First Person: ‘Tomorrow is too late’ to scale up humanitarian aid in Haiti

First Person: ‘Tomorrow is too late’ to scale up humanitarian aid in Haiti

Women and girls face the brunt of this crisis. Gender-based violence (GBV) such as gang rape is rampant, particularly in the capital Port-au-Prince, and is exacerbated by precarious conditions in displacement camps. Yet, recent funding cuts have shut down centres for sexual and reproductive health and GBV services. Displacement and insecurity make the services that […]

World News in Brief: Gaza aid crisis latest, deadly floods in India and Pakistan, funding cuts exacerbate Somalia drought

World News in Brief: Gaza aid crisis latest, deadly floods in India and Pakistan, funding cuts exacerbate Somalia drought

In an alert from the World Food Programme (WFP), the agency said that half a million people “are on the brink of famine”, a claim backed up by multiple humanitarian agencies. The latest worrying data is showing widespread acute malnutrition. A ceasefire is the only way to scale up aid deliveries, the UN agency insisted. It explained […]

First Person: From aid worker to refugee and back in war-torn Sudan

First Person: From aid worker to refugee and back in war-torn Sudan

Sudan is one of the world’s largest and most complex humanitarian crises, with more than 30.4 million people – over half the population – urgently needing humanitarian assistance, yet the 2025 Sudan humanitarian needs and response plan is severely underfunded, with only 13.3 per cent of the required resources received so far. Forced to flee […]

UN warns Gaza crisis could worsen without safe, unrestricted aid flow

UN warns Gaza crisis could worsen without safe, unrestricted aid flow

In his regular daily briefing, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric highlighted that ongoing delays, bottlenecks at holding points and interference in the loading process at crossing platforms are undermining efforts to collect and distribute supplies to those in need. “It is imperative that the UN and its humanitarian partners are enabled to deliver aid at scale, […]

Trapped in Gaza: Palestinians with disabilities cannot reach aid

Trapped in Gaza: Palestinians with disabilities cannot reach aid

But for an increasing number of Palestinians, including those who cannot hear the orders or whose mobility is impaired, following these orders may be impossible. Yet, failure to do so, could cost them their lives.   “In a normal situation, people with disabilities suffer the most. And in wartime, of course, the situation is heightened […]

World News in Brief: Casualties in Ukraine, Burkina Faso aid helicopter blast, Uganda urged to release opposition leaders

World News in Brief: Casualties in Ukraine, Burkina Faso aid helicopter blast, Uganda urged to release opposition leaders

The monthly total also marked a three-year high, topping June’s figure, with HRMMU verifying civilian deaths and injuries in 18 of Ukraine’s 24 regions.   “For the second month in a row, the number of civilian casualties in Ukraine hits a new three-year high,” said Danielle Bell, Head of HRMMU. “Only the first three months […]

First Person: Echoes of war as aid arrives in Syria’s historical city

First Person: Echoes of war as aid arrives in Syria’s historical city

Eleonora Servino was on the first UN aid convoy to Suweida, which saw a recent escalation of violence that left many dead and thousands displaced. As the International Organization for Migration (IOM) chief of mission to Syria, Ms. Servino said the difference on the road to Bosra is stark. “You know that feeling when you […]

Aid blockade deepens Gaza crisis as malnutrition deaths rise, warns UNRWA

Aid blockade deepens Gaza crisis as malnutrition deaths rise, warns UNRWA

“For over 150 days, not a single truck from UNRWA has been permitted to deliver food, medicine or other essentials into Gaza,” the agency said on Friday. “This denial of access is costing lives every single day.” Nearly 100 children dead from malnutrition According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, cited by the UN, at least […]

Syria: Ceasefire under strain as violence and aid access issues persist in Sweida

Syria: Ceasefire under strain as violence and aid access issues persist in Sweida

The 19 July truce followed weeks of sectarian clashes, Israeli airstrikes and grave human rights violations in the southern governorate, also known as As-Sweida. As a result, more than 190,000 people have been displaced there and in neighbouring Dar’a and Rural Damascus governorates. The fighting also caused severe damage to infrastructure and to livelihoods.  Electricity […]

Gaza: As aid trucks enter, videos of Israeli hostages and attack on Red Crescent staffers spark outrage

Gaza: As aid trucks enter, videos of Israeli hostages and attack on Red Crescent staffers spark outrage

Meanwhile, on Thursday and again on Saturday, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas militants published disturbing videos of two emaciated Israeli hostages, sparking worldwide outrage and condemnation from UN leaders, including Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday. The hostages pictured, Rom Braslavsk and Evyatar David, are two of the 49 are still being held in Gaza, including […]

Violence in northern Mozambique forces thousands to flee, straining aid efforts

Violence in northern Mozambique forces thousands to flee, straining aid efforts

The displacement is the latest consequence of a cascade of overlapping emergencies in the country – including armed violence, climate shocks, disease outbreaks and a severe funding shortfall. Since January, over 95,000 people have fled insecurity in Cabo Delgado and humanitarian access is becoming increasingly fragile. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of […]

UN warns of escalating human toll in Ukraine amid relentless aerial attacks, mounting aid shortfall

UN warns of escalating human toll in Ukraine amid relentless aerial attacks, mounting aid shortfall

“Nowhere is safe in Ukraine,” said Miroslav Jenča, Assistant Secretary-General for Europe at the UN Department of Political Affairs (UNDPPA). Citing figures from the UN human rights office, OHCHR, he said civilian casualties reached a three-year high in June, with 6,754 civilians killed or injured in the first half of 2025 alone. Russian forces launched […]

Syria: Second convoy brings critical aid to Sweida

Syria: Second convoy brings critical aid to Sweida

Deadly sectarian violence has displaced more than 145,000 people in the southern city, some of whom have fled to neighbouring Dar’a and Rural Damascus governorates.  The convoy carried a range of critical support, including food, wheat flour, fuel, medicines and health supplies.  OCHA coordinated with the SARC to prepare the convoy, which included supplies from UN […]

People dying from lack of aid every day in Gaza: WFP official

People dying from lack of aid every day in Gaza: WFP official

Ross Smith, director of emergency preparedness and response, briefed journalists in New York in the wake of a deadly incident on Sunday in which dozens of civilians were killed and injured while waiting to access food as a WFP convoy was entering northern Gaza. “Yesterday’s incident is one of the greatest tragedies we’ve seen for […]

SECURITY COUNCIL LIVE: ‘Aid must go where needs are greatest’ in Gaza, urges UN relief chief

SECURITY COUNCIL LIVE: ‘Aid must go where needs are greatest’ in Gaza, urges UN relief chief

The UN Security Council is meeting on the escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where fresh Israeli evacuation orders have uprooted tens of thousands amid relentless bombardment claiming hundreds of civilian lives in recent weeks – many of them children. “Food is running out. Those seeking it risk being shot. People are dying trying to feed […]

No fuel, no aid, no escape: UN agencies warn of looming collapse in Gaza

No fuel, no aid, no escape: UN agencies warn of looming collapse in Gaza

“Fuel is the backbone of survival in Gaza,” said the statement. “Without fuel, these lifelines will vanish for 2.1 million people.” UN humanitarian workers stressed that fuel powers everything from hospitals and water systems to bakeries and ambulances. Without a steady supply, “maternity, neonatal and intensive care units are failing, and ambulances can no longer […]

UNICEF deplores ‘unconscionable’ killing of families lining up for aid in Gaza

UNICEF deplores ‘unconscionable’ killing of families lining up for aid in Gaza

Catherine Russell said she was appalled by the reported killing of 15 Palestinians, including nine children and four women, who were waiting in line for nutritional supplements provided by Project Hope, a UNICEF partner organization. The incident occurred in Deir Al-Balah. An additional 30 people were injured, including 19 children. News reports indicate that it […]

UN chief ‘appalled’ by worsening Gaza crisis as civilians face displacement, aid blockades

UN chief ‘appalled’ by worsening Gaza crisis as civilians face displacement, aid blockades

Multiple attacks in recent days have killed and injured scores of Palestinians at sites hosting displaced people and others attempting to access essential supplies, according to a statement from UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric on Thursday. “The Secretary-General strongly condemns the loss of civilian life,” Mr. Dujarric said. On just one day this week, nearly 30,000 […]

Myanmar human rights crisis deepens as aid collapses, attacks intensify

Myanmar human rights crisis deepens as aid collapses, attacks intensify

In a stark briefing to the Human Rights Council in Geneva, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk described a country gripped by war, repression and deepening suffering. Since the military coup in February 2021, nearly 6,800 civilians have been killed and over 22,000 remain arbitrarily detained, he said. Humanitarian needs have soared, with […]