10/10/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/10/2025 14:27
The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today's briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.
**Briefings
I just want to flag a few upcoming briefings.
Today, at 1:15 p.m., there will be a briefing here by the Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women and Girls, and that is Special Rapporteur Reem Alsalem.
Then, later today, Ambassador Samuel Moncada, the Permanent Representative of Venezuela to the United Nations, will speak to you at the Security Council Stakeout. This is following the Council's meeting on Threats to International Peace and Security.
Our Assistant Secretary-General for [Europe, Central Asia and the Americas], Miroslav Jenča, will brief on behalf of the Secretariat.
And then on Tuesday next week, we expect to have Roberto Benes, UNICEF's (United Nations Children's Fund) Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean. He will join us from Haiti. We had scheduled that for yesterday, but it was overtaken by events, as you know.
**2025 Nobel Peace Prize
I have a statement on the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize. The Secretary-General congratulates Maria Corina Machado on being awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize. He notes that for decades, Ms. Machado has been a champion of democracy and a voice of unity in her country of Venezuela.
The Secretary-General says that in its statement, the Nobel Committee reminded us that the tools of democracy are the tools of peace. He says that at a time when democracy and the rule of law are under threat globally, today's prize is a tribute to all those working to safeguard civil and political rights around the world, and a stirring reminder of the resilience and the power of the democratic spirit. That statement has been shared with you.
**Occupied Palestinian Territory
Turning to the situation in the Gaza Strip, our colleagues in the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) tell us that the announcement of a ceasefire has generated a new hope for relief at last.
Today, within minutes of the announcement by Israeli authorities that the ceasefire had taken effect at noon, local time, thousands of people resumed movement north, mainly on foot, but also in vehicles and animal-drawn carts.
Some of the people who have already managed to reach Gaza City reported that they arrived back to find their homes had sustained further damage.
We and our partners are ready to scale up the humanitarian response immediately.
As you heard yesterday, in order to deliver on this plan, we need the opening of additional crossings, safe movement for aid workers and all other civilians, the unrestricted entry of goods, visas for staff, and space for ourselves and our NGO (non-governmental organization) partners to operate, in line with humanitarian principles.
After two years of war, the rehabilitation of infrastructure is urgently needed to enable recovery. The private sector is also critical. Our humanitarian colleagues appeal to all leaders backing the ceasefire to help us secure the conditions to carry out unimpeded humanitarian operations.
It's also critical that Member States extend generous funding for the response so that the humanitarian communities can scale up.
And just an update for you on some of the work that humanitarian teams were able to carry out yesterday in Gaza: They deployed an ambulance, helped prepare a low-lying area for the winter, and collected fuel, medical items and other critical supplies from the Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem crossing, where they also offloaded incoming supplies to replenish stocks that will enter in the coming days.
**Lebanon/Israel
Moving to the Lebanon and Israel area: Our peacekeepers along the Blue Line report that Israel Defense Forces (IDF) military presence and activities in the area of operations is continuing.
On Thursday, the peacekeepers observed the Israeli forces open heavy machine gunfire towards the north near Sarda in Sector East. Also, UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon) reports that IDF soldiers in vehicles pointed a green laser towards UNIFIL personnel at one of the UN positions in Sector East. The day before, an Israeli soldier aimed his rifle at UN personnel near Marwahin in Sector West. Once again, our peacekeeping colleagues reiterate that these acts of interference and intimidation must end.
Meanwhile, a UNIFIL patrol on Wednesday discovered the remains of an unauthorized ammunition depot containing ammunition, including a mortar shell, in Sector East. That was reported to the Lebanese Armed Forces, as we always do.
The Mission continues to support capacity-building of the Lebanese Armed Forces, including by conducting a deck landing exercise on Wednesday with the Lebanese Air Force aboard a Maritime Task Force vessel. This week, UNIFIL also conducted coordinated combat engineering training activities with personnel from the Lebanese Armed Forces.
**Ukraine
Turning to Ukraine, I can tell you that the Secretary-General condemns the overnight drone and missile attacks by the Russian Federation, which allegedly targeted Ukraine's critical civilian and energy infrastructure and also reportedly resulted in civilian casualties, including the death of a child, as well as injuries to others. The attacks also reportedly caused widespread disruption of power and water supplies across several regions, including Kyiv, and that impacted millions of people at the onset of winter.
Attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure, wherever they occur, are prohibited under international law, and they must cease immediately.
The Secretary-General reiterates his urgent call for a full, immediate and unconditional ceasefire in Ukraine, paving the way towards a just, comprehensive and sustainable peace, in line with the UN Charter, international law and relevant UN resolutions.
Meanwhile, our colleagues from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tell us that our humanitarian partners rapidly mobilized and provided shelter materials, hygiene kits, food, hot meals and psychosocial support in Odesa, Zaporizhzhia and Cherkasy Regions, while also registering families for cash assistance. Meanwhile, evacuations from front-line areas continue. Over the past day, 300 people, including more than 70 children, were evacuated from the Donetsk region amid deteriorating security conditions.
Earlier this week, the Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine, Matthias Schmale, together with representatives of OCHA, UNICEF and the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund (UHF), visited the region to discuss key issues with local authorities and partners.
These of course included preparations for the winter season, evacuation of civilians, the needs of displaced people, protection, and uninterrupted operation of critical civilian infrastructure.
**Deputy Secretary-General
Trip announcement: Our Deputy Secretary-General, as you know, is currently in South Africa to participate in the [Kgalema Motlanthe Foundation] Drakensberg Inclusive Growth Forum and meet with senior Government officials and key stakeholders there.
She will then continue on to Beijing, China, to attend the Global Leaders' Meeting on Women, at the invitation of the Government of China. The meeting forms part of the global commemoration of Beijing+30, marking thirty years since the Fourth World Conference on Women adopted the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, which you all know is a landmark agreement for advancing gender equality and women's empowerment. While in Beijing, she will also meet with senior Chinese Government officials.
After this, she will travel to Brasilia to attend the preparatory meeting for COP (Conference of Parties), otherwise known as the Pre-COP, and that is in advance of the 30th COP, which will take place in Brazil. The Pre-COP will take place on 14 October, and while there, Ms. [Amina] Mohammed will meet Heads of Delegations of the negotiating parties and senior Brazilian officials to encourage countries to submit ambitious nationally determined contributions (NDCs), to discuss the preparations for COP30, and strengthen cooperation with the UN on climate action.
She will be back in New York on 15 October.
**Abyei
A quick update from our peacekeeping colleagues in Abyei, where they tell us that following clashes that erupted earlier this week between elements of the South Sudan People's Defence Forces, the Mission evacuated over 100 civilians, mostly women and children, from the village of Malual Aleu to the safety of its Kadhian peacekeeping base. In the base, the civilians are being provided with shelter, food, water and medical assistance.
In addition, over 90 civilians sought protection in the mission's Rumamier base, which is located in the southern part of the Abyei Area.
As part of its protection of civilians mandate, the Mission's Quick Reaction Force has stepped up patrolling in the area to prevent further escalation.
**International Days
Today is World Mental Health Day. This year's theme "Mental health in humanitarian emergencies" reminds us of the profound toll that crises take on people's well-being. In his message for the Day, the Secretary-General says that mental health support is essential and must be integrated into emergency responses.
A couple of international days for you to pay attention to during the weekend, because the weather is going to be bad, so you will be stuck indoors.
Tomorrow is the International Day of the Girl Child. Thirty years after the Beijing Platform for Action, girls have made strides in education, health, and rights, but many inequalities remain. In a message for the Day, the Secretary-General urges decisionmakers everywhere to recognise the power of girls and stand with them.
Also, tomorrow, we mark World Migratory Bird Day. On this Day, we are reminded of the importance of making our cities more bird-friendly, benefiting nature and people alike.
**Financial Contribution
We got some money, and I've got a good quiz for you today.
Scottish author, Robert Louis Stevenson, author of Treasure Island, lived on this island nation from 1890 to his death in 1894. And the capital city of this country hosts the Robert Louis Stevenson Museum.
It is Samoa. So, we say thank you to our friends in Apia for their full payment to the Regular Budget. We now have 140, and we really, really appreciate them.
**Questions and Answers
Spokesman: Edie?
Question: Thank you, Steph. Could we get an idea of how many trucks the UN has been able to get in yesterday and today? And can we get an update on negotiations between the UN and Israel in trying to really surge humanitarian aid into Gaza?
Spokesman: On the second part, I can tell you, because I was in touch with him not too long ago, our colleague Ramiz Alakbarov, who heads the UN's office in Jerusalem, notably the acting head of UNSCO (United Nations Special Coordinator's Office) and the head of our humanitarian arm, has been in meetings and in discussions with Israeli authorities to try to get some clarity on what we'll be able to bring in, the volume, the number of access points, all of the things that are included in phase one of the agreement, and those discussions are ongoing. But at the same time, we are able, as I said today, we are able to bring aid in, I think increasingly, the volume, but I'll try to get you some more granularity on the volume that's going in. Pam?
Question: Just to follow-up on Edie's question. Is there any clarity on how the UN will be able to deliver this and if the GHF (Gaza Humanitarian Foundation) is still there? And what if your standards have been met in terms of delivering the… [cross-talk]
Spokesman: Well, we meet our standards in the way we work. I'm not aware of any discussion regarding the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, but you'd have to talk to them. As you know, we've not been involved with them at all. But as I said, I'm not aware of any plans to involve them. And our standards, as you mentioned, remain the same.
Question: And so just on that, is there… how many trucks have gotten in since the announcement?
Spokesman: Well, I mean, again, I like to talk about trucks. I think trucks are a good metric, but it gets a little confusing because it's not one-to-one truck. As you know, we need to load and offload, but I will try to get you some metric that's usable. I also… and going back to what the discussions Edie was talking about, I can tell you that also the Secretary-General has spoken today to the Prime Minister of Qatar, to the President of Egypt, to the King of Jordan in separate phone calls to discuss, obviously, the situation on the ground, the implementation of the peace plan. And in those discussions, the Secretary-General reiterated the UN's full support to the implementation, and particularly, the mobilization of our full capacity in terms of humanitarian aid delivery. Dezhi, and then I'll come to you.
Question: According to your answer, can I understand…?
Spokesman: According to?
Question: According to your answer… [cross-talk]
Spokesman: According to me - that's good. You can always quote me back to me.
Question: No. Is this right that so far, the humanitarian delivery has not been changed that much since the deal?
Spokesman: Look. There's been progressively, I think, over the last few weeks, there's been more aid coming in. What has changed dramatically yesterday to today is the fact that the guns appear to have been silenced, right? So the first thing is that it's safer for people to operate. What we're working on now with the Israeli authorities is starting to increase the volume of aid that will go in, increase the pace, increase the number of the volume, hopefully have more crossings. I mean, I think as we said yesterday, we have - this is not trucks, but metric tons - we have 170,000 metric tons of supplies, including food and medicine, that have all been cleared and with much more in the pipeline.
Question: But that's pending, because you're still waiting for the confirmation from the… [cross-talk]
Spokesman: Listen. I mean, you know, no one understands the urgency, operational urgency more than us. I mean, of course, I would say that, that being said, the Palestinian people who need that aid understand it more than we do, but we're very aware of the urgency. So, we're working through the system. We're trying to push. We're trying to get all of that aid that's in the pipeline and that's ready to go in, to go in.
Question: Today, the Houthis, they also made a statement suggesting that they are, to many people's understandings, they are not going to… they're going to halt their attack on Israel because of the ceasefire deal. What is the… any comments from the Secretary-General?
Spokesman: Well, I think any halt in those types of attacks that we've seen by the Houthis would be welcomed. Okay, sorry, Ahmed and then Evelyn.
Question: Thank you, Stéphane. A couple of follow-ups. Why did the Secretary-General did not initiate a call with President [Donald] Trump to congratulate him over the ceasefire agreement? He spoke to the Qataris, to the Egyptians, probably the Turks, but not to President Trump. This is one. Number two, with regard to the aid delivery in Gaza, you mentioned that the system in place is still back to the old system where trucks cross from Egypt into Gaza.
Spokesman: Well, right now, mostly for the UN trucks are crossing through Karim Shalom, Karem Abu Salam, but we very much hope that all of the crossings, including Rafah, will be open to humanitarian aid and private sector.
Question: But is there a talk between the UN and the Israeli Government to simplify the process is that to allow the trucks to move to the destination?
Spokesman: We're working with our Israeli counterparts to have a system that makes it easier and faster to get humanitarian aid in. But as I said repeatedly here, the keys to the crossings are not in the pockets of UN officials, right?
Question: And finally, we are observing the International Mental Health Day, and I asked about that yesterday as well, does the Secretary-General realize the magnitude of the mental health crisis in Gaza for the civilian population has been going for two years? Children, women, men, seniors?
Spokesman: You asked the question yesterday. As I said to you yesterday, of course, we understand it and we've been trying to provide mental health support throughout this conflict, even at the worst of times and especially at the worst of times, with very limited capacity. But humanitarian aid for us also includes mental health support.
Question: Any plans to expand on the providing of mental health services? [Cross talk]
Spokesman: We're trying to get as many of our people in, and we're trying to get as much goods in. Evelyn?
Question: You didn't answer the question of President Trump phone call.
Spokesman: Oh, well, when there are more phone calls, I will let you know, but I can tell you that yesterday, the Secretary-General had a message passed of congratulations, passed through the US Mission. Evelyn and then Linda. Sorry.
Question: Are you going to give us today or on the weekend how many trucks were able to come in?
Spokesman: As I just told you, as soon as we have numbers to share with you, we will. Evelyn then Alex. Sorry. Linda then Alex.
Question: Thank you, Steph.
Spokesman: I'm one step behind always.
Question: I'm just following up on yesterday on the SG statement where he said that it was important that the hostages be released with dignity. And I believe you had mentioned that, you know, the UN would be do whatever they could to help. Has anything… have they been asked?
Spokesman: I don't have anything further to share with you at this point on that. Alex?
Question: Thanks, Steph. A quick follow-up on the Secretary-General's message to President Trump. Is it the same message you're talking about yesterday or it's another one?
Spokesman: No. Let's be clear. I had said that… a few days, I shared with you yesterday the information that a few days ago, he had written a letter. Okay? That was before the peace plan. The information I'm sharing with you today is that yesterday, he asked the US Mission through Ambassador [Michael] Waltz to pass on a message of congratulations to the President.
Question: What was the response? What's the response?
Spokesman: I would hope it's thank you. I don't know. I haven't seen the response.
Question: So, President Trump didn't respond.
Spokesman: No, I haven't… Listen, I don't mean to make lie of it. I don't know what the response is, okay. All right. Anyone online? Okay. Yes, Pam. Then we'll…
Question: Sorry. Just there was an announcement this morning by the first lady of the United States about the return of eight Ukrainian children from Russia, who were taken during the war. Is there any follow-up by any UN agency? [cross-talk]
Spokesman: I hadn't seen that report, but we'll look into it.
Question: Okay. Thank you.
Spokesman: Okay. Thank you all. Enjoy.