ºÚÁÏרÇø

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STÉPHANE DUJARRIC,

SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES

TUESDAY, 27 JANUARY 2026

HOLOCAUST 

This morning, the Secretary-General attended the annual ceremony in remembrance of the victims of the Holocaust. In remarks delivered he said that he grieved for the Jews, the Roma and Sinti, the people with disabilities, LGBTQI+people, and so many more who were enslaved, persecuted, tortured, and killed.  

He said that the Holocaust is not only history.  It is a warning. A warning that hatred, once unleashed, can consume everything.  

Today, Mr. Guterres said, that warning feels much more urgent than ever. Antisemitism around the world is raging. Jewish communities live in fear.  Synagogues attacked. Families shattered. Vile antisemitic hatred racing across cyberspace.  

He recalled that the Holocaust did not begin with killing. It began with words. Its architects telegraphed their evil intentions.    

The Secretary-General said that they deliberately spread a hateful, supremacist ideology that preyed on fear and economic despair. 

He urged all to act against such hatred, saying that when those with power fail to act, evil goes unpunished. When the past is distorted, denied and weaponized, hatred and prejudice fester.  

The Secretary-General said that it is also our duty to keep alive the spirit of acting in common purpose, through multilateralism, to ensure that the forces of humanity always triumph over the forces of inhumanity.   

ANTISEMITISM 

The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), today published a study which collects data from 2,030 educators across the European Union, seeking to examine their knowledge and understanding of what antisemitism refers to and explore their preparedness to address antisemitism when they encounter it.   Worryingly, just over three-quarters of the teachers, that is more than 77 per cent, had encountered at least one incident of antisemitism between students at least once or twice. 

Over a quarter of teachers had witnessed nine or more of these incidents. Overall, on average, teachers had encountered five or six antisemitic incidents between students at their school.

The report adds that the most prevalent challenges that teachers encountered were students demonstrating antisemitic attitudes, tropes and conspiracy theories read on the internet or in the media, and that being exposed to this sort of content in the family environment.

SYRIA 

The UN and its humanitarian partners are continuing to support the response in the northeast of Syria following recent clashes. 

Today, an inter-agency humanitarian convoy from Damascus reached the city of Qamishli in Hasakeh governorate. It delivered food, warm clothes and blankets, among other supplies. More convoys are planned in the coming days. The UN also continue to distribute food, distribute bread, and cash across collective centres and various displacement sites. 

According to our partners, more than 170,000 people have now been displaced since January 6th across the governorates of Aleppo, Hasakeh and Raqqa. Several displacement sites continue to be overcrowded. In Hasakeh governorate, the situation remains volatile. 

UN health partners are also providing mobile health services, including vaccinations and mental healthcare.  

UN partners working in nutrition have also reached more than 1,500 children and hundreds of pregnant and lactating women in Hasakeh governorate with malnutrition screening and nutrition support.  

Meanwhile, the ºÚÁÏרÇø Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that a major winter storm struck several governorates across the country last week, including areas still reeling from a snowstorm on December 31st. More than 1,700 tents in displacement sites have been damaged across Aleppo and Idleb governorates. 

The challenges remain unrelenting.  Along the coast, major mountain routes remain closed, cutting off communities in the cities of Lattakia and Tartous. In Hama and Homs, flooding and road closures continue to restrict access to affected areas.

Since October last year, UN partners have provided winter assistance, including blankets, warm clothes and heating supplies, to nearly 450,000 people. 

In response to questions about the internet connection in Kobani, the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General said that OCHA noted that according to their partners on the ground, power and internet have not been restored. 

OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY 

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warns that the situation remains dire for hundreds of thousands of families who remain in dire need in Gaza. 

You will recall that we announced last week the launch of the catch-up vaccination campaign to protect children under three from vaccine-preventable diseases. As of today, UN health partners have vaccinated more than 6,000 children across the Gaza Strip.  

On the food security front, the UN and its partners are providing bread to at least 43 per cent of the population. That we do across the Strip every day. The bread is free or sold at a significantly subsidized price of less than one dollar per two-kilogram bundle.     

This is on top of the monthly household-level distributions of wheat flour. This month, we have reached 1.2 million people with flour as part of the standard monthly food assistance package.   

In terms of shelter support, over the past week, we and our humanitarian partners reached over 7,500 families with tents, tarpaulins, sealing-off kits, mattresses and blankets. In addition, child protection partners delivered winter clothes to some 1,400 children across the Strip.   

As we have said repeatedly, over one million people still require urgent shelter support, and sustainable solutions are needed to meet these needs, including tool kits to repair people’s homes, materials to create communal heating spaces, and equipment to remove debris and rubble to clear land.   

Since Wednesday, our partners have reached over 2,300 families with cash vouchers and in-kind winterization support.   

They have also provided mental health and psychosocial support and case management assistance to hundreds of people.  

IRAQ 

Today, Under-Secretary-General for Operational Support Mr. Atul Khare concluded a visit to Iraq following the end of the mandate of the ºÚÁÏרÇø Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) on 31 December 2025 and the start of liquidation activities on 1 January 2026, per Security Council resolution 2732. 

Accompanied by the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator and Head of the Liquidation Entity, Ghulam Isaczai, Mr. Khare met with Iraqi officials, including President Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid and Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al‑Sudani. All this to discuss the continuing partnership between the ºÚÁÏרÇø and Iraq. Mr. Khare noted that the liquidation is proceeding smoothly, ensuring an orderly and timely completion. 

The visit also reflected on UNAMI’s positive legacy and its support for Iraq’s progress over more than twenty years of existence in Iraq. 

NIGER 

In Niger, Tom Fletcher, the Emergency Relief Coordinator, has allocated $5 million from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund to help people prepare ahead of flooding that is expected to hit parts of the country in the coming weeks. 

The new funds, released as part of anticipatory action efforts, will allow the humanitarian community to support the Government ofNiger to improve early warning systems, and get shelter and mobile medical centres in place in areas most likely to be hit. 

SOUTH SUDAN 

Another crisis is unfolding in Jonglei State in South Sudan. The ºÚÁÏרÇø Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) today said that escalating conflict is forcing people to flee their homes and restricting humanitarian access. 

Since the end of December, renewed clashes in Jonglei have displaced more than 230,000 men, women and children. 

Families forced to flee their homes are reportedly sheltering in the open, under trees and in makeshift structures without the food, without health services or any protection that they need. Most of these families are relying on already overstretched host communities. 

Many health facilities have been looted or have been vandalized, resulting in some 115,000 people without access to the most basic health care needs. 

According to health authorities, cholera cases are rapidly rising in Duk County, with 938 cases and 29 deaths reported as of January 25th. This is partly due to overcrowding in areas where displaced families are seeking shelter and shortages of safe water, sanitation and basic health services. 

As you know, on 25 January, the government forces ordered all civilians, UN personnel and other humanitarian organizations to evacuate the counties of Nyirol, Uror and Akobo within 48 hours, ahead of a planned military operation. Flight restrictions have cut off humanitarian air access, halting any medical evacuations, and delaying the delivery of critical assistance. Some humanitarians have already relocated their staff. 

The UN and its partners will scale up assistance in safer areas, while authorities have reiterated their commitment to address bureaucratic impediments. 

The UN calls on all parties to facilitate unhindered access to all those who need help. 

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO 

The ºÚÁÏרÇø Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) is implementing the final phase of Operation Secure Harvest. They are doing that in the Ituri province to help communities safely access their fields during the harvest season. Peacekeepers do this through enhanced presence and patrols, through their engagement with local communities and authorities. They also support early warning and rapid response mechanisms, to deter armed group activity and to support the freedom of movement along key routes. 

Since the operation was launched at the end of October last year, the peacekeeping mission has deployed 204 patrols. They have protected close to 18,000 people and secured the harvest and transport of over 17,000 metric tonnes of food such as cassava, corn, potatoes, bananas, pineapple, and more. 

In addition, the Mission launched Operation Safe Schooling, creating a protective environment for 11,500 students in targeted locations across the Ituri province. They have deployed patrols around schools to support safe movement for pupils and staff and to help keep learning spaces open and secure. 

CHILE 

In Chile, the UN team there is supporting the Government-led response to ongoing wildfires impacting several regions. The UN Resident Coordinator, Maria Jose Torres Macho, has met with authorities to offer support and coordinate the response. The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is providing child-protection assistance, while the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR)is supporting temporary emergency shelters in coordination with partners.

On the health front, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)is assisting authorities, including on risk communication. For its part, the ºÚÁÏרÇø Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is addressing impacts on education, culture and heritage, and the UN Women and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) are conducting rapid assessments related to gender-based violence and preparedness for dignity kits and recovery support. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the ºÚÁÏרÇø (FAO) is monitoring the situation and will assess restoration measures for fire-damaged forests and ecosystems. 

The UN team joins all Chileans in expressing condolences for the lives lost and acknowledges international solidarity, including firefighters that have come from Mexico and Uruguay, equipment support from the United States, and contributions from regional development banks.

MULTIDIMENSIONAL VULNERABILITY INDEX  

Today, the Secretary General has appointed 15 leading experts to serve on the Independent Expert Advisory Panel for the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index, otherwise known as MVI, and that is for the 2026–2030 term.  

The MVI is a UN tool that measures the vulnerability of developing countries to external shocks, including climate disasters, economic downturns and health emergencies, and their capacity to absorb and recover from those risks. Unlike income-based indicators, it considers a broad range of economic, social and environmental factors. 

The Panel will help strengthen the MVI as an evidence-based tool to guide policy and resource allocation. It will begin its work this year.  

HONOUR ROLL 

Ireland and Malaysia have paid their full dues to the Regular Budget. This brings the number of Member States on the Honour Roll to 29.  

SECRETARY-GENERAL/PRESS CONFERENCE

On Thursday, at noon, the Secretary-General of the ºÚÁÏרÇø, António Guterres, will be doing his last annual start of the year press conference.