Bangladesh

In Gaza, the UN and its aid partners coordinated 10 humanitarian missions with the Israeli authorities on Wednesday to collect incoming food, vaccines, fuel and health supplies from the Kerem Shalom/Kerem Abu Salem and Zikim crossings. The UN Development Programme began removing solid waste from a dumping site in Gaza City.

In Bangladesh, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has launched an emergency response following a large fire in a Rohingya refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar on 20 January. Relief efforts are being carried out in close coordination with the Government of Bangladesh, as well as humanitarian partners.

In Ukraine, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says a wave of attacks has severely disrupted critical services across the country, aggravating humanitarian needs amid harsh winter conditions. Between 18 December and today, authorities report several fatalities, with more than 30 injured nationwide.

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) are deeply saddened over the tragic capsizing of a boat off the coast of Malaysia and Thailand carrying up to 70 people from Myanmar, including Rohingya. Some 13 people were brought ashore by Malaysian authorities; at least 21 people died.

As the Rohingya flee brutal attacks and persecution in Myanmar, speakers at the General Assembly today called for safe zones, sustained international support and justice, including by referring the situation to the International Criminal Court.

In Bangladesh, where monsoon rains and high winds triggered landslides, floods and damage across the Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar, the International Organization for Migration, in coordination with State authorities, launched an emergency response to support emergency relocations and rescue operations.

The Secretary-General arrived in Dhaka, Bangladesh on the afternoon of 13 March.

In Ukraine, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that, today and over the weekend, attacks have caused dozens of civilian casualties, including among children. Homes, schools and energy facilities have also sustained damage, impacting electricity supplies.

The World Food Programme (WFP) warns that over 1 million people in Myanmar will be cut off from food assistance, starting in April, due to critical funding shortages. The cuts will also impact almost 100,000 internally displaced people in Rakhine, who will have no access to food without WFP assistance.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) released its monthly Food Price Index today, and the benchmark for global food commodity prices rose in February, propelled by price increases for sugar, dairy and vegetable oil. Another FAO report states that 45 countries currently require external assistance for food.