War

A senior official from the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) Tuesday warned that "an unimaginable humanitarian crisis" was unfolding in Sudan, with millions of people being forcibly displaced from their homes by an increasingly vicious conflict. Since the conflict started more than six months ago, over 6.2 million people have become displaced inside Sudan or have sought refuge in neighboring countries. 

The newly appointed interim Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, Kristine Hambrouck, expressed alarm over the recent wave of attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure, noting that they represent a blatant violation of international humanitarian law. Her statement comes as the situation in Sudan is worsening amid ongoing fighting, mass displacement, and mounting health emergencies.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is warning that aid workers in the Gaza Strip continue to face daily threats to their safety and ongoing obstruction of their efforts to reach Palestinians in need of life-saving assistance. The warning comes after a UN convoy was stopped and surrounded by Israeli forces. Soldiers pointed their weapons directly at UN personnel in the convoy, live shots were fired, and vehicles were damaged.

As civilians lining up for humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip continue to be killed by Israeli forces, speakers at the United Nations Security Council meeting on Wednesday urged Israel to lift restrictions on aid operations in Gaza, called for a return to UN-led delivery mechanisms, and stressed the urgent need for a ceasefire and the protection of civilians. Among them was UN relief chief Tom Fletcher, who told members that "we are beyond vocabulary to describe conditions in Gaza."

February 1 marks three years since Myanmar's military toppled the country's democratically elected government, setting off a bloody civil war that continues to tear apart the country of 57 million people.  Some 18.6 million people in Myanmar – one-third of the population – urgently need humanitarian assistance this year – compared to one million before the military takeover on February 1, 2021.

The entire population in the Gaza Strip faces an imminent risk of famine, with more than half a million people already in catastrophic conditions, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) warns. Meanwhile, after days of intense negotiations on a humanitarian pause and the delivery of aid to the war-torn Gaza Strip, the United States abstained Friday on a United Nations Security Council (SC) resolution, allowing its adoption by the 15-member body.

The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) warned today of spiraling humanitarian needs for refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs) in Sudan as living costs soar due to the impact of the war in Ukraine, the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and extreme weather conditions resulting from the climate crisis. Sudan hosts among the largest number of displaced people on the African continent, including over 1.1 million refugees – mostly from South Sudan – and 3.7 million internally displaced Sudanese, mainly in Darfur and Kordofan.

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF, Doctors Without Borders) warned Friday that it may end operations in Sudan at a hospital in the capital, Khartoum, after 18 of its workers were “aggressively assaulted,” as the conflict entered its fourth month this week. MSF said the incident happened while the team was moving medical supplies from the organization’s warehouse to the Turkish Hospital in the Sudanese capital.

United Nations Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC) Martin Griffiths has today called for expanded humanitarian access and increased funding to assist the 18 million people in need of aid across Myanmar. The call comes as Myanmar’s overall humanitarian and human rights situation has deteriorated to alarming levels, exacerbated by the military’s strategy to prevent life-saving humanitarian aid from reaching those who desperately need it.

After an 11-week total blockade of humanitarian and commercial goods into the Gaza Strip, Israeli authorities have temporarily allowed the resumption of limited aid deliveries since Monday. While the entry of some trucks has been welcomed as a positive development, as of Wednesday night none of the supplies had reached those in need, amid extreme deprivation throughout the territory.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres says the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is horrific, as Israel’s siege on the small enclave and the denial of access to humanitarian aid for its 2.2 million inhabitants continue. Meanwhile, Israeli ground operations in northern Gaza are ongoing, with troops and tanks reportedly surrounding Gaza City from multiple directions. Intense bombardments continue across the Gaza Strip, including in central and southern areas, killing hundreds of civilians every day, the majority of them are children and women.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Tuesday it is concerned about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in eastern Chad amid a massive influx of refugees and returnees from neighboring Sudan. More than 55,000 Sudanese refugees and 39,000 Chadian returnees have been registered in Chad's Ennedi-Est and Wadi Fira provinces since violence escalated in Sudan's North Darfur state in April.

Hunger levels in many of the world's poorest countries will remain high for another 136 years if the lack of progress in feeding the world continues, according to a new report released Thursday. While global progress in reducing hunger has stagnated, the 2024 Global Hunger Index (GHI) reveals that hunger is at severe or alarming levels in 42 countries.

Speaking at the United Nations Security Council on Monday, Joyce Msuya, the deputy head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), delivered a blunt warning: armed conflict is driving the world’s most severe hunger crises, and without decisive political action, famine conditions will worsen in several regions. Msuya stressed that today's hunger is overwhelmingly human-made.

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) says it is extremely concerned by the escalation of fighting in Sudan's southwestern Sennar State, which has severely hampered humanitarian aid deliveries in large parts of the country. Meanwhile, the last open border crossing into Darfur from neighboring Chad is inaccessible due to heavy rains and flooding.

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 United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is seeking $1.4 billion to meet the needs of 2.3 million South Sudanese refugees living in five neighboring countries - Uganda, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) - through 2024. A similar number of people living in local communities in the countries of asylum will benefit from services and support, according to the Regional Refugee Response Plan (RRP) released on Thursday.

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director, David Beasley, has appealed to the world to invest in the Syrian people and communities to get them on their feet and off food assistance. During a visit to Syria on Friday, Beasley said that 12 million people in the country do not know where their next meal is coming from, while an additional 2.9 million are at risk of sliding into hunger.

More than a dozen children in Gaza have starved to death and many more are at risk as malnutrition soars, infectious diseases spread and urgently needed life-saving humanitarian aid is blocked by Israeli authorities from entering the Palestinian enclave, UN aid agencies warn. The development is fueling widespread fears of famine in the northern Gaza Strip, as roads are the only way to transport the large quantities of food needed to stave off death.