Humanitarian News

Insecurity and horrific sexual violence in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo, DRC) have forced tens of thousands to flee across borders, with no sign of the exodus stopping, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said on Tuesday. UNHCR reiterated its call on all countries to allow access to their territories for civilians fleeing conflict and violence in DRC, to guarantee the right to seek asylum and to ensure respect for the principle of non-refoulement.

In a gross violation of international humanitarian law, Israel has blocked the entry of aid trucks into the Gaza Strip since Sunday. The total blockade came amid stalled cessation of hostilities talks. The Red Cross Movement warns that the closure of all crossings for aid into Gaza poses a grave risk to the millions of people who have been struggling to survive for sixteen months.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights says the devastating human rights crisis in Sudan has created the world's largest humanitarian catastrophe. Speaking at the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) in Geneva on Thursday, Volker Türk also warned of an increasing risk of atrocity crimes and mass deaths from famine as a result of the conflict, which began in April 2023.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has ruled out the possibility of transforming the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS) in Haiti into a UN peacekeeping force for the time being, recommending instead the creation of a UN support mission to assist the MSS, funded through the UN peacekeeping budget. 

February 24, 2025, marks three years since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which has left more than 42,000 people dead or wounded. Humanitarian needs remain critical across the country, as lives and communities are devastated by attacks on civilian infrastructure. The civilian population continues to be at risk from relentless Russian attacks, particularly on the eastern and southern frontlines.

United Nations relief chief Tom Fletcher is warning that the post-war international system is facing its "greatest test since its creation" and that the humanitarian community is confronting a massive crisis of "funding, morale and legitimacy". The stark warning comes as extreme funding cuts to humanitarian aid by the United States are starting to have a devastating impact around the world, putting hundreds of thousands of lives at risk and leaving tens of millions without access to the aid they desperately need.

The United Nations and its partner agencies in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras on Wednesday launched this year's humanitarian response plans to assist 2.2 million people in need, seeking a total of US$306 million. The three countries continue to face violence, food insecurity, extreme weather events and mixed movements of refugees and migrants, with more than 4.6 million people in need of humanitarian aid in 2025.

Diplomats for Afghanistan's ruling Taliban said Wednesday that neighboring Pakistan is implementing a plan for the "imminent" and rapid mass deportation of nearly three million Afghan refugees from its territory. More than 825,000 undocumented Afghans have already been forcibly repatriated from Pakistan since September 2023, as a result of a government crackdown on foreigners living in the country without legal permission or whose visas have expired.

The United Nations and humanitarian partners on Monday launched the 2025 humanitarian and refugee response plans for Sudan, appealing for a combined US$6 billion to support nearly 26 million people inside the country and in the wider region. Nearly two years of war have created a catastrophic crisis, uprooting more than 12.6 million people inside Sudan and across borders into other countries.

The Mouvement du 23 mars (M23) rebel group in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has reportedly advanced into the region's second largest city, Bukavu, after capturing the key town of Goma in January. The advance is causing chaos and panic among residents. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of displaced women, men and children in Goma, with nowhere to go, are being driven from their homes by the M23.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that UN agencies and other humanitarian organizations continue to scale up much-needed relief efforts in the Gaza Strip. In a statement on Thursday, OCHA reiterated that maintaining the ceasefire is "crucial to keep this life-saving work going," amid reports that the truce's continuation is threatened by reported disagreements over its implementation.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is warning that several areas of Somalia are at risk of drought due to prolonged extreme dry conditions, with hundreds of thousands of families likely to be hit.  Already, 4.4 million people in the East African country are facing hunger - and conditions are expected to worsen as the April to June rainy season is forecast to start late and receive below-normal rainfall.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has instructed UN agencies, funds and programs to suspend all activities in Yemen's Houthi-controlled Saada governorate for security reasons, his spokesperson said on Monday. The measure follows the recent detention by Houthi rebels of eight more United Nations staff members, including six working in the governorate.

The United Nations Human Rights Office (OHCHR) warns that the civilian death toll in Sudan continues to mount as hostilities between the warring parties sharply escalate. The dire warning comes as Sudan remains in a dire humanitarian situation, with famine spreading, people starving to death and 30 million people - two-thirds of Sudan's population - in need of humanitarian assistance as a result of the war.

Nearly 3,000 people have been killed in fighting between the Mouvement du 23 mars (M23) rebel group and the Congolese army for control of Goma, a key eastern city and the capital of North Kivu province, a senior United Nations official in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC, DR Congo) said on Wednesday. The fighting has displaced at least 700,000 people in Goma and surrounding areas since early January, creating a dire humanitarian situation.

Gang violence in Haiti continues to have a devastating impact on the country's population, according to a new human rights report by the United Nations political mission in Haiti (BINUH). Tuesday's report, which covers the last quarter of 2024, says at least 1,732 people were killed and 411 injured as a result of direct gang violence, as well as self-defense groups and police operations.

The United States government is attempting to dismantle the world's largest government-run development and humanitarian aid agency, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The USAID website went offline on Saturday, and hundreds of USAID employees and contractors have been reportedly fired or furloughed. USAID headquarters in Washington, D.C. was closed on Monday, and employees were told not to report to work.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) says its staff are continuing to deliver aid to people in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, who depend on them "for their very survival," days after an Israeli parliamentary ban on its activities went into effect. As the humanitarian operation in Gaza continues, UNRWA says it is committed “to stay and deliver until it is no longer possible to do so.”

The United Nations peacekeeping chief said Friday that the Mouvement du 23 mars (M23) rebel group is advancing on the South Kivu provincial capital of Bukavu, after seizing control of Goma in the mineral-rich eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC, DR Congo) earlier this week. Meanwhile, UN agencies warn that the situation continues to deteriorate for civilians trapped by days of intense fighting in and around Goma, the capital of North Kivu province.

Hunger has reached alarming levels in Myanmar and the situation is set to deteriorate further in 2025, the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) warned on Wednesday. A staggering 15 million people are expected to go hungry this year, rising from 13.3 million in 2024. The warning comes as Myanmar nears four years since the military seized power in the Southeast Asian country.

At the end of a visit to Syria, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, on Monday called on the international community to take bold and decisive action to help Syrians rebuild their war-torn country and support displaced Syrians returning home. More than 500,000 refugees have returned to Syria since September, including 200,000 after the fall of the Assad government in early December.

International rights group Human Rights Watch (HRW) has expressed concern for civilians in the town of Goma, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), after M23 rebels reportedly took control of the city. The rebel group's capture of Goma further threatens the lives of civilians and could lead to further displacement, the rights group said.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and Nigerian government officials have launched an appeal for US$910 million to address the escalating humanitarian crisis in the north-eastern states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe (BAY states), where a total of 7.8 million people are estimated to be in need of humanitarian assistance.

The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has expressed grave concern for the safety of civilians and internally displaced people (IDPs) in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC, DR Congo) as fighting between the Mouvement du 23 mars (M23) rebel group and the Congolese army further intensifies in South and North Kivu provinces, with the armed group advancing on the North Kivu capital of Goma.

The Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced on Thursday that he is seeking arrest warrants for senior Taliban leaders in Afghanistan accused of crimes against humanity, citing widespread persecution of the country's female population and its LGBTQI+ population. The request comes as Afghanistan continues to suffer from one of the world's largest human rights and humanitarian crises.

The United Nations and its humanitarian partners, together with the Government of Somalia, launched the 2025 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan (HNRP) for Somalia on Wednesday. The plan, which requires US$1.43 billion, aims to support some 4.6 million of the country's most vulnerable people out of 5.98 million in need of life-saving humanitarian assistance and protection this year.

The United Nations and its humanitarian partners, together with the Government of Mali, launched on Tuesday a $770 million Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan (HNRP) to help millions of people across Mali this year. The plan aims to respond to the urgent needs of 4.7 million people affected by conflict, displacement, health emergencies and climate shocks, out of a projected 6.4 million people in need of assistance in 2025.

Colombia's Catatumbo region has descended into an acute humanitarian crisis following intensified violent clashes between non-state armed groups (NSAGs), in particular the National Liberation Army (ELN) and splinter groups of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). With more than 80 people killed in armed violence, President Gustavo Petro Urrego suspended peace talks with the ELN.

A ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian armed group Hamas took effect in the Gaza Strip on Sunday at 11:15 am local time, after more than 470 days of war that have devastated the tiny territory and left its two million inhabitants in dire need of the basics to survive. According to the United Nations, more than 630 trucks of humanitarian goods entered Gaza on the first day of the truce, with at least 300 of them going to the northern Gaza Strip, which has been cut off from aid for months.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, warned on Friday that Sudanese civilians are in greater danger than ever, as ethnically motivated attacks by warring parties are becoming "increasingly common." The warning comes amid reports of an imminent battle for control of the Sudanese capital, Khartoum. The conflict in Sudan has sparked famine, killed tens of thousands of people, and driven millions from their homes.

The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has voiced alarm over the escalating violence in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC, DR Congo), which has already displaced 237,000 people this year. Clashes between non-state armed groups and the Congolese army in North and South Kivu provinces are exacerbating one of the world's most under-reported humanitarian crises, characterized by widespread human rights violations and massive forced displacement.

In the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on Thursday, United Nations relief chief Tom Fletcher and UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi launched the humanitarian and refugee response plans for 2025. The UN is appealing for $3.3 billion to provide humanitarian assistance to 8.2 million of the 14.9 million Ukrainians whose lives have been upended by Russia's invasion of their country nearly three years ago.

The United Nations and humanitarian aid agencies launched the 2025 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan (HNRP) for Yemen on Wednesday, appealing for US$2.47 billion to provide urgent humanitarian assistance to 10.5 million people in need. More than half of the country's population - 19.5 million people - are in need of humanitarian assistance and protection this year, with Yemen's most vulnerable and marginalized groups, including women and girls, at greatest risk.

More than one million people are now internally displaced in Haiti, according to new figures released Tuesday by the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The latest data shows that 1,041,000 people are struggling amid a worsening humanitarian crisis - many of them forced to flee multiple times. According to IOM, children bear the greatest burden of forced displacement, accounting for more than half of all displaced people.

The United States government this week labelled the actions of Sudan's paramilitary forces as genocide and imposed sanctions on its leader for the "horrific, systematic atrocities" committed by his forces in a war that has gripped Sudan for nearly two years, killing tens of thousands of people and driving more than 12 million from their homes. Yet at the same time, the US administration denies that war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide are being committed in the Gaza Strip.

Fifteen months into Israel's war on Gaza, more than 46,000 Palestinians have been killed, most of them women and children, according to the territory's health ministry. The horror of the situation in Gaza shows no signs of abating as the world looks the other way. Meanwhile, Israeli officials continue to systematically deny the delivery of life-saving aid in flagrant violation of international law.

The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) on Wednesday called on countries to prioritize life-saving measures as hundreds of Rohingya refugees from Myanmar have sought safety in the region in the first five days of the new year. In 2024, more than 7,800 Rohingya attempted to flee the country by boat. More than 650 died or were reported missing.

The United Nations on Tuesday condemned the ongoing offensive launched last week by the rebel group Mouvement du 23 mars (M23) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). On Saturday, the non-state armed group captured the town of Masisi in the eastern province of North Kivu. Intense clashes between the Congolese army (FARDC) and the M23 have forced more than 100,000 people to flee their homes in less than a week.

The United Nations, together with the Government of Lebanon, on Tuesday launched a US$371.4 million extension of the Lebanon Flash Appeal to provide life-saving assistance to civilians affected by the recent conflict and the ongoing humanitarian crisis. The appeal targets one million Lebanese, Syrians, Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Palestinian refugees from Syria, and migrants for an additional three months.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warns again that the humanitarian crisis in Myanmar is deepening as conflict continues in many parts of the country and fighting escalates in Rakhine State. OCHA said on Friday that civilians continue to face extreme protection risks, acute food insecurity and a near total collapse of essential public services.

The UN's independent expert on human rights in Haiti, William O'Neill, said on Friday that he is deeply concerned that the outrageous attacks by gangs on hospitals, clinics and health workers in Haiti in December have further weakened a health system that is already close to collapse. Amid the deteriorating security situation, half of the country's population, some 6 million people, including 3.3 million children, are in need of humanitarian assistance.

Israel's attacks on and around hospitals, and the ensuing fighting, have pushed health care in the Gaza Strip to the brink of total collapse, the United Nations Human Rights Office (OHCHR) says. The attacks and actions aimed at destroying the health system in Gaza are in flagrant disregard of international humanitarian and human rights law, many of which may amount to war crimes or crimes against humanity.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) warns that this year's record-breaking heat is likely to continue in 2025, further accelerating climate change and leading to catastrophic consequences, unless urgent action is taken to curb the "human activities" behind this looming disaster.  According to the United Nations weather agency, 2024 is set to be the hottest year on record, "capping a decade of unprecedented heat fueled by human activities."

Nearly half a billion children - more than one in six of the world's children - now live in areas affected by war and conflict, with the world experiencing the highest number of armed conflicts since World War II, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said in an analysis released Saturday. In 2024, it is estimated that more children than ever before will either live in conflict zones or be forcibly displaced by conflict and violence.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that Yemen bears the highest burden of cholera in the world. According to a WHO report released earlier this week, there are approximately 250,000 suspected cases of cholera reported, with more than 860 associated deaths since the beginning of the year, accounting for 35 percent of the global cholera burden and 18 percent of the global reported mortality.