An Iranian drone and missile attack reportedly targeted Kuwait’s international airport, killing at least one person and injuring several others, also leading to flight suspensions and diversions.
Attacks condemned
“The Secretary-General calls on all parties to exercise maximum restraint and avoid any new escalation that could undermine ongoing diplomatic efforts. The sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries must be fully respected,” said UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric.
He stressed that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries must be respected.
The Secretary-General condemned all attacks against civilian infrastructure and reiterated that international humanitarian law prohibits attacking civilian targets.
Guterres urged all parties to protect civilians and reaffirmed his support for mediation efforts, including those led by Pakistan, and called for constructive engagement in diplomacy.
Fear and uncertainty stalk war-torn communities in Lebanon
Communities continue to live in fear in Lebanon, amid ongoing clashes in the south of the country between Hezbollah fighters and the Israeli army.
In an update from Beirut, the United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, explained that “total uncertainty” reigns.
“In Beruit alone, an estimated 200,000 people were displaced from the southern suburbs following the evacuation order issued by the Israel Defense Forces on June 1,” said UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric.
On Monday, videos showed thousands of vehicles queuing to leave the capital’s southern suburbs, following warnings of imminent Israeli attacks on Hezbollah strongholds.
scared to stay
The crisis remains unresolved and people are too scared to remain in Hezbollah’s stronghold south of Beirut.
Beyond the immediate impact of the bombs and airstrikes, the agency says an estimated 770,000 children in Lebanon are severely distressed by repeated exposure to violence, loss and displacement.
“Children and their caregivers report symptoms related to traumatic stress and grief, including extreme fear and worry, nightmares, insomnia and feelings of hopelessness,” UNICEF warned.
Without adequate psychosocial and mental health support in safe environments, affected children remain at serious risk of developing chronic or lifelong mental health problems.
24 million people in the Sahel need urgent help
Across all countries in the African Sahel region, more than 24 million people are in critical need of humanitarian aid.
That staggering figure includes “mothers who cannot feed their children and… children who have not seen the inside of a classroom in years,” the U.N. aid coordination office, OCHA, said.
Violence in the central Sahel is one of the factors fueling the crisis, and insecurity is spreading far beyond the traditional flashpoints in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, reaching the coast of West Africa.
OCHA warns that armed groups have expanded their reach in the center of the vast and varied region and in the Lake Chad basin, “uprooting communities, closing schools and health centers… leaving entire areas without any form of government or protection.”
Urgent call for funding
The latest UN data shows that almost 12,900 schools have closed due to insecurity, leaving more than 2.3 million children out of class and exposing them to exploitation and recruitment by armed gangs.
Funding for the Sahel is at its lowest level in a decade. Last year, aid agencies received only 29 percent of the funding they needed, forcing services to be suspended.