Today's top news: Sudan, Occupied Palestinian Territory, Mozambique
UNOCHA - United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Sudan
Escalating conflict drives needs higher in Kordofan region
OCHA warns that civilians across Sudan's Kordofan region are facing extreme hardship as conflict intensifies.
UNICEF reports a sharp deterioration in the humanitarian situation in the region, where communities in Dilling and Kadugli in the south are trapped in siege conditions. In Babanusa, in West Kordofan, there have been reports of sustained attacks in recent days.
Hospitals are only partially functioning, and families fleeing clashes are stranded with almost no food, water or medical care. Civilians attempting to escape face grave risks along unsafe routes.
Yesterday, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned that attacks on healthcare in Sudan continue, and most of Al-Nuhud Hospital in West Kordofan State has been occupied, depriving communities of essential medical care.
WHO has verified 198 attacks on healthcare since the conflict started in April 2023, killing more than 1,700 health workers and patients and injuring over 400. These attacks are violations of international humanitarian law and must stop.
The Sudan Doctors Network also warns of grave risks to women and children sheltering from clashes in Babanusa. OCHA stresses that civilians wishing to flee must be afforded safe passage, and they must be able to access humanitarian assistance.
Meanwhile, in North Darfur State, conditions in and around El Fasher remain dire, with severe shortages of food and drinking water, restricted movement and continued looting.
Local sources report that arbitrary arrests and detentions continue to heighten fear among civilians and hamper humanitarian assessments. In rural areas nearby, insecurity is growing: On Monday, civilian casualties were reported in Amar Jadeed - 30 kilometres north-west of El Fasher - due to gunfire.
In Tawila, the arrival of people who fled El Fasher continues to strain services. Sites are overcrowded, and malnutrition and disease are on the rise. UNICEF reports increasing cases of measles, as well as suspected cases of cholera and dengue. The agency has registered nearly 950 separated or unaccompanied children in Tawila and other parts of North Darfur.
Over the past month, UNICEF and its partners have expanded their support, including by providing water trucking for tens of thousands of people, delivering 132,000 litres per day. They also treated acute malnutrition and delivered medical assistance through 14 primary healthcare units and 10 mobile teams. Psychosocial support was provided to over 3,000 children, more than 200 separated children were reunited with their families, and 25,000 learners received support through more than 30 reopened schools.
Meanwhile, OCHA is concerned about alarming levels of child malnutrition in White Nile State, based on recent assessments carried out by the UN and its partners, alongside state health authorities. In the locality of El Jabalain, global acute malnutrition rates stand at nearly 16 per cent, with severe acute malnutrition topping 3 per cent. Over 30 per cent of children are underweight, and one in three is stunted. In the locality of Tendelti, acute malnutrition stands at nearly 13 per cent, driven by limited access to safe water, low vaccination coverage and poor feeding practices. It is urgent that nutrition, health, and water, sanitation and hygiene services can be scaled up.
OCHA once again calls for more support for humanitarian operations across Sudan - including for local responders at the forefront of the response - to ensure that life-saving assistance reaches those most in need.* With just a few weeks left in the year, the humanitarian response plan for Sudan is only 35 per cent funded, with about US$1.5 billion received out of the $4.2 billion required.
*Donations made to UN Crisis Relief help UN agencies and humanitarian NGOs reach people in Sudan with urgent support.
Occupied Palestinian Territory
UN, partners work to restore healthcare access in Gaza
OCHA continues to receive reports that air strikes, shelling, gunfire and other Israeli military operations are causing more civilian casualties, displacement and destruction in the Gaza Strip.
In recent days, hundreds of families were reportedly displaced in the At Tufah and Ash Shuja'iyyeh neighbourhoods in eastern Gaza city, following strikes and movement of military machinery.
The UN and its humanitarian partners continue to provide life-saving assistance to people in need across the Strip. Partners leading efforts to restore access to healthcare report that six additional healthcare service points have opened since Sunday.
Yesterday in Rafah, a team from WHO also managed to reach the European Hospital, which remains non-operational, to move some vital equipment to functioning healthcare facilities. However, attempts to gain access to Kamal Adwan Hospital in North Gaza continue to be denied by Israeli authorities.
In a social media post today, WHO reported that the agency facilitated the referral and transfer of the first patient to the Emirati Field Hospital since before last year's Rafah incursion, which had rendered the facility inaccessible. The hospital is the only functioning medical facility serving the Rafah area.
Ensuring that families in Gaza are prepared for winter remains a key priority for the UN and its partners, and they continue to deliver shelter supplies and other critical items to the most vulnerable households. Since Sunday, some 4,400 families received tents, tarpaulins, blankets, winter clothing and kitchen sets across Gaza through UN-coordinated deliveries.
In addition, partners managing displacement sites report that work is ongoing to help prepare suitable locations for those seeking to leave high-risk areas, including shoreline communities. In Khan Younis, an estimated 4,000 households live along the coast, with some 1,000 at especially high risk due to their proximity to the water line. Some of these families have reportedly started to relocate to the two sites identified by the municipality.
In the ongoing effort to improve access to water and sanitation, partners report that 42 truckloads of debris have been cleared over the past 48 hours to reach the Al Amal, Tel al Dhahab and Asian wells in Beit Lahiya, in North Gaza. Repairs are expected to begin soon.
In the meantime, partners working to reduce the risks of explosive ordnance warn that unexploded remnants of war continue to pose a threat to civilians. Over the past week, they were able to carry out 50 assessments across Gaza to help lower risks for aid workers. Just last week, six people were reportedly killed and 10 others injured in two incidents involving explosive ordnance in Gaza city and Deir al Balah.
OCHA continues to call for unimpeded, safe and sustained access for humanitarian workers and supplies to reach people in need. Impediments must be lifted to allow teams to scale up the delivery of humanitarian assistance faster and more efficiently. Civilians must always be protected, and safe passage must be ensured for those wishing to flee. They must also be allowed to return if they wish to do so, and as the situation allows.
Mozambique
UN Relief Chief fast-tracks support for displaced communities
Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher has allocated $6 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to help scale up live-saving support for 120,000 people displaced by violence in Nampula province, in northern Mozambique.
The situation there has sharply worsened since mid-November as conflict spreads, with UNHCR reporting that as of yesterday, nearly 100,000 people had fled in just the last two weeks.
Children account for more than two thirds of those displaced, who are now sheltering in overcrowded schools, makeshift structures, open spaces, or with already vulnerable host families. Besides shelter, they also have limited access to safe water, protection, healthcare and sanitation services - at a time cholera is spreading in some areas.
With stocks of critical aid mostly depleted, the funding from CERF will prioritize water, sanitation and hygiene support - as well as basic household items and shelter, protection and livelihoods support - for people in the Erati and Memba districts.
With the end of the year approaching, the 2025 humanitarian appeal for Mozambique is less than 28 per cent funded - with just $97 million received of the $352 million required.
Posted on 3 December 2025
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