Today's top news: Venezuela, Occupied Palestinian Territory, Sudan, Ukraine

Indigenous Venezuelan children play board games during a protection and psychosocial support activity in El Arroyo, Zulia State. Photo: OCHA / Luis Carlos Sánchez.

#Venezuela

Humanitarian situation remains dire, with funding critically low

OCHA says that the humanitarian situation remains dire in Venezuela.

At the start of this year, some 7.9 million people – or more than a quarter of the population – in Venezuela need urgent support.

The United Nations and its humanitarian partners, under the leadership of the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, are assessing the situation, focusing on providing support as needed. They continue to provide assistance to the most vulnerable, including food, health care and protection services.

The United Nations emphasizes the importance of respect for international law, the need to protect civilians and of preserving the humanitarian operational continuity, so that assistance can be delivered in line with humanitarian principles.

Funding is also critical. The Humanitarian Response Plan remains severely underfunded. Last year, only 17 per cent of the more than $600 million needed was received, making it one of the least funded country appeals in the world. More support is urgently needed to keep life-saving aid reaching the most vulnerable.

#Occupied Palestinian Territory

Humanitarian response expands, but not at scale needed

OCHA says that aid workers continue to respond to people’s immense needs, despite persistent impediments hindering a full scale-up.

Last week alone, the UN and its humanitarian partners brought more than 10,000 metric tons of aid through Kerem Shalom and Zikim crossings. That covers Monday to Sunday, based on the UN 2720 Mechanism dashboard, which doesn’t include bilateral donations or the commercial sector. Supplies included food and cooking ingredients, animal fodder, soap and other hygiene items, diapers, winter clothing, blankets and mattresses.

Inside Gaza, the UN and its humanitarian partners have started January’s round of general food assistance for families. Each family receives two food parcels and two 25-kilogramme (kg) bags of flour. Since the ceasefire and by the end of 2025, rations covered between 50 and 75 per cent of the minimum caloric needs. The January round is the first since October 2023 in which partners had sufficient stocks to meet 100 per cent of that minimum caloric standard.

To further address food insecurity, the UN is supporting the production of about 170,000 bread bundles every day, each weighing 2 kg. These are distributed free of charge in more than 400 shelters, and at subsidized prices through roughly 150 shops. At the same time, hot meal kitchens continue to operate, supported by the UN, now serving more than 1.5 million meals every day.

Today, OCHA published a recap of progress made during the second month of the ceasefire, covering the period from 11 November 10 December. During that time, the UN and its partners brought over 80,000 pallets of humanitarian supplies into Gaza; significantly increased food assistance; and tackled malnutrition by providing supplements to more than 320,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women and children under five.

Health support also expanded. Teams helped set up 120 intensive care and emergency beds, delivered 30 anesthesia machines and dozens of portable vital-sign monitors, and supplied health facilities with critical medicines and consumables.

Aid workers provided winter clothing kits to more than 237,000 children under 11 years old and reached nearly 62,000 additional households with about $24 million in multi-purpose cash assistance.

OCHA however stresses that administrative and bureaucratic impediments continue to slow down the response and prevent aid and services from reaching the scale required after two years of intense conflict, destruction and displacement. In particular, the entry of shelter materials, water and sanitation equipment, agricultural inputs, construction materials and education supplies remained limited throughout the second cease-fire month. OCHA is engaging with relevant stakeholders to address these constraints and hope to see them lifted as soon as possible.

#Sudan

Escalating violence takes heavy toll on civilians in Darfur and Kordofan

OCHA expresses its deep concern over the impact of escalating violence on civilians, particularly across the Darfur and Kordofan regions.

In North Darfur State, drone strikes on 3 January reportedly caused civilian casualties in the villages of Al Zurg and Ghurair, including strikes on a market and a medical clinic. On the same day in West Darfur State, one civilian was reported killed following two drone attacks in Kulbus locality. Humanitarian partners say the strikes in Kulbus displaced more than 600 people and generated widespread panic among residents.

In South Kordofan State, multiple drone attacks between 1 and 3 January in the city of Dilling reportedly resulted in civilian deaths and injuries. The situation in the city remains dire, with civilians trapped under siege and humanitarian conditions continuing to deteriorate as access to essential supplies is increasingly restricted.

OCHA reiterates its call for the protection of civilians and for unhindered humanitarian access to all affected areas. Continued and predictable access is essential to deliver life-saving assistance and to prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian situation.

#Ukraine

Attacks leave new casualties, thousands without power

OCHA says that attacks and hostilities over the weekend reportedly caused dozens of civilian casualties, including children, and left many others without electricity amid below-zero temperatures.

Between 2 January and this morning, authorities reported that more than a dozen civilians were killed and nearly 50 others were injured. Energy infrastructure was also hit in multiple regions.

An attack on 2 January in central Kharkiv City killed at least six civilians, including a child and his mother, and injured dozens of others. Residential buildings and health-care facilities were damaged, leaving parts of the city without electricity, water and gas.

In the capital of Kyiv and its region, overnight attacks on January 5th killed one person and injured four others, and damaged a private hospital in Kyiv, according to authorities and aid workers. Many residential buildings in the region were also damaged - several thousand households remain without electricity.

Aid workers provided support in Kharkiv and Kyiv cities, assisting those whose homes were damaged.

Chernihiv, Donetsk, Kherson and Mykolaiv regions also reported attacks causing civilian casualties and damage to critical infrastructure - and resulting in power outages in parts of the regions.

Nationwide, scheduled power outages continue due to the cumulative damage to energy infrastructure, according to the national grid operator.

On 2 January, authorities announced mandatory evacuations of more than 3,000 children and their families from front-line areas in Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia Regions, while evacuations continued in Donetsk Region amid concerns over children remaining in front-line towns.