Today's top news: Sudan, Syria, Ukraine

Ayda, a widow and a mother of four who fled violence in North Kordofan, is now living with relatives in Port Sudan. OCHA/Basma Ourfali

Sudan

The UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, Clementine Nkweta-Salami, is appealing for an end to attacks on civilians and humanitarian workers in Sudan.

In a statement, she warned that surging violations by parties to the conflict are deepening the suffering of civilians – thousands of whom have already been killed and injured after 100 days of conflict.

Ms. Nkweta-Salami said at least 18 aid workers in Sudan have also been killed and many more have been injured. More than two dozen humanitarian personnel have been detained and some remain unaccounted for. At least 50 humanitarian warehouses have been looted, more than 80 offices ransacked and more than 200 vehicles stolen.

The Humanitarian Coordinator strongly condemned these attacks, which strike at the heart of our ongoing efforts to deliver essential aid to those in need. She reminded all of the parties to the conflict in Sudan of their obligations under international humanitarian and human rights law.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) is warning of increasing reports of attacks on health care in Sudan. WHO says that the relentless fighting there has left more than 80 per cent of the country’s hospitals out of service.

Syria

Our partners in healthcare confirmed today that the cross-border referral of new cancer patients, from north-west Syria to Türkiye via Bab Al-Hawa, will resume tomorrow. This came following advocacy by the UN and our partners, with the support of the Government of Türkiye, as well as efforts led by Syrian communities.

Radiography equipment will be installed in two hospitals in northern Aleppo and our partners are working to ensure there is long-term capacity to operate these machines. Prior to this, there was no radiotherapy equipment in north-west Syria.

The cross-border referral system through Bab Al-Hawa resumed on June 5th following a temporary disruption by the February earthquakes. Since then, more than 860 cancer patients have crossed from Türkiye to north-west Syria including those who received treatment prior to the earthquakes as well as new patients. Since then, the backlog of new patients has grown to 608 new cancer patients, 60 per cent of whom are women and children.

Our health partners reported that there are at least 4,300 active cancer cases in north-west Syria.

Ukraine

The UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Ukraine, Denise Brown, wrapped up her visit to Odesa today after visiting the port and meeting with the Mayor and Governor to discuss sustained humanitarian support, particularly ahead of the winter.
We continue to support communities across the country. Today, an inter-agency convoy delivered essential supplies to 1,700 people in the most affected communities which are located seven kilometers from the border with the Russian Federation in the Sumsak Oblast.

The supplies included food, medicine and hygiene items, as well as tarpaulin sheets, mattresses, blankets and solar lamps. They were provided by the UN Refugee Agency, UNICEF, the International Organization for Migration, and WHO. The national NGO ‘Pluryton’ did the last-mile delivery. This was the first convoy to the Sumsak oblast since March of 2022.

We are currently assessing the humanitarian situation in other border communities in the oblast.