Gaza, Peacekeeping & other topics - Daily Press Briefing (30 July 2026) | United Nations

Noon briefing by Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General. Highlights: Ukraine Middle East Occupied Palestinian Territory Lebanon Yemen Peacekeeping Central African Republic Democratic Republic of the Congo/Peacekeeping Democratic Republic of the Congo Sudan UN Interim Security Force for Abyei World Day Against Trafficking in Persons International Day of Friendship Climate OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY The UN continues to receive reports of civilian casualties, including young children, and displacement caused by strikes and shelling across Gaza. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) stresses that under international humanitarian law, civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected and should not be targeted. The UN and its partners continue to provide support to affected families through a system set up for a rapid, joint response. Last week, our partners received over a dozen requests for assistance and mobilized responses to 180 families whose shelters and belongings were damaged by shelling and fire. Many of the families were newly displaced. UN partners provided emergency shelter materials, bedding, water containers, clothing, hygiene and dignity kits, and food assistance. Meanwhile, OCHA and partners report that over the past week, approximately 30,000 metric tonnes of debris were cleared from roads, camps, displacement sites and public facilities across Gaza. The UN Development Programme said that it recycled and repurposed about 6,000 metric tonnes of debris for soil stabilization, helping to facilitate safer movements for communities and improve access to humanitarian services. However, this is only a fraction of the more than 60 million tonnes of debris that have been generated since the onset of hostilities in October 2023. Insecurity, access restrictions, limitations on the entry of essential heavy machinery and spare parts, as well as shortages of engine oil, continue to constrain efforts to clear debris. LEBANON The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) continues to observe Israeli violations of Lebanese airspace using both drones and fighter aircrafts, as well as military activities on the ground in south Lebanon. In the three days since Monday, peacekeepers recorded 80 air violations. UNIFIL peacekeepers recorded extensive Israel Defence Forces artillery and mortar firing operations, along with multiple points of impact across both sectors and areas north of the Litani River. UNIFIL units also recorded extensive IDF operational footprint expansion, high density armored maneuvers, active engineering works, and direct kinetic engagements across both sectors. Yesterday, UNIFIL observed IDF tanks firing four rounds into residential structures causing fires southeast of Houla and 11 rounds east of Ett Taibe. On Tuesday, peacekeepers observed an armed drone launched from the vicinity of Al Bayyadah, which overflew a UN position, before returning to the same area later. Concurrently, peacekeepers at UNIFIL Headquarters in Naqoura observed one surveillance drone conducting a vertical takeoff from a building currently used by the IDF just outside the UNIFIL Headquarters. Peacekeepers also faced several restrictions and impediments to freedom of movement across the area of operations, including several roadblocks. UNIFIL’s explosive ordnance disposal teams also continue to discover and safely dispose of explosive hazards found in the mission’s area of operations. On the humanitarian front, in the three days since Monday, UNIFIL, through its Liaison Branch and in coordination with OCHA, facilitated 12 humanitarian missions in Sector West and one in Sector East. Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon...