Today's top news: Occupied Palestinian Territory, Ukraine, Nigeria
Occupied Palestinian Territory
The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees say that as of today, some 600,000 people – a quarter of Gaza's population – have been displaced from Rafah since 6 May, as the Israeli ground operation there continues.
OCHA says ground incursions and heavy fighting also continue to be reported in Deir al Balah, in central Gaza, as well as Jabaliya, in northern Gaza.
Many of the families now on the move once again have already been displaced repeatedly since October.
Regardless of whether they move or stay, civilians in Gaza must be protected.
All parties must respect international humanitarian law, at all times. This also means civilians’ essential needs – including food, shelter, water and health – must be met, wherever they are.
Access to critical health services in Gaza continues to shrink as additional evacuation orders are issued and military operations intensify.
According to our partners working on the health response, the Indonesian Field Hospital in Rafah is out of service as of today. There are now eight functional field hospitals, including one just established by the International Committee of the Red Cross, in coordination with the Palestine Red Crescent Society, to help address the overwhelming scale of needs in Rafah.
Ukraine
Ukraine's Humanitarian Coordinator, Denise Brown, is visiting the city of Kharkiv City condemned the unrelenting attacks, both in the city and the region.
According to the authorities and humanitarian partners, yesterday alone, repeated strikes in Kharkiv City and across the region injured civilians, including children, as well as damaged a school and numerous homes.
Since 10 May, humanitarian organizations have been assisting people who fled to Kharkiv City in search of safety as evacuations from border and front-line communities in the Kharkiv Region continue.
The UN and its partners have supported hundreds of people with transportation, accommodation, distribution of hot meals and ready-to-eat food packages. They also pre-registered people for cash assistance and provided mental health and psychological consultations.
Brown has approved the release of US$3.75 million from the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund to strengthen the ongoing response.
Nigeria
The UN and the Government, along with their partners, launched a $306 million appeal yesterday to support 2.8 million people in Nigeria's northeast.
The region – comprising the states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe – is facing a food security and nutrition crisis during this lean season, which runs from May to September.
The crisis is primarily due to continued conflict and insecurity combined with the impacts of climate change. The prices of staple foods, such as beans and maize, have increased by 300 to 400 per cent over the past year.
According to Government-led analysis released in March, some 4.8 million people in these three states are estimated to be facing food insecurity, the highest level in seven years.
Humanitarian colleagues tell us that 700,000 children under five are projected to be acutely malnourished over the next six months, including 230,000 who are expected to be severely acutely malnourished and at risk of death if they do not receive timely treatment and nutrition support.
The Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Mohamed Malick Fall, released $11 million from the Nigeria Humanitarian Fund to kick start the response and called for additional resources.