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Gaza: Increasing numbers of newborns on brink of death, agencies warn

“What doctors and medical staff are telling us is more and more they are seeing the effects of starvation; they’re seeing newborn babies simply dying because they (are) too low birth weight,” said Dr Margaret Harris from the UN World Health Organization (WHO). 

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“Increasingly, we’re seeing children that are at the point, brink of death that need refeeding,” the WHO spokesperson told journalists in Geneva, a day after global nutrition experts warned that famine could happen “anytime” in northern Gaza.

‘Hunger, starvation, famine’

In response to the findings of Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report on Gaza published on Monday, UN human rights chief Volker Türk insisted that “hunger, starvation and famine” were the result of Israel’s “extensive restrictions on the entry and distribution of humanitarian aid and commercial goods”, mass population displacement and the destruction of crucial civilian infrastructure.

Mr. Türk noted that “in the face of starvation” families have now resorted to sending children from northern to southern Gaza “unaccompanied in the desperate hope that they will find food and support among the 1.8 million people already displaced there”.

The High Commissioner’s comments on Gaza’s deepening hunger crisis echoed warnings from UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday who reiterated his appeal to the Israeli authorities “to ensure complete and unfettered access for humanitarian goods throughout Gaza”.

Speaking outside the Security Council in New York, Mr. Guterres also urged the international community “to fully support” the UN’s humanitarian efforts.

“Palestinians in Gaza are enduring horrifying levels of hunger and suffering”, the UN chief said, describing the IPC report as an “appalling indictment of conditions on the ground for civilians”.

Pregnancy dangers

While infants and young children are among the least able to cope with chronic hunger according to WHO, the UN health agency said that medical teams in the war-shattered enclave have been admitting increasing numbers of dangerously underweight pregnant women.

The complications that they have happen “if you’re trying to carry a pregnancy and you lack the nutrition,” said Dr. Harris, who insisted that the famine danger in Gaza was purely a result of the war, sparked by Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel on 7 October. 

“This is entirely man-made, everything we’re seeing medically; this was a territory where the health system functioned well,” said Dr Harris, adding that malnutrition was “non-existent”. “It was a population that could feed itself,” she insisted.

Feeding centre plan

To help the most vulnerable Gazans and save lives, WHO aims is now establishing emergency malnutrition stabilisation centres. But progress has been hampered by a lack of safety and ongoing aid access obstacles, Dr Harris maintained. 

“We’ve set one up in the south, we’re looking at doing it in the north…but the problem is we have to be able to bring the materials in – but we can’t bring them in at the scale and to the people without the access and the safety. So there is no answer until there’s a ceasefire.”

“The desperation is so great,” Dr Harris continued, before insisting that aid needed to be allowed into Gaza at a “huge, huge scale”. 

When that happens, the relief supplies “will be absorbed like sand”, she said. 

More than 350,000 families in Gaza have received flour distributed by UNRWA.
© UNRWA

More than 350,000 families in Gaza have received flour distributed by UNRWA.

Vast job losses

Underscoring the dire impact of the war in Gaza and beyond, a new report by the UN labour agency, ILO, indicated that it has led to the loss of 507,000 jobs in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

This has already had a “devastating impact” on the regional economy, said ILO spokesperson Zeina Awad, who added that if the conflict continues, the unemployment rate in the territory is expected to reach 57 per cent.

The new data – sourced by ILO and the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) – estimates that as of 31 January, around 201,000 jobs were lost in the Gaza Strip, accounting for around two-thirds of total employment in the enclave.

In addition, 306,000 jobs – or over one-third of total employment – were also lost in the West Bank, where economic conditions have been severely impacted.

UNRWA probe findings

On Tuesday, the UN chief was scheduled to hear the interim findings of one of two investigations into UNRWA, following serious allegations that some of its staff had collaborated with Hamas during the 7 October terror attacks on Israel. 

Of the 12 UNRWA staff implicated in the allegations, the UN agency immediately identified and terminated the contracts of 10; another two were confirmed dead. 

“Any UN employee involved in acts of terror will be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution,” UNWRWA said in a statement on its website.

Mr. Guterres was due to meet Catherine Colonna, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of France, who heads the Independent Review Group. Its work was scheduled to begin on 14 February aided by three research organizations: the Raoul Wallenberg Institute in Sweden, the Chr. Michelsen Institute in Norway, and the Danish Institute for Human Rights.

The final report, which will be made public, is expected to be completed by late April.

A second, separate investigation is also underway, by the UN’s Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS). It conducts administrative investigations into allegations of misconduct in the workplace. This includes alleged breaches of UN staff regulations, rules and codes of conduct. The findings of this probe will also be presented in a report to the UN Secretary-General.

 

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World News in Brief: Haiti aid delivery continues, South Sudan violence, pandemic treaty talks near end, Guterres on Myanmar crisis

Rampant gang violence has created a humanitarian crisis in the Caribbean country, whose Prime Minister, Ariel Henry, resigned last week.

UN children’s agency UNICEF reported that on Saturday, one of its containers was looted at the main port in the capital city. 

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The container held essential items for maternal, neonatal and child survival, including resuscitators, as well as water equipment and critical supplies for early childhood development and education. 

Condemning the looting, UNICEF emphasized that depriving children of vital health supplies amidst a collapsing healthcare system is a violation of their rights.

Discussions continue with port and State authorities on efforts to secure more than 300 containers belonging to UN agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Port-au-Prince. 

Delivering meals, tracking displacement 

Meanwhile, since early March, the World Food Programme (WFP) has delivered 115,000 hot meals to people displaced in the capital.

UN health agency WHO and its regional office, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), continue to support the Hôpital Universitaire la Paix, the sole public hospital in Port-au-Prince with the capacity to treat trauma. 

A new survey by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) found that in addition to creating displacement within the capital area, attacks and insecurity are pushing more and more people to leave the city to find refuge in provinces, taking the risk of passing through gang-controlled routes. 

IOM said nearly 17,000 people left the capital from 8 to 14 March, and more than half are heading towards the Grand Sud departments – a region that is already hosting more than 116,000 people who have fled the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince in recent months. 

South Sudan: Surge in intercommunal conflict harms civilians

Civilians are bearing the brunt of a surge in intercommunal conflict in pockets of South Sudan, the UN Mission in the country, UNMISS, said on Monday.

UNMISS published its latest quarterly report on violence affecting civilians, which covers the period from October to December 2023.

A total of 233 incidents were documented during these months, with 862 victims either killed, injured, abducted or subjected to conflict-related sexual violence.

Warrap state was the main hotspot, with a staggering 87 per cent spike in victims as compared to the previous quarter, rising from 244 to 457.

Retaliatory attacks

The report specifies that more than half of those affected by overall subnational violence were caught up in retaliatory attacks related to the ongoing dispute between Dinka Twic Mayardit in Warrap and Dinka Ngok communities in the Abyei region. 

“UNMISS is doing all it can to prevent violence and build peace in the affected areas, but urgent intervention by authorities at the national, state and local levels is needed to resolve underlying grievances and build peace,” said Nicholas Haysom, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of UNMISS.

The report also revealed a nearly 55 per cent increase in abduction victims, from 65 to 100, mainly men and boys. 

Additionally, 104 victims were subjected to sexual violence. Of this number, 63, including 12 minors, experienced conflict-related sexual violence. Another 41, mainly girls and women, suffered sexual and gender-based violence.

UNMISS said that although this represented a 20 per cent decrease in victims compared to the previous quarter, sexual and gender-based violence remains among the most critical threats.

Testing for COVID-10 (file)
© WHO

Testing for COVID-10 (file)

UN chief ‘deeply concerned’ at deteriorating situation across Myanmar

The Secretary-General is deeply concerned by the deteriorating situation and escalation of conflict in Myanmar, said his Deputy Spokesperson in a statement issued on Monday.

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“He condemns all forms of violence and reiterates his call for the protection of civilians including aid workers in accordance with international humanitarian law, for the cessation of hostilities, and humanitarian access”, said Farhan Haq.

An expansion of the fighting in Rakhine state between the forces of the military regime – which overthrew the democratically elected Government in February 2021 – and separatist and independent militia, is driving a new wave of displacement.

It is also exacerbating pre-existing vulnerabilities and discrimination.

“The Secretary-General calls on all parties to prevent further incitement of communal tensions”, said Mr. Haq.

“He is alarmed by reports of ongoing airstrikes by the military, including today in Minbya township that reportedly killed and injured many civilians. He is concerned by reports of forcible detention and recruitment of youths, including Rohingya, and the potential impact of forced conscription on human rights and on the social fabric of communities in Myanmar.”

Mr. Guterres also called for “sustained” international and regional attention to the Myanmar crisis.

“Addressing the root causes of systemic discrimination in Myanmar and seeking accountability for serious violations of international law will be central to any lasting solution to the crisis.”

Meanwhile the UN is committed to staying and delivering in Myanmar, including the ASEAN regional bloc “to attain sustainable peace.”‘

Pandemic treaty’ deal enters final round of negotiations 

The head of the UN health agency issued an appeal on Monday to the international community not to miss the chance to sign on to the so-called Pandemic Treaty.

“We cannot forget the trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic and the painful lessons it taught all of us,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, as he urged Member States not to forget “the seven million people” at least who died during the coronavirus emergency.

Countries gathered at World Health Organization (WHO) headquarters in Geneva have begun a nine-day negotiating marathon towards finalising a draft agreement.

Tedros told delegations that the “potential benefit” of the treaty “cannot be measured and will endure for generations”.

But, media reports have indicated that potential obstacles to a deal include concerns among low- and middle-income countries that they may not be compensated sufficiently for working with drug manufacturers nor given enough technical know-how to make medicines themselves. 

24 million Sudanese children facing ‘generational catastrophe’

Since the conflict erupted in April 2023, pitting the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) against the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the CRC – an independent body ensuring children’s rights and protections worldwide – has documented a litany of atrocities.

There were worrying reports of rape of civilians, including children, denial of humanitarian access affecting children’s access to basic necessities and other violations of international law, including violations of children’s economic and social rights,” the Committee said in a news release.

The situation has thrust almost 24 million Sudanese children into jeopardy, with a staggering 14 million requiring urgent humanitarian assistance, 19 million deprived of education and four million displaced from their homes.

Their conditions are appalling,” the Committee added, noting acute shortages of food and clean drinking water and severely limited access to healthcare and medicines.

Sharp increase in violations

The Committee also warned of a sharp increase in the number of children killed or falling victim to sexual violence as a weapon of war compared to a year ago.

Children are at higher risk given the widespread armed recruitment of children, particularly in Darfur and other areas, including eastern Sudan, it said.

“Schools across the country have either been destroyed or at least 170 campuses turned into emergency shelters for internally displaced people, thus jeopardizing children’s right to education for many years to come and exposing them to the risk of sexual exploitation and trafficking,” it added.

Decisive action

The Committee called on Sudan to immediately take all urgent and necessary measures to end the severe violations and fulfil its commitments under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as to cooperate with the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission for the Sudan, established by the Human Rights Council in October 2023.

It also reminded the State of its obligations under the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict, amid reports that both SAF and RSF recruited hundreds of children in Darfur and eastern Sudan.

“The Committee calls on Sudan to immediately stop recruiting children and to spare them from the impact of the military operations of the two parties,” the Committee said.

Famine could happen ‘anytime’ in Gaza’s northern governorates, warn UN humanitarians

“Famine is projected to occur anytime between now and May 2024 in the northern governorates,” the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said, upon publication of a new Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report on Gaza.

Meanwhile, in response to the unfolding situation at Al-Shifa, UN World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, insisted that “hospitals should never be battlegrounds”.

The lives of medical workers, patients and civilians were at stake, the WHO chief warned, adding that “minimal” health services had only recently been restored at Al-Shifa.

IPC: A key aid tool

IPC forecasts are compiled from on-the-ground assessments which humanitarians then use to respond to the most at-risk individuals. Data indicates that the “entire population” of Gaza – some 2.3 million people – are enduring high levels of “acute” food insecurity. This includes 1.11 million suffering from “catastrophic” food insecurity – IPC Phase 5.

Grim hunger data

Compared to the last IPC analysis in December, acute food insecurity in the Gaza Strip has “deepened and widened”, FAO noted, with 79 per cent more Gazans likely “sliding into catastrophic levels of hunger” from mid-February to mid-March, and 92 per cent more expected to do so between now and July.

“If no steps are taken to cease hostilities and to provide more humanitarian access, famine is imminent,” said FAO Deputy Director-General Beth Bechdol. “It could already be occurring. Immediate access is needed to facilitate delivery of urgent and critical assistance at scale.”

Skipping meals

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The IPC report noted that virtually all households now skip meals every day in Gaza. Adults have reduced their meals so that children can eat. “In the northern governorates, in nearly two-thirds of the households, people went entire days and nights without eating at least 10 times in the last 30 days,” the FAO said, adding that in northern governorates, one in three children under the age of two is acutely malnourished.

The development follows repeated international calls for a ceasefire and the release of all remaining hostages taken during Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel on 7 October that killed some 1,200 people. 

Continuing international efforts for a ceasefire and the release of Israeli hostages were due to continue on Monday with the delayed arrival of Israeli negotiators in Qatar, reports indicated.

Rafah alert

In a social media post at the weekend, the WHO chief Tedros expressed grave concern that preparations were continuing for an Israeli ground assault on Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza where well over one million people have sought shelter in packed conditions.

“(A) further escalation of violence in this densely populated area would lead to many more deaths and suffering, especially with health facilities already overwhelmed,” Tedros wrote on Saturday. “The 1.2 million people in Rafah do not have anywhere safe to move to…Many people are too fragile, hungry and sick to be moved again. In the name of humanity, we appeal to Israel not to proceed and instead to work towards peace.”

No end to bombing

And amid intense Israeli bombardment of Gaza, the FAO noted that hostilities had halted supplies of water, food and fuel. All food-related sectors had “collapsed” the UN agency continued, including vegetable production, livestock production, and fisheries and aquaculture.

Around 60 to 70 per cent of meat and dairy-producing livestock in Gaza have been either killed or prematurely slaughtered to meet the dire food needs stemming from the conflict.

To help Gazans, FAO has mobilized to provide key agricultural supplies into the Strip “as soon as conditions allow”. The Organization said that its initial priority was to move animal feed including 1,500 tonnes of barley, “through one or two of the remaining open border crossings where food distribution is taking place”. 

This barley delivery “should be sufficient to provide milk for all children under 10 years of age in Gaza”, FAO said, noting that it would provide around 20 per cent of recommended calories for children.

Death toll latest

According to the Gaza health authority, 31,726 people have now been killed in the Strip and 73,792 injured since the outbreak of hostilities following the Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel that left some 1,200 dead and more than 250 taken hostage. 

The development came as the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned that life-threatening malnutrition was “spreading fast” and reaching unprecedented levels, “due to the wide-reaching impacts of the war and ongoing restrictions on aid delivery”.

Echoing those concerns, the UN’s top aid official, Martin Griffiths, told a humanitarian forum on Monday that the Organization and its partners were suffering from “an age of war in which reaching for the gun is increasingly the first option…an age in which the UN for example is prevented from doing its job and then criticized for not doing enough. We see this in Gaza.”

At the same meeting in Brussels, Natalie Boucly, Deputy Commissioner-General of the UN agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNWRA), insisted that it remained the “backbone” of humanitarian operations in Gaza. 

The agency is key to humanitarian assistance in Strip, she maintained, working with partners including the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) – which had vaccinated 53,000 children since January in seven remaining UNRWA shelters –  the WHO, the UN World Food Programme (WFP), the UN migration agency (IOM), UNOPS and other non-UN partners, she insisted, “from the reception to the storage to the distribution of aid and the tracking, the reporting, the logistics, the fuel, the vehicles and the accommodation – and the coordination with the Israeli authority”.

In a call for more aid crossing points into Gaza, the UNRWA official pledged to “scale up and we would have much larger and bigger partnerships if the environment for us to have more food coming into Gaza and more aid coming into Gaza and then be able to distribute it, if that environment was enabled. At the moment it is very difficult to operate,” she continued, pointing to the “trickle” of aid entering Gaza currently – some 99 trucks a day.

“All the constraints around getting the aid in need to be eased, we need to have more stable communication (and) internet – all this has broken down,” she insisted.

 

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UN chief condemns attack on peacekeepers in DR Congo

The incident occurred in the vicinity of Sake, just 20 kilometers from Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu. 

The wounded peacekeepers, who were part of Operation Springbok initiated last November to safeguard civilians in the region, sustained their injuries amidst the ongoing fighting, where UN troops have been assisting Government forces in order to protect vulnerable civilians.

In a strongly-worded statement issued by his Spokesperson, UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the attack, emphasizing that it could amount to a war crime under international law.

Expressing his wishes for a swift recovery for the injured peacekeepers, he reiterated calls for all armed groups, Congolese and foreign fighters alike, to immediately cease hostilities and engage in the disarmament process.

Furthermore, the UN chief emphasized the necessity for M23 to withdraw entirely from territory it has occupied and conform to the agreements outlined in the Luanda communiqué of November 2022, to uphold the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the DRC.

Bintou Keita, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in the DRC and head of the UN mission MONUSCO, joined in the condemnation, denouncing the attack . 

She said that one of the wounded ‘blue helmets’ had suffered severe injuries and all have been evacuated for appropriate medical care.

The peacekeepers had been deployed for several weeks as part of Operation Springbok in the restive North Kivu area, working jointly with Government troops in military operations. Ms. Keita reaffirmed MONUSCO’s commitment to support investigations in the hopes of bringing those responsible to justice.

The Secretary-General and his Special Representative reaffirmed MONUSCO’s resolve to further implement its protection of civilians mandate from the Security Council and work alongside Congolese defence and security forces to reinforce joint and unilateral patrols to protect civilians.

Top UN official slams Russia’s illegal elections in occupied Ukraine

“Russia’s intention to conduct presidential elections from today, 15 March, until 17 March in areas of Ukraine under its control are unacceptable,” said Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, said.

Under international humanitarian law, the occupying power – in this case, Russia – must uphold the laws of Ukraine in the occupied territories, she continued.

‘Unspeakable suffering and destruction’

Noting that 16 March marks a decade since Russia’s unlawful attempt to annex Crimea and Sevastopol through a “so-called referendum”, she said Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 has seen further annexation attempts in Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions of Ukraine.

She highlighted General Assembly resolutions condemning these illegal actions and pointed to UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine reports on past “so-called referenda” and local elections conducted in a “coercive environment”.

“Any annexation of a State’s territory by another State resulting from the threat or use of force is a violation of the principles of the UN Charter and international law,” she said, “yet, that is what the Russian Federation has attempted in Ukraine, causing, in the process, unspeakable suffering and destruction.”

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Growing humanitarian concerns

She said the humanitarian situation in Ukraine remains dire amid the intensification of aerial assaults by Russian forces, as highlighted last week by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

A new report by the Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, published on Friday, provides new insight and confirms previous findings that torture against civilians by Russian authorities in Ukraine and in Russia has been widespread and systematic, she said.

“Victims’ accounts disclose relentless, brutal treatment inflicting severe pain and suffering during prolonged detention, with blatant disregard for human dignity,” she said, adding that all perpetrators of such egregious violations must be held accountable.

“We continue to support efforts to this end by continuing to record these cases and to implore the Russian Federation to facilitate access to all detainees,” she said.

‘Peace continues to elude us’

“As this war is now in its third year, peace continues to elude us,” she said. 

The rising toll of the war on the people of Ukraine is undeniable, and women constitute the vast majority of 6.2 million people forced to flee their homes during the war, she told ambassadors.

Despite immense obstacles, Ukrainian women have been at the forefront of humanitarian initiatives, and female-led civil society groups were among the earliest responders to the full-scale invasion, she said, adding that it is crucial to recognize their essential role in the long process to recovery and peaceful future of Ukraine.

“The pursuit of peace must be our foremost priority, guided by the UN Charter, international law and General Assembly resolutions,” she said.

Watch Ukraine’s ambassador deliver a statement on behalf of international partners outside the Security Council Chamber here.

World News in Brief: Rights chief appalled at Nigeria mass abductions, ‘pervasive’ hunger in streets of Sudan, Syria child crisis

“I am appalled by the recurrent mass abductions of men, women and children in northern Nigeria. Children have been abducted from schools and women taken while searching for firewood. Such horrors must not become normalised,” he said.

News reports indicate at least 564 people have been abducted since 7 March. More than 280 pupils were abducted that day from a school in Kuriga town in Kaduna State.

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At least 200 others, mostly internally displaced women and children, were also abducted on 7 March in Gamboru Ngala in Borno state while reportedly searching for firewood.

Two days later, gunmen stormed a boarding school in Gidan Bakuso village in Sokoto state and abducted at least 15 pupils. On 12 March, about 69 people were abducted in two raids on a village in the Kajuru area of Kaduna state.

Justice must be done

“I acknowledge the Nigerian authorities’ announcement that they are taking action to safely locate the missing children and reunite them with their families,” said the UN rights chief.

“I urge them to also ensure prompt, thorough and impartial investigations into the abductions and to bring those responsible to justice.”

He called for perpetrators to be identified and brought to account – in compliance with international human rights law – “as a first step towards reining in the impunity that feeds these attacks and abductions”.

Sudan: Hunger ‘pervasive’ in Khartoum streets, warns UNICEF

Hunger across Sudan is on the rise, especially in the capital Khartoum, due to a near year-long war between rival generals that sparked a spiralling humanitarian crisis.

In a new alert, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said that hunger and unaffordable food are now the main worry for desperate civilians.

A child flees from Wad Madani, Al Jazirah state  east-central Sudan following recent armed clashes there.
© UNICEF/Ahmed Elfatih Mohamdee

A child flees from Wad Madani, Al Jazirah state east-central Sudan following recent armed clashes there.

Jill Lawler, UNICEF’s chief of field operations and emergency in Sudan, described to journalists in Geneva on Friday what she had seen in Omdurman just outside Khartoum, where she led the first UN mission to the Sudanese capital since war erupted in April last year.

“Hunger is pervasive; it is the number one concern people expressed,” she said.

“We met one young mother at a hospital whose three-month-old little child was extremely sick because she couldn’t afford milk, so had substituted goat milk, which led to diarrheal conditions. She wasn’t the only one.”

Ms. Lawler said the numbers of acutely malnourished children are rising, and the lean season hasn’t even begun.

She cited worrying projections that nearly 3.7 million children could be acutely malnourished this year in Sudan, including 730,000 who need lifesaving treatment.

The senior UNICEF officer also described how women and girls who had been raped in the first months of war were now delivering babies. Some had been abandoned to the care of hospital staff, who had built a nursery near the delivery ward, she said.

Around 7.5 million children need aid in Syria

After thirteen years of conflict in Syria, almost 7.5 million children in the country are in need of humanitarian assistance – more than at any other time during the conflict, said UNICEF on Friday.

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Repeated cycles of violence and displacement, a crushing economic crisis,  extreme deprivation, disease outbreaks and last year’s devastating earthquakes have left hundreds of thousands of children exposed to long-term health issues.

More than 650,000 under-fives are chronically malnourished, representing an increase of around 150,000 recorded four years ago.

According to a recent household survey conducted in northern Syria, 34 per cent of girls and 31 per cent of boys reported psychosocial distress, UNICEF reported.

Child deaths will continue

“The sad reality is that today, and in the days ahead, many children in Syria will mark their 13th birthdays, becoming teenagers, knowing that their entire childhood to date has been marked by conflict, displacement and deprivation,” said UNICEF regional director for the Middle East and North Africa Adele Khodr.

Marking the grim anniversary of the start of Syria’s civil war, UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen emphasized the dire situation highlighting the unprecedented humanitarian crisis with millions in need of assistance, both inside and outside Syria.

He called for an immediate end to violence, the release of those arbitrarily detained and efforts to address the plight of refugees together with the internally displaced.

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I lost hope and will to live in Russian jail, says Ukraine prisoner of war

Latest graphic findings from the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine – created by the Human Rights Council two years ago – highlight the ongoing grave impact of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022.

“I lost any hope and the will to live,” one Ukrainian soldier and former prisoner of war told the Commission of Inquiry, describing how he had been “repeatedly subjected to torture and left with broken bones, broken teeth and gangrene” on an injured foot.

After trying to kill himself at a prison in the town of Donskoy in Tula region, south of Moscow, the soldier recounted how his captors “subjected him to further beating”, said Erik Møse, Commission Chair. 

“Victims’ accounts disclose relentless, brutal treatment inflicting severe pain and suffering during prolonged detention, with blatant disregard for human dignity. This has led to long-lasting physical and mental trauma,” he told journalists in Geneva.

“They beat him on his buttocks in the isolation ward, causing bleeding from his anus,” the investigators reported. “In the yard, they beat him on his face and injured foot, leading to bleeding. They knocked out some of his teeth. He begged them to kill him.”

Erik Møse, Chair of Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine (centre), Commissioner Vrinda Grover (left) and moderator Todd Pitman, OHCHR, at a press conference in Geneva
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Erik Møse, Chair of Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine (centre), Commissioner Vrinda Grover (left) and moderator Todd Pitman, OHCHR, at a press conference in Geneva

Rape, beatings

Testimonies of rape and other sexual attacks against women “also amount to torture”, the Commissioners maintained, pointing to threats of rape against male prisoners of war and the use of electric shocks intended to hurt or humiliate detainees.

“There were beatings, verbal abuse, electronic devices being used on areas, body parts, there was very limited access to food, water necessities,’ Mr. Møse continued. “The whole treatment of the prisoners of war and the picture drawn up, emerging from the way they were dealt with – how they were treated over long periods, months – enables us to use the word ‘horrific’”.

Graphic testimony

The 20-page report relies on testimonies from hundreds of individuals in order to investigate all alleged violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law committed by Russian forces and authorities. 

The publication focuses on the siege and indiscriminate bombardment of Mariupol at the outset of the invasion, the use of torture and rape against civilians, prisoners of war and alleged collaborators, the unlawful transfer of 46 children from a care facility in Kherson to Russian-occupied Crimea in October 2022 and the destruction and damage of protected cultural treasures.

“The evidence shows that Russian authorities have committed violation of international human rights and international humanitarian law and corresponding war crimes,” insisted Commissioner Vrinda Grover. “Further investigations are required to determine whether some of the situations identified may constitute crimes against humanity.”

Mariupol and the ‘road to death’

Detailing the ordeal endured by all those besieged in the southern Ukrainian city of Mariupol, the report noted how survivors emerged from shelters and “recalled seeing large number of dead bodies on the streets in the rubble of their houses and in the cities’ hospitals”.

At least 58 medical centres were destroyed along with 11 power stations, the investigators said, adding that women who fled on foot from the front line called it “the road to death” and expressed a “pervasive feeling of fear”.

“Often, Russian armed forces failed to take feasible precautions to verify that the affected objects are not civilian,” maintained the rights experts, who work in an independent capacity and are not UN staff.

Genocidal intent concerns

Confirming continuing deep concerns about allegations of genocidal intent by the invading forces, Ms. Grover said the Human Rights Council-mandated probe would “look further” into likely “direct and public incitement to commit genocide” by Russian media.

“We have gone through a large number of such statements and have found that many of them used are using dehumanizing language and calls for hate, violence and destruction,” she said. “And we are concerned with statements supporting the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine, calling for the killing of a large number of persons.”

The report is due to be presented to the Human Rights Council on Tuesday 19 March. Watch the launch in Geneva here: https://webtv.un.org/en/schedule/2024-03-19 

Security Council: ‘Risky military adventurism’ could push Yemen into new cycle of war

Briefing ambassadors at the UN Security Council, Hans Grundberg voiced his disappointment at the failure to achieve key milestones that ordinary Yemenis have been demanding, by Ramadan.

“As I briefed last month, the mediation space has grown more complex. This continues to be the case,” he said.

“Although we have tried to shield the peace process from regional developments since the war in Gaza, the reality is, and allow me to repeat myself, that what happens regionally impacts Yemen – and what happens in Yemen can impact the region,” he added.

Special Envoy Hans Grundberg briefs  the Security Council on the situation in Yemen.

Risk of ‘new cycle of war’

The Special Envoy highlighted the complexities, citing the recent targeting of vessels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden by Houthi rebels, also known as Ansar Allah.

The attacks, along with retaliatory strikes by the United States and United Kingdom, further heightened tensions and raised concerns about the potential for a return to widespread conflict, he said.

“With more interests at play, the parties to the conflict in Yemen are more likely to shift calculations and alter their negotiation agendas. In a worst-case scenario, the parties could decide to engage in risky military adventurism that propels Yemen back into a new cycle of war,” he warned.

International commitment crucial

Mr. Grundberg said it was imperative to reach a ceasefire and initiate a political process to resolve the conflict, emphasizing the need to prioritize the voices and experiences of Yemeni women and civil society.

He underscored the importance of continued international support and diplomatic engagement to navigate the current regional turmoil and advance the peace process in Yemen.

He urged the Security Council to remain united in its commitment to a political resolution under UN auspices and pledged to continue his efforts with determination and resolve.

“I will rely on your collective diplomatic action to help me steer the mediation process through the current regional turmoil,” he told ambassadors.

Edem Wosornu, Director of Operations at OCHA, briefs the Security Council on the humanitarian situation in Yemen.
UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe

Edem Wosornu, Director of Operations at OCHA, briefs the Security Council on the humanitarian situation in Yemen.

Humanitarian situation

Also briefing ambassadors, Edem Wosornu, Director of Operations at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), echoed the Special Envoy’s concerns and provided a humanitarian update.

Levels of food insecurity and malnutrition have surged in recent months, posing a real and increasing threat to the lives and well-being of millions of people
 – Edem Wosornu, OCHA

“Levels of food insecurity and malnutrition have surged in recent months, posing a real and increasing threat to the lives and well-being of millions of people, particularly women and children,” she said, noting an 11 per cent increase in hunger since November and nearly half of all children under five experiencing moderate to severe stunting.

Ms. Wosornu attributed the challenges to the ongoing conflict, economic crisis, and severe funding shortfalls, which have forced reductions in aid distribution, particularly in Houthi-controlled regions.

Need for funds

The OCHA official also stressed the importance of immediate funding, highlighting that for most Yemenis, food insecurity is an issue of affordability rather than accessibility.

She urged donors to step up their contributions to meet the $230 million required by the World Food Programme (WFP) over the next five months, while also emphasizing the need for sustainable solutions to address the root causes of humanitarian needs.

Sharing insights from her recent visits to Yemeni communities, where women expressed aspirations for economic empowerment and self-reliance, Ms. Wosornu reiterated her concerns that rising regional tensions and escalating conflicts in the Red Sea threaten to undermine these modest economic improvements.

“Attacks against vessels, such as the Rubymar, could have direct and indirect impacts on the livelihoods of thousands of people in coastal communities that rely on fishing for survival,” she warned.

Special Envoy Grunberg spoke to reporters outside the Security Council following the meeting:

Haiti crisis: UN mission announces airbridge to facilitate aid relief

The UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) said on Wednesday that the air corridor will enable the transport of aid and ensure the safe relocation of staff both in and out of the country.

Speaking to reporters in New York on Thursday, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said plans are being made for an aircraft to transport supplies and accommodate staff movements.

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On the ground, relief agencies remain deeply concerned about the welfare of civilians reliant on aid.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), more than 400 incidents hampering access have been recorded across the country since the start of 2024, including more than 70 in the first week of March.

The situation remains unstable in the Caribbean island nation following the recent resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, particularly in the communes of Carrefour, Port-au-Prince and Cité Soleil, while the airport, schools and health facilities remain closed in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area.

According to the UN migration agency, IOM, 362,000 people are displaced in Haiti, including 15,000 newly homeless in Port-au-Prince.

The UN World Food Programme (WFP) has delivered 75,000 meals to people affected by the recent violence.

Some 5.5 million people – almost half the population – need humanitarian aid. But the UN’s 2024 humanitarian appeal for $674 million is funded at just 3.2 per cent.

Funding shortages threaten emergency response

Funding shortages are threatening aid efforts on the ground, Mr. Dujarric said in his briefing at UN Headquarters, adding that WFP will be forced to stop serving hot meals to those who urgently need food as soon as next week due to a lack of funds.

“We have colleagues who remain on the ground at great personal risk, feeding people,” he said, noting that WFP was able to provide 13,000 hot meals to those recently displaced by the violence on Wednesday.

He said at least $10 million is needed immediately to continue such emergency assistance, according to WFP.

UN’s changing footprint in Haiti

Flights from the Dominican Republic are now being planned, Mr. Dujarric said.

An aircraft will deliver aid and emergency crisis coordination specialists while evacuating some non-essential UN employees. The staff movement reflects a reconfiguration of the UN presence in Haiti that is underway to replace non-essential staff with experts, he said.

As for the security crisis, he said a lack of funding is a major obstacle to deploy the multinational support mission that the Security Council approved in October.

“We’re not getting the money we need for that mission to be put together,” he said, adding that there is only $10 million in the fund when much more is required.

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