Humanitarian issues

In Haiti, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that the activities of armed gangs in Port-au-Prince continue to disrupt people’s lives. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) says that between 6 and 8 December, more than 4,500 people have become newly displaced due to ongoing insecurity.

Concerned about worsening global humanitarian and economic crises, natural and man-made disasters, threats to international peace and security and the effects of climate change on forced migration and food production, the General Assembly today took action on several resolutions addressing these issues.

In Lebanon, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that while the cessation of hostilities provides a much-needed respite, health needs remain overwhelming.  Health services have been severely impacted, and widespread damage to water, sanitation and municipal infrastructure has heightened the risk of disease.

In Haiti’s capital, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and its partners have distributed more than 900,000 litres of water to more than 60,000 [displaced] people in 26 sites over the last week. The World Food Programme (WFP) has provided more than 95,000 hot meals to some 24,000 displaced people across four sites.

The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) today launched a $1.4 billion humanitarian appeal to address the unique needs of women and girls trapped in, or uprooted by, the wave of emergencies occurring around the world.

Following is UN Secretary‑General António Guterres’ message to the launch of the 2025 Global Humanitarian Overview, in Geneva, Nairobi and Kuwait City today:

The new developments — no surprise — are worsening an already horrific humanitarian situation for civilians in Syria. The International Organization for Migration sent 10 trucks of critical winter supplies from Gaziantep to the country’s north-west, adding to relief items it had already prepositioned for distribution.

On 7 November 2024, and in pursuance of paragraph 5 of resolution 2664 (2022), a representative of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), on behalf of the Emergency Relief Coordinator, briefed the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 2206 (2015) concerning South Sudan on the delivery of life-saving assistance and other activities that support essential human needs in South Sudan.

Delegates at the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today threw their support behind the Secretariat’s request for $4.98 million in additional funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in 2025 and called on Member States to step up their voluntary contributions.

In Lebanon, the UN is focusing on the needs of displaced people who have begun returning home, those still displaced, host communities and those who never left impacted areas. The International Organization for Migration reports that in the first 24 hours of the ceasefire, nearly 580,000 people have begun returning home.