Tag Archives: Aid

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

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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 networks, water production assets including wells, and key public facilities were impacted.

Volatility, surveillance and demonstrations

Between 1 and 5 August, the security situation in Sweida and surrounding areas remained volatile, with clashes reported in three places, according to the OCHA flash update.

“Additionally, aerial surveillance activity attributed to the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) has been observed over multiple locations in Dar’a and As-Sweida, contributing to regional tension,” the agency said.

During the same period, public demonstrations occurred across multiple locations in Sweida, reiterating calls for improved humanitarian access and protection.

Parallel demonstrations also took place in Dar’a and Damascus governorates which emphasised the importance of national unity. 

Aid efforts continue

Humanitarian access remains constrained, OCHA said, as the UN and partners continue to support response efforts.  

The main highway between Sweida and the capital, Damascus, has been inaccessible since 12 July due to security concerns. 

Furthermore, the southern corridor via Busra Esh-Sham in eastern Dar’a was temporarily closed for 24 hours but reopened on Monday, affecting aid delivery.

“Humanitarian actors scaled up response efforts, including fuel and food deliveries to As-Sweida and Dar’a, commercial convoy facilitation, and shelter support for displaced populations,” OCHA said.

Inter-agency mission

Since the escalation of hostilities, humanitarians have provided bread assistance to nearly 1.5 million people.

OCHA also led an inter-agency mission to Dar’a to assess shelter conditions and to discuss medium-term housing options for displaced people.

Meanwhile, restoration of essential services is ongoing in Sweida, with partial electricity restored through emergency repairs.  

However widespread telecommunication and internet outages persist across the governorate, and maintenance of water and power networks continues in rural areas. 

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

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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 27 the Israeli military says are dead.

At Monday’s daily briefing in New York, UN Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq said the Secretary-General “was very shocked by this unacceptable violation of human dignity.”

UN rights chief Volker Türk added in a statement that he was appalled by the humiliating treatment of the hostages. Both he and the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Tom Fletcher, reiterated their call for an unconditional, immediate release of all hostages still being held since the 7 October terror attacks.

The High Commissioner said the “intolerable” sight of starvation in Gaza served as another reminder that the violence had to end. “Saving lives must be everyone’s priority.”

He called for Israel to immediately allow and facilitate rapid and unimpeded aid: “Denying civilians access to food may amount to a war crime, as well as potentially a crime against humanity.”

Attack on aid workers

On Sunday, the Israeli military reportedly struck the headquarters of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society in Khan Younis, killing one and injuring three other staff members.  

The facility is marked with the Red Crescent emblem and is thus protected under international humanitarian law.

The UN rights office (OHCHR) in Palestine expressed deep shock and outrage over these killings.

“These workers continue to engage in life-saving efforts putting their own lives at risk,” OHCHR said.

Aid entry  

Amid these controversies, the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, posted on social media on Saturday, saying that since Friday, the agency had brought 24 trucks with medical supplies into Gaza.  

Items included essential medicines, trauma and surgery supplies, treatments for non-communicable disease and laboratory and water testing supplies.  

Mr. Haq also highlighted on Monday that in recent days, the UN and its partners have collected wheat flour, ready-to-eat rations and hot meals from crossing points into Gaza, but most of the cargo was taken by the hungry and desperate before reaching intended destinations.

Additionally, hygiene kits and nutrition supplies, including high-energy biscuits for pregnant and breastfeeding women and infant formula, have entered in the past week.

However, in the second week since the Israeli announcement of tactical pauses to allow safe passages for UN aid convoys, Mr. Haq said realities on the ground remain largely the same.  

This includes many challenges to delivering aid, resulting in the impediment of two of the 11 missions on Sunday and the full passage of only seven.

Famine-like conditions

This aid is still a fraction of what is needed, as a catastrophic food crisis worsens across the Strip.  

The World Food Programme (WFP) said it “is doing everything possible to distribute vital food assistance to families,” but reported on Sunday that over half a million people in Gaza are enduring famine-like conditions.  

The UN aid agency for Palestinians (UNRWA) released an audio of Manar, an employee who works within Gaza, on Monday. She said that “food is never enough,” and that many walk in the heat for hours to search for food and medical supplies.

The Commissioner-General for UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, underscored that this near-famine is largely due to deliberate efforts to dismantle the UN-coordinated humanitarian system through the Israeli and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which is responsible for the killing of nearly 1,400 starving Palestinians near its sites and convoy routes, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

Prioritising the GHF, Israel has prevented UNRWA – “the backbone of humanitarian response” – from bringing in assistance since 2 March, he said. 

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

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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 Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), attacks by armed groups between 20 and 28 July triggered the displacement of at least 46,667 people across the districts of Chiúre, Ancuabe and Muidumbe.

Chiúre was the hardest hit, with more than 42,000 people uprooted – over half of them children.

“Insecurity persists, and people on the move often lack civil documentation,” OCHA said in a humanitarian bulletin on Saturday. “These challenges may impact the ability of displaced people to move freely, safely access basic services and maintain their livelihoods.”

Children separated from families

Attacks in Chiúre Velho, Ocua and Mazeze have driven families to Chiúre Sede, where they are sheltering in overcrowded conditions in the neighbourhoods of Bairro Micone and Bairro Namicir. Reports indicate a high number of unaccompanied or separated children.

Food, shelter and essential non-food items are reported as the most urgent needs, according to humanitarian partners.

The security situation in Ancuabe district also deteriorated rapidly. According to the UN International Organization for Migration (IOM), the number of displaced families nearly tripled in one week, reaching 444 households (1,946 people), including over 1,200 children. The violence forced residents of Nanduli village to seek refuge in Chiote and Ancuabe Sede.

In Muidumbe, fighters reportedly torched homes in Magaia village and opened fire near Mungue. Nearly 500 families fled to nearby displacement sites, where humanitarian access remains limited.

Protection concerns, limited funding

OCHA stressed that under international law, civilians must be allowed to seek safety and freely choose their destination. But insecurity, lack of documentation and involuntary relocations are compounding protection risks.

At the same time, the aid response remains severely underfunded.

As of July, only 19 per cent of Mozambique’s 2025 Humanitarian Response Plan has been funded. Of the $352 million requested, just $66 million has been received – forcing agencies to reduce their response targets by over 70 per cent. They now aim to assist only 317,000 people, down from the target of 1.1 million at the start of the year.

“Urgent and sustained funding is essential to prevent further deterioration and address the escalating humanitarian needs that remain as acute and widespread as ever,” the OCHA report warned.

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

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“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 over 5,000 long-range munitions against Ukraine so far in July, including a record-breaking 728 drones in a single day. Major cities such as Kyiv and Odesa have been hit by swarms of missiles and drones.

Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Joyce Msuya echoed those words, saying “there is no safe place left in Ukraine” as the use of explosive weapons in populated areas has left cities reeling.

A rehabilitation centre for persons with disabilities in Kharkiv, maternity wards, schools, and energy infrastructure have all come under fire in recent weeks.

Joyce Msuya, UN Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, briefs the Security Council meeting on maintenance of peace and security of Ukraine.

Spiralling humanitarian situation

The humanitarian impact is worsening sharply, she continued.

“Nearly 13 million people need assistance, but limited funding means we can reach only a fraction of them,” Ms. Msuya warned. As of now, only 34 per cent of the $2.6 billion required for this year’s humanitarian response has been received.

Ukraine’s displacement crisis also continues to grow. Over 3.7 million people remain displaced within the country, while nearly six million are refugees abroad. More than 26,000 people have newly registered at transit centres since April alone.

Strikes in Russia

The senior UN officials also expressed concern over reported civilian casualties from Ukrainian drone strikes inside Russia, including in Belgorod, Kursk and Moscow.

While the UN could not independently verify these incidents, Mr. Jenča reiterated: “International law clearly prohibits attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure. We strongly condemn all such attacks – wherever they occur.”

Concerns over nuclear safety

Attacks near Ukraine’s nuclear facilities have further alarmed the UN.

Earlier this month, drone strikes hit Enerhodar, where Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant staff live, and drones have been detected near other operating plants.

“Any nuclear incident must be avoided at all costs,” Mr. Jenča said.

ASG Miroslav Jenča (on screen) briefs the Security Council meeting on the maintenance of peace and security of Ukraine.

Political momentum needed

While some diplomatic movement continues – including recent prisoner exchanges and talks in Istanbul – UN officials called for intensified political will toward a ceasefire.

“The heartbreaking and rising human toll of the past nearly three-and-a-half years of war underscores the urgency of a complete, immediate and unconditional ceasefire,” Mr. Jenča said, “as the first step towards a just and lasting peace.”

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Syria: Second convoy brings critical aid to Sweida

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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 agencies.  

Engagement and support

The Office continues to engage with authorities and partners to facilitate an inter-agency UN mission to Sweida as conditions allow.

The UN is also working with partners to deliver a range of assistance to people displaced to Dar’a and Rural Damascus, including food, water, and health and protection services.   

Mobile medical teams have so far provided more than 3,500 consultations, including trauma care, maternal health and psychosocial support while nearly 38,000 people have received food aid. 

Additionally, over 1,000 kits containing non-food items were distributed in Dar’a and Rural Damascus, helping more than 5,000 people. 

OCHA said UN inter-agency missions to assess needs and provide assistance to both governorates are planned for the coming days. 

The first convoy to Sweida arrived on Sunday. The 32 trucks brought food, water, medical supplies and fuel provided by the UN World Food Programme (WFP), the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and other partners. 

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

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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 our operations in Gaza and elsewhere while we’re trying to work,” he said, speaking from Rome.

“And it’s completely avoidable, and it’s an absolute tragedy,” he added.

Famine conditions and malnutrition

Gaza’s population stands at roughly 2.1 million and earlier this year, food security experts warned that one in five people faces starvation.

Mr. Smith said WFP assessments show that a quarter of the population is facing famine-like conditions. Almost 100,000 women and children are suffering from severe acute malnutrition and need treatment as soon as possible.

Pointing to reports, he said “people are dying from lack of humanitarian assistance every day, and we are seeing this escalate day by day.” 

He stressed that food assistance, and humanitarian assistance more broadly, are “the only solution at the moment” for Gaza.

Minimum operating conditions

Mr. Smith said humanitarians have a set of minimum operating conditions that need to be in place for them to work effectively.

These include crossing points into Gaza, “proper routing” inside the enclave so that teams can move independently, and the entry of more than 100 trucks of aid a day.

“We also need to have no armed actors near food distribution points, near our convoys, and near the movement of those convoys from one place to another,” he continued, while underscoring the need to reach people where they are and not in otherwise predetermined locations.

“And I would say above all that we have had agreements in principle on these things, but we have not had adherence to these in practice in Gaza itself. And this is really where the breakdown is, and it’s where we see incidents like (yesterday) take place,” he said.

Ceasefire now

Mr. Smith also highlighted the critical need for a ceasefire “so that we can move effectively.”

In response to a journalist’s question, he said WFP moved more than 200 trucks of assistance per day into Gaza during the ceasefire earlier this year. Since mid-May, it has been able to move less than 10 per cent of what is needed.

He said the UN agency has enough stocks pre-positioned outside Gaza to supply the entire population for two months “if we can get a ceasefire and if we can move.” 

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

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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 their families,” UN relief chief Tom Fletcher has just told ambassadors. Follow our real-time updates and key moments through our live UN Meetings Coverage page. UN News App users can join here.

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

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“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 move.” The fuel shortage, they said, has left Gaza’s population – already facing severe food insecurity and the constant threat of violence – on the edge of catastrophe.

They warned that “without adequate fuel, UN agencies responding to this crisis will likely be forced to stop their operations entirely,” meaning “no health services, no clean water, and no capacity to deliver aid.”

Inadequate fuel injection

The agencies noted that for the first time in 130 days, a small quantity of fuel was allowed into Gaza this week. While welcome, the amount – just 75,000 litres over two days – is far from enough to meet the daily needs of the population and vital civilian aid operations.

Speaking at UN Headquarters in New York late Friday, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric described the overall situation as “dire and worsening by the day.”

“Every day without a ceasefire brings more preventable deaths – children dying in pain, and hungry people shot while trying to reach the trickle of aid that is allowed in,” he said.

Life-threatening

Mr. Dujarric also expressed deep concern over continued Israeli restrictions on aid access. “Yesterday, our teams could provide hospitals with some of the fuel that came in – but only in the south. That’s because Israeli authorities denied our attempt to bring fuel to the north,” he said. “Such denials are life-threatening.”

He added that the fuel shortage also affects water treatment, ambulances and waste management. “All of these services are at risk of collapsing,” he said.

Out of 15 humanitarian missions that required coordination with Israeli authorities on Thursday, only six were fully facilitated. Five were denied outright, while four faced obstacles that delayed or prevented delivery.

One mission, to rescue injured people trapped under rubble in Gaza City, was only approved two days after the initial request – too late to save lives. “By the time the mission was finally allowed through yesterday, no one was found alive,” Dujarric said.

On top of this, essential items like tents and shelter materials have been blocked from entering Gaza for over four months, leaving thousands exposed to the elements.

Close call

Aid workers are also at risk. “Five strikes landed just a few hundred metres from where aid workers were operating this week, including UN staff,” Mr. Dujarric said. No injuries were reported, but several Red Crescent workers were shot while attempting to assist an injured colleague.

UN agencies are calling for the immediate and consistent delivery of fuel at scale, and for full, safe access to all parts of Gaza. “The urgency of this moment cannot be overstated,” they said. “Without fuel, Gaza faces a complete collapse of humanitarian efforts.”

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

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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 resulted from an Israel strike. 

‘Mothers seeking a lifeline’

“The killing of families trying to access life-saving aid is unconscionable,” she said in a statement.

“These were mothers seeking a lifeline for their children after months of hunger and desperation.”

They included Donia, whose one-year-old son, Mohammed, was killed. She reported that the boy had spoken his first words to her just hours earlier.

“Donia now lies in a hospital bed, critically injured by the blast, clutching Mohammed’s tiny shoe,” said Ms. Russell.  “No parent should have to face such tragedy.”

A ‘cruel reality’

For the UNICEF chief, “this is the cruel reality confronting many in Gaza today after months of insufficient aid being allowed into the territory, and parties to the conflict failing to uphold basic responsibilities to protect civilians.”

She explained that “the lack of aid means children are facing starvation while the risk of famine grows,” warning that “the number of malnourished children will continue to rise until life-saving aid and services are resumed at full scale.”

“International law is clear: all parties to the conflict have an obligation to protect civilians and ensure the safe and unimpeded delivery of humanitarian assistance,” she said.

“We call on Israel to urgently review its rules of engagement to ensure full compliance with international humanitarian law, notably the protection of civilians including children, and to conduct a thorough and independent investigation of this incident and all allegations of violations.”

UN condemns killings

The UN yet again condemned the killing of civilians in Gaza, Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told journalists in New York.

Furthermore, the UN humanitarian affairs office OCHA “stresses that parties are bound by international humanitarian law to prevent such excessive death and injury of civilians in the midst of war,” he added.

OCHA reported that another strike on Thursday reportedly hit the office of a humanitarian partner in Gaza City. Three staff there were killed. 

Fuel running out

Mr. Dujarric also updated journalists on the dire fuel situation in Gaza, which impacts both the population and humanitarians.

A UN team managed to bring roughly 75,000 litres of fuel from Israel into the beleaguered enclave on Wednesday, marking the first such provision in 130 days.

He warned, however, that fuel is still running out and services will shut down if greater volumes do not enter immediately.

Water services at risk

“We and our humanitarian partners need hundreds of thousands of litres of fuel each day to keep essential lifesaving and life-sustaining operations going, meaning the amount entered yesterday isn’t sufficient to cover even one day of energy requirements,” he said.

One aid partner reported that fuel shortages could soon cut off supplies of clean drinking water to about 44,000 children, he added, which would further increase the risk of cholera, diarrhoea, dysentery and other waterborne illnesses. 

Meanwhile, UN partners providing education services said that between October 2023 and this June, 626 temporary learning spaces have been established in Gaza, with 240,000 students enrolled, roughly half of them girls. 

However, only 299 spaces are currently operational due to the ongoing displacement orders, funding shortfalls and other challenges.

Aid workers also going hungry

Humanitarian partners in Gaza – who include first responders, health workers, and aid workers – “continue to deliver food and other assistance under intolerable conditions, and they themselves are facing hunger,” said Mr. Dujarric.

“A number of our own colleagues are also facing hunger. They also face water scarcity and threats to their personal safety, just like everyone else in Gaza,” he added.

The Spokesperson reiterated the UN’s long-standing message that “this catastrophic situation must end.”  He stressed that “a ceasefire is not only urgent, it is long overdue,” while also calling for the unconditional and immediate release of all hostages. 

Some Palestinians have been forced to flee their homes in the West Bank.

West Bank operations

Mr. Dujarric also addressed the situation in the West Bank, where humanitarians report and continue to warn of the intensification of Israeli operations in the northern areas.

“These operations are causing massive destruction, driving further humanitarian needs and dampening hopes of thousands of displaced families that they will eventually be able to go back home,” he said.

“Meanwhile, attacks, harassment and intimidation by Israeli settlers against Palestinians have become a daily reality.”

He cited a settler attack on 3 July that led to the displacement of the Mu’arrajat East Bedouin community in the central West Bank. 

“This is the ninth community to be fully displaced in the Ramallah and Jericho areas since January 2023 following the recurrent attacks by Israeli settlers.” 

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

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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 people were forced to flee under new Israeli relocation orders, with no safe place to go and clearly inadequate supplies of shelter, food, medicine or water, he added.

Critical systems shutting down

With no fuel having entered Gaza in over 17 weeks, the UN chief is also “gravely concerned that the last lifelines for survival are being cut off.”

“Without an urgent influx of fuel, incubators will shut down, ambulances will be unable to reach the injured and sick, and water cannot be purified,” Mr. Dujarric said.

“The delivery by the United Nations and partners of what little of our lifesaving humanitarian aid is left in Gaza will also grind to a halt.”

The Secretary-General reiterated his call for safe and sustained humanitarian access so aid can reach people in desperate need.

“The UN has a clear and proven plan, rooted in the humanitarian principles, to get vital assistance to civilians – safely and at scale, wherever they are,” Mr. Dujarric said.

The Secretary-General reiterated his call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire and the unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas and other groups. He reminded all parties that international humanitarian law must be upheld.

Displacement continues

Displacement remains relentless. On Wednesday, Israeli authorities issued a new evacuation order in parts of Gaza City, affecting some 40,000 people and including a displacement site, a medical point and one of the few neighbourhoods that had remained untouched by such orders since before the March ceasefire.

Since that ceasefire collapsed, over 50 such orders have been issued, now covering 78 per cent of Gaza’s territory.

“Add the Israeli-militarized zones and that percentage jumps to 85 – leaving just 15 per cent where civilians can actually stay,” Mr. Dujarric said, briefing reporters at the UN Headquarters, in New York.

Those areas are overcrowded and severely lacking in services or proper infrastructure.

“Imagine having just over two million people in Manhattan – which is actually slightly bigger – but instead of buildings, the area is strewn with the rubble of demolished and bombed-out structures, without infrastructure or basic support,” the UN Spokesperson said.

“And in Gaza, these remaining areas are also fragmented and unsafe.”

Myanmar human rights crisis deepens as aid collapses, attacks intensify

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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 nearly 22 million people in need of assistance and more than 3.5 million displaced by conflict.

“The report I am presenting today is about the people of Myanmar and their aspirations for a better future,” Mr. Türk said.

“Despite massive challenges, people from across society are striving to build a peaceful, sustainable, democratic and diverse Myanmar, grounded in human rights.”

A crisis worsened

However, conditions on the ground have only worsened.

Following a 28 March earthquake that killed nearly 4,000 people and left six million in urgent need, the military intensified attacks instead of facilitating relief, Mr. Türk said.

The UN human rights office, OHCHR, documented more than 600 military strikes since the quake – 94 per cent of them occurring during supposed ceasefires – with schools, religious sites and other protected locations frequently targeted.

Situation in Rakhine

The situation in Rakhine state remains particularly dire, with civilians – the minority Muslim Rohingya in particular – caught between the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army, an ethnic armed group. In addition, the military’s ongoing obstruction of humanitarian access has worsened an already acute crisis.

Throughout the country, economic collapse and the breakdown of public institutions have compounded the suffering.

Nearly four in five people now live below or just above the poverty line and an estimated 1.3 million have fled the country – many undertaking perilous journeys by land and sea. So far in 2025, nearly one in five people attempting sea crossings in the region have been reported dead or missing.

End violence, ensure accountability

The High Commissioner’s report outlined four key pathways to lay the groundwork for a transition toward a peaceful and democratic Myanmar: justice and accountability, democratic governance; economic reform to serve the people, and sustained international engagement.

Mr. Türk stressed that accountability must begin with the release of all political prisoners and prosecution of those responsible for grave human rights violations.

“It is imperative for the military to immediately end the violence, allow unhindered humanitarian access and release all arbitrarily detained people,” he said.

“Amid the turmoil, planning for a future with human rights front and centre offers people a sense of hope. We owe it to the people of Myanmar to make that hope a reality.”

Millions have lost their homes and livelihoods due to the earthquakes that struck Myanmar in late March.

Independent expert’s alarm

Tom Andrews, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation in Myanmar, echoed the High Commissioner’s warnings, raising alarm over a collapse in international humanitarian support and the military’s repression.

“The junta has chosen to use aid as a weapon,” he told the Council.

“I have spoken with humanitarian workers physically blocked at checkpoints and received reports of earthquake survivors evicted from shelters with no place to go.”

Mr. Andrews, who has been appointed and mandated by the Human Rights Council and is not a UN staff member – also warned that drastic cuts in international funding have already had severe consequences.

As of 27 June, the $1.14 billion comprehensive humanitarian response plan for the country is only 12 percent funded and the $275 million addendum for the earthquake response is about 37 per cent.

At a time when the people of Myanmar need an enhanced level of support from the international community, they are getting the opposite, Mr. Andrews said, warning that the cost in human lives and human suffering will soon very likely get “significantly worse.”

“This dangerous trend begs the question – do human rights matter?” he asked.

“Because if human rights matter, if saving the lives of children in Myanmar matters, why are so many governments reluctant to invest even a modest amount of resources to save lives?”

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DR Congo: Conflict survivors ‘have been through hell,’ says UN aid chief

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Speaking from the Goma region, whose main city was overrun by Rwanda-backed M23 rebels in January, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher explained that people had suffered “decades of trauma”.

The last few months have been “particularly horrific for so many”, he added, referring to the lawless fall-out from heavy fighting this year between the rebel fighters and the regular DRC army that has been linked to serious human rights abuses, including potential war crimes.

“Most striking today and yesterday has been the stories of sexual violence, and sitting with women who tell horrific stories which are too horrific for me to tell here and who are trying to find the courage to rebuild their lives,” the UN relief chief said.

“We’re there providing that support to them, trying to help them rebuild, but they have been through hell.”

Peace call

All those newly displaced by the M23 rebel advance are in addition to the five million people already living in displacement camps in eastern DRC. Today, more than 20 million people need relief assistance. “They are desperate for this conflict to end,” Mr. Fletcher continued.

A day after NATO Member States agreed to a five per cent increase in funding for their collective defence, investment in the humanitarian work of the UN and its partners is at rock bottom.  

In DRC, a full 70 per cent of UN aid programmes was historically funded by the United States – “amazing generosity over decades” – Mr. Fletcher noted. But today “we’re seeing most of that disappearing”, he insisted, forcing the humanitarian community to make “brutal choices, life-and-death choices” about who receives help.

“For these women – the survivors of sexual violence, for the kids who told me they needed water, for the communities that told me they needed shelter, medicine, these cuts are real right now and people are dying because of the cuts,” the top UN official explained.

Aid teams haven’t stopped

Despite the difficulties linked to the protracted nature of the conflict in DRC and the massive needs, UN aid teams and their partners are “working hard to get access to those communities,” Mr. Fletcher insisted – “trying to get the airport back open, trying to get roads open, trying to unblock checkpoints that are impeding our aid from getting through”.

In an attempt to square the circle of the steadily diminishing amount of aid funding provided globally, Mr. Fletcher recently announced a “hyper-prioritized” plan to save 114 million lives this year. But that is dependent on receiving the necessary funding. “All we’re asking for to do that is one per cent of what the world spent on defence last year,” he continued.

After visiting and connecting with communities impacted time and again by the fighting, the top UN official insisted that they should not be forgotten. “They are the frontlines of the humanitarian effort,” he said.

Communities on front line

“I suppose the glimmer of hope in all of this is, yes, we can work in that more efficient and prioritized way and will do that; but also, the communities here who are – basically – they’ve come through so much and they are determined to support each other.”  

And despite rising antipathy in some countries towards international cooperation including the work and peace-promoting efforts of the United Nations, Mr. Fletcher insisted that reasons for optimism remain.

“I really strongly believe there is a movement out there that will back this work, that will support this work,” he told UN News. “We’ve got to find them. We’ve got to enlist them, and we’ve got to show them that we can deliver for them.

“And, you know, I have not given up on human kindness and human solidarity. I have not given up on the UN Charter for a second. And this work is at the heart of it.” 

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Gaza: Over 400 Palestinians killed around private aid hubs, UN rights office says

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The alert comes nearly a month since the Israeli and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) started operating on 27 May in select hubs, bypassing the UN and other established NGOs.

Its food distribution points have been associated frequently with confusion and shooting as desperate and hungry Gazans rush to fetch supplies, said UN human rights office spokesperson Thameen Al-Keetan.

“Israel’s militarized humanitarian assistance mechanism is in contradiction with international standards on aid distribution,” he insisted. “The weaponization of food for civilians, in addition to restricting or preventing their access to life-sustaining services, constitutes a war crime and, under certain circumstances, may constitute elements of other crimes under international law.”

In its latest update on the emergency, the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, reported that “scores of people of all ages are being killed and injured every day” in the shattered enclave.

“Humanitarian operations of sufficient scale are not facilitated, leaving unaddressed the critical needs of those who have so far survived,” it said.

Shelled or shot 

In Geneva, meanwhile, OHCHR’s Mr. Al-Keetan explained that private aid hub victims were either “shelled or shot” by the Israel Defense Forces. They have endangered civilians and contributed to the “catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza”, he maintained.

At least 93 people have also been reportedly killed by the Israeli army while attempting to approach the few remaining aid convoys of the UN and other aid partners still operating in Gaza.

In a previous alert, the UN human rights office has condemned the possible summary execution of Palestinian staff associated with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation by armed men allegedly affiliated with Hamas.

“These killings must end immediately, and those responsible held to account,” the UN office said in a statement.

Most vulnerable miss out

The OHCHR spokesperson noted that women and children, along with older people and those with disabilities continue to face “multiple challenges” accessing food in Gaza today.

Looting of aid convoys is now commonplace in Gaza after more than 20 months of daily Israeli bombardment as a result of a near-total blockade on humanitarian supplies including food, fuel and medicine.

The result is that Gaza’s most vulnerable individuals are unable to access any of this diverted aid, the UN human rights office told UN News.

To date, at least 3,000 Palestinians have been injured in incidents associated with the non-UN aid hubs and looting.

“Desperate, hungry people in Gaza continue to face the inhumane choice of either starving to death or risk being killed while trying to get food,” the UN human rights office explained.

Ongoing aid obstacles

Although the UN and other aid providers still function in Gaza, they are reliant on the Israeli authorities to facilitate their missions. On Saturday and Sunday, only eight out of 16 requests for humanitarian operations were approved, aid teams reported.

“Half of [the missions] were denied outright, hindering the tracking of water and fuel, the provision of nutrition services and the retrieval of the bodies,” said Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the Information Service at UN Geneva.

Her comments followed a warning from the UN’s top aid official in Gaza on Sunday who described dire scenes and “carnage”.

“It is weaponized hunger. It is forced displacement. It’s a death sentence for people just trying to survive. All combined, it appears to be the erasure of Palestinian life from Gaza,” said OCHA’s Head of Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Jonathan Whittall.

Telecommunications have now been restored across Gaza after damaged fibre cables were repaired at the weekend.

“For the first time in days, humanitarian teams have had more than 24 hours of relatively stable connectivity – something that is essential to coordinate emergency relief and save lives,” OCHA said in Monday evening’s update.

But without urgent fuel deliveries, telecommunications “will go down again very soon”, the UN aid wing warned.

Fuel crisis

“Fuel is also needed to keep emergency rooms running, power ambulances, and operate water desalination and pumping stations,” it explained.

“Right now, teams on the ground are rationing what little fuel remains and working to retrieve stocks stored inside Gaza, in areas that are hard to reach.”

Access to Nasser Medical Complex is also limited because there is not enough fuel for transportation “and health workers and patients fear for their safety”, OCHA continued.

“Last week, in Khan Younis, in-patient admissions at field hospitals increased threefold, largely due to access challenges at Nasser, which also saw an influx of trauma patients and has been overwhelmed since.”

Most of Gaza remains under displacement orders issued by the Israeli military, including another one on Monday for two neighbourhoods in Khan Younis city, reportedly following Palestinian rocket fire from these areas.

“These neighbourhoods were already subject to earlier displacement orders and include two hospitals – Al Amal and Nasser,” OCHA said. “While Israeli authorities have clarified that the hospitals are not required to evacuate, OCHA says the designation is nonetheless hindering access to those critical facilities for both patients and medical staff.”

Gaza: As last fuel supplies run out, aid teams warn of catastrophe

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Speaking from Gaza City in the north of occupied territory, Olga Cherevko from the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, said that water pumps had stopped at one site for displaced people there on Wednesday “because there’s no fuel”.

“We are really – unless the situation changes – hours away from a catastrophic decline and a shutdown of more facilities if no fuel enters or more fuel isn’t retrieved immediately,” she told UN News.

In its latest update on the emergency, OCHA said that without the immediate entry of fuel or access to reserves, 80 per cent of Gaza’s critical care units essential for births and medical emergencies will shut down.

More killed seeking aid

The development comes as Gaza’s authorities reported that 15 people had been killed near an aid distribution hub in the centre of the Strip on Thursday.

On Tuesday, unverified videos of another incident circulating on social media showed dead bodies lying in the street near a relief facility in the southern city of Khan Younis, reportedly following artillery fire.

Finding food is a daily challenge for increasingly desperate Gazans who are “simply waiting for food and hoping to find something in order not to watch their children starve in front of their eyes”, Ms. Cherevko explained.

She added: “I spoke with a woman a couple of days ago where she told me that she went with a friend of hers who is nine months pregnant in hopes of finding some food.

Of course, they didn’t manage because they were too afraid to enter areas where there could be incidents like the ones that have been reported over the past few days.”

Search for shelter

Back in Gaza City, OCHA’s Ms. Cherenko said that conditions in shelters in Gaza are now “absolutely horrific” and increasingly crowded – “there are people coming from the north constantly,” the veteran aid worker added, while others are also moving back northwards, likely to be closer to the entry points for aid convoys.

The amount of aid entering Gaza today remains extremely limited and far below the 600 trucks a day that used to reach the enclave before the war began in October 2023. In its latest update, OCHA reported that “starvation and a growing likelihood of famine” are ever-present in the enclave. An estimated 55,000 pregnant women now face miscarriage, stillbirth and undernourished newborns as a result of the food shortages.

Smoke from explosions rises from the Shujaia neighborhood of Gaza City.

Starvation diet

“With the very limited volume of aid that is entering, everyone continues to face starvation and people are constantly risking their lives to try to find something,” Ms. Cherevko continued.

“You eat or [you’re] left with the choice of starving to death.”

After more than 20 months of war, sparked by Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel, 82 per cent of Gaza’s territory is either an Israeli militarized zone or affected by evacuation orders.

Three months since hostilities re-escalated on 18 March, more than 680,000 people have been newly displaced. “With no safe place to go, many people have sought refuge in every available space, including overcrowded displacement sites, makeshift shelters, damaged buildings, streets and open areas,” OCHA said.

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DR Congo crisis: Aid teams appeal for support to help displaced communities left with nothing

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Since the beginning of the year, Rwanda-backed M23 fighters have swept across eastern DRC, taking key cities including Goma and Bukavu. The violence has displaced more than one million people in Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu provinces.

Speaking from the village of Sake in North Kivu, UNDP Resident Representative Damien Mama described meeting a woman whose house had been destroyed after she fled the advancing fighters in January.

Cut off from livelihoods

“You know, with five children, you can imagine what this represents,” Mr. Mama said. “She was telling me that [her family] were given food and temporary shelter; but what she needs is to go back to her farm to continue farming, to continue her activities, and also have her home rebuilt.”

All those newly displaced by the M23 rebel advance are in addition to the five million people already living in displacement camps in eastern DRC.

Health workers have repeatedly warned that the crowded and unsanitary conditions provide ideal conditions for the spread of diseases including mpox, cholera and measles.

Given the scale of need it is urgent that small businesses get the help they need to get up and running again “providing income-generating activities for the women and the youth creating jobs”, the UNDP official insisted.

“The economy has suffered a lot,” he explained. “The banks have closed, businesses have been destroyed, and many are now operating under 30 per cent of their capacity, which is a major blow to their businesses.”

Support for women and girls

At the same time, the UN agency remains committed to helping the many women and girls impacted by alarming levels of sexual violence.

This echoes an alert issued last month by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), that during the most intense phase of this year’s conflict, a child was raped every half an hour.

In the next five months, UNDP intends to support the creation of 1,000 jobs and restore basic infrastructure, benefiting about 15,000 people.

To do this, the UN agency will need $25 million.

“We have so far secured $14 million thanks to [South] Korea, Canada, UK as well as Sweden; and our call will be to encourage other countries and donors to provide us with [the] $11 million gap.”

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Humanitarians must be able to deliver aid in Gaza, UN agencies insist

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The humanitarian network is currently at a standstill because the internet shut down earlier this week after the last fibre cable route serving central and southern areas was cut during heavy fighting.

“As the outage continues, partners are unable to communicate or coordinate response activities, and people in need remain isolated and without the information they need to access life-saving support and emergency services,” UN aid coordination office OCHA said in an update.

Connectivity a life or death issue

Restoring connectivity is urgent. OCHA said the Israeli military recently posted a warning on social media where areas marked in red on a map are considered dangerous combat zones, calling on people to stay away from them.

Although these areas apparently cover most of the Gaza Strip’s territory, most people have no way to access the announcement.

Meanwhile, partners working on telecommunications continue efforts to coordinate urgent repairs of the fibre optic cable routes in Gaza, including those that were previously damaged. 

However, since April, Israeli authorities have denied more than 20 requests to carry out this work.  

“It is critical that repair of the lines is enabled immediately,” OCHA said.

Humanitarian missions denied

The agency further reported that the Israeli authorities continue to deny many humanitarian movements aimed at providing support to Gaza’s population, which numbers over two million.

On Thursday, they rejected eight out of 18 UN attempts to coordinate such movements, including efforts to retrieve wheat flour and fuel supplies. 

Four other missions were unable to be accomplished, either because of impediments or because they had to be cancelled for security or logistical reasons. 

The remaining six missions, which included the movement of staff, were successful.

‘Recipe for chaos’

Conditions continue to deteriorate in Gaza after 20 months of war followed by a total blockade of aid and commercial goods which began on 2 March.

People are crammed in shelters, or living in tents, and lack basic essentials.  For example, the accumulation of solid waste is severely impacting health and environmental conditions, the UN Palestine refugee agency UNRWA said on Friday.

Israel temporarily lifted the ban in mid-May, and the UN was able to bring in small amounts of key aid items such as flour and medicines – though far from enough to prevent starvation from impacting the population.

Since late May, the UN and partners have been sidelined as a new aid distribution model began operations.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which is backed by Israel and the United States, uses private military contractors, according to media reports.  More than 200 people have been killed, and thousands more injured by gunfire near its hubs.

The mechanism is “a recipe for chaos,” UNRWA tweeted on Friday, echoing the words of its chief Philippe Lazzarini.

“It is weaponising aid and resulting in fear, discrimination, and growing desperation,” the agency said.

“It is time to lift the siege and let the UN, including UNRWA, do the work. Aid must be delivered safely and at scale.”

‘Hunger must never be met by bullets’

The UN Humanitarian Affairs Coordinator Tom Fletcher underscored the need to act now in a statement issued late on Thursday.

“Hunger must never be met with bullets,” he said. “Humanitarians must be allowed to do their work. Lifesaving aid must reach people in need, in line with humanitarian principles.” 

Mr. Fletcher said attacks against civilians in Gaza “are unacceptable”, which includes the killing and injury of hungry people seeking food and those delivering aid.

He said UN humanitarian convoys have been intercepted by armed Palestinian gangs, endangering staff and drivers.

“Civilians in desperate need of the food we’re able to bring in, have not been spared; some have been shot by Israeli forces, and others crushed by trucks or stabbed while trying to retrieve food,” he added.

UN Relief Chief Tom Fletcher talks to a child at an UNRWA shelter during a visit to Gaza in February.

Let humanitarians work

He also mentioned incidents “concentrated around militarized distribution centres, where starving people tell us that Israeli forces opened fire on them.” 

“Hospitals report that they have received 245 fatalities and over 2,150 injuries from these areas over the past two weeks,” he said.

Furthermore, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said on Thursday that Palestinians involved in their distribution were killed, injured, and captured by Hamas.

“Without immediate and massively scaled-up access to the basic means of survival, we risk a descent into famine, further chaos, and the loss of more lives,” the UN relief chief warned.

“We stand ready, as we have repeatedly emphasized, to deliver life-saving aid at scale,” he said.  “Let us do our work.”

Rising hunger in Gaza highlights urgent need for ‘unfettered’ aid supplies

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Only around 6,000 tonnes of wheat flour have entered the war-torn enclave since Israel began to allow limited supplies back in last month.  

However, 10,000 tonnes are urgently needed in the face of rising malnutrition, according to the UN aid coordination office OCHA.

“The only way to address the situation on the ground is by re-opening additional crossings,” said OCHA’s Olga Cherevko, speaking to UN News from Khan Younis.

Beyond food aid

She also stressed the need to allow “unlimited and unfettered supply of aid to enter,” which includes items that go beyond food such as shelter materials, fuel, cooking gas, “and other necessary elements to sustain life in Gaza.”

Ms. Cherevko urged the Israeli authorities to make the task of delivering aid easier by “providing a safe and enabling environment,” reducing waiting times for humanitarian missions and ensuring access to people in need. 

People in Gaza are suffering from harsh living conditions. Since March, Israeli restrictions on border crossings have tightened, making it even more difficult for Gaza’s population – more than two million people – to access food. 

Senior UN officials, including Secretary-General António Guterres and Humanitarian Affairs chief Tom Fletcher, have described the aid that has entered as merely  “a trickle” or a  “a drop in the ocean”.

Difficult decisions

Although markets are crowded with people, they lack two essential elements: liquidity and goods.

Most residents thus face three bitter choices: either seek food aid from the newly established US and Israel-backed distribution mechanism, which has already claimed dozens of lives in recent days; watch their children starve; or pay dearly for what’s left of the goods and looted humanitarian aid in markets.

“Prices are unnatural, much higher than in Europe,” civil servant Akram Yousef recently told our UN News correspondent in Gaza.

“The situation is very difficult, and we have been like this for two years. In addition to displacement, homelessness, bombing, destruction, and devastation, traders are raising prices, and citizens are unable to bear this burden. What can we do?”

More than 20 months of conflict have made living conditions in the Gaza Strip unbearable, and the cost of living is now among the highest in the world. 

Ahmed Al-Bahri, who was displaced from Beit Lahia with his family, said a loaf of bread now sells for seven shekels, or roughly $2.

“There is no flour, no milk, no diapers for children, or anything to eat,” he said. “We live in a state of constant hunger. Where can I get seven shekels to buy a loaf of bread for my child? What is this child’s sin?”

A flour seller in Gaza.

Exorbitant fees 

The cessation of Palestinian banks’ operations since the start of the war in October 2023 has exacerbated the suffering. 

People are forced to use phone apps to withdraw money from their bank accounts and to access their pensions through local merchants who charge exorbitant commissions.

Mr. Youssef, the civil servant, said the commission for withdrawing his salary was 20 per cent, but over time it has increased to nearly 50 per cent.

‘We have become envious of the dead’

Several residents told UN News that the price of one kilogramme of flour is now 100 shekels, equivalent to roughly $29.

“If a salary is 2,000 shekels, it becomes 1,000 shekels after commission,” another man, Ashraf Al-Deiri, explained.

“The daily expenses of an average or small family are no less than 500 shekels (roughly $143). So, we are experiencing great suffering and need someone to have mercy on us and stand by us.”

A young man called Raed Tafesh expressed shock over the high prices, especially since most of his peers are unemployed and lack any source of income. 

“We don’t earn a single shekel. We are not employed, and we don’t have jobs. We are dying slowly. We have become envious of the dead,” he said.

The tragic conditions are reflected in the eyes of mothers and fathers who see their children starving, such as Nimir Ghazal.  She said her salary is not even enough to buy fruits, vegetables or any healthy food for her children.

“Sometimes I cry when my hungry children ask for a piece of bread. A kilo of flour costs 100 shekels, and lentils cost 50. One kilo is not enough for my family, but I buy it and share it among them,” she said.

UN efforts continue

On Monday, UN teams were able to collect some supplies, mainly flour, from the Kerem Shalom border crossing.  The aid was bound for Gaza City when hungry and desperate people snatched it directly from the trucks.

There have also been previous instances of looting and attacks on truck drivers which the UN categorically rejects. 

OCHA has emphasized that Israel, as the occupying power, bears responsibility for maintaining public order and safety in Gaza. This should include allowing more essential supplies to enter through multiple crossings and roads to meet humanitarian needs and help curb looting. 

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Number of aid workers killed in Gaza conflict, highest in UN history: Guterres

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Ahead of a memorial service at Headquarters in New York, Secretary-General António Guterres told journalists that the men and women being honoured “were not just names on a list” but “extraordinary individuals – each one a story of courage, compassion, and service.”

“They were driven by the pursuit of peace. By the urgency to ease human suffering. And by the conviction that every person, everywhere, deserves dignity and protection,” he said, speaking in front of the Security Council chamber.

He acknowledged that the past year has been especially devastating for UN humanitarian workers. 

“More than one in every 50 UNRWA staff in Gaza has been killed in this atrocious conflict. This is the highest staff death toll in United Nations history,” he said.

“Some were killed delivering life-saving aid; others alongside their families; others while shielding the vulnerable.”

‘No room for impunity’

The Secretary-General said the sacrifice of all 168 fallen colleagues is a tragedy but also a reminder of the responsibility carried by every staff member every day.

It is important for the world to see this, he added, “because as we mourn those lost, we must also recognize the living.”

Mr. Guterres saluted staff members still serving in crisis zones across the globe for their courage and resilience.

“And to the world, I say: We will not grow numb to suffering. We will not accept the killing of UN personnel,” he stressed.

“We will not accept the killing of humanitarians, journalists, medical workers, or civilians as the new normal anywhere and under any circumstances. There must be no room for impunity.”

Remembering lives lost

Since 2011, the UN has held an annual service at Headquarters to honour personnel who have lost their lives in the line of duty during the previous year.

Those who paid the ultimate price in 2024 worked with UNRWA, the UN Secretariat, the UN refugee agency UNHCR, the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS), and the World Food Programme (WFP).

They came from 31 countries and were teachers, engineers, doctors, administrators, humanitarians, peacekeepers, and more. Above all, they were sons and daughters, husbands and wives, fathers and mothers, and brothers and sisters.

Shortly after the press briefing, the Secretary-General joined some of their relatives, UN staff members and senior officials for the memorial service in the Trusteeship Council. Many others across the world followed the event online.

‘They were the best of us’

The Secretary-General noted that working for the UN “is far more than just a job” – it’s a calling. 

“All our fallen colleagues answered the call to serve humanity,” he said. “They did so in their own ways – without fanfare – and with determination.  They represented humanity in action.” 

He remarked that “at a time when some may question international cooperation or the very notion of multilateralism, we would all do well to remember these lives taken far too soon.”

“Let us take inspiration from how they lived,” he said. “And let us vow that the memory and mission of our fallen colleagues will endure. They were the best of us. Let them live on through our work.”

Legacy lives on

The president of the UN Staff Union in New York, Narda Cupidore, echoed this message.  She said they embodied the mission of the whole UN “and they paid the ultimate price.” 

“Let this honouring be more than a moment of silence,” she said. “Let it be a call for action. A call to protect those who serve. A call to ensure that anyone who serves under the blue flag does so with the full protection, support and respect.”

Ms. Cupidore said the legacy of the fallen colleagues “lives on in our work, in our advocacy and in our unshakeable belief that the world is worth striving for.” 

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Gaza: UN relief chief welcomes growing support for aid teams to resume vital work

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“We value the support of more and more Member States who are joining our call: Let us work,” Mr. Fletcher said, his comments coinciding with the announcement that the US and Israeli-backed aid hub in southern Gaza operating independently of the UN had been suspended on Wednesday.

“The world is watching, day after day, horrifying scenes of Palestinians being shot, wounded or killed in Gaza while simply trying to eat,” Mr. Fletcher said.

New Security Council resolution

The development comes ahead of a Security Council meeting on Gaza on Wednesday seeking agreement on a draft resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire and the release of all remaining hostages taken during Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel on 7 October 2023.

The resolution push is the result of lobbying by the body’s 10 non-permanent Members. It remains to be seen if it will garner the support of the US and the four other countries that hold just five permanent seats on the 15-Member body: China, France, the UK and Russia. Any one of them could veto it.

Meanwhile in Gaza, local authorities on Wednesday claimed that at least 12 people including children had been killed in an Israeli strike on a school-turned-shelter in the southern city of Khan Younis.

In his appeal, Mr. Fletcher noted that medical teams had confirmed treating “hundreds of trauma cases” in recent days after footage showed chaotic scenes of Palestinians rushing to take food from the US and Israeli-run aid hubs in southern Gaza.

“Yesterday alone, dozens were declared dead at hospitals after Israeli forces said they had opened fire,” Mr. Fletcher continued.

He insisted: “Open the crossings – all of them. Let in lifesaving aid at scale, from all directions. Lift the restrictions on what and how much aid we can bring in. Ensure our convoys aren’t held up by delays and denials.”