Middle East

UNICEFF

Lebanon ‘fast spiralling out of control’ leaving many destitute and facing starvation, warns Bachelet 

10 July 2020
Humanitarian Aid

Sounding the alarm over the crippling impact of “growing economic shocks, coupled with the COVID-19 pandemic” in Lebanon, the UN human rights chief called on Friday for a unified response by politicians and the people to overcome the worsening socio-economic crisis there. 

WFP/Mohammed Awadh

Waiting to declare famine ‘will be too late for Yemenis on brink of starvation’

10 July 2020
Humanitarian Aid

In Yemen, fears of famine have resurfaced as UN humanitarians also warned on Friday that 360,000 severely malnourished children could die unless they continue to get treatment and aid is stepped up. In an urgent appeal for funding, the World Food Programme (WFP) said that it needs $200 million per month to maintain assistance in the war-torn country.

© UNICEF/Delil Souleiman

Syria: Top UN officials appeal to donors to help end ‘shocking’ scale of suffering 

30 June 2020
Peace and Security

The UN chief called on the world to step up “financial, humanitarian and political commitments”, to help end nearly a decade of brutal conflict and suffering across Syria, in a video message delivered to the fourth Brussels Donor Conference on Tuesday.

George Fakhry/UNITAD

Iraq: UN probe into ISIL atrocities making ‘real progress’, Security Council hears

15 June 2020
Peace and Security

The special UN Investigative Team probing ISIL atrocities in Iraq is making “real progress,” its chief said on Monday, as it begins to pinpoint the perpetrators of some of the worst crimes committed by the terrorist group during its years-long occupation of large swathes of the country.

IOM

Yemen: ‘Hanging on by a thread’, UN chief requests funding to meet staggering humanitarian crisis

2 June 2020
Humanitarian Aid

More than five years of conflict have left Yemenis “hanging on by a thread, their economy in tatters” and their institutions “facing near-collapse”, the UN chief told a virtual pledging conference on Tuesday, calling for a demonstration of solidarity with some of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable. 

UN OCHA/Giles Clarke

FROM THE FIELD: COVID-19-related ‘tragedy’ unfolding in Yemen

2 June 2020
Humanitarian Aid

A “tragedy” fueled by the spread of COVID-19 which is unfolding in Yemen could affect millions of people there, an international UN-backed pledging conference is expected to hear on Tuesday.

UNDP Syria

Syria violence ‘a ticking time-bomb that must not be ignored’: UN human rights chief

8 May 2020
Peace and Security

As civilian casualties mount across Syria and human rights violations continue unabated, the UN rights chief expressed serious concern on Friday that some parties to the conflict, including ISIL terrorist fighters, may be using the COVID-19 pandemic as “an opportunity to regroup and inflict violence on the population”.  

UNAMI

Iraq: Top UN official calls on political leaders to confront COVID-19 pandemic and unite

26 March 2020
Peace and Security

While the COVID-19 pandemic has compounded the political, security, social and economic crises roiling Iraq, the top UN official in the country hopes it will spur leaders to put aside their differences and unite for the common good.

Photo: UNAMI/Sanaa Kareem

Iraq: UN mission urges ‘maximum restraint' following deadly attack on foreign troops

12 March 2020
Peace and Security

The UN mission in Iraq has called for ‘maximum restraint’ following a deadly attack on foreign forces serving under the United States-led coalition against the militant group ISIL. 

©UNFPA Yemen

Yemen: UN Population Fund stresses women’s needs, amidst world’s worst humanitarian crisis 

4 March 2020
Women

Intense clashes in Yemen’s Al Hazam City, this month have caused massive displacement with an estimated 1,800 families forced to flee their homes, according to a flash update from UN humanitarian coordination office, OCHA.