Aid workers, Sudan, Palestine & other topics - Daily Press Briefing (22 Nov 2024) | United Nations

Noon briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

Highlights:
COP 29
Aid workers
UNIFIL
Lebanon/Humanitarian
Occupied Palestinian Territory
WFP Global Outlook
Sudan
South Sudan
Guinea
Haiti
Pakistan
Ukraine
International Day
Guests on Monday
Noon briefings next week

Aid workers
Today, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that 2024 has now become the deadliest year on record for aid workers, with 281 humanitarian workers killed this year. That surpasses the previous record of 280 aid workers who lost their lives just last year.
The Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Tom Fletcher, said humanitarian workers are being killed at an unprecedented rate, with their courage and humanity being met with bullets and with bombs.
He urges States and parties to conflict to protect humanitarian workers, to uphold international law, to prosecute those responsible and call time on this era of impunity.
The war in Gaza is driving up the numbers of aid worker deaths, with more than 320 humanitarian personnel killed in the Gaza Strip since 7 October 2023.
Many were killed in the line of duty while providing humanitarian assistance, and as you know, most of the fatalities have been UNRWA workers.
There are also high levels of violence, of kidnappings, injuries, harassment and arbitrary detention of aid workers reported in Afghanistan, in Sudan and Ukraine, among other countries.

Occupied Palestinian Territory
In Gaza, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tells us that 40 families in Nuseirat, in central Gaza, lost their shelter and belongings after a school there that was being used as a shelter was struck just two days ago. That attack killed seven people, including two children, and injured more than 20 others. Our colleagues from OCHA and the UN Mine Action service visited the area in the wake of the attack to assess people’s needs and to help mobilize humanitarian assistance.
Meanwhile, people in parts of North Gaza governorate are fighting for survival after weeks under Israeli siege, with more shelling and destruction reported in Beit Lahiya yesterday. There have been no rescue services in besieged areas in more than 40 days.
As hostilities continue, aid operations across Gaza are still facing major access restrictions, particularly in Rafah and North Gaza governorates.
This is severely limiting the critical delivery of food, medical supplies and fuel supplies – including those needed to power water wells – and deepening an already dire humanitarian situation.
OCHA reports that as of today, only about a third of 129 planned humanitarian missions in Gaza over the past week were facilitated by Israeli authorities. The rest were either denied, impeded or canceled due to security or logistical reasons. 
As winter nears, Palestinians across the Gaza Strip are in dire need of adequate shelter to protect them from the rain and cold. Our partners are distributing tents and tarpaulins as quickly as possible, but it is just a fraction of what is actually needed in the area.

Sudan
In Sudan, the World Food Programme (WFP) announced today that a food aid convoy arrived in North Darfur’s Zamzam camp for the first time since famine was confirmed in August.
The combination of fighting around North Darfur’s capital El Fasher, and impassable roads brought on by the rainy season from June to September cut off incoming transport of food assistance for months.
As an example, it took this convoy two weeks to reach Zamzam camp from the Adre crossing. Basically, it took them two weeks to drive 400 km, which is about 250 miles.
WFP says that further convoys remain en route to other hard-to-reach areas. This includes 14 locations that WFP characterizes as “hotspots” in Sudan due to the severity of food insecurity and the risk of famine.
In total, the trucks will carry 17,500 tonnes of food assistance, enough to feed 1.5 million people for one month.
Since September, WFP has delivered food assistance to an average of 2 million people each month across Sudan. The Agency expects that this number will grow with this latest surge in its operations across the country.
Just to underscore that, sadly, Sudan is home to half of the world’s population facing catastrophic hunger.
WFP reiterates its call for all border crossings into Sudan to remain open and fully operational, so that life-saving aid can pour in.


Full Highlights:
https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon...