Today's top news: Occupied Palestinian Territory, Syria, Ukraine, Papua New Guinea, Sudan
Occupied Palestinian Territory
The Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Martin Griffiths, said that impunity cannot continue. That was after Israel’s airstrike Sunday night reportedly killed scores of people, many of them women and children burned alive and considering humanitarian partners inability to pick up goods from Kerem Shalom at the scale needed.
Griffiths also repeated in a statement that no place is safe in Gaza: not shelters, not hospitals, not the so-called humanitarian zones.
The Under-Secretary-General stressed that whether the attack was a war crime or a “tragic mistake,” for the people of Gaza, there is no debate. What happened on Sunday was the latest and possibly most cruel abomination. To call it “a mistake” is a message that means nothing for those killed, those grieving, and those trying to save lives.
Meanwhile, the intensification of hostilities and issuance of evacuation orders have displaced more than 940,000 people from Rafah in the past three weeks, alongside 100,000 who have been displaced in northern Gaza. This is according to estimates by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees and OCHA.
Attacks on Rafah have continued unabated and civilians displaced by hostilities lack shelter, food, water and other supplies and services essential to their survival.
Health facilities continue to face dire shortages of fuel and medical supplies while having to cope with a rising influx of casualties due to injuries and burns. The Nasser Medical Complex appealed for people to donate blood.
Humanitarian colleagues say that while the Kerem Shalom crossing remains open in principle it is extremely difficult for aid organizations to access from the Gaza side due to hostilities, challenging logistical conditions, and complex coordination procedures.
In addition, access constraints continue to hamper the delivery of life-saving humanitarian aid inside Gaza.
Between 1 and 26 May, 137 humanitarian aid missions to areas that require coordination across Gaza were facilitated by the Israeli authorities, 86 were impeded after getting a green light or denied access to begin with, and 43 were cancelled by the organizers.
Syria
The eighth edition of the "Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region" conference took place in Brussels yesterday (Monday, 27 May).
In a video address, the Secretary-General stressed that three in every four people in Syria, nearly 17 million, need humanitarian assistance this year and that 5.6 million Syrians remain refugees in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Türkiye, across Europe, and beyond.
Nearly 9 billion dollars in total is required to respond to the Syria crisis, making it the United Nations’ largest appeal worldwide.
Speaking on behalf of the humanitarian community responding in Syria, OCHA's Director for Coordination, Ramesh Rajasingham, warned that of the US$4 billion required for this year’s Humanitarian Response Plan inside Syria, just less than 9 per cent has been received.
In addition to funding, Rajasingham called for unhindered humanitarian access across the country and welcomed the recent agreement by the Government of Syria for continued use of the Bab Al-Salam and Al-Rai crossings from Türkiye into north-west Syria until 13 August.
The UN is actively working to secure a similar renewal of authorization for the Bab Al-Hawa crossing.
Ukraine
Ukraine's Humanitarian Coordinator, Denise Brown, visited Kharkhiv over the weekend and condemned a deadly attack that hit a shopping mall there on Saturday.
The attack caused a massive fire, making it difficult for rescue services to work. Local authorities report that at least 18 civilians were killed, including a child and 48 more were injured.
On the same day, another strike in Kharkiv City reportedly resulted 25 civilian casualties and damaged education facility and homes. That is also according to local authorities.
Humanitarian workers and first responders provided first aid, psychological support and emergency assistance to affected people.
These deadly attacks came on top of intensified fighting in the border areas of the Kharkiv region with the Russian Federation, which has triggered displacement over the past two weeks.
Humanitarian partners continue to support people fleeing hostilities. More than 10,000 people received immediate aid at the transit centre in Kharkiv City, including food and water, clothes, mattresses, household appliances, as well as cash support.
Papua New Guinea
The UN continues to assist local authorities in search and rescue efforts following the deadly landslides in the north of Papua New Guinea.
According to the Government, nearly 8,000 people have been affected, with 1,000 people displaced.
The Government has requested international assistance, through a letter to the UN Resident Coordinator, and the UN is coordinating the response efforts of all partners on the ground. Immediate needs include clean water, food, clothing, shelter items, kitchen utensils, medicines and hygiene kits.
Since the onset of the disaster, the UN has been supporting the Government to respond. The UN and its partners, in coordination with the local emergency response teams, will provide relief supplies, including emergency health kits, tents and psychosocial support. UNICEF has distributed 50 dignity kits so far.
Sudan
OCHA continues to sound the alarm on the impact of ongoing clashes in Al Fasher in North Darfur, Sudan.
Hundreds of thousands of civilians in Al Fasher are facing an increasingly dire humanitarian situation. Many parts of the city have been left without electricity or water. A growing proportion of the population has limited access to basic necessities and essential services, including food and health care.
We are also receiving deeply worrying reports that medical facilities, displacement camps and critical civilian infrastructure have been impacted by the hostilities.
The International Organization for Migration estimates that the conflict has displaced nearly 58,000 people from Al Fasher since April 1. Many more people, including children and elderly people, are unable or are being prevented from moving to safer areas.
In a statement over the weekend, the Humanitarian Coordinator there, Clementine Nkweta-Salami, expressed her sympathies to the family and colleagues of the staff member of Medicins Sans Frontieres who was killed when shelling struck his house in Al Fasher on 25 May.
OCHA's message to all parties to the conflict is simple: Respect international humanitarian law. Allow the safe passage of civilians and humanitarian aid. Stop the fighting.