World Humanitarian Day 2023

New York, August 17, 2023. – On the eve of World Humanitarian Day, celebrated on August 19, the United Nations today warned that 2023 will turn out to be another year with rising casualties among humanitarian workers.

So far this year, 62 aid workers have lost their lives in crises around the world, 84 have been injured, and 34 have been kidnapped, according to interim data from the research team. Database of Security Workers Assistance from my advisor human outcomes. Last year, the annual death toll rose to 116.

South Sudan has been at the top of the insecurity list for several years in a row. As of August 10, there have been 40 attacks on aid workers, as well as 22 fatalities.

Sudan ranks second, with 17 attacks on aid workers and 19 deaths so far this year. This number exceeds numbers not seen since the height of the conflict in Darfur between 2006 and 2009.

Casualties have also been reported among aid workers in the Central African Republic, Mali, Somalia and Ukraine. Some 444 aid workers were attacked last year. In the previous year, 460 humanitarian workers were attacked, killing 141 people.

This year, World Humanitarian Day marks the 20th anniversary of the suicide bombing that targeted the United Nations headquarters at the Canal Hotel in Baghdad, Iraq in 2003, which killed 22 United Nations staff members. About 150 other people – both local and international humanitarian workers who have helped rebuild Iraq – were injured on that fateful day.

“For me and many others, World Humanitarian Day and the attack on the Canal Hotel will be an occasion of mixed and still tough feelings,” said Martin Griffiths, UN chief of humanitarian affairs.

“Each year, nearly six times as many aid workers are killed in the line of duty on that dark day in Baghdad, the overwhelming majority as local aid workers. The impunity for these crimes destroys our collective conscience. It is time that we comply. We talk about him a lot about standing up for international humanitarian law and that we face impunity for violations.”

Despite the challenges of security and access, aid workers of all levels are campaigning this year to highlight their continued commitment to #WeareHere to help the communities they serve, no matter who, where, or where.

In the face of growing humanitarian needs, the United Nations and its partners are seeking to assist nearly 250 million people in crisis around the world, ten times more than in 2003.

Note to database team editors Database of Security Workers Assistance to human outcomes It indicates that all 2023 numbers are subject to change after the verification process.

Resources Humanitarian Security Data Sheets Advancing the protection of humanitarian workers and health Campaign #EstamosAquí Photos

Media contact:
In New York: Jaspreet Kindra, [email protected], +1 929 273 8109
In Geneva: Jens Laerke, [email protected], +41 79472 9750