Middle East and North Africa

NEW YORK/GENEVA/ROME, 21 February 2024 – "In the less than five months that followed the brutal 7 October attacks and the ensuing escalation, tens of thousands of Palestinians – mostly women and children – have been killed and injured in the Gaza Strip. More than three quarters of the population have been forced from their homes, many multiple…

GENEVA/NEW YORK/ROME, 19 February 2024 – A steep rise in malnutrition among children and pregnant and breastfeeding women in the Gaza strip poses grave threats to their health, according to a comprehensive new analysis released by the Global Nutrition Cluster. As the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip enters its 20 th week, food and safe water…

Months of escalating conflict have turned the Gaza Strip into the most dangerous place in the world to be a child.   Every child across Gaza has been exposed to deeply distressing events, witnessing horrors that no child should. Around 1.7 million people are estimated to have been internally displaced by the violence, half of them children.…

GENEVA, 9 February 2024 – “Three hundred days ago, a wave of atrocities were unleashed upon the children of Sudan. “Here is some of what happened in those 300 days: “First: the world’s largest displacement of children has been seen in Sudan. Four million children have been displaced. That’s 13,000 children every single day for 300 days. Safety,…

NEW YORK, 8 February 2024 – “UNICEF is urgently calling on the parties to refrain from military escalation in Rafah Governorate in Gaza where over 600,000 children and their families have been displaced – many of them more than once. “An escalation of the fighting in Rafah, which is already straining under the extraordinary number of people who…

PORT SUDAN, 9 February 2024 – As Sudan’s brutal war hits the 300-day mark, widespread malnutrition, the world’s largest child displacement crisis, and a shattered health system threaten to kill far more children than the armed conflict itself. UNICEF is seeing record levels of admissions for the treatment of severe acute malnutrition (SAM) – the…

GENEVA, 2 February 2024 – "UNICEF estimates that at least 17,000 children in the Gaza Strip are unaccompanied or separated. Each one, a heartbreaking story of loss and grief. "This corresponds to 1% of the overall displaced population - 1.7 million people. "Of course, this is an estimation since it is nearly impossible to gather and verify…

NEW YORK/GENEVA/ROME, 30 January 2024 – The allegations of involvement of several UNRWA staff in the heinous attacks on Israel on 7 October are horrifying. As the Secretary-General has said, any UN employee involved in acts of terror will be held accountable.  However, we must not prevent an entire organization from delivering on its mandate to…

More than three months of escalating conflict, killing and bombardments have left families in Gaza reeling. Each day, children face the risk of death from the sky, disease from lack of safe water, and dangerous shortages of food. Thousands of children have died and thousands more are left confronting a deadly triple threat of conflict, disease,…, Safety, Gaza Strip. A boy walks over the rubble of his destroyed home in Gaza City. A boy walks over the rubble of his destroyed home in Gaza City. Nowhere is safe in the Gaza Strip. The ongoing conflict means that it’s incredibly difficult for UNICEF and partners to move safely across the Gaza Strip and to gain access to children and families in need.…, Logistics, Gaza Strip. People walk past destroyed buildings in the centre of Gaza City. People walk past destroyed buildings in the centre of Gaza City. There aren’t enough trucks and there isn’t enough fuel to operate those that are available. Trucks carrying relief must undergo multiple layers of inspection before entering the Gaza Strip, but the…, Restrictions on commercial goods , Supplies of everyday essentials aren’t getting in to replenish markets. Without the ability to produce or import food, the entire population of Gaza relies on aid to survive. The United Nations, international aid agencies and non-governmental organizations have managed to deliver limited assistance in Gaza, but humanitarian aid alone cannot meet…

GENEVA, 19 January 2024 – “In the 105 days of this escalation in the Gaza Strip, nearly 20,000 babies have been born into war. That’s a baby born into this horrendous war every 10 minutes. “This time last week, I was spending time with mothers at the Emirati Hospital in Rafah, the Gaza Strip. “The day there was a welcome reminder of the strength…

GAZA/ NEW YORK, 18 January 2024 - “I have just finished a three-day visit to the Gaza Strip, where I have been able to coordinate with local and international organizations about the emergency response and take stock of humanitarian operations since the last time I was in the Gaza Strip two months ago. But more than that, I was able to meet with…

GENEVA, 12 January 2024 – “After almost 100 days of violence, killing, bombardment and captivity for children in Gaza, all the suffering has been too much. “With every passing day, children and families in the Gaza Strip face increased risk of death from the sky, disease from lack of safe water, and deprivation from lack of food. And for the two…