Today's top news: Occupied Palestinian Territory, Syria, Sudan, Haiti
#Occupied Palestinian Territory
UN agencies, NGOs urge immediate lifting of impediments to aid operations
UN agencies and more than 200 international and local NGOs issued a statement yesterday urging the international community to take immediate and concrete actions to press the Israeli authorities to lift all impediments to NGO operations and humanitarian access across the Occupied Palestinian Territory, especially in the Gaza Strip.
They warned that restrictive policies – including a new registration system for international NGOs that relies on vague and politicized criteria – are undermining relief efforts and risk the collapse of the humanitarian response.
They also stressed that many essential supplies such as food, medicine, hygiene items and shelter materials remain stuck outside Gaza – and that dozens of international NGOs face deregistration and forced closure by year’s end. The loss of NGO capacity would severely disrupt life-saving services – including healthcare, nutrition treatment, water and sanitation, and emergency shelter – at a time when needs are acute and alternatives cannot fill the gap.
On the ground in Gaza, the UN and its partners continue their efforts to scale up assistance across the Strip despite these challenges, with a focus on providing winter support to mitigate the impact of harsh weather conditions.
Partners say that since the ceasefire came into effect in mid-October and as of Tuesday, they have distributed multi-purpose cash assistance to nearly 139,000 households, compared with over 40,000 in September.
Each household received digital payments equivalent to about US$378. Altogether, more than 305,000 households in the Gaza Strip have received at least one payment this year.
Partners providing education services report that on Tuesday, they distributed hygiene materials to more than 90 temporary learning spaces across the Strip, benefiting nearly 115,000 school-age children. These supplies are particularly critical during the winter rainy season, as they improve sanitation conditions and reduce health risks in overcrowded spaces.
Also on Tuesday, three new temporary learning spaces were established in northern Gaza – two in Gaza city and one in North Gaza governorate – bringing the total number of operational learning spaces across the Strip to more than 400. Several multi-purpose tents were also installed to foster safer learning environments for enrolled students, many of whom are accessing education for the first time.
Finally, partners working on health report that constraints affecting the entry into Gaza of emergency medical teams have eased somewhat in recent weeks. Denial rates have fallen to about 20 per cent, compared with 30 to 35 per cent before the ceasefire. There are currently more than 340 emergency medical team staff in Gaza.
#Syria
Deputy UN Relief Chief urges Security Council to “seize the moment” to support recovery
Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, Joyce Msuya, told the Security Council today that vigorous and diligent international support remains vital as Syria continues to navigate immense opportunities and complex challenges.
She noted that those returning to the country – as well as the millions of people who remain displaced – will continue to rely on humanitarian aid, especially during the cold winter months.
Ms. Msuya stressed that although the current moment has given Syria the opportunity to finally bring down needs, action is required from the Security Council and wider international community for that to happen at pace and at scale.
The Assistant Secretary-General called for attentive diplomacy to de-escalate and resolve ongoing flashpoints, and to prevent new fighting, noting that beyond the immediate humanitarian impact, such violence robs Syria of the stability that will enable desperately needed investments in development.
She also appealed for support for such investments, as well as to sustain and expand the flow of humanitarian assistance in the near term, with needs set to remain immense next year.
“It is rare that a crisis of Syria’s magnitude is presented with such a potential turnaround,” Ms. Msuya concluded. “The past year has provided cause for encouragement for us to redouble our efforts. We must seize the moment.”
#Sudan
Drone strikes, shelling imperil civilians in Kordofan
OCHA is deeply concerned by reports of escalating drone attacks and shelling that continue to harm civilians and drive new displacement in Sudan, particularly across the Kordofan region.
In South Kordofan State, multiple drone strikes and shelling have reportedly hit civilian areas in recent days, including the town of Dilling and the state capital Kadugli. The violence has forced families to flee Dilling on foot towards Kadugli, along routes where landmines and other dangers have been reported. The journey is especially perilous for the most vulnerable – including children, pregnant and lactating women, and older people.
More than 50,000 people have been displaced since late October from locations across the Kordofan region due to heightened insecurity, according to the International Organization for Migration.
In South Kordofan, partners report that more than 1,900 people have arrived in the locality of Abu Jubeihah in the past three days. They are now sheltering in temporary settlements and urgently need food, nutrition, safe drinking water, health services and protection, at a time when humanitarian assistance remains severely overstretched and access is limited.
Meanwhile in North Darfur State, local sources report that drone strikes in recent days caused civilian casualties and displacement in the localities of Kutum, Melit, Um Baro, Tina and Saraf Omra.
The UN and its partners in Tawila continue to help people displaced from the state capital El Fasher and surrounding areas – as well as the Zamzam displacement camp – but needs remain overwhelming and resources scarce. With just days left in the year, Sudan’s humanitarian response plan is only 36 per cent funded, with $1.5 billion received against the $4.2 billion required.
The impact of drone attacks is also being felt beyond front-line areas in Sudan. In the early hours of today, drone strikes on power stations in Atbara, in River Nile State, triggered widespread blackouts – disrupting electricity supplies across multiple towns.
OCHA once again calls for an immediate end to attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure, as well as full respect for international humanitarian law.
#Haiti
UN, partners appeal for $880 million to support over 4 million Haitians next year
The Humanitarian Coordinator in Haiti, Nicole Kouassi, launched the Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan for 2026 in the capital Port-au-Prince today.
The plan seeks $880 million to support 4.2 million vulnerable Haitians out of 6.4 million people who need aid and are bearing the brunt of violence at the hands of armed groups.
Internal displacement triggered by armed violence has doubled in a year. In September 2025, nearly 1.4 million people were internally displaced, representing 12 per cent of Haiti’s total population.
Widespread insecurity in the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince and its gradual spread to regional zones have caused displacement, stifled Haiti’s economy, and limited people’s access to food. Some 5.7 million people – half of Haiti’s population – are currently going hungry every day. That number is expected to increase to 5.9 million people during the lean season that runs from March to June.
The impact of armed violence on women and girls has been devastating. Partners have recorded an average of 27 new cases of gender-based violence per day between January and September 2025, of which more than half are sexual violence. Collective rapes account for two thirds of reported cases of sexual violence.
Ms. Kouassi underscored that despite the immense scale of needs in Haiti, the $908 million humanitarian appeal for this year is just 23 per cent funded, with $206 million mobilized. She called for renewed, substantial and sustained international support.*
*Donations made to UN Crisis Relief help UN agencies and humanitarian NGOs reach people in need in Haiti with urgent support.