Today's top news: Occupied Palestinian Territory, Afghanistan

Rasmi Abu I’raam, a Palestinian herder says, “My income from herding activities has eroded due to settler violence. Today, my son went to hospital for a surgical operation in his sinuses; I had to borrow money from my friends to pay the bills.” Photo by OCHA

Occupied Palestinian Territory

Today we recorded 591 settler-related incidents in the first six months of this year that have resulted in Palestinian casualties, property damage or both.

That’s an average of 99 incidents every month and a 39 per cent increase compared with the monthly average in 2022.

Palestinian herding communities are particularly vulnerable to settlement activities. Last year and this year, OCHA says some 400 people have been displaced due to settler violence in seven Palestinian herding communities.

Three of these communities – Al Baqa’a, Khirbet Bir al'Idd and Wedadiye - are now completely empty, while only a few families remain in the others.

We and our humanitarian partners have launched an assessment of the humanitarian needs of 60 Palestinian herding communities which were affected by settlement activities. This will help us determine how to best support herders and their families.

Israeli settlements are illegal under international law. They deepen humanitarian needs due to their impact on livelihoods, food security and access to essential services.

Afghanistan

Aid operations in the country face a critical funding gap as humanitarian needs remain severe.

More than halfway through the year, the US$3.2 billion appeal to help more than 21 million people across the country is less than 25 per cent funded. We face critical funding gaps amounting to $1.3 billion, with many programmes already ended or considerably scaled back due to insufficient resources and aid pipelines at risk of imminent rupture, including for food assistance.

We only have a short window of opportunity to procure and position vital assistance and supplies before the lean season and winter begin.