Today's top news: World Humanitarian Day, Occupied Palestinian Territory, Sudan

A strike in Kharkiv City damaged the office and cars of the non-governmental organization (NGO) Fondation Suisse de Déminage, affecting its ability to provide life-saving support in the war-torn region. Photo: OCHA/Dmytro Filipskyi

World Humanitarian Day

To mark World Humanitarian Day today, more than 400 humanitarian organizations have sent an open letter to Member States of the UN General Assembly calling for the protection of civilians, including their staff.

With 280 aid workers killed in 33 countries last year, 2023 marked the deadliest year on record for the global humanitarian community. This outrageously high number represents a 137 per cent increase compared to 2022, when 118 aid workers were killed.

2024 may be on track for an even deadlier outcome. As of August 7th, 172 aid workers had been killed. That is according to a provisional count from the Aid Worker Security Database.

This year’s World Humanitarian Day aims to confront the normalization of attacks on civilians, including humanitarians and impunity under International Humanitarian Law.

A global digital campaign launched today calls on world leaders and parties to conflicts to act for humanity. Heads of humanitarian organizations and their staff in more than 40 countries stood in solidarity to spotlight the horrifying toll of armed conflicts on civilians and their colleagues.

Occupied Palestinian Territory

OCHA reports that some 13,500 displaced Palestinians across 18 sites have been affected by the latest Israeli evacuation order in parts of central Gaza, issued on Saturday.

That order encompasses the entire Al Maghazi Refugee Camp and several neighbourhoods in Deir al Balah.

Initial mapping indicates that the areas newly placed under evacuation include 5 schools; 14 water, sanitation and health facilities; and 10 health sites, including 2 primary health care centres and 5 medical points.

OCHA warns that ongoing hostilities, constant evacuation orders, and severe shortages of essential supplies is making it increasingly difficult for displaced families to access basic services at their places of arrival.

Since October, 86 per cent of the Gaza Strip – some 314 square kilometres – has been placed under evacuation orders.

Gaza’s population is increasingly concentrated inside a zone designated by Israeli authorities in Al Mawasi, where Palestinians have been directed to go. OCHA says the density of this area has surged to between 30,000 and 34,000 people per square kilometre. This is compared to an estimated 1,200 people per square kilometre prior to October.

Over the past month, this area has decreased to just over 41 square kilometres – or 11 per cent of the Gaza Strip.

OCHA warns that repeated waves of displacement – combined with overcrowding, insecurity, crumbling infrastructure, active hostilities, and limited services – is worsening the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Meanwhile, severe fuel shortages are forcing hospitals to postpone critical surgeries and threaten to halt the operation of ambulances, particularly in northern Gaza.

Sudan

In a statement issued on Saturday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres commended the decision of the Sudanese authorities to reopen the Adre border crossing between Chad and Darfur. He said the Adre crossing represents the most direct and efficient route for humanitarian aid to reach Darfur, where millions of people are facing acute hunger.

The Secretary-General underscored that humanitarian organizations must have full, safe and unhindered access to reach all civilians in need.

UN humanitarian officials have received confirmation that the Sudanese authorities have approved the movement of 131 trucks with food and non-food relief supplies across the border from Chad.

Meanwhile, OCHA warns that heavy rains and flooding across Sudan are having a devastating impact.

More than a quarter of a million people – some 258,000 – have been affected across 13 of Sudan’s 18 states since the onset of the rainy season in June. This includes nearly 119,000 people who have been displaced by the flooding.

The rains are wreaking havoc in displacement sites, including in Abu Shouk camp and in Zamzam camp, where famine conditions were confirmed earlier this month. Both are located near Al Fasher, the capital of North Darfur State.

Flooding is also raising the risk of disease outbreaks. Cholera cases have started to increase in recent weeks, with hundreds of cases reported. A dozen states in Sudan are facing outbreaks of multiple diseases at once – at a time when three-quarters of health-care facilities in the worst affected areas are no longer functioning.