Today's top news: Lebanon, Syria, Iran, Occupied Palestinian Territory
#Lebanon
UN official wraps up visit to Lebanon warns of increasing humanitarian risks
Tom Fletcher, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, concluded his visit to Lebanon today.
He met with the Speaker of Parliament, Nabih Berri, and also visited a collective shelter and met with displaced families and frontline responders, including Lebanese Red Cross staff and ambulance teams.
As Fletcher stressed to the Security Council yesterday, the scale of displacement is exposing people to increasing risks. More than 1.1 million people have been forced from their homes, many of them now living in overcrowded shelters or informal settings. Women and girls are at heightened risk in unfamiliar and often unsafe conditions. While some displaced people are hosted in shelters, many others are staying with relatives or have been forced to live in their cars or in the open.
The scale of humanitarian needs continues to outpace available resources. Just a third – or $94 million – of the $308 million has been funded for the Flash Appeal. The UN says it urgently needs more funding to sustain and scale up the humanitarian response as needs surge.
Meanwhile, hostilities continue, with the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health reporting that at least 1,268 people have been killed and 3,750 injured since the beginning of the escalation. Strikes continue to hit residential areas, including Jnah and Khalde near the capital Beirut, last night that killed at least 7 and injured more than 20 people.
Despite these challenges, the UN and its humanitarian partners continue increase efforts to protect and help people. The UN has reached thousands of children and their caregivers with psychosocial support and are working to reunite families and alert people to the dangers posed by explosive remnants of war.
As Fletcher left Lebanon he visited the country’s border with Syria.
More than 200,000 people have crossed from Lebanon into Syria since the start of the escalation, and Fletcher met with families who chose to return to Syria from Lebanon. Many told him of their determination to return to their communities and contribute to rebuilding their country.
The UN and its partners on both sides of the border continue to support people on the move and ensure aid reaches those who most need it.
*Donations made to UN Crisis Relief help UN agencies and humanitarian NGOs reach people in Lebanon with urgent support.
#Syria
UN officials arrive in Syria to advance humanitarian, recovery efforts
Fletcher and Under-Secretary-General Alexander De Croo, the Administrator of the UN Development Programme (UNDP), have arrived in Syria to underscore the need to move from a humanitarian response to development, recovery and reconstruction.
During their visit, they will meet with President Ahmad Al-Sharaa, Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani, and other senior Government officials, as well as with people who have returned to Syria following years of conflict. They will visit UNDP-backed sites that support the clearing of debris and explosive remnants of war.
Together with the Government, Fletcher and De Croo will take part in the launch of this year’s Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan and Syria’s Statement of Recovery Priorities for International Cooperation.
From Damascus, they will speak jointly to reporters in New York tomorrow.
#Iran
Strikes hit hospitals, schools and homes
OCHA reports strikes across Iran continue, severely damaging civilian infrastructure.
The Iranian Ministry of Health reported 309 health facilities and 42 ambulances have sustained damage, with 7 hospitals evacuated since 28 February.
Air strikes have reportedly caused power disruptions and outages, while one desalination plant was reportedly impacted on Qeshm Island in Hormozgan Province.
The Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS) reports that as of 1 April, more than 115,000 civilian health, education, residential and commercial buildings have been impacted, while the Ministry of Education says more than 700 educational facilities have been damaged.
UN agencies and national authorities continue to respond.
As of 1 April, active teams from the IRCS have responded in over 1,200 affected areas, while UNHCR has helped assisted over 42,000 Afghan refugees by providing counselling, legal aid, cash assistance and psychosocial support.
For its part, the International Organization for Migration continues to deliver protection, direct cash assistance and assistance to stranded migrants.
#Occupied Palestinian Territory
UN expands cash assistance to boost faming, tackle food shortages
In Gaza, OCHA and its humanitarian partners continue to deliver critical assistance despite the pressure on Kerem Shalom, the only crossing for cargo.
Yesterday, humanitarians brought over 270,000 litres of fuel into Gaza to keep critical humanitarian services running, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) collected animal fodder, while UNICEF retrieved more than 240 pallets of supplies - nutrition, medicines and kits containing sanitary pads, toothpaste, body wash, underwear and scarves.
OCHA reiterates that to scale up the response, more crossings must be opened for the movement of people and cargo.
Today, FAO announced a scale-up of their cash assistance to reactivate local crop production for an additional 1,000 farmers in Gaza. The assistance builds on a successful pilot from last year, when 200 farmers managed to grow more than 500 metric tons of fresh vegetables with support received through the Occupied Palestinian Territory Humanitarian Fund.
With today’s scale-up, FAO estimates that farmers will be able to feed some 95,000 people for a whole year by producing roughly 5,000 metric tons of vegetables. This will help address food insecurity while boosting employment and income generation.
*Donations made to UN Crisis Relief help UN agencies and humanitarian NGOs reach people in Gaza and the West Bank with urgent support.