aid worker safety
New York, August 24, 2025, 03:19 PM PKT – UN Calls for Urgent Action to Protect Aid Workers in Conflict Zones
The United Nations has issued an urgent call for global action to protect humanitarian workers following a record 245 major attacks in 2025, as reported on August 24, 2025.
The appeal, led by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), responds to escalating violence against aid workers in conflict zones like Gaza, Sudan, and Ukraine.
OCHA’s Assistant Secretary-General Joyce Msuya, addressing the UN Security Council, highlighted that 95% of 2024’s attacks targeted local aid workers, with Gaza alone reporting over 900 deaths at aid sites.
“Being shot at is not part of our job,” Msuya told APP, citing the Aid Worker Security Database.
The UN is pushing for stricter enforcement of international humanitarian laws, including the 1949 Geneva Conventions.
The resolution demands accountability for state and non-state actors violating protections.
Humanitarian Outcomes reported a tenfold rise in attacks since the 1990s, with state-led militaries increasingly involved.
Msuya urged global cooperation to restore respect for humanitarian law.
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