Today's top news: Occupied Palestinian Territory, Sudan, Syria
UNOCHA - United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Occupied Palestinian Territory
Aid entering Gaza just a fraction of what is needed, despite tactical pauses
OCHA says that many people reportedly continue to be killed and injured across the Gaza Strip, including people seeking food along the UN convoy routes and militarized distribution points. Some 1,500 people have been reportedly killed since May alone.
Humanitarians continue to risk their lives to provide life-saving assistance. On Sunday, Israeli air strikes killed a health worker from the Palestine Red Crescent Society in Khan Younis.
Yesterday, the Israeli military issued yet another displacement order in Gaza city, covering the neighborhood of Tufah. OCHA says that these orders continue to push people into overcrowded, unsafe areas with no shelters and essential supplies.
OCHA says that only 12 per cent of Gaza is outside the Israeli-militarized zone or areas affected by displacement orders. Partners are still unable to respond to shelter needs due to zero stock, with no shelter supplies having entered Gaza since early March.
In the past few days, the UN and its partners have managed to collect wheat flour, ready-to-eat rations and hot meal commodities from the crossings; however, most of the cargo was offloaded by the hungry crowds before reaching its destinations.
While nutrition supplies have entered during the past week, including high-energy biscuits for pregnant and breastfeeding women and infant formula, and hygiene kits, UNICEF emphasized yesterday, in a social media post, that this is still a fraction of what is needed and reminded that malnutrition among children in Gaza is reaching catastrophic levels.
This week is World Breastfeeding, and the World Health Organization says that breastfeeding provides the perfect nutrition for babies and a healthy beginning. However, mothers in Gaza are unable to feed their infants, as they are hungry themselves.
The UN and its partners reiterate that a ceasefire is critically needed to reach all those in need and urge for the continued facilitation of a sustained, uninterrupted and scaled-up flow of aid, including commercial goods.
On the fuel situation, yesterday, the UN was able to collect about 200,000 litres from Kerem Shalom crossing; however, the limited quantities that have been entering Gaza since last week do not suffice to remedy the shortages.
For example, water, sanitation and hygiene operations continue to be affected by the lack of fuel. While some 70,000 litres of fuel are needed every day for emergency operations, only 29,000 liters have been received, which is far below the minimum quantity needed.
In a welcome development, Israeli authorities have approved an increase in the number of fuel tankers that are allowed to enter per week.
This is the beginning of the second week since the Israeli announcement of the tactical pause to allow safe passages for UN humanitarian convoys, colleagues report that realities on the ground remain largely the same. Aid that has entered remains by far insufficient for the starving population and UN convoys continue to face impediments on their way to delivering aid.Some missions inside Gaza take more than 18 hours to be completed. The teams are compelled to wait for more than 10 hours at a stretch on the roads, which are often dangerous, congested or impassable.
Yesterday, while seven out of 11 missions requiring coordination with Israeli authorities were facilitated, OCHA reports that two others were impeded; one to collect health items was not fully accomplished; one was cancelled by the organizers.
UN colleagues report that more and more buildings and schools have been damaged across Gaza. Last month, partners assessed 193,000 buildings affected since the onset of hostilities, compared with 174,000 in April, that is an increase of about 11 per cent. About 100,000 of them are completely destroyed.
The situation is also dire for school buildings, where 92 per cent need full reconstruction or major rehabilitation before they can welcome students again.
On the West Bank, OCHA says that violence by Israeli forces and settlers against Palestinian communities continues unabated.
Settler violence incidents are on the rise. Last week, OCHA documented at least 24 Israeli settler attacks against Palestinians that resulted in casualties, property damage, or both. OCHA reiterates its call for the protection of civilians in the West Bank, including Jerusalem.
Meanwhile, children continue to bear the brunt of Israeli occupation- related policies and practices. As thousands of them are denied from education opportunities, particularly in the north of the West Bank, partners tell us they are increasingly affected by psychological distress.
And finally today, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Tom Fletcher called again in a social media post for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.
Sudan
Conflict, food insecurity, disease and floods continue to inflict heavy toll on civilians
OCHA is alarmed by the intensifying conflict, mounting civilian casualties and worsening humanitarian conditions across Sudan. It has now been 842 days since the current conflict erupted.
Heavy fighting continues in North Darfur State, with multiple reports of civilian casualties in recent days. In El Fasher, the state capital, clashes erupted on 1 and 2 August, following earlier fighting between armed groups, including around the Abu Shouk camp for displaced people which hosts 25,000 people.
People in El Fasher are facing starvation. One year after famine was confirmed in Zamzam camp on the outskirts of El Fasher, the city remains under siege, with no food deliveries by road in over a year.
Prices for staple foods like sorghum and wheat are more than four times higher than elsewhere in the country, leaving many families unable to afford even the most basic items. Limited cash assistance continues, but it is nowhere near enough to meet rising needs.
In North Kordofan State, the town of Um Sumeima has reportedly changed hands multiple times in recent weeks, highlighting the volatility of the frontlines. Civilians remain trapped, and their access to aid remains heavily restricted.
Meanwhile, cholera continues to spread rapidly across Darfur. In North Darfur, in the locality of Tawila, nearly 1,200 cases have been reported since late June, including about 300 cases in children and at least 20 deaths. UNICEF warns that the lives of more than 640,000 children under five are at heightened risk of violence, disease and hunger in the region.
In South Darfur, health authorities have reported more than 1,100 suspected cases and 64 deaths since late May, with the latest updates pointing to a case fatality rate of over 6 per cent. Shortages of medical supplies, clean water and sanitation services are severely hampering the humanitarian response.
In Khartoum State, the confirmation of landmines in multiple locations adds a dangerous new layer to the explosive threat already faced by civilians. Anti-personnel and anti-vehicle mines have now been detected in Mogran, Omdurman and Bahri. These devices are not only maiming and killing civilians but also blocking access to health services, markets and humanitarian aid.
In Blue Nile State, floods in Ed Damazine displaced more than 100 people and destroyed at least 200 tents at Al-Karama camp on 1 August, further compounding the challenges facing people who fled their homes due to conflict.
Amid these overlapping crises, OCHA once again calls for sustained humanitarian access across Sudan and increased international support for vulnerable people in the country.
OCHA's Director of Operations, Edem Wosornu, is in Sudan this week to assess the humanitarian situation. She will also meet with local officials, humanitarian partners and people affected by the crisis.
Syria
Clashes in As-Sweida Governorate hamper humanitarian access, aid delivery
OCHA says that recent clashes over the weekend in As-Sweida Governorate, Syria, further complicate humanitarian access and aid delivery.
Since the outbreak of violence last month, more than 190,000 people have been displaced across the Governorates of As-Sweida, Dar'a, and Rural Damascus. Very few people - some 120 people - have reportedly returned to their communities, primarily to Salkhad district in As-Sweida.
The UN and its humanitarian partners continue to support the response and to provide aid. But with access constraints and limited resources, much more is needed to meet people's needs.
For example, OCHA reports that the latest clashes in As-Sweida Governorate over the weekend led to the temporary closure of the only humanitarian route to As-Sweida, which is used to deliver humanitarian aid and to evacuate vulnerable people. The route was reopened today. The main highway between Damascus and As-Sweida has remained inaccessible since 12 July.
OCHA says that the impact of the fighting - including displacement - has also put immense pressure on an already overstretched health system in As-Sweida, as well as neighboring Dar'a. Mobile medical teams are working to fill gaps in Dar'a. Maternal health services, trauma care and non-communicable disease management must be urgently scaled up.
Posted on 4 August 2025
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