“Our humanitarian colleagues tell us that their partners are continuing their intensifying efforts, despite reported Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip,” he said, noting that some strikes have hit areas near the so-called “Yellow Line” – a buffer zone marked by the Israeli military inside Gaza as part of the ceasefire agreement.

“We once again emphasize that all parties must refrain from any activities that endanger civilians, including humanitarian workers..”

Despite the insecurity, UN operations managed to transport large volumes of relief supplies to the enclave. According to the so-called UN 2720 delivery mechanism authorized by the Security CouncilMore than 24,000 tonnes of aid – including food, medicine, nutritional supplements and shelter building materials – have been collected at Gaza crossings since the truce began several weeks ago.

Looting decreases

Encouragingly, looting and aid interceptions have declined sharply. Between October 10 and 28, only 5 percent of supplies were intercepted, compared to around 80 percent in the months before the ceasefire..

The World Health Organization (WHO) has also delivered more than 840 pallets of life-saving medical supplies, including insulin, surgical kits and essential medicines, and is supporting nutrition services to care for some 2,500 children.

But Mr. Dujarric warned that Gaza’s health system remains ‘under immense pressure’with the local Ministry of Health reporting that more than 1,700 health workers have been killed since the start of the war.

In education, agencies are working to restore “minimum teaching and learning conditions” for more than 630,000 school-aged children who have missed more than two years of classes.

More than 90 classrooms have been rehabilitated, although Israeli restrictions on teaching materials continue to hamper efforts.

“We continue to call for all crossing points to be open and more United Nations agencies and organizations authorized to bring humanitarian supplies to Gaza,” Mr. Dujarric said.

Fragile window to resume food production

Despite the catastrophic destruction of Gaza’s agricultural land, the current ceasefire has created a fragile but vital window to restart food production, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and satellite agency UNOSAT said Thursday.

New satellite analysis shows almost 87 percent of cultivated land, 80 percent of greenhouses and almost 87 percent of irrigation wells were damaged since the start of the conflict. But the pause in fighting has opened access to 37 percent of affected agricultural land – of which some 600 hectares remain intact – allowing farmers to begin rehabilitating their land.

“The ceasefire has opened a window of opportunity,” said Beth Bechdol, FAO Deputy Director-General. “Urgent support is needed to restore land and agricultural infrastructure, enable farmers to resume fresh food production, and rebuild fishing and livestock farming so families can put food on the table again. »

FAO stressed that rebuilding food systems now could help stabilize livelihoods and prevent more severe famine in Gaza.

However, its appeal for $75 million to support reconstruction is only 10 percent funded, underscoring the need for rapid international support to seize this brief moment of hope amid widespread devastation.

Since the powerful paramilitary group made a major incursion into the city last week, the UN human rights office has received “Horrific accounts of summary executions, massacres, rapes, attacks on aid workers, looting, kidnappings and forced displacement“, said Seif Magango, spokesperson for the UN human rights office (OHCHR).

Speaking from Nairobi to journalists in Geneva, Mr. Magango said many testimonies had been received from residents who fled in terror as the city fell and then “survived the menacing journey to Tawila, about 70 kilometers away” – a journey that takes three to four days on foot.

Overcrowded camps in Tawila

More than 36,000 people have fled since Saturdaymainly on foot, to Tawila – a town west of El Fasher which already shelters more than 652,000 displaced people people, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

The RSF militia, born from the genocidal violence of the Darfur conflict 20 years ago, has been engaged in a brutal conflict with the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) since April 2023.

Sudan has become the scene of the world’s largest humanitarian and displacement crisis on record, with around 14 million people displaced out of a population of 51 million. Famine is widespread and epidemics of cholera and other deadly diseases are increasing.

The RSF took control of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state, after more than 500 days of siege, having forced the Sudanese army to withdraw earlier this week.

There are alarming reports of killings of the sick and injured inside the Saudi maternity ward and in buildings in the Dara Jawila and Al-Matar neighborhoods, which served as temporary medical centers.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 460 patients and attendants were killed in the alleged massacre.

“These extremely serious allegations raise urgent questions about the circumstances of these killings in what should be safe locations,” Mr Magango said.

He called for an independent, transparent and prompt investigation to ensure justice is served.

OHCHR has also received alarming reports of sexual violence from humanitarian partners on the ground. “At least 25 women were gang raped when RSF forces entered a shelter for displaced people near El Fasher University.. Witnesses confirm that RSF personnel selected women and girls and raped them at gunpoint,” Mr. Magango said.

This violence has also targeted humanitarian workers and local volunteers who support vulnerable communities in El Fasher.

Attacks on doctors

The World Health Organization (WHO) has corroborated reports of attacks on health facilities and personnel, condemning the kidnapping of six health workers – four doctors, a nurse and a pharmacist. Saudi maternity hospital attacked five times in October alone.

Following the fall of El Fasher, the UN health agency is currently “unable to provide assistance to those affected by injuries caused by multiple attacks on civilians”, explained Dr Teresa Zakaria, head of the WHO’s humanitarian operations unit.

The WHO has confirmed that 189 attacks have been verified in Sudan this year, leaving 1,670 people dead and 419 injured. “Eighty-six percent of all these attack-related deaths have occurred this year alone, indicating that attacks are becoming more deadly,” Dr. Zakaria said.

Massive lack of funding

“To date, the Sudan Humanitarian Response Plan is only 27.4 percent funded – a very, very significant gap,” added Dr Zakaria. “For the health sector itself, funding is 37 percent, so we have a lot of difficulty finding resources. That’s why we call on the international community not to abandon the Sudanese people, because the main actors are our Sudanese organizations, which continue to be present and provide aid“.

With the capture of El Fasher, the RSF’s territorial control now extends to all of Darfur and parts of southern Sudan, while the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) controls the capital, Khartoum, as well as much of the north and center of the country.

More than 60 people have been killed in the series of attacks which have continued since the beginning of September “in circumstances which find no justification in international law“, Volker Türk said in a statement.

He urged the United States to stop its “unacceptable” operations and take steps to prevent “extrajudicial execution of people on board these boats, regardless of the criminal behavior with which they are accused.”

Beyond the law

The United States defended the operations as part of its ongoing efforts to combat drug trafficking and terrorism, saying they were within the framework of international humanitarian law.

Mr Türk rejected this argument, emphasizing that combating illicit drug trafficking is a matter of law enforcement, governed by prudent limits on lethal force set out in international human rights law.

He stressed that the intentional use of deadly force is lawful. only as a last resort when individuals pose an imminent threat to life.

Call for surveys

“Based on the very scant information publicly provided by U.S. authorities, none of the individuals on board the targeted vessels appeared to pose an imminent threat to the lives of others or in any way justified the use of lethal armed force against them under international law,” Mr. Türk said.

The High Commissioner called for prompt, independent and transparent investigations into the reported attacks.

While recognizing the serious challenges posed by drug trafficking, Mr. Türk urged the United States to ensure that all counter-narcotics operations respect international law, including the treaties to which it is a party.

“The United States should investigate and, if necessary, prosecute and punish individuals accused of serious crimes, consistent with the fundamental rule of law principles of due process and fair trial, which the United States has long upheld,” he concluded.

Torrential rains, storm surges and landslides caused by the hurricane left a trail of destruction across the region, with homes razed, roads and bridges washed away, and large areas still without power, internet access and other telecommunications.

The UN Office of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said aid supplies were on the way and emergency teams were supporting government responses in Jamaica, Cuba and Haiti.

Jamaica, food support

In Jamaica, the World Food Program (PAM) helped the government with logistics, communications and cash support, delivering 5,000 food kits, enough to feed 15,000 people for a week.

The situation in the south of the country remains “apocalyptic”with homes submerged, roads blocked and people sleeping in the streets, said Brian Bogart, WFP country director.

Despite this, Mr. Bogart noted that advance preparation efforts had helped speed up the response, but stressed that Jamaica’s resilience “must now be supported”.

The UN deploys emergency medical teams, supports water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) efforts, provides psychological care and contributes to disease surveillance.

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is preparing to send 5.5 tons of humanitarian aid, including health and trauma kits, medical backpacks, tents, water supplies, mosquito nets and personal protective equipment.

More than 284,000 Jamaican children now urgently need help in health, education, nutrition and protection, the local UN children’s agency said (UNICEF) team.

“Yesterday we were on our way to Black River in St Elizabeth, one of the hardest hit areas, but the roads were blocked by fallen trees and power lines, preventing us from reaching the most affected communities.“, said Olga Isaza, the most senior UNICEF official on the island.

The agency is responding quickly to help the government and other partners assess needs and deliver prepositioned supplies, including food, clean water, medicine and emergency hygiene kits. Additional humanitarian aid is ready to be flown in.

Cuba, health aid

At the same time, from its regional strategic stockpile in Panama, PAHO shipped 2.6 tons of humanitarian aid to Cuba.

The shipment includes emergency kits containing medicines, medical and surgical equipment sufficient to treat 5,000 people for three months. It also includes chlorine tablets to treat millions of liters of water, as well as essential medical supplies and shelter.

UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said that in eastern Cuba, “preliminary assessments indicate serious damage in Santiago, Holguín, Granma and Guantanamo, including to homes, roads and health facilities,” adding that “hundreds of communities remain isolated and access continues to be hampered by damaged road, rail and air infrastructure.”

Once ground communications are restored, supplies will be delivered to the worst-affected areas of eastern Cuba.

Mr Dujarric said the UN “together with our partners is supporting national authorities with assessments and early recovery plans”.

UN News interviewed Dennis Zulu, UN Resident Coordinator and highest official in Jamaica, about the immediate priorities on the ground:

The heavy humanitarian and psychological toll of these strikes is compounded by the fact that this year’s winter is expected to be much colder than last year’s – with the level of destruction of electrical installations exceeding the capacity for reconstruction.

“We are very worried about the fate of people living in high-rise buildings in cities close to the front line – this could turn into a major crisis.“, Matthias Schmale, United Nations resident and humanitarian coordinator in Ukraine, told reporters in Geneva.

Mr Schmale’s comments come a day after a massive Russian attack across Ukraine reportedly targeted critical energy infrastructure in civilian areas.

High-rise target

With 705 munitions reportedly deployed, the barrage was among the largest since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.

If residents of front-line cities like Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv or Dnipro, living in high-rise buildings, are “stranded without electricity or drinking water for days on end” during a harsh winter, Schmale explained, then “there is no way that with the available resources we will be able to respond to a major crisis within a crisis.”

“The destruction of energy production and distribution capacities at the start of winter has an obvious impact on the civilian population and constitutes a form of terror,” insisted Mr. Schmale. “Continuing strikes across the country also make it feel like nowhere is safe…for almost a year and a half there, [I] we feel and feel that the impact of this war on mental health is increasing,” he added.

Drone Wars

“It’s increasingly a technological war, a war of drones“, said the UN official, emphasizing that drones were responsible for a third of all civilian casualties recorded in 2025.

This year, the number of civilian deaths increased by 30% compared to 2024.

Civilian victims of Thursday’s attack included a seven-year-old girl who died in hospital following a strike in the central Vinnytsia region.

Earlier this week, an attack severely damaged a children’s hospital in the city of Kherson, injuring a child and health workers.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recorded 364 attacks affecting health establishments in Ukraine between January and October 2025.

School horror

Mr Schmale recounted his own recent experience, which he called a “poignant moment”, visiting a kindergarten in Kharkiv just after it was hit by three missiles.

“I imagined that as a parent, you drop your kids off in the morning at a kindergarten and then get called back two and a half hours later … to pick up your traumatized children who have just had three missiles hit their kindergarten,” he said.

“This notion of safety for vulnerable people and children is in reality constantly violated. »

Regarding the situation in the Ukrainian territories occupied by the Russian Federation, the UN humanitarian coordinator said that the longer the war continues, “the more we risk forgetting the vulnerable people” in these areas.

According to estimates, “around a million people are vulnerable in the so-called temporarily occupied territories,” he said.

Attack on citizenship

Mr. Schmale also warned of the “attacks on fundamental rights” that are underway there, “including against citizenship”.

“From what I understand, the occupying forces insist that Ukrainians now register for Russian documents in the occupied territories, and if they do not do so, they will be considered illegal and may be deported or arrested,” he said.

The UN official further expressed concern over dwindling funds for Ukraine’s humanitarian response, describing a “downward trend.”

“In 2022, we had more than $4 billion available for humanitarian work in Ukraine. [In] In 2023, it was still $2.6 [billion]. Last year, remarkably, 2024, with everything going on in the world, there was still $2.2 left [billion]“, he said.

“This year we are at $1.1 [billion]”, so far, half of what we got last year and two months to go” until the end of 2025, he added.