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US withdrawal from WHO ‘risks global safety’, agency says in detailed rebuttal

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The statement, released on Saturday, also includes a rebuttal of the US administration’s reasoning for the measures. In response to government statements that the WHO has “trashed and tarnished” and insulted it, and compromised its independence, the agency notes that “the reverse true,” and that the WHO has always sought to “engage with the United States in good faith, with full respect for its sovereignty.”

The accusation by the US administration that the WHO has “pursued a politicized, bureaucratic agenda driven by nations hostile to American interests” is countered and described as untrue. The agency, the statement reads “has always been and remains impartial and exists to serve all countries, with respect for their sovereignty, and without fear or favour.”

Defence of COVID-19 response 

A significant portion of the statement is dedicated to defending the WHO against US accusations of “failures” during the COVID-19 pandemic: according to the administration, the WHO obstructed the “timely and accurate sharing of critical information” and “concealed those failures”. 

The agency counters this by noting that, throughout the pandemic, it acted quickly, shared all information it had rapidly and transparently with the world, and advised Member States on the basis of the best available evidence. 

WHO recommended the use of masks, vaccines and physical distancing, but at no stage recommended mask mandates, vaccine mandates or lockdowns.

Immediately after receiving the first reports of a cluster of cases of “pneumonia of unknown cause” in Wuhan, China on 31 December 2019, WHO asked China for more information and activated its emergency incident management system.

By the time the first death was reported from China on 11 January 2020, WHO had already alerted the world through formal channels, public statements and social media, convened global experts, and published comprehensive guidance for countries on how to protect their populations and health systems.

When the WHO Director-General declared COVID-19 a public health emergency of international concern under the International Health Regulations on 30 January 2020 – the highest level of alarm under international health law – outside of China there were fewer than 100 reported cases, and no reported deaths.

In the first weeks and months of the pandemic, the Director-General urged all countries repeatedly to take immediate action to protect their populations, warning that “the window of opportunity is closing”, “this is not a drill” and describing COVID-19 as “public enemy number one”.

In response to the multiple reviews of the COVID-19 pandemic, including of WHO’s performance, WHO has taken steps to strengthen its own work, and to support countries to bolster their own pandemic preparedness and response capacities. The systems WHO developed and managed before, during and after the emergency phase of the pandemic, have contributed to keeping all countries safe, including the United States.

Door open for US return

Despite the withdrawal notice, WHO remains committed to global cooperation and expresses hope that the United States will re-engage in the future. The agency highlights recent milestones, including the adoption of the WHO Pandemic Agreement, described as “a landmark instrument of international law” aimed at preventing and responding to future pandemics.

As a founding member of the WHO, the United States of America has contributed significantly to many of the agency’s greatest achievements, including the eradication of smallpox, and progress against many other public health threats including polio, HIV, Ebola, influenza, tuberculosis, malaria, neglected tropical diseases, antimicrobial resistance, food safety and more.

“WHO remains steadfastly committed to working with all countries in pursuit of its core mission,” the statement concludes, reaffirming its mandate to advance “the highest attainable standard of health as a fundamental right for all people.”

11-year streak of record global warming continues, UN weather agency warns

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The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) confirmed on Wednesday that 2025 was one of the three warmest years on record, continuing the streak of extraordinary global temperatures.

After analysing eight international datasets, the organization said that global average surface temperatures last year were 1.44°C above the 1850 to 1900 average.

Two of these datasets ranked 2025 as the second warmest year in the 176-year record, and the other six ranked it as the third warmest year.

Warm despite La Niña 

The fact that 2025 was very slightly cooler than the three-year average from 2023 is partly explained by the La Niña phenomenon, which is associated with colder weather.

But WMO insisted that any temporary cooling from La Niña is not reversing the long-term trend of warmer temperatures.

“The year 2025 started and ended with a cooling La Niña and yet it was still one of the warmest years on record globally because of the accumulation of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in our atmosphere,” said WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo.

The organization added that the high temperatures on land and sea last year helped to fuel extreme weather, including heatwaves, heavy rainfall and deadly tropical cyclones, underlining the need for early warning systems.

Ocean heat

Citing a separate study, WMO highlighted that ocean temperatures were also among the highest on record last year, reflecting the long-term accumulation of heat within the climate system.

Regionally, about 33 per cent of the global ocean area ranked among its historical (1958–2025) top three warmest conditions, while about 57 per cent fell within the top five, including the tropical and South Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, North Indian Ocean and Southern Oceans, underscoring the broad ocean warming across basins.

WMO will provide full details of key climate change indicators, including greenhouse gases, surface temperatures, ocean heat and other trends, in its State of the Global Climate 2025 report to be issued in March.

Record rise in carbon dioxide levels during 2024: UN weather agency

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The surge was driven by continued human emissions, more wildfire activity and weakened absorption by land and ocean “sinks” – a development that threatens to create a vicious climate cycle.

Tripling since the 1960s

The WMO’s latest Greenhouse Gas Bulletin shows that CO₂ growth rates have tripled since the 1960s, accelerating from an annual average increase of 0.8 parts per million (ppm) to 2.4 ppm per year, in the decade from 2011 to 2020.

The rate jumped by a record 3.5 ppm between 2023 and 2024 – the largest increase since monitoring began in 1957.

Average concentrations reached 423.9 ppm in 2024, up from 377.1 ppm when the bulletin was first published in 2004.

Roughly half of  CO₂ emitted remains in the atmosphere, while the rest is absorbed by land and oceans; storage that is weakening as warming reduces ocean solubility and worsens drought.

The 2024 spike was likely amplified by an uptick in wildfires and a reduced uptake of CO₂ by land and the ocean in 2024 – the warmest year on record, with a strong El Niño weather pattern effect.

“There is concern that terrestrial and ocean CO₂ sinks are becoming less effective, which will increase the amount of CO₂ that stays in the atmosphere, thereby accelerating global warming. Sustained and strengthened greenhouse gas monitoring is critical to understanding these loops,” said Oksana Tarasova, WMO senior scientific officer who coordinates the bulletin research.

Other record highs

Methane and nitrous oxide – the second and third most significant long-lived greenhouse gases – also set new emission records.

Methane levels rose to 1,942 ppb, 166 per cent above pre-industrial levels, while nitrous oxide hit 338 ppb – a 25 per cent increase.

“The heat trapped by CO2 and other greenhouse gases is turbo-charging our climate and leading to more extreme weather. Reducing emissions is therefore essential not just for our climate but also for our economic security and community well-being,” said WMO Deputy Secretary-General Ko Barrett.

Monitoring and action

The WMO issued the report ahead of the COP30 climate conference in Belém, Brazil, beginning in November, emphasising that sustained global monitoring is vital for guiding climate action.

Air pollution is on the rise – but not everywhere, says UN weather agency

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“Air quality respects no boundaries,” said Lorenzo Labrador, Scientific Officer at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). “The smoke and the pollution that issues from the wildfires in this record-breaking season in the Iberian Peninsula has been detected over Western Europe already [and]…can travel basically throughout the rest of the European continent.”

Presenting the latest WMO Air Quality and Climate Bulletin which crunches data from different global datasets, Mr. Labrador announced a continuing pattern of pollution “degradation” worldwide.

He pointed to a map of the world in 2024 showing telltale fine particle markers known as “PM 2.5” from wildfires concentrated in deep red blotches in Chile, Brazil and Ecuador, along with Canada, central Africa and Siberia.

The data confirms a disturbing trend in air quality loss already noted in previous years.

“We know that the wildfire season has the tendency to be stronger and longer every year, as a result of climate change,” Mr. Labrador explained.

China, Europe provide hope

In more positive news, the WMO scientist underscored a reduction in emissions in some parts of the world, “particularly eastern China and Europe, year on year”.

“When we see that countries or regions or cities are taking measures to fight against bad air quality, it works,” said Paolo Laj, Head of WMO’s Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) Programme.

A good example is eastern China, in cities such as Shanghai, where progress has been made to boost air quality by opening more parks and planting more trees.

And although there is still heavy vehicle traffic, many are now electric, WMO spokesperson Clare Nullis noted.

Despite these successes, very few cities worldwide have air quality levels below those recommended by the UN World Health Organization (WHO), stressed WMO’s Mr Laj. “This means that, despite recent improvements, air quality remains a significant public health concern.”

He explained that although main pollutants such as sulphur dioxide (SO₂) and nitrogen oxide (NOₓ) are decreasing as emission controls kick in, ground-level ozone levels – the main ingredient of smog – have not declined.

“This is partly a consequence of global warming, as ozone is a secondary pollutant formed through chemical reactions in the atmosphere that require sunlight,” Mr. Laj continued.

Covering wildfires, winter fog, shipping emissions and pollution in urban spaces, the WMO air quality bulletin highlights the close connection between air quality and climate change.

“Climate change and air quality cannot be addressed in isolation. They go hand-in-hand and must be tackled together in order to protect the health of our planet, our communities and our economies,” said WMO Deputy Secretary-General Ko Barrett.

The UN is leading efforts to tackle household air pollution which is one of the world’s greatest public health threats and particularly harmful for children.

“The good news is that cleaner cooking technology is plentiful, relatively inexpensive, and already helping to save lives,” insisted Martina Otto, Head of Secretariat of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition hosted by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).

“The challenge now is to get this technology into the hands of more people.”

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UN refugee agency urges support to end displacement for millions of Syrians

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That’s the message from Kelly Clements, Deputy High Commissioner with the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, speaking on Tuesday after concluding a five-day visit to Lebanon and Syria.

“The international community cannot afford to be mere observers, assessing and judging the developments in Syria,” she said.

“They must take an active role supporting stabilization and recovery efforts, helping Syrians rebuild and reshape their country.”

Homeward bound

More than 1.2 million people have returned to Syria since the fall of the Assad regime last December.  Roughly 850,000 have crossed back from Lebanon and elsewhere in the region.

UNHCR has scaled up support to those choosing to return, including by providing money and transportation, to ensure the process is dignified and sustainable. 

Meanwhile, returns continue inside Syria, with more than 1.7 million internally displaced people (IDPs), including just over 880,000 individuals who have departed from IDP sites in the north.

Commitment to cooperate

During her visit, Ms. Clements met with top government officials, refugees who have recently returned to Syria, and newly arrived refugees in Lebanon. 

In meetings with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and other cabinet members, she expressed appreciation for continued generosity in hosting Syrian refugees and committed to further cooperation in supporting voluntary returns.

Since January, nearly 200,000 Syrian refugees have returned from Lebanon. Many more have indicated that they plan to follow in the coming months, especially after the authorities waived exit fees for those who overstayed their residency.

Ms. Clements also met a group of Syrian refugees who arrived in Lebanon in the past few months after fleeing recent violence back home.  

“It’s been a dynamic period where we see both Syrians returning, but also others becoming newly displaced,” she said. 

“We count on the international community to continue supporting Lebanon and UNHCR’s work here,” she added.  “Millions of Syrian refugees are still in neighbouring countries, and the world must not forget about them.”

Return and rebuild

In Syria, Ms. Clements met with Social Affairs Minister Hind Kabawat as well as the governors of Homs and Idleb. She also spoke to recently returned refugees who shared their hopes to rebuild their lives and their country. 

“I saw up-close how people have preserved their will to return, stay and rebuild despite the harsh reality of destruction and lack of services following 14 years of war,” she said. 

 UNHCR and partners have expanded support to areas in Syria that are seeing high numbers of returns. 

Ms. Clements visited rural Damascus and met returnees who received shelter assistance and support to start small businesses. She also helped inaugurate a newly habilitated civil registry office in Idleb governorate, which the agency supported.

She stressed that UNHCR and partners are on the ground in Syria doing their part, “but there is so much more to be done and the international community’s commitment to support such efforts is critical.” 

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Health and aid workers targeted in conflicts around the world, UN agency says

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Attacks against health facilities doubled between 2023 and 2024, and more than 900 health workers were killed last year, the agency reported.

Humanitarian aid workers were also killed in record numbers in 2024. Yet, 2025 is outpacing even these dark statistics at a time when funding for humanitarian work is shrinking and support services established over decades are struggling to operate.

The Special Surgery Building at Al-Shifa Medical Complex in central Gaza City has been reduced to rubble.

Assault on Gaza’s health system

The nearly two-year-long war has devastated Gaza’s health system, leaving thousands without access to essential services. Now, as famine takes hold, miscarriages, premature births and low birth weight cases have surged, while newborn deaths are increasing, the UN agency warned.

PULL QUOTE: Life must continue even when bombs are going off.

“Because the delivery room was under direct fire, I delivered babies in hospital hallways,” said Ayda, a senior midwife in northern Gaza. “For lights, we used mobile phones. Despite the lack of supplies and water, our hands continued to work. Life must continue even when bombs are going off.”

Since October 2023, the World Health Organization (WHO) has documented over 720 attacks on healthcare in Gaza, with at least 1,580 health workers killed and as yet unknown numbers arrested and detained by Israel. Among them was Ayda, who just days after sharing her story, was killed in an airstrike along with 37 members of her family.

Dr. Khalid Badreldin completed his studies at the Ibrahim Malik Hospital in Khartoum, which now lays in ruins.

Delivering amid devastation in Sudan

In a field of rubble that used to be part of the Ibrahim Malik Hospital in Khartoum, Dr. Khalid Badreldin, a reproductive health analyst with UNFPA in Sudan, recalled performing his first surgery and delivering his first baby there.

“Now, I find it like this,” he said, lamenting the now shuttered hospital that was once a major provider of emergency treatment and maternal and neonatal services. The hospital has joined more than 80 per cent of health facilities in Sudan’s conflict zones that are no longer operational.

Meanwhile, midwives in Khartoum, the capital, are taking “huge risks to reach women in their homes”, explained Hawaa Ismael, who works at the UNFPA-supported Kararai Health Centre.

“It was exhausting, working day and night, but it’s our duty, and I’m proud of what we’ve done.”

On the other side of the country, staff at the El Fasher Maternity Hospital have come under attack, with one midwife killed when her home was shelled on Thursday and another kidnapped.

Haiti’s spiralling crisis

Clinics and hospitals have been deliberately targeted in the crisis that has gripped Haiti over the past 18 months, further weakening a health system already hobbled after years of conflict, looting and financial collapse.

In Haiti, people carrying their belongings flee in near darkness.

The State University Hospital, the country’s largest, was attacked at its reopening ceremony in December 2024, following a 10-month closure, with several people killed, according to reports. In the same month, armed gangs set fire to the Bernard Mevs Hospital in Port-au-Prince, the capital, and in April, attacks forced Mirebalais University Hospital to close.

Organized gangs are waging a brutal campaign to seize control of the capital, with sexual violence rampant. An estimated 1.2 million women and girls are in urgent need of protection against gender-based violence, but due to ongoing insecurity, three out of UNFPA’s four safe spaces in Port-au-Prince were recently forced to close and relocate. As access to emergency services remains extremely limited, just one quarter of rape survivors receive care within the critical 72-hour period.

© UNOCHA/Viktoriia Andriievska

Ukraine’s largest pediatric health centre, Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital in Kyiv, was hit on 8 July 2024 in one of the worst missile attacks on the country.

Heavy toll in Ukraine

Since January 2025, the World Health Organization (WHO) has recorded over 300 attacks by Russia on healthcare facilities, services and personnel in Ukraine, where women and girls are often compelled to find safer places to shelter and give birth.

I was afraid to give birth, but life goes on. We want to live too.

“Every day brings stress,” said Anastasiia from Sloviansk, on the frontline Donetsk region. “Even if there’s no immediate strike, the fighting nearby is loud and constant. I was afraid to give birth, but life goes on. We want to live too.”

Her region lacks a neonatal intensive care unit and while doctors can perform a Caesarian section, they could not provide full care if complications arose. As her due date approached, Anastasiia travelled some 20km to reach the Kharkiv Regional Perinatal Centre despite the city being regularly subjected to bombings, drone strikes and artillery shelling.

The response workers who help women like Anastasiia often face risks.

“When we arrive at the sites of attacks or in cases of violence, we don’t have time to slow down,” explained Roman, who works with a UNFPA mobile psychosocial support team in Dnipro. “It’s like our own reactions are on hold. Only later, when we look back and discuss it, do we realise how difficult it actually was.”

Under fire in DR Congo

In the restive eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), most facilities providing maternal healthcare have been bombed or looted.

Midwife Loti Kubuya Mielor assists a newly arrived displaced woman who gave birth in a shelter in Goma, DR Congo.

Indeed, just one third of hospitals in the region and one in five health centres are able to function. UNFPA’s mobile health teams are often the only option women have.

Displaced since February 2023, Francine Toyata recalled her recent travel through “darkness and chaos” with her mother to reach a UNFPA-supported mobile health clinic to give birth in the Rutshuru territory of North Kivu province.

“It is for women like Francine that we do this work,” said Nelly, her midwife.

As the conflict escalates, bombs have started hitting camps for internally displaced people, and mobile health clinics and listening centres have also been looted and destroyed.

“We were not safe,” Nelly added. “We need more support to meet these urgent needs.”

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Extreme heat is breaking records worldwide: UN weather agency

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Extreme temperatures caused approximately 489,000 heat-related deaths annually between 2000 and 2019, with 36 per cent occurring in Europe and 45 per cent in Asia.

The health impacts of heat are especially severe in cities due to the so-called ‘urban heat island effect’ – the over-heating of dense city areas compared with their rural surroundings – which is magnifying problems as urbanisation continues.  

Amid rising 21st-century temperatures, the WMO underscored that July 2025 was the third-warmest July ever recorded, behind those in 2023 and 2024.  

European heat streak

In this record-breaking July, heatwaves especially impacted Sweden and Finland, which experienced unusually long spells of temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit).

Southeast Europe also faced heatwaves and wildfire activity, with Türkiye recording an extreme new national high of 50.5 degrees Celsius (122.9 degrees Fahrenheit).

Asia, North Africa, United States

In Asia, temperatures soared above average the most across the Himalayas, China and Japan in July, with extreme heat continuing into August.

In the week leading up to 5 August, temperatures surpassed 42 degrees Celsius (107 degrees Fahrenheit) across West Asia, southern Central Asia, the southwestern US, much of North Africa and southern Pakistan – with some areas exceeding 45 degrees Celsius (114 degrees Fahrenheit).

Parts of southwestern Iran and eastern Iraq saw particularly severe temperatures above 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit), disrupting electricity and water supplies, education and labor.

For the week of 4 August, Morocco issued heat warnings for temperatures up to 47 degrees Celsius (116 degrees Fahrenheit).

Korea also issued widespread heat warnings, as station temperature records were broken across parts of China.

In Japan, a new national temperature record of 41.8 degrees Celsius (107.2 degrees Fahrenheit) was set on 5 August, breaking the previous record of 41.2 degrees Celsius set a week prior.

Looking ahead

Looking to next week, the World Meteorological Centre in Beijing forecasts that heatwaves will persist across the same regions as well as the Iberian Peninsula and northern Mexico.

These regions are expected to see maximum temperatures between 38 and 40 degrees Celsius (100.4 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit), with parts of Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, North Africa and the southwestern U.S. likely to exceed 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit).

Canadian wildfires

As Canada experiences one of its worst wildfire seasons on record, with 6.6 million hectares burned, smoke has polluted skies and caused poor air quality across several provinces and northern states of the US in late July and early August.

Twice this summer, smoke from Canadian fires crossed the Atlantic, affecting skies over Western Europe from 5–7 August and over Central and Southern Europe in late June.

Elsewhere, Cyprus, Greece and Türkiye have battled wildfires that forced evacuations and caused fatalities. In the US, a wildfire in Arizona’s Grand Canyon National Park disrupted tourism at the iconic site.

‘No longer an excuse’

“Extreme heat is sometimes called the silent killer, but with today’s science, data and technologies, silence is no longer an excuse. Every single death from extreme heat is preventable,” said WMO Deputy Secretary-General Ko Barrett.  

The WMO is working to strengthen heat early warning systems under the Early Warnings for All initiative. In collaboration with global and local partners, it is also helping countries develop heat-health action plans and ensure at-risk populations receive timely alerts.

WMO is also one of ten UN agencies supporting the Secretary-General’s Call to Action on Extreme Heat, which aims to boost global cooperation to reduce heat impacts through economic and social policy. A key focus is limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, in line with the 2015 Paris Agreement.

According to estimates from WMO and the World Health Organization (WHO), scaling up heat-health warning systems in 57 countries alone could save nearly 100,000 lives annually.

“Our Network is connecting science, policy, and action so that no community is left behind in the race to adapt to climate change that will continue to worsen extreme heat for years to come,” said Joy Shumake-Guillemot, lead of the WHO-WMO Climate and Health Joint Programme and co-lead of the Global Heat-Health Information Network (GHHIN).

“This is not just a climate issue, it’s a public health emergency,” she concluded. 

Gaza: ‘No one should ever be forced to risk their life to find food,’ says UN humanitarian agency

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The months-long deprivation of most life-sustaining basic goods has led to a deepening of the crisis.  More than 100 people were killed, and hundreds of others injured, along food convoy routes and near Israeli-militarised distribution hubs in the past two days alone.  

As one in three people currently going days without food, OCHA reiterated that no one should ever be forced to risk their life to get something to eat.  

Ted Chaiban, Deputy Director of UN children’s agency UNICEF, who is fresh from a visit to Gaza, noted that “the marks of deep suffering and hunger were visible on the face of families and children.”

He was briefing journalists in New York about his five-day visit in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel. 

Grave risk of famine

“Gaza now faces a grave risk of famine,” he said, briefing journalists in New York about his five-day mission to the enclave, the West Bank and Israel.

“This is something that has been building up, but we now have two indicators that have exceeded the famine threshold.”  

The crisis can only be addressed through unrestricted flow of aid into Gaza, with commercial supplies also allowed to enter to help address people’s needs.  

Nearly a week since the Israeli announcement to allow the scale up of aid and tactical pauses to allow safe passage of UN convoys, OCHA reported that the aid that has entered Gaza so far remains insufficient, while UN convoys continue to face impediments and danger along the routes provided by the Israeli authorities.  

“Civilians must always be protected and community-level aid delivery at scale must be facilitated, not obstructed,” said OCHA.  

Starved, bombed and displaced  

“The children I met are not victims of a natural disaster. They are being starved, bombed, and displaced,” Mr. Chaiban said.  He noted that more than 18,000 boys and girls have been killed since the beginning of the war, “an average of 28 children a day, the size of a classroom, gone.”  

While in Gaza, Mr. Chaiban met with the families of the 10 children killed and 19 injured by an Israeli airstrike as they were queuing for food with their mothers and fathers at a UNICEF-supported nutrition clinic in Deir Al-Balah.  

Discussion with Israeli authorities

Engaging with Israeli authorities in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, UNICEF “pressed for a review of [Israel’s] military rules of engagement to protect civilians and children,” Mr. Chaiban said.

Simultaneously, UNICEF also called for more humanitarian aid and commercial traffic to come in to stabilise the situation and reduce the desperation of the population.

“Children should not be getting killed waiting in line at a nutrition centre or collecting water, and people should not be so desperate as to have to rush a convoy,” he said.  

“What is happening on the ground is inhumane.” Mr. Chaiban said, hoping for a sustained ceasefire and a political way forward.  

 

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‘By women, for women’: 15 years of the UN agency championing gender equality

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This is just one way that the de facto authorities have restricted women and girls’ fundamental rights. Today, Afghanistan has the second largest gender gap in the world after Yemen. 

“Sometimes I wonder how to remain hopeful in these dark circumstances,” said Fariba, whose name was changed to protect her.

Afghanistan is not the only country where gender equality is losing ground. Worldwide, one in four countries is experiencing a backlash against women’s rights.

These are the challenges that UN Women confronts on its 15th anniversary, making its mandate and work more urgent than ever. 

“This is not the moment to pull back. It is the moment to step forward,” said Sima Bahous, the agency’s Executive Director.

Progress in peril

Established in July 2010, UN Women is currently working in 80 countries to empower women and girls to achieve their full potential.

Despite previous hard-won gains in accessible education for girls and advocacy for legal rights, funding for gender equality is drying up and progress is moving at a snail’s pace.

One in 10 women and girls lives in abject poverty, something the world will not eliminate for another 137 years at the current rate.  

The number of women living near and in conflict zones has doubled in the past decade, putting them at greater risk of gender-based violence, food insecurity and malnutrition.  

Additionally, 103 countries have never had a female Head of State, and gender parity in top governmental leadership will not be achieved for another 130 years.

While a digital revolution and increasingly high-powered artificial intelligence is sweeping the world, the gender digital divide is widening, making it hard for women and girls to access the tools around which the future will be built.  

However, despite such bleak circumstances, or perhaps because of them, UN Women continues to be a “powerhouse for gender equality and women’s empowerment”.

War and peace

Over 600 million women and girls live within 50 kilometres of a conflict, making them key stakeholders in any peace building process. More than that, evidence suggests that peace processes with women signatories are more durable.  

Despite this, between 2020 and 2023, 80 per cent of peace talks did not include women.  

However, in some countries, there are promising shifts towards great gender inclusion and parity in peace-related activities.  

For example, in Ukraine, demining, a profession which has historically excluded women due to normative perceptions of danger, is attracting more women.  

“What seems ‘not a woman’s job’ may turn out to be your mission,” said Tetiana Rubanka, the head of a demining team there.  

This is especially important in Ukraine, where the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) estimates that at least 20 per cent of land is contaminated with unexploded ordnance.

A collective voice

Despite clear proof that quotas in government work to ensure gender parity, women remain excluded from many policy making conversations.  

Because of this reality, UN Women works to support collective action by and for women whose voices are heeded more when they speak together.  

In the Pacific, women make up the majority of vendors at markets, but the markets themselves are managed and run by municipal councils, which tend to be predominantly made up of men. In the past, this meant that women’s concerns, including poor ventilation, security concerns and refrigeration infrastructure, went unaddressed.

With the support of a UN Women project launched in 2014, over 50,000 women vendors have formed associations that enable them to bargain collectively and achieve lasting changes.  

“We are not ordinary women who have nothing. We are women who are important. We just never thought of it that way in the past,” said Joy Janet Ramo, the head of a vendors’ association in the Solomon Islands.

 

SDG 5

SDG 5: EMPOWER ALL WOMEN AND GIRLS

 

  • End all forms of discrimination and violence against women and girls
  • Eliminate such harmful practices as early and forced marriages and female genital mutilation
  • Adapt and strengthen legislation to promote gender equality and empower women and girls
  • Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership in political, economic and public life
  • Ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health care

 

Globally, almost half of all married women currently lack decision-making power over their sexual and reproductive health and rights.

 

Finding hope

In Afghanistan, there are over 80 edicts that curtail women and girls’ fundamental rights, or 80 ways in which their potential is being restricted and 80 reasons to lose hope.  

“The colours of the rainbow have dimmed in my life, and I no longer see any colours to paint,” said Anita, a woman who used to be an artist and a teacher.

But still, they refuse to lose hope, instead forming local grassroots organizations that work to promote women’s leadership and prepare them for a time when they can again enjoy fundamental rights.  

Currently, there is a $420 billion annual gap in financing for gender equality globally, making the work of UN Women increasingly untenable. But, after 15 years, the agency insists that it is “doubling down” on the commitment to gender equality.

“My fellow women: never lose hope in the ups and downs of life, in the lows and highs,” Anita said. 

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Deep-sea must not turn into ‘Wild West’ of rare minerals exploitation, agency head says

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Marking its 30th anniversary, ISA is the world’s authority on the deep-sea beyond national jurisdiction. Washington may have passed an order on deep-sea licensing in international waters earlier this year, but the authority’s chief Leticia Carvalho said the United States, which is not an ISA member, “is going at it alone”.

“The rest of the world is united and cohesive and all behind of the rule of the law and the International Seabed Authority,” Ms. Carvalho told UN News. “ISA is a super power. We have all the knowledge, we have the ability given by the law, we have the mandate.”

Indeed, under international law, the deep seabed beyond national jurisdiction belongs to no single nation, Ms. Carvalho said, inviting the United States to join ISA.

To address these concerns, ISA has been drafting a mining code as a way to ensure that the deep-sea remains protected and does not turn into the “Wild West” of exploitation, she said.

Read our explainer on ISA and why it matters now here.

Costly search for rare minerals

Rare minerals needed to satiate demands for producing tech items from batteries to solar panels have driven interest in the deep-sea and what it offers. From cobalt to zinc, a plethora of rare earth minerals have been observed by explorations of the ocean floor.

ISA has issued 31 contracts for mineral exploration to 21 firms from 20 countries as of 2024, according to the UN’s World Economic Situation and Report 2025. While commercial mining in international waters has not yet commenced, pending the finalisation of an international code for deep-sea mining by the ISA, right now, countries can pursue deep-sea mining within their own territorial waters or “exclusive economic zones”.

Even after the international code is in place, those engaged in deep-sea mining will continue to face major challenges due to high capital requirements and operational costs relative to conventional mining and the enormous technical uncertainties associated with the unique problems surrounding mining on the ocean floor, according to the UN report.

 

‘One of our last frontiers’

UN Secretary-General António Guterres said the international seabed is “the common heritage of humankind, a principle enshrined in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which must continue to guide us”.

“We must bring together our global efforts in climate action, biodiversity preservation and marine protection,” he said in a message marking ISA’s anniversary, commending its commitment to finding balanced and effective solutions. “The deep ocean remains one of our last frontiers. It holds great promise, but also requires great caution.”

For 30 years, the authority has helped protect this shared realm through peaceful, sustainable and inclusive governance, and today, it is navigating complex challenges with care and clarity, he said, emphasising that “as we mark this milestone, let us advance cooperation grounded in science, and keep working together to safeguard the ocean for the benefit of all people, everywhere.”

The deep-sea contains a plethora of life and rare earth minerals.

Mining code and more

In addition to achieving progress on a draft mining code at its ongoing annual session at headquarters in Kingston, Jamaica, ISA launched its Deep-Sea Biobank last month in a bid to preserve and share knowledge.

The initiative aims to collect and preserve samples from the ocean floor that will benefit all nations, especially developing countries, Ms. Carvalho said, adding that the goal is to study the minerals, exploration and exploitation potential, but also to preserve and to study biodiversity and genetics.

“The future that I see is we need to really take care, cherish [and] nurture the deep-sea,” Ms. Carvalho said. “The future of ISA is stronger, enhanced, wider and wiser. We will know much more than we know now.”

Learn more about ISA here.

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‘Catastrophic birth outcomes’ in Gaza threaten a whole generation, warns UN agency

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In the first half of 2025, only 17,000 births were recorded, according to Gazan health authorities, representing a 41 per cent decline in Gaza’s birth rate over the past three years, the agency said.  

Additionally, 220 mothers died – more than 20 times the total number of maternal deaths in 2022 – while at least 20 newborns died within 24 hours of birth.

“Every mother and child deserves the right to a safe birth and a healthy start to life. What we are witnessing is a systematic denial of these fundamental rights, pushing an entire generation to the brink,” said Laila Baker, regional director for the Arab States at UNFPA.

These conditions come amidst an ongoing Israeli bombardment of Gaza which has displaced the entire Palestinian population at least once and reportedly killed over 60,000.  

Something treatable becomes a death sentence 

UNFPA said that the systematic targeting of a health care system already on the brink of collapse is creating an untenable situation for mothers and newborns.  

The majority of hospitals and health facilities have been damaged or destroyed with medicine stocks running severely low and medical equipment severely damaged.  

Ambulance services are also facing severe impediments, meaning that women giving birth face extreme challenges accessing healthcare. In this context, treatable complications during birth become death sentences.  

“The scale of suffering for new mothers and their babies in Gaza is beyond comprehension,” Ms. Baker said.  

Preventable loss

UNFPA said it has 170 trucks at the border between Israel and Gaza – and has since March 2025 – which contain lifesaving supplies such as ultrasounds machines, portable incubators and maternity kits. However, they have not been allowed into the Strip.  

The agency urged Israel to allow “unimpeded, sustained and demilitarized” humanitarian aid into Gaza including fuel, medical supplies and nutritional support.  

“Every moment lost means more preventable loss of life and unimaginable suffering for the most vulnerable,” UNFPA said.  

UN laments US withdrawal from educational and cultural agency

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“I deeply regret President Donald Trump’s decision to once again withdraw the United States of America from UNESCO,” Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of the Paris-based agency, said in a statement.

In New York, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said that the Secretary-General joins Ms. Azoulay “in deeply regretting the decision by the United States.”

The US first withdrew from UNESCO in 1984 under President Ronald Reagan and didn’t rejoin for two decades. Fourteen years after re-entry, the first Trump administration withdrew from the organization in 2017, but the decision was reversed under President Joseph Biden in 2023.  

Ms. Azoulay underscored that “this decision contradicts the fundamental principles of multilateralism,” and she highlighted that this decision would affect UNESCO partners in the United States, including communities seeking site inscription.

A White House press statement on the withdrawal said the decision had been taken to protect American interests from UNESCO’s work to advance “divisive social and cultural causes.”

The statement also said the organization is focused on the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which it described as “a globalist, ideological agenda for international development at odds with our America First foreign policy.”

The statement also specifically cited UNESCO’s decision to admit the State of Palestine as a Member State as problematic, contrary to US policy and fuelling the United Nations’ “anti-Israel rhetoric”.

Ms. Azoulay in her statement denied these claims that UNESCO is “anti-Israel,” highlighting the organization’s work in Holocaust education and combating antisemitism.

“UNESCO is the only United Nations agency responsible for these issues, and its work has been unanimously acclaimed by major specialized organizations,” she said, including American organizations such as the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC.

Diversifying funding in preparation

Ms. Azoulay stressed that this announcement was anticipated, and the organization has prepared accordingly, highlighting major structural reforms in recent years, including the diversification of funding sources.  

“The decreasing trend in the financial contribution of the US has been offset,” she explained. Despite the US now representing eight per cent of the organization’s budget, UNESCO’s budget has steadily increased thanks to donations from member states and private contributors, the latter of which have doubled since 2018.

“Today, the Organization is better protected in financial terms,” she said.

Continuing US partnerships

“UNESCO’s purpose is to welcome all the nations of the world, and the United States of America is and will always be welcome,” Ms. Azoulay emphasised.

The organization will continue to work with its US partners in the private, academic and non-profit sectors, and it will pursue discussions with the US Government. 

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Deadly floods show need for faster, wider warnings, UN agency says

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The UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Monday that more intense downpours and glacier outburst floods are becoming increasingly frequent, with deadly consequences for communities caught off guard.

“Flash floods are not new, but their frequency and intensity are increasing in many regions due to rapid urbanization, land-use change and a changing climate,” said Stefan Uhlenbrook, WMO Director of Hydrology, Water and Cryosphere.

Each additional degree Celsius of warming enables the air to hold about 7 per cent more water vapour.

“This is increasing the risk of more extreme rainfall events. At the same time, glacier-related flood hazards are increasing due to enhanced ice melting in a warmer climate,” he added.

Thousands of lives lost every year

Floods and flash floods claim thousands of lives each year and cause billions of dollars in damage. In 2020, severe flooding across South Asia killed more than 6,500 people and caused $105 billion in economic losses.

Two years later, catastrophic floods in Pakistan left over 1,700 people dead, 33 million affected and losses exceeding $40 billion, reversing years of development gains.

This year, the onslaught has continued. In July alone, South Asia, East Asia and the United States have seen a string of deadly events, from monsoon rains to glacial lake bursts and sudden flash floods.

Each year, extreme weather and climate events take a massive toll on lives and economies worldwide.

Asia reels from monsoon onslaught

In India and Pakistan, heavy monsoon rains have severed transport links, washed away homes and triggered landslides. Pakistan declared a state of emergency in its worst-hit areas, deploying military helicopters for rescue missions after forecasters warned of exceptional flood risk along the upper Jhelum River.

The Republic of Korea suffered record-breaking downpours between 16-20 July, with rainfall exceeding 115 mm per hour in some locations. At least 18 people were killed and more than 13,000 were evacuated.

In southern China, authorities issued flash flood and landslide alerts on 21 July, just a day after Typhoon Wipha battered Hong Kong, underscoring the compound risks of sequential storms.

Texas flash flood strikes overnight

Overnight 3 into 4 July, a sudden deluge turned Texas Hill Country into a disaster zone, killing more than 100 people and leaving dozens missing. In a few hours, 10-18 inches (25–46 cm) of rain swamped the Guadalupe River basin, sending the river surging 26 feet (8 metres) in just 45 minutes.

1-day precipitation totals from NASA’s IMERG multi-satellite precipitation product show heavy rainfall over central Texas on July 4, 2025.

Many of the victims were young girls at a summer camp, caught unaware as floodwaters tore through sleeping quarters around 4 AM. Although the US National Weather Service issued warnings ahead of time, local sirens were lacking and the final alerts came when most were asleep.

Glacier outburst floods surge

Not all floods this month were caused by rain.

In Nepal’s Rasuwa district, a sudden outburst from a supraglacial lake – formed on a glacier’s surface – swept away hydropower plants, a major bridge and trade routes on 7 July. At least 11 people were killed and more than a dozen are reported missing.

Scientists at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), a WMO partner, say glacial-origin floods in the Hindu Kush-Himalaya region are occurring far more often than two decades ago, when one might strike every five to 10 years.

In May and June 2025 alone, three glacial outburst floods hit Nepal, Afghanistan and Pakistan, with two more in Nepal on 7 July. If warming continues, the risk of such floods could triple by the century’s end.

Aftermath of a flood that swept through a high-altitude village in Nepal.

Closing the warning gap

The WMO is stepping up efforts to improve flood forecasting through its global initiative and real-time guidance platform, now used in over 70 countries.

The system integrates satellite data, radar and high-resolution weather models to flag threats hours in advance and is being expanded into a country-led, globally interoperable framework.

A 2022 World Bank study estimated that 1.81 billion people – nearly a quarter of the world’s population – are directly exposed to 1-in-100-year flood events, with 89 per cent living in low- and middle-income countries.

The UN’s Early Warnings for All initiative aims to ensure that everyone, everywhere, is protected by early warning systems by 2027.

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Aid cuts leave refugee agency unable to shelter six in 10 fleeing war in Sudan

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Globally, $1.4 billion of the agency’s programmes are being shuttered or put on hold, UNHCR said in a new report.

“We can’t stop water, you can’t stop sanitation, but we’re having to take decisions when it comes, for example, to shelter,” said UNHCR Director of External Relations, Dominique Hyde.

“We’re have people arriving on a daily basis from Sudan, from the Darfur regions…arriving in Chad, not able to be given any shelter.”

In an urgent appeal for flexible funding from donors, Ms. Hyde noted that up to 11.6 million refugees and others risk losing access this year to direct humanitarian assistance from UNHCR. The figure represents about one-third of those reached by the organization last year.

On the Sudan-Chad border, the UN agency is now unable to provide “even basic shelter” to more than six in 10 refugees fleeing the conflict. Thousands more vulnerable people have been left stranded in remote border locations in South Sudan, too. “If we just had a bit more support, we could get them to settlements,” she insisted.

Because of the funding cuts, basic activities have already been hit hard. These include refugee registration, child protection, legal counselling and prevention of and responses to gender-based violence.

Every aid sector hit

In South Sudan, 75 per cent of safe spaces for women and girls supported by UNHCR have closed, leaving up to 80,000 refugee women and girls without access to medical care, psychosocial support, legal aid, material support or income-generating activities. This includes survivors of sexual violence, UNHCR noted.

“Behind these numbers are real lives hanging in the balance,” Ms. Hyde said.

“Families are seeing the support they relied on vanish, forced to choose between feeding their children, buying medicines or paying rent, while hope for a better future slips out of sight. Every sector and operation has been hit and critical support is being suspended to keep life-saving aid going.”

Libya influx

Many of those impacted by the war in Sudan have taken the decision to move from Chad and Egypt to Libya, into the hands of people smugglers who dangerously overload boats with desperate people seeking to cross the Mediterranean Sea to Europe.

“What we’re observing now is that in terms of arrivals in Europe of…Sudanese refugees, [it] has increased since the beginning of the year by about 170 per cent compared to the first six months of 2024,” said UNHCR spokesperson Olga Sarrado.

Support slashed from Niger to Ukraine

In camps hosting Myanmar’s Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, education for some 230,000 children could now be suspended. Meanwhile in Lebanon “UNHCR’s entire health programme is at risk of being shuttered by the end of the year”, Ms. Hyde continued.

In Niger and other emergency settings, cuts in financial aid for shelter have left families in overcrowded structures or at risk of homelessness. In Ukraine, financial aid has also been slashed, “leaving uprooted families unable to afford rent, food or medical treatment”, Ms. Hyde noted.

Assistance to returning Afghans has also become another victim of the global aid cuts. Around 1.9 million Afghan nationals have returned home or been forced back since the start of the year, “but financial aid for returnees is barely enough to afford food, let alone rent, undermining efforts to ensure stable reintegration”, UNHCR said.

Legal aid halted

Overall, several UNHCR operations hit by severe funding gaps have now had to curtail investments in strengthening asylum systems and promoting regularization efforts.

In Colombia, Ecuador, Costa Rica and Mexico, any prolonged lack of legal status means prolonged insecurity for people on the move, the UN agency said. This results in deepening poverty “as refugees are excluded from formal employment and greater exposure to exploitation and abuse,” Ms. Hyde explained.

Approximately one in three of the agency’s 550 offices around the world has been impacted by the cuts, Ms. Hyde told journalists in Geneva:

“We’re not in a position to do so much contingency planning; what we’re able to do is make decisions on priorities – and at this point the priorities as I mentioned are dramatic.”

For 2025 UNHCR needs $10.6 billion. Only 23 per cent of this amount has been provided.

“Against this backdrop, our teams are focusing efforts on saving lives and protecting those forced to flee,” Ms. Hyde said. “Should additional funding become available, UNHCR has the systems, partnerships and expertise to rapidly resume and scale up assistance.”

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Ukraine: UN refugee agency helps repair homes amid ongoing conflict

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In the fourth year of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, housing remains one of the country’s most urgent humanitarian and recovery challenges. The destruction has been widespread and ongoing.

According to the latest Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment, 13 per cent of Ukraine’s housing stock has been damaged since February 2022, impacting an estimated 2.5 million families.

More than buildings 

In coordination with Ukrainian authorities and partners, UNHCR has invested over $114 million in durable housing solutions since July 2022, supporting both durable home repairs and emergency shelter assistance.

“By helping repair houses and apartments, we are enabling people to stay in or return to their homes – places that hold profound meaning, often passed down through generations,” said Karolina Lindholm Billing, UNHCR’s representative in Ukraine.  

“These are not just buildings. These are treasured spaces where couples raised their children, families celebrated milestones, cared for older relatives and built their lives together,” she said.

UNHCR’s support includes a range of solutions: contracting local builders, providing construction materials or offering cash assistance to homeowners. 

Repairs may include roofs, windows, insulation and in some cases, major reconstruction. The agency also helps restore common areas in apartment buildings.

Emergency shelter and long-term needs

UNHCR also provides emergency shelter kits – tarpaulin, wooden boards, nails and other materials – to help protect homes from further weather damage.  

Since 2022, more than 470,000 people have received such kits.

With millions still internally displaced – many from areas under temporary occupation and with little prospect of return – UNHCR supports broader shelter options, including restoring social housing, repairing rural homes and refurbishing collective centres for the most vulnerable. 

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Every hour, 100 people die of loneliness-related causes, UN health agency reports

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 Loneliness is linked to approximately 100 deaths every hour – more than 871,000 deaths annually. By contrast, strong social connections are associated with better health and longer life, the UN health agency said on Monday.

WHO defines social connection as the ways in which people relate to and interact with one another. Loneliness is the distressing feeling that arises when there is a gap between desired and actual social relationships, while social isolation refers to the objective lack of social ties.

“In this age when the possibilities to connect are endless, more and more people are finding themselves isolated and lonely,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General.

Disproportionate impact

While loneliness affects people across all ages, young people and people living in low- and middle-income countries are especially vulnerable.

“Even in a digitally connected world, many young people feel alone. As technology reshapes our lives, we must ensure it strengthens – not weakens – human connection,” said Chido Mpemba, co-chair of WHO Commission on Social Connection, which published the report.

The report, From loneliness to social connection: charting the path to healthier societies, highlights concerns about excessive screen time and harmful online interactions, particularly among youth and their negative effects on mental health.

Multiple factors contribute to loneliness and social isolation, including poor health, low income and education, living alone, lack of adequate community infrastructure and public policies, as well as certain aspects of digital technologies.

Serious health risks

Loneliness and social isolation increase the risk of stroke, heart disease, diabetes, cognitive decline, and early death. Lonely people are twice as likely to experience depression and may also face heightened anxiety and suicidal thoughts.

Conversely, social connection offers protective benefits throughout life—reducing inflammation, lowering the risk of serious illness, promoting mental health, and extending longevity.

Towards healthier societies

The report lays out a roadmap for global action focused on five key areas: policy, research, interventions, improved measurement and public engagement. Together, these aim to reshape social norms and build a movement for social connection.

While the costs of social isolation and loneliness are steep, the benefits of social connections are profound. WHO urged governments, communities, and individuals to make social connection a public health priority.

Iran: Return to inspections top priority for UN nuclear agency

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Rafael Mariano Grossi was speaking to reporters in Austria following a briefing to the Government in Vienna.

Israel began launching air and missile strikes against Iranian military and nuclear sites nearly two weeks ago, and the United States carried out surprise bombing raids on three Iranian uranium enrichment facilities this past weekend.

A ceasefire between Iran and Israel, announced on social media by US President Donald Trump on Monday night, is fragile but holding. 

However, the extent of damage to Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile remains unclear.

Iran says protective measures taken

Following the initial attacks, Iran informed the IAEA that it would take “special measures” to protect its nuclear materials and equipment.

Mr. Grossi told journalists that he has received a letter from the Iranian Foreign Minister which said protective measures have been taken.

“They did not get into details into what that meant, but clearly that was the implicit meaning of that. So, we can imagine that this material is there,” he said. To confirm this, and to evaluate the situation, “we need to return,” he added.

Inspections vital

On Wednesday, Iran’s parliament approved a bill to suspend cooperation with the IAEA, according to media reports, which has to be approved by the executive branch of the Government.

Mr. Grossi said he wrote to Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Tuesday requesting that they meet “to analyze the modalities” for inspections to continue.

He stressed that the international community “cannot afford” for the inspection regime to be interrupted.

The IAEA chief was also asked about Iran’s plans to withdraw from the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), a key international accord aimed at preventing the spread of nuclear weapons.

The move would be “very regrettable,” he said. “I hope this is not the case. I don’t think this would help anybody, starting with Iran. This would lead to isolation, all sorts of problems.” 

Sanctions relief for Syria offers ‘powerful message of hope,’ says UN migration agency

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After more than a decade of conflict and severe economic stagnation, lifting the punitive measures will encourage long-term recovery and peacebuilding in Syria, Amy Pope, IOM Director-General, said in a statement.

“The lifting of sanctions sends a powerful message of hope to millions of displaced Syrians, both within the country and across the region,” she said.

$800 billion lost

UN estimates suggest that the Syrian economy lost over $800 billion during the 14-year civil war. 

According to a UN Development Programme (UNDP) report, if the current annual growth rate continues, Syria’s economy will not return to its pre-conflict gross domestic product (GDP) levels until 2080.

The sanctions relief from the US, UK and EU – covering around $15 billion in restricted assets and trade measures – could unlock important investment opportunities for rebuilding key infrastructure, IOM said.

Most of these sanctions were originally imposed during the Assad era and have long been blamed for Syria’s hindering economic recovery.

Alongside the sanctions relief, Saudi Arabia and Qatar pledged to pay $15.5 million of Syria’s arrears to the World Bank. Together with Türkiye, they also offered to fund public salaries and support energy infrastructure.

These changes reflect “momentum from re-engagement and reconstruction,” IOM added.

A country torn apart

The Syrian conflict, which began March 2011 after pro-democracy protests against Bashar Al-Assad, lasted almost 14 years. During this time, tens of thousands of Syrians were killed and countless more disappeared. The fighting and insecurity also displaced more than 10 million civilians – within the country or as refugees outside its borders.

Poverty rates tripled, affecting 90 per cent of the population, with 66 per cent living in extreme poverty.

Since the end of the war in December 2024 with the overthrow of the Assad regime, half a million Syrian refugees have returned. A further 1.5 million internally displaced persons (IPDs) have also returned to their places of origin.

They returned home amidst great hope for the future of Syria, but also severe economic projections.

“Hope must be matched with concrete support,” Director General Pope said. “Syrians need not just the ability to return but the means to rebuild their lives in safety and dignity.”

Moving from relief to resilience

The UN estimates that over 16.5 million Syrians – roughly 70 per cent of the population – continue to require humanitarian assistance.

But funding shortfalls have complicated aid efforts. Already in the last week of May, only 10 per cent of the estimated $2 billion needed between January and June to assist eight million Syrians has been received.

Ms. Pope noted that it is important for the Syrian people and economy to begin moving towards longer-term solutions outside of humanitarian aid.

“While humanitarian assistance remains critical, IOM urges donors and development partners to expand their focus to medium- and long-term recovery. A transition from relief to resilience is not only necessary – it is urgent,” she said. 

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Gaza: Israel ‘approaches UN’ to resume limited aid deliveries, says aid agency

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“We have been approached by Israeli authorities to resume limited aid delivery, and we are in discussions with them now on how this would take place given the conditions on the ground,” OCHA said in a statement.

It is now 11 weeks since the Israeli authorities closed off all food, fuel and medicines to Gaza.

The decision has been widely condemned by the international community – including the UN Secretary-General – who on Sunday insisted that Israel’s “siege and starvation” of Gazans “makes a mockery of international law”.

According to news reports the Israel Government has taken the decision to resume “basic” levels of aid delivery to ensure against starvation, on the recommendation of the Israeli Defense Forces and in support of a renewed Gaza offensive.

“The situation for Palestinians in Gaza is beyond description, beyond atrocious and beyond inhumane,” António Guterres wrote online. “The blockade against humanitarian aid must end immediately.”

The aid blockade has created life-threatening hunger across Gaza – something that humanitarians have pointed out did not exist before the war started on 7 October 2023, sparked by Hamas-led terror attacks on Israel.

Basic principles

“I emphasize that the United Nations will not participate in any operation that does not adhere to international law and humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, independence and neutrality,” Mr. Guterres insisted, before underlining his “full support” for UNRWA, the largest aid agency in Gaza.

In an update on Monday, UNRWA reported that more than nine in 10 homes in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed. On Sunday the agency’s Commissioner-General, Philippe Lazzarini announced that more than 300 staff have been killed in the Gaza war. “The vast majority of staff were killed by the Israeli army with their children and loved ones: whole families wiped out,” he noted.

“Several were killed in the line of duty while serving their communities. Those killed were mostly UN health workers and teachers, supporting their communities.”

Ahead of unconfirmed reports on Monday that 20 aid trucks were expected to enter Gaza on Monday, UN agencies OCHA and the World Health Organization (WHO) warned that hungry and sick Gazans continue to live in terror because of ongoing bombardment.

In a new call to lift the blockade, both agencies rejected allegations of aid diversion to Hamas and highlighted the humanitarian nature of the goods being denied entry into Gaza, everything from children’s shoes to eggs, pasta, baby formula and tents.

“How much war can you wage with this?” asked OCHA spokesperson Jens Laerke.

Briefing Member States in Geneva, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned on Monday that the risk of famine “is increasing” as aid continues to be withheld deliberately by Israel.

Health system destroyed

The enclave’s health system is “already on its knees”, he insisted.

“Two million people are starving, while 116 000 tonnes of food is blocked at the border just minutes away,” he told the World Health Assembly.

In response to a resurgence of polio in Gaza, WHO negotiated a humanitarian pause for a vaccination campaign that reached more than 560,000 children, Tedros continued.

“We stopped polio, but the people of Gaza continue to face multiple other threats,” he said. “People are dying from preventable diseases as medicines wait at the border, while attacks on hospitals deny people care, and deter them from seeking it.”

At the same time, the WHO chief called out “increasing hostilities, evacuation orders, [the] shrinking humanitarian space and the aid blockade [that] are driving an influx of casualties”.

Tedros’s comments come as UN aid teams who remain committed to helping all Gazans confirmed intensifying bombing across the devastated Strip. “It has increased, of course,” said one worker, who wished to remain anonymous. They added that in the last 72 hours around 63,000 people have been uprooted.

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UN migration agency helping migrants in the US return home voluntarily

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In a statement on Monday, the UN agency said it is supporting Assisted Voluntary Return (AVR) – not deportation – for those who decide to leave the US.

At the request of the US Government, IOM is helping people who register to go back to their countries of origin voluntarily.

“AVR is a well-established, rights-based approach that helps migrants navigate complex global migration systems, regain control over their lives, and make informed choices,” the agency said.

Safe, dignified returns

“Our role is to ensure that those who lack the means to return on their own can do so in a safe, dignified, and informed way,” IOM added.

The agency made it clear that the US determines its own policies on migration. “IOM does not facilitate or implement deportations. Our involvement begins only after an individual gives informed consent to receive assistance.”

In these instances, “IOM ensures that people have access to accurate information and essential services, in line with international standards.”

The announcement comes as the US seeks to expand deportation of undocumented migrants in continuation of a policy President Donald Trump began nearly 10 years ago under his first administration.

He returned to office in January for a second term and has been cracking down on illegal immigration through raids, detentions and deportations. 

In a video posted to social media on Friday, President Trump said that he had signed an Executive Order “to launch the first-ever self-deportation programme for illegal aliens,” offering free flights from the US and payment of an “exit bonus.”

Support for a life-changing decision

IOM was established in 1951 and promotes humane and orderly migration.

For decades the agency has supported AVR programmes in more than 100 countries, “helping people without resources, legal options, or support return to their countries of origin safely and with dignity,” it said.

IOM noted that in the US, “many migrants face a challenging reality – navigating complex systems with limited options and resources,” and “this initiative provides support to those who choose to return, helping them make a life-changing decision with care and clarity.” 

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