Humanitarian issues

The World Food Programme (WFP) says its operations are being severely hindered by the escalation of fighting in south and central Gaza, as well as the limited flow of humanitarian assistance and the lack of public order and safety in the south. Despite this, WFP has reached more than 766,000 people in Gaza with food in June.

Just 18 per cent of the $48.7 billion needed to humanitarian aid worldwide this year has been received, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports. The consequences are particularly acute in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Haiti, Honduras, Mali, Myanmar and Sudan.

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ video message to the Economic and Social Council humanitarian affairs segment, in New York today:

Following the completion of a technical assessment, the Secretariat of the United Nations has responded positively to a request of the National Electoral Council of Venezuela to deploy a UN Panel of Electoral Experts for the July 2024 presidential elections there.

Against the backdrop of a two-year political deadlock in a 13-year-old conflict, Syria remains beset by ongoing violence, an economic crisis and a worsening humanitarian situation, the Security Council heard today, as the Secretary-General’s Deputy Special Envoy for the country urged sustained de-escalation towards a nationwide ceasefire, unhindered humanitarian aid via all modalities and parties’ meaningful engagement in a political process under UN auspices.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) today said it is stepping up support to assist some 8,000 Rohingya refugees who were affected on Wednesday by landslides in the Cox’s Bazar refugee settlement in Bangladesh.

With famine impending, human rights violations on the rise and fighting escalating between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces, the international community must work towards an immediate ceasefire in Sudan, senior United Nations officials and a women’s rights activist told the Security Council today.

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ video message to the Humanitarian Data Forum, taking place in The Hague from 12 to 14 June:

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks to the “Call for Action: Urgent Humanitarian Response for Gaza” conference, in Sweimeh, Jordan today:

In conflict-ridden Sudan, over 7 million people are now displaced and 2 million more have fled to neighbouring countries, the International Organization for Migration reports. World Food Programme convoys with 1,200 metric tons of food, for some 116,000 people in Darfur, are near their final destination, Darfur.