The UN Secretary-General warned against fossil fuel dependence while addressing a Berlin climate dialogue. Separately, UNIFIL peacekeepers were evacuated from Lebanon, Gaza violence surged 46%, and global migration deaths neared 8,000 in 2025.
UNITED NATIONS – United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivered a pointed video message to the seventeenth Petersberg Climate Dialogue, held in Berlin, Germany, calling out the world's continued reliance on fossil fuels as both an environmental and economic failure. He asserted that the ongoing conflict in the Middle East had triggered the most severe energy crisis in a generation, making it unmistakably clear that dependence on fossil fuels was not merely a climate problem — it was actively holding economies hostage.
The Secretary-General pointed to clean energy as the viable and necessary alternative, noting that global investment in clean energy surged to $2.2 trillion last year, a figure that doubled fossil fuel investment for the same period. He argued that renewables offered something fossil fuels fundamentally could not: real and lasting energy security.
To achieve this transition, Guterres outlined three urgent priorities. First, the world must respond to the current energy crisis without deepening the climate crisis in the process. Second, the infrastructure required to support a large-scale energy transition must be built without delay. Third, and critically, finance must be mobilised at scale to make the transition both possible and equitable for all nations.
#EarthDay is a reminder of the fragility of our world.
— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) April 21, 2026
But we know what must be done:
End our addiction to fossil fuels.
Accelerate the renewables revolution.
Protect & restore nature.
Deliver climate justice for the most vulnerable.
Let’s #ActNow – for people & planet. pic.twitter.com/RETg3QnfkZ
In a senior personnel appointment announced by the Spokesman, the Secretary-General named Rania A. al-Mashat of Egypt as the next Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, known as ESCWA, which is headquartered in Beirut, Lebanon. She succeeds Rola Dashti of Kuwait, whom the Secretary-General thanked for her dedicated service.
Al-Mashat brings more than 25 years of experience spanning macroeconomic policy, central banking, and monetary policy frameworks. She served consecutively as a minister in Egypt across three portfolios — tourism, international cooperation and planning, and economic development and international cooperation — over an eight-year period from 2018 to 2026. Mourad Wahba will continue to serve as Acting Executive Secretary until she assumes her new position.
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— Rania A. Al Mashat (@RaniaAlMashat) April 22, 2026
Two United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon peacekeepers who sustained severe injuries on Saturday were medically evacuated to France earlier in the day, following a decision by French authorities. The UN expressed heartfelt wishes for their swift and complete recovery, acknowledging their dedicated service to the mission.
In southern Lebanon, UNIFIL continues to encounter significant restrictions on its freedom of movement, despite ongoing engagement with parties to the conflict. The Spokesman noted these restrictions are affecting the resupply of some positions and urged all sides to ensure unhindered movement of UN peacekeepers so they can carry out their mandate safely and effectively.
On the diplomatic front, a second meeting between Lebanese and Israeli representatives is expected to take place in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. The UN welcomed steps toward ending hostilities on both sides of the Blue Line while reiterating its longstanding position that there is no military solution to the conflict. Diplomacy, the Spokesman said, remains the only sustainable path forward, and the UN continues to call for full implementation of Security Council resolution 1701 of 2006 as a basis for achieving a permanent ceasefire and long-term resolution.
On the humanitarian side, hundreds of thousands of displaced persons remain inside Lebanon with inadequate shelter and limited access to essential services. More than 117,000 displaced people are currently residing in 631 collective shelters across the country. Since 2 March, humanitarian partners have distributed over 150,000 blankets, 115,000 mattresses, thousands of hygiene and menstrual kits, and more than 3.5 million litres of bottled drinking water to affected populations.
???????? Israeli officials say civilians will be barred from returning to 55 southern Lebanese villages, as troops remain deployed post-ceasefire to prevent Hezbollah from regrouping, according to CNN. pic.twitter.com/Ug6hkQ79zK
— Flashpoint OSINT (@OkosOstan) April 18, 2026
Violence across the Gaza Strip escalated sharply in the week of 12 to 18 April, with incidents including gunfire, shelling, and strikes increasing by 46 per cent compared with the previous week — marking the highest weekly total since the October ceasefire agreement entered into effect. The North Gaza, Gaza, and Deir al-Balah governorates recorded the sharpest increases in violence.
Although crossings into Gaza remain closed on Wednesday and Thursday to mark Israeli holidays, UN teams continue to collect critical supplies from the Palestinian side of the Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem crossing. Supplies collected include sanitation items, tarpaulins, infusion pumps, and family tents for distribution to families in Gaza.
Mine action partners have conducted educational sessions for tens of thousands of people across the Strip to help prevent casualties from explosive ordnance. However, the Spokesman noted that restrictions on the entry of specialised equipment continue to hamper clearance and disposal activities.
In the West Bank, the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported that in the first quarter of the year, 33 Palestinians were killed and 790 injured by Israeli forces or settlers. More than 540 Israeli settler attacks caused either casualties or property damage. OCHA reiterated that attacks on civilians must be investigated and that Israel, as the occupying power, is obligated under international humanitarian law to protect the Palestinian civilian population.
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— Conflict (@ConflictTR) April 21, 2026
Gazze'de geçen hafta saldirilar, bir önceki haftaya göre yüzde 46 artti pic.twitter.com/Sp3uwQVNP4
Approximately four million people have voluntarily returned to their homes across Sudan in recent years, primarily to Al Jazirah and Khartoum, according to the International Organization for Migration. The movements are largely driven by improved security in areas of return and deteriorating conditions in displacement sites.
However, the IOM cautioned that many returnees are arriving in areas still deeply scarred by conflict, where basic services remain limited and safe housing and viable livelihoods are difficult to access. More than two million additional people are expected to return to Khartoum alone in the current year. The IOM's Sudan Crisis Response Plan for 2026 faces a funding shortfall of $97.2 million, and the agency warned that without urgent financial support, returns could stall and fragile gains could rapidly unravel.
The IOM released new data showing that nearly 8,000 migrants were reported dead or missing worldwide in 2025 alone, bringing the total recorded since 2014 to more than 82,000 people. The data reveals that despite declines in arrivals in some regions, migration routes are shifting rather than becoming safer, with increasingly dangerous journeys continuing to claim lives.
Ahead of the International Migration Review Forum in May, IOM called for renewed global commitments to protect migrants, prevent deaths and disappearances, and better support families affected by migration tragedies.
7,900 people died, disappeared on migration routes in 2025: UN https://t.co/L0FVj9aGgB
— The Straits Times (@straits_times) April 21, 2026
A newly published UNESCO report titled 'People and Nature in UNESCO Sites' — drawing on data from more than 2,200 UNESCO-designated sites — found that wildlife populations within these protected areas have remained stable even as global wildlife populations have fallen by 73 per cent since 1970. However, the report warns that 90 per cent of UNESCO sites face risks of ecosystem degradation, with some facing irreversible impacts as early as 2050. The agency also noted that a quarter of these designated sites overlap with Indigenous Peoples' territories.
The annual report of the Trust Fund in Support of Victims of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse was published, covering the year 2025. The Trust Fund, managed by the UN Secretariat, provided dedicated support to 130 victims of sexual exploitation and abuse — including children fathered by UN peacekeepers — during the reporting period. Over 1,200 people received information on victims' rights, reporting mechanisms, and prevention, while 1,500 community members were reached through workshops. Services were funded in the Central African Republic, Guatemala, Haiti, Liberia, and South Sudan.
Since the Trust Fund's establishment in 2016, it has received only $5 million in total — through voluntary contributions from 25 Member States and withheld payments following substantiated allegations against UN personnel. The Spokesman acknowledged the contributions received but emphasised that significantly more support is needed, as victims' needs continue.
— End of Briefing —
