Gaza civilians cannot wait for diplomacy, UN relief chief tells Security Council
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher warned the Security Council that Gaza civilians cannot wait for diplomacy as the territory is held together only by humanitarian workarounds and Palestinian perseverance, while multiple global conflicts continue to drive displacement, disease outbreaks and civilian casualties in Lebanon, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Mozambique.
Gaza civilians deprived of basics as disease rises
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher told the Security Council that civilians in Gaza cannot wait for a more convenient diplomatic moment to receive the basics for survival. [1] He warned that “Gaza is being held together by humanitarian workarounds and Palestinian perseverance.” [1] Palestinians in Gaza remain deprived of the basics that all families need: safety, shelter, clean water, health care and education. [1] Fletcher paid tribute to humanitarian workers who have made progress since the announcement of a ceasefire eight months ago and called on Member States to ensure protection of civilians, humanitarian access and timely funding. [1] Palestinians are being squeezed into an ever-shrinking strip of land, and their lives are shaped by the indignity of the constantly shifting “yellow” and “orange” lines that define where they can seek refuge. [1] On the public health front in Gaza, partners have seen a further increase in diseases related to ectoparasites and rodents in recent weeks as temperatures climb and sanitation services remain inadequate. [1] In the second week of June, partners trained nearly 100 people in multiple displacement sites on how to better detect and report disease. [1] At the same time, partners are exhausting stocks of pesticides and rodenticides that they brought into Gaza last month. [1] Procurement of new supplies is underway, but the lack of key chemicals for indoor spraying leaves shelters exposed. [1] These and other items require approval from Israeli authorities to take into Gaza. [1] Israel’s military has deployed almost two-dozen military cranes in Gaza to launch attacks and conduct surveillance operations. [2] Researchers at the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights documented cases of the cranes being used to fire on civilian areas, resulting in deaths and injuries. [2] The cranes, some of which are operated remotely, are also equipped with cameras and are used to surveil the population. [2] Their use is additional evidence of a systematic policy aimed at undermining the basic survival of the civilian population and creating a coercive environment that repeatedly displaces the population. [2] The cranes have been set up at 23 locations behind the so-called yellow line, which separates Israel-occupied Gaza from the rest of the territory. [2] Israeli forces continue to regularly conduct attacks across Gaza, defying the October ceasefire agreement that was supposed to bring an end to the assault. [2] Gaza health authorities say more than 1,000 people have been killed and another 3,165 others injured since the agreement came into force on 10 October. [2] At least four people were reportedly killed in a new round of strikes on Thursday. [2] Medics said an Israeli airstrike on a vehicle in Gaza City killed three people. [2] Another was killed by Israeli forces in central Gaza. [2] The latest attacks came after mediators met in Cairo to discuss Donald Trump’s roadmap to end the war, which involves Israel’s withdrawal and Hamas’s disarmament. [2] Since October 2023, Israel’s assault has killed at least 73,018 people and wounded 173,273 others. [2]
Lebanon ceasefire leaves civilians exposed to ongoing strikes
OCHA warns that, for many displaced families in Lebanon, ceasefire announcements have yet to translate into improved safety or the ability to return home and stay home. [1] People continue to flee amid the insecurity. [1] Overnight, according to preliminary figures from local authorities, at least 18 people were reportedly killed and 33 injured in the Nabatieh and South Governorates, while additional strikes in Baalbek-Hermel Governorate were also reported today, underscoring the continued risks to civilians. [1] Insecurity, destruction of homes and infrastructure, and the presence of unexploded ordnance continue to prevent people from returning to their communities safely and sustainably. [1] In the coastal city of Saida, this morning, during a joint visit by the French and British Ministers of Development, together with Imran Riza, the Humanitarian Coordinator, to a collective shelter, site managers reported that many families who had initially left following the recent agreement have now returned. [1] In one shelter, nearly half of families who had departed earlier this week were reported to have returned as of this morning, with others also indicating that they plan to come back. [1] Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said “all of Lebanon must burn” in a social media post after the deaths of four Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon. [5] “For every tear of an Israeli mother, a thousand Lebanese mothers should cry,” Ben Gvir wrote on X. [5] He openly stated that he has pushed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to abandon “measured” military strategies in the region. [5] “Enough with the ping-pong. In the Middle East, you don’t win with measured responses and containment — you have to go crazy. Erase. Defeat terrorism.” [5] Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi responded directly to Ben Gvir’s post on X, saying that the comments should be viewed as official state rhetoric. [5] “This is not a rant by a random genocidal lunatic. It’s a public post by the national security minister of the Israeli regime,” Araghchi posted. [5] Ben Gvir’s comments were closely mirrored by fellow far-right cabinet member, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who similarly called on Israel to “open the gates of hell” on Lebanon in a social media post the same day. [5] Some other senior Israeli officials have openly said that troops will remain in southern Lebanon indefinitely, following the deaths of four Israeli soldiers there on Friday, including a battalion commander. [5] Despite the signing of the memorandum of understanding on Thursday, which effectively implements a ceasefire on all fronts, including Lebanon, strikes between the Israeli military and Hezbollah continued overnight. [5] Lebanon’s death toll on Friday due to Israeli airstrikes has risen to 47 killed since midnight. [5] Israel has conducted at least 12 strikes on southern Lebanon since the announcement of the ceasefire with Hezbollah in the afternoon. [5] Lebanon’s Ministry of Health says Israeli attacks since 2 March across the country have killed at least 3,696 people and injured 11,413 others. [5]
Sexual violence has increased in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado province amid ongoing conflict. — Source: rfi
Sudan aid operations intensify around El Obeid drone attacks
OCHA reports that it continues to closely follow the situation in and around the city of El Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan state, Sudan. [1] The UN has seen further reports of drone attacks overnight. [1] For now, the area remains accessible. [1] OCHA says it and its humanitarian partners are focusing on moving food and other supplies into the city, while preparing for the potential movement of large numbers of people from the immediate area. [1]
Ebola risks escalate in overcrowded DRC displacement camps
OCHA is sounding the alarm over deteriorating conditions in displacement camps across the province of Ituri in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [1] Overcrowding and poor sanitation in these sites are heightening the risk of Ebola transmission. [1] More than 270,000 people, mostly women and children, are sheltering in over 60 sites across the province, many of which lack adequate access to water, sanitation and health services. [1] The UN has received reports from local partners that, between 17 and 18 June, at least 13 people died in two camps in Bunia. [1] Response teams are urgently investigating whether these deaths are linked to Ebola to ensure that appropriate response measures are put in place. [1] Since April, at least 62 deaths have been reported in camps around the city. [1] These deaths are occurring amid a broader Ebola flare-up in Bunia, where mistrust of health facilities, congestion, gaps in prevention measures and unsafe handling of bodies are driving transmission risks among people in displacement camps. [1] This is particularly concerning as Ituri province remains the epicentre of the outbreak, accounting for more than 90 per cent of confirmed cases. [1] As of 17 June, authorities have reported 896 confirmed cases across Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu. [1] OCHA and its partners are working with local authorities to strengthen community engagement and scale up health and sanitation efforts in the camps. [1] The current measures are insufficient given the scale of the needs. [1] This Ebola epidemic is unfolding against the backdrop of a broader humanitarian crisis. [1] The 2026 Humanitarian Response Plan, which calls for $1.4 billion, seeks to respond to the full spectrum of humanitarian needs, including food security, protection, water and sanitation, health care and education, for 7.3 million of the DRC’s most vulnerable people. [1] The appeal is currently just over half funded, with $745 million received. [1]
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher addresses the Security Council on Gaza crisis. — Source: cnn
Sexual violence surges in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado conflict
Sexual violence is surging in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province, where women and girls are trapped between insurgents and soldiers after nearly a decade of conflict. [4] Rich in natural gas, precious stones and lithium, the northern province has been scarred by attacks from Islamist militants and reprisals by Mozambique’s armed forces. [4] Just before dawn one morning in March 2021, gunfire woke Olessa Ibrahimou as armed men stormed her village near Palma in northern Mozambique. [4] The 41-year-old was pregnant at the time. [4] She tried to flee with her five children, but they were captured. [4] “They separated the children from the adults,” she recalled. [4] “When they saw me, my three youngest children ran towards me. The bandits spared us because I was pregnant. But they took away my two daughters, who were 15 and 17.” [4] Olessa has not seen her daughters since. [4] Now living in poverty in Pemba, the provincial capital, the only news she has received came from another woman who escaped captivity. [4] “I found a neighbour who had been kidnapped and managed to escape,” she told RFI. [4] “She told me my youngest daughter had a child.” [4] Olessa’s story is one of dozens recorded in a 2024 report by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) titled The Voices of Mozambique. [4] Between January and April 2024, the agency interviewed more than 100 people in seven of Cabo Delgado’s 16 districts. [4] Victims, relatives, aid workers, community leaders and religious leaders all described the same pattern: sexual violence has risen sharply since the conflict began in 2017. [4] The report says large numbers of women and girls have been abducted and trafficked by armed groups. [4] It also documents torture, extrajudicial killings and the use of women and children as human shields by a terrorist group known locally as Al-Shebab and linked to the Islamic State. [4] “Once the girls are kidnapped, they are put online and the armed men make their choice,” a social worker in Mocimboa da Praia, who asked not to be named, told RFI. [4] “Those who are chosen are forced into marriage. The others become slaves of the group.” [4] Women are forced to carry fighters’ equipment, cook and collect firewood. [4] Some are also subjected to sexual slavery. [4] “When they wanted to punish us, they tied our hands behind our backs and left us like that for three days,” one survivor told UNFPA. [4] “During that time, any man who wanted to could come and rape us.” [4] Escaping captivity does not always end the ordeal. [4] Women who return home often face rejection from their own communities. [4] “In towns occupied by the terrorists, such as Palma and Mocimboa da Praia, pregnant women can be discriminated against because communities suspect the father is one of the fighters,” a gender-based violence specialist told UNFPA. [4] The UN report also accuses Mozambique’s armed forces of committing widespread sexual violence. [4] It documents numerous cases of sexual assault and rape. [4] “Yesterday, an officer bought drinks for a girl aged 15 or 16,” one witness told UNFPA. [4] “He asked her to repay him. When she said she had no money, he forced her to sleep with him. There’s a motel right next door. You could hear her screaming and crying.” [4] People interviewed by RFI in Cabo Delgado also described repeated abuses by government soldiers. [4] “They have no respect,” said Saviana Talessa, president of the health committee in Mocimboa da Praia’s 30 June neighbourhood. [4] “They often come at night. They drink. They fire their weapons into the air. We’re afraid of them.” [4] The report says members of the armed forces also harass women in public. [4] “At the markets, they touch women’s breasts and buttocks,” one UNFPA source said. [4] “They take whatever they want without paying.” [4] The report points to almost complete impunity for members of the armed forces, even though those responsible could often be identified. [4] “That creates an additional risk for victims, who regularly come face to face with their attackers,” the report says. [4] The conflict has also driven a rise in sex work, particularly among displaced communities. [4] “Some women have lost their husbands, their land and their livelihoods, and they have children to feed,” the social worker in Mocimboa da Praia said. [4] Displaced women are especially vulnerable to abuse by soldiers, community leaders and even aid workers, the report says. [4] It describes numerous cases in which women were forced to exchange sex for humanitarian assistance and warns of a growing number of children involved in sex work. [4] The delayed development of Cabo Delgado’s gas industry has also contributed to the problem. [4] One of the world’s largest natural gas discoveries was made off the coast of Palma in 2012. [4] An international consortium led by French energy company TotalEnergies had planned to begin production in 2017, but the Mozambique LNG project was suspended for several years because of the deteriorating security situation. [4] According to the UNFPA report, “businessmen have been accused of taking part in sexual exploitation.” [4] It says they work for private companies and that some witnesses described them as Mozambicans from outside Cabo Delgado. [4] Most of the reported cases took place in Palma. [4] “They tell women and girls that if they sleep with them, they’ll get a job,” one UNFPA source said. [4] “But the job never comes.” [4] Although The Voices of Mozambique was never made public, UNFPA said the findings were nevertheless used to develop humanitarian programmes aimed at tackling gender-based violence. [4] Conflict-monitoring organisation ACLED said the number of deadly attacks in 2024 rose by 36 percent compared with the previous year. [4]
UN calls for defense of humanitarian principles amid global crises
Today marked the end of the Economic and Social Council Humanitarian Affairs Segment. [1] The three-day annual event brought together Member States, the UN system, humanitarian and development partners, as well as the private sector, to discuss challenges and opportunities to strengthen the coordination and effectiveness of the UN’s humanitarian work. [1] In his closing remarks, Fletcher announced that to date, the UN and its partners have reached 25.3 million people in the highest severity crises with life-saving aid. [1] He underscored that the humanitarian system is delivering genuine change in the way that it works, cutting inefficiencies and duplication, as well as “liberating humanitarian action from the egos, logos and silos of the humanitarian system.” [1] Fletcher welcomed this week’s discussions on accelerating a genuine power and decision-making shift from capitals to operations, closer to the people who need assistance, calling on participants to “defend [humanitarian] values and principles in the face of whatever provocation, whatever challenge from whatever quarter.” [1]
What to watch next: Continued reports of drone attacks around El Obeid in Sudan, further investigations into deaths in Bunia displacement camps for possible Ebola links, and additional strikes in Lebanon’s Nabatieh, South and Baalbek-Hermel governorates despite the ceasefire announcement.
