International Human Solidarity Day

UN Geneva press briefing chaired by Alessandra Vellucci, Director, UN Information Service. WHO Update on Attacks on Health Care Altaf Musani, Director of Humanitarian and Disaster Management at the World Health Organization (WHO), said WHO's Surveillance System for Attacks on Health Care had documented, since 2018, more than 10,400 attacks in 29 countries and territories, resulting in approximately 5,700 deaths and 8,500 injuries. In 2026 alone, WHO had recorded 914 attacks, resulting in at least 911 deaths and 1,486 injuries, more than four attacks a day. Ukraine, Lebanon, and the occupied Palestinian territory accounted for most of incidents recorded. Other contexts with reported attacks on healthcare included Myanmar, Iran, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, the Russian Federation, Syria, and Nigeria. There were multiple forms of violence, with heavy weapons were the most frequently reported means of attack in 2026. Attacks on healthcare extended beyond ...

Rolando Gómez, Chief of the Press and External Relations Section at the United Nations Information Service (UNIS) in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by spokespersons of the World Health Organization and the World Meteorological Organization. Heatwaves, drought, fires, and extreme weather. Clare Nullis, for the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), said Western Europe had experienced its hottest June-July period on record, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service [of the European Union]. Globally, the month had been the second warmest July on record, with sea surface temperatures the highest ever recorded for the same month. Japan and the Republic of Korea both had had record-breaking heat last week, as did other parts of Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America. Parts of West Africa were witnessing heavy monsoon rainfall and flooding. And, in its weekly Global Hydromet Scan, WMO had warned of heavy to locally very heavy rainfall, with the risk...

Rolando Gómez, Chief of the Press and External Relations Section at the United Nations Information Service (UNIS) in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by spokespersons of the World Health Organization and the World Meteorological Organization Mr. Gómez, for the United Nations Information Service, read out a statement of the Secretary-General issued yesterday regarding recent events in Ukraine, in which Mr. Guterres strongly condemned "the latest large-scale missile and drone attacks by the armed forces of the Russian Federation on Kyiv and other cities in Ukraine, that reportedly killed and injured dozens of civilians, and led to extensive damage to civilian infrastructure". The Secretary-General reiterated his " call for urgent de-escalation, leading to a full, immediate and unconditional ceasefire and for a just, sustainable and comprehensive peace, in line with international law, including the UN Charter and relevant UN resolutions ". ...

UN Geneva press briefing chaired by Alessandra Vellucci, Director, UN Information Service. Ebola treatments and vaccines Tarik Jašarević, for the World Health Organization (WHO), said that the Ebola outbreak was still expanding beyond the capacity to respond, and more support was needed to scale up all areas of response. As of 1 August, there had been 3,748 confirmed cases, including 1,657 confirmed deaths and 708 recoveries. Cases had been reported from 49 health zones across five provinces: Haut-Uélé, Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, and Tshopo. Some 17,000 contacts were under monitoring in DRC; more than 80 percent of them were seen daily. Dr. Vasee Moorthy, Acting Lead, R&D Blueprint at WHO, stressed that, while there was promising progress, there were still no proven safe and efficacious treatment, prophylaxis, or vaccination options for Bundibugyo. WHO R&D Blueprint had coordinated a global R&D Preparedness Programme with partners which had led to development of platf...

UN Geneva press briefing chaired by Alessandra Vellucci, Director, UN Information Service. WHO Christian Lindmeier (Zoom) with Dr. Olufunmilayo ('Funmi) LESI; Cross-cutting Lead, Hepatitis Programme & Partnerships, WHO (Zoom) World Hepatitis Day IOM IOM Director General Amy Pope Protecting Victims of Trafficking in Online Scam Operations Watch the UN Geneva Press Briefing: WHO, IOM, UNHCR, WMO! 00:58:04 Press Conferences

UN Geneva press briefing chaired by Rolando Gómez, Chief, Press and External Relations Section, UN Information Service. Safety of women in El Obeid, Sudan. Anna Mutavati, UN Women Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, speaking from Nairobi, said that UN Women was gravely concerned by the emerging pattern of violence against women and girls in El Obeid, Sudan, where drone attacks during the day and sexual violence at night had left no safe window for women and girls to collect water, mirroring the atrocities documented in El Fasher the previous year. Access to food, healthcare, and other essential services was also severely limited, particularly in displacement sites. With the rainy season set to peak the following month, safe water was critical to reducing the risk of deadly waterborne diseases. Cholera was already spreading in Sudan, with 1,330 cases reported by WHO in early July. The combination of malnutrition, which weakened the immune system and was a growing concern a...