as a member of the High-Level Independent Panel on Peace Operations. He previously served as United Nations Special Adviser to the Group of Friends of Democratic Pakistan; Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG); Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Office in Burundi (UNOB). He was a moderator in the Guatemala peace process before being appointed Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA).
• He is a graduate in Philosophy from the University of Sorbonne-Paris I. He was a professor at Sciences Po, Paris, focusing on peace settlements and mediation, and is a non-resident Senior Fellow at the Centre on International Cooperation of New York University.
• Born in 1951, Mr. Arnault is married and has two children.

NO INDICATION THAT FIJI PLANS TO WITHDRAW PERSONNEL FROM SOUTH SUDAN MISSION

• In answer to an earlier question, the Spokesman said that had no indication that Fiji planned to withdraw their personnel from the Mission in that country, UNMISS.
• As of 31 July, 15 Fijian police and military peacekeepers are deployed in South Sudan.
• UN Peacekeeping is grateful for their efforts in implementing the Mission9;s mandate, including the task of protecting civilians caught in the current conflict, alongside approximately 60 Troop contributing and police-contributing countries.

DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL TO TRAVEL TO ADDIS ABABA FOR TALKS ON SOUTH SUDAN

• On 14 August 2015, the Deputy Secretary-General will travel to Addis Ababa to represent the Secretary-General at the IGAD-PLUS Summit on the Situation in South Sudan.
• During his visit the Deputy Secretary-General will hold bilateral meeting with African Union representatives and Heads of Delegations attending the Summit.
• The Deputy Secretary-General will return to New York on 18 August 2015.