The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today's briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

**Guest Tomorrow

Good afternoon. One programming note. Tomorrow, my guest will be our friend Sarah Hendriks, who, as you know, is UN-Women's Director of the Policy, Programme and Intergovernmental Division.

She will be here to brief you on the global launch of the Secretary-General's report entitled "Ensuring and Strengthening Access to Justice for All Women and Girls" ahead of International Women's Day 2026 and the seventieth session of the Commission on the Status of Women.

**Middle East

Concerning the situation in the Middle East, I can tell you - and you will not be surprised - that the Secretary-General continues to follow the situation in that region with great concern. He is particularly worried about the multiplication of new fronts.

We are also witnessing an increasing number of civilian casualties and a severe humanitarian impact on the well-being of people throughout the region.

In addition, the continued attacks on energy infrastructure in the Gulf can have a dramatic impact on the global economy, which is still very dependent on fossil fuel.

The situation is also of particular concern to us along the Blue Line.

Over the past two days, our peacekeepers from UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon) have recorded dozens of rockets and missiles fired into Israel claimed by Hizbullah and several airstrikes and incidents of firing from south of the Blue Line from Israel into Lebanon.

This morning, peacekeepers observed Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers crossing north of the Blue Line near Markaba, Adeisse, Kafr Kela in Sector East and Ramyah in Sector West before returning south of the Blue Line from some of these locations.

Our Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, has also been in touch with all concerned actors in Lebanon and Israel to urge both sides to avail of existing diplomatic channels and to avoid a further escalation.

UNIFIL remains in constant contact with both parties, as well as the cessation of hostilities monitoring mechanism. Despite extremely challenging conditions, peacekeepers continue to carry out their mandated tasks, as mandated by resolution 1701, and they will keep reporting developments publicly and to the Security Council.

We call on both sides to exercise restraint and recommit to the full implementation of the cessation of hostilities arrangement of November 2024, as well as Security Council resolution 1701.

Meanwhile, on the humanitarian side in Lebanon, airstrikes yesterday reportedly caused more than 50 deaths and over 150 injuries. That is what the Ministry of Health in Lebanon is telling us.

Israeli authorities have issued forced displacement orders to people living in more than 100 towns and locations in southern Lebanon, in the Bekaa valley, and in Beirut's southern suburbs. This is done ahead of anticipated attacks.

Displacement has also increased significantly, with nearly 60,000 people now reported to be in newly opened emergency shelters, and many more people reportedly on the move. This is primarily affecting southern Lebanon and the southern suburbs of Beirut as well.

Our partners are working with the Lebanese authorities to ensure a coordinated response to the unfolding crisis. This includes providing food, health, water and sanitation support.

More generally, our humanitarian colleagues in Lebanon tell us that falling missile and drone debris, restricted airspace, and active hostilities continue to cause civilian casualties, damage infrastructure, and disrupt essential services.

In Iran, sustained airstrikes since Saturday have reportedly affected more than 1,000 locations, resulting in about 790 deaths and nearly 750 injured. This is according to what local authorities and the Iranian Red Crescent Society are telling us. Some strikes have reportedly hit dense residential areas, and early reports indicate damage to civilian infrastructure.

In Israel, continued airstrikes, also in dense residential neighbourhoods, have reportedly resulted in 10 deaths and dozens of injuries, as well as damage to civilian infrastructure.

Humanitarian operations across the region are being severely affected by insecurity, supply chain disruptions and airspace closures. The movement of humanitarian personnel remains restricted.

International humanitarian law is non-negotiable: Civilians, including aid workers, must be protected at all times.

We and our humanitarian partners are continuing to respond to needs across the region, but unimpeded access, security guarantees and adequate funding will determine how effectively we can respond.

**Occupied Palestinian Territory

Turning to the situation in Gaza, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) tells us that the Israeli authorities today reopened the Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem crossing for the entry of 500,000 litres of fuel and humanitarian assistance that is arriving through Israel and Egypt, and that is welcomed.

As we've said before, approximately 300,000 litres of fuel per day are required to maintain the critical humanitarian operations in Gaza, so it is essential that fuel continues to enter consistently until longer-lasting solutions for the supply for Gaza with power are found.

The Rafah and Zikim crossings remain closed and international humanitarian staff rotations are still suspended, which is adding another layer of stress to our operations. Meanwhile, coordinated inside Gaza have resumed.

We and our partners reiterate that more crossings must be open to enable the scale-up of the response to meet the immense needs of the people in the Strip. Supplies must also enter in a predictable and sustained manner.

Shelter remains a critical need for most people in Gaza, who remain displaced after more than two years of war. Over the past week, our partners distributed shelter assistance, which includes the usual tarpaulins, bed sheets, mattresses, blankets, winter clothes and kitchen essentials to more than 1,600 families. Unfortunately, more durable shelter solutions are still not permitted to enter Gaza.

Our partners also reached nearly 6,700 people with services last week, including psychosocial support, legal assistance and explosive risk education. Our partners delivered psychosocial support and recreational activities related to Ramadan to some 8,000 children in Gaza.

Turning to the West Bank, Israeli security forces continued the closure of most checkpoints.

These measures, as you can imagine, severely curtail the freedom of movement of Palestinians and hinder their ability to access livelihoods and just basic services. They also impact the ability of our humanitarian partners to deliver assistance and conduct needed operations.

Also, our OCHA colleagues sadly reported that yesterday, Israeli settlers killed two Palestinians and injured three others, including two children, while raiding the village of Qaryut near Nablus. The injured were transported to the hospital for treatment. Once again, we say that Palestinians in the occupied West Bank must be protected and perpetrators of settler violence must be held to account and brought to justice.

**Independent International Scientific Panel on AI

This morning, the Secretary-General spoke to the members of the Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence. This was their first virtual meeting since their appointment was confirmed by the General Assembly last month.

Speaking to them, the Secretary-General expressed his gratitude, adding that the world is looking to this group for clarity.

He said the panel is a first-of-its-kind, one-of-a-kind, global, independent scientific body dedicated to helping shape the trajectory of artificial intelligence for the benefit of humanity - while there is still time.

AI is advancing at lightning speed, the Secretary-General said, reshaping economies and societies.

The role of the panel members will be to bring independent, credible science into the global conversation, and to do so at a time when geopolitical tensions are rising, conflicts are raging, and the stakes for safe and responsible AI could not be greater.

In the next few months, the panel will establish its working methods, set priorities and deliver a substantive, evidence-based assessment.

This work will inform the first annual Global Dialogue on AI Governance - co-chaired by Ambassador [Egriselda] López of El Salvador and Ambassador [Rein] Tamssar of Estonia.

During the meeting this morning, the panel chose its first two Co-Chairs: Maria Ressa, of the Philippines, whom you know well, who is a Nobel Peace Prize winner and a journalist, and Yoshua Bengio, of Canada, a Professor at the University of Montreal-Université de Montréal, Co-President of LawZero, and the Founder of Mila, the Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute.

**Afghanistan/Pakistan

On Afghanistan and Pakistan, and the ongoing fighting we are seeing along that border, our humanitarian colleagues tell us that fighting has killed and injured civilians, forced families to flee, and damaged homes and public buildings in several provinces.

In Afghanistan, nearly 66,000 people have reportedly been displaced across five eastern and southe-astern provinces. Residential areas have been hit. Children are among those reportedly killed and injured. Details are still being verified due to limited access.

Airstrikes have damaged multiple key humanitarian facilities, including a 20-bed emergency hospital in Torkham, a transit centre run by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and a returnee reception centre, also in Torkham. And as you know, international humanitarian law is clear, medical and health facilities should never be targeted.

The hostilities have also forced the suspension of some World Food Programme (WFP) activities, interrupting food assistance for some 160,000 human beings.

This comes as Afghanistan faces one of the world's largest humanitarian crises, with nearly 22 million people in need due to years of conflict, poverty and repeated natural disasters. Funding, as is too often the case, is critically low. The 2026 Humanitarian Response Plan is just 11 per cent funded, with only $181 million in the bank out of the $1.7 billion needed to reach 17.5 million people.

**Sudan

Turning to Sudan, Denise Brown, our Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, has wrapped up a three-day visit to Dilling in South Kordofan. This was the first mission by a senior UN official to Dilling since the latest hostilities began and it follows the opening of a route into that area in recent weeks.

The towns of Dilling and Kadugli, both in South Kordofan, have experienced spiralling humanitarian needs due to prolonged sieges. The security situation there remains highly volatile, with continuing fighting driving more people from their homes, making the movement of humanitarian and commercial supplies very difficult.

While in Dilling, Ms. Brown, together with other UN colleagues and partners, visited displacement sites and a hospital. They also met with local communities and humanitarian workers to get a better sense of what was needed.

Meanwhile, Save the Children announced yesterday the first delivery of vaccines to the town of Kadugli in nearly three years - a positive step that underscores the importance of continued and unhindered humanitarian access.

OCHA once again calls for stepped-up funding to address the most urgent needs across Sudan. It reiterates the obligation of the parties to the conflict under international humanitarian law to facilitate rapid, safe, unhindered and sustained humanitarian access.

To date, the 2026 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan calling for $2.9 billion is only 14 per cent funded at just over $400 million, severely constraining the delivery of crucial assistance.

**Ukraine

From Ukraine, our humanitarian colleagues there say that over the past five days, attacks have continued across the country, causing multiple civilian casualties and further damaging homes, energy and transport infrastructure.

Local authorities report that more than 30 civilians were killed, and 140 were injured, including several children between Saturday and the early hours of this morning.

In Dnipro and Donetsk, those places were particularly impacted. In Donetsk, over the last five days, dozens of civilians were killed or injured in the front-lines, where the security situation due to intense hostilities continues to deteriorate, which also restricts our ability to access with humanitarian goods.

In Dnipro, a drone strike on a train reportedly killed and injured several passengers, including children.

Following the attacks, our partners quickly mobilized to support people in Kramatorsk, as well as in the cities of Kharkiv, Odesa and Mykolaiv, providing shelter materials, hot meals, psychosocial support and cash assistance.

Over the past five days, nearly 1,000 people were evacuated from the Donetsk Region. In Kharkiv, more than 500 people, including dozens of children, arrived at two transit centres after fleeing the front lines, thanks to our partners.

**Resident Coordinator - Costa Rica

New Resident Coordinator: Pablo Salazar Canelos of Ecuador has assumed his role as the UN Resident Coordinator in Costa Rica, following host Government approval. He brings over 20 years of experience in international development, population and development, public policy and demographic analysis. He most recently served as the Country Representative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Bolivia, having had many other roles in the region. As you know, Resident Coordinators serve as the Secretary-General's representatives for development at the country level.

**EU/UN Strategic Committee on Peace and Security

I want to flag the first meeting of the new European Union-United Nations Strategic Committee on Peace and Security, which was held today here, in New York.

The meeting was co-chaired by Rosemary DiCarlo, the Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, the Head of the Peace Operations department, as well as Charles Fries, the Deputy Secretary General for Peace, Security and Defence of the European External Action Service.

During the meeting, the delegations exchanged views on the evolving global peace and security landscape and reaffirmed their strong support for the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and for a rules-based international order anchored in international law.

The Committee also discussed the future of UN peacekeeping operations and special political missions, and the future orientation of EU missions and operations.

Looking ahead, the European Union and the UN agreed to place particular emphasis on their cooperation on transitions; the women, peace and security agenda; climate, peace and security; strategic planning; as well as conflict prevention and peacebuilding.

The Strategic Committee on Peace and Security will meet annually.

**World Wildlife Day

Today is what day? World Wildlife Day. In his message, the Secretary-General warns that human activity has pushed millions of animal species to the brink. He urges all countries to ensure that the ecosystems that have healed humanity for millennia can sustain us for generations to come.

**Rafeeuddin Ahmed

I want to flag an event tomorrow that will take place from 10:00 to noon in the ECOSOC (Economic and Social Council) Chamber, and that will be a memorial ceremony in honour of our late colleague, Rafeeuddin Ahmed, a long-serving United Nations official who passed away at the end of last year.

Raffi Ahmed, as he was known, served many senior posts at the UN, including as Chef de Cabinet to the Secretary-General; Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Trusteeship and Decolonization; and Under-Secretary-General for International Economic and Social Affairs. He was also Associate Administrator at the UN Development Programme (UNDP).

Raffi embodied the ideals that we all want to see in ourselves as international civil servants - humility in service, courage in conviction, and abiding faith in multilateralism.

We will remember him for his intellectual depth and his efforts to ensure that the UN system works to meet the needs of all the world's people - and he was always more focused on people than process.

Most of all, his mark will stay with this organization for a long time as he was a mentor to so many younger colleagues who followed in his footsteps.

You're all invited tomorrow to attend for those of you who knew him. And we of course extend our deepest condolences to his friends and family.

**Financial Contribution

We have money today.

If you will recall, when France paid, we talked about Charles de Gaulle's famous quote who talked about the difficulty of governing a country with 246 varieties of cheese. We are going to stick with the cheese theme; this country produces the world's most expensive cheese, which can cost up to $1,300 per kilo due to its extreme rarity and labour-intensive production. It is made from donkey milk. And the name of the cheese - and hopefully I am pronouncing this right, is Pule. […]

Serbia.

We say thank you to our friends in Belgrade for their full payment to the Regular Budget.

They gave us $1,272,586, I don't know how much cheese that could buy, but we won't use it to buy cheese.

Serbia's payment brings the number of fully paid-up Member States to 75.

**Questions and Answers

Spokesman: Okay, Pam.

Question: All right. Since you stumped us on the second one…

Spokesman: Okay. Yes.

Question: Thank you, Steph. The IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) Director General today, Rafael Grossi, said that there was no apparent radiation level elevation. But we cannot rule out possible radiological release with serious consequences, including the necessity to evacuate areas in major large cities because of all of these autonomous drones in the region and the possibility of power facilities, not necessarily weapons facilities. How worried is the Secretary-General of a nuclear fallout disaster…?

Spokesman: I mean, you know, whenever you have a conflict in an area where there are nuclear facilities, we have to be concerned. We will be guided by the scientific and technical assessment of the IAEA. Edie? Edie, please.

Question: Thank you, Steph. Two follow-ups. First, has the Secretary-General had talks with any other world leaders about the war in Iran?

Spokesman: I hope to have more things to report to you later today.

Question: And secondly, you talked about the first annual dialogue on artificial intelligence and global governance, but you never said when it might take place?

Spokesman: No. Sorry, I said it took place today.

Question: No. But…

Spokesman: Oh, where I think it will take place? In Geneva, if I'm not mistaken. But somebody will correct me.

Question: And do you know when?

Spokesman: Over the summer, if I'm not mistaken, but my colleague Stephanie [Tremblay], who's paying attention, will text me the right answer. Yes, please. Go ahead.

Question: Thank you, Steph.

Spokesman: Linda.

Question: Apropos of the war in the Middle East, you mentioned some casualties, you know, more details about casualties in Israel, Iran, Lebanon. What about the Gulf States? Do you have any further information in terms of status of casualties?

Spokesman: We have gotten less information, I mean, just from having fewer people on the ground in terms of our physical presence. But we obviously have seen the video of facilities, energy facilities, military facilities, the impact it's had on civilian facilities throughout the Gulf. Yes, madam?

Question: In light of some of the announcements from the US for their staff to leave embassies, is the UN planning on evacuating any staff out of the region?

Spokesman: We constantly are assessing our posture, the number of people we have on the ground. Right now in Lebanon, we're moving some people around, to make sure that they're staying safe.

Question: So yesterday, you urged us to keep an eye on Rosemary DiCarlo's remarks to the [Security] Council, especially regarding the school that was hit and the schoolgirls that were killed in Iran. But her remarks felt that they were very underwhelming by just saying that the UN is aware of the reports. Don't you think that required a little bit more strong language than what was in her remarks?

Spokesman: Look, I don't think we can use words that are strong enough to condemn when children die, when children die in a school. There will need to be accountability for civilians killed in this conflict and in other conflicts. And the parties in conflict have a duty to observe and respect international humanitarian law, which includes not targeting schools, civilian infrastructure, and, of course, children. Ibtisam Azem?

Question: Thank you. A follow-up on that question. The impression is actually the question about the remarks of Ms. DiCarlo that you go out of your way to not mention: Who [was] actually responsible for that attack?

Spokesman: Well, I mean, we don't know. The information that we received is that children died, right? That a school was hit. We don't have, and we've heard different narratives from the parties. There will need to be investigations, and we'll need to determine who is responsible.

Question: Back to Mr. Grossi, he said today that inspectors have not found evidence of a coordinated Iranian programme to build nuclear weapons despite Israel and US claims. Do you have any comments on that?

Spokesman: No. We rely on the IAEA for those types of technical assessments. They are the UN's official arm and agency when it comes to nuclear energy. Geneva and July is the answer to your question, Edie, about the [AI] debate. Okay. Namo?

Question: Thank you, Stéphane. Where does the Secretary-General stand on the notion of sending boots on the ground, American boots, or arming Iranian opposition groups to help bring about regime change?

Spokesman: For us, the solution to what is going on is not more soldiers, more weapons. It is a halt and a return to negotiating table. Linda, and then we'll go to our friend, Mr. Ali, on the screen.

Question: Steph, just following up on the alleged attack on the schoolgirls. Yesterday, I believe that Rosemary DiCarlo's called it alleged. And I was wondering, I'm trying to find… I mean, aside from Iran saying it occurred, does the UN have any independent confirmation of this? I mean, since Israel and the United States…?

Spokesman: I think, you know, we don't have confirmation. There seems to be enough publicly available evidence that something tragic happened.

Question: But not who did it?

Spokesman: No. Not to us at least.

Question: Okay, thank you.

Spokesman: Iftikhar?

Question: Thank you, Steph. Regarding the escalating war between Pakistan and the Taliban regime, I know some Islamic countries are involved in trying to bring about a halt to the conflict, but what is the UN role? Is it doing something to promote peace?

Spokesman: At this point, we are more focused on the humanitarian and trying to mitigate the humanitarian impact.

Question: Thank you.

Spokesman: Okay. Thank you, all.

Question: Hi, Steph.

Spokesman: Oh, please, sorry. Go ahead, Zora.

Question: Sorry. I'm so sorry. I didn't send message for you.

Spokesman: That's okay.

Question: The attacks on Iran, including the bombing of infrastructure, schools, hospital, and residential areas, are continuing. Has the [UN] Secretary-General engaged in discussion with the President of the United States and the Prime Minister of Israel to stop this war and establish a ceasefire?

Spokesman: We have not had direct contacts with those two, but the Secretary-General, as I stated yesterday, has been in contact with number of leaders in the region and their representatives here, and he will continue to do so in the coming days.

Question: No. Especially with President [Donald] Trump or…?

Spokesman: No. As I said, he had not had any contact with those two.

Question: Thank you.

Spokesman: You're welcome. Naureen?

Question: Quick question and just to clarify that no UN-led humanitarian teams have yet been mobilized in Iran?

Spokesman: That's what we have, especially through UNHCR, already have a large presence focused more on the issue of refugees that Iran was already hosting. We have not deployed any specific humanitarian teams at this time to deal with the aftermath of the conflict. All right. Thank you all.