UN chief demands end to attacks on humanitarians, civilians

UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) — UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday demanded an end to attacks on humanitarians and all civilians, appealing for “an end to impunity, so that perpetrators face justice.”
“Wherever there is human suffering, humanitarian aid workers are striving to alleviate hardship and pain,” Guterres said in his message on World Humanitarian Day, observed annually on Aug. 19.
“On World Humanitarian Day, we once again salute their courage, their determination, and their service to humanity,” said the UN chief.
Humanitarian operations coordinated by the United Nations provided life-saving aid to more than 140 million people last year. Aid workers, mostly national staff serving their own communities, persevered despite brutal violence. They continued their efforts to overcome all obstacles to supporting people in need — in the face of severe funding shortages, according to Guterres.
The year of 2023 was the deadliest on record for humanitarian personnel. In Gaza, Sudan, and many other places, humanitarian workers were attacked, killed, injured, and abducted, alongside the civilians they support.
The UN chief warned that disinformation campaigns spread lies that cost lives, and international humanitarian law “is being ignored and trampled.”
“A climate of impunity means perpetrators do not fear justice. This is a failure of humanity, responsibility, and leadership,” Guterres noted.
“On World Humanitarian Day, we demand an end to attacks on humanitarians and on all civilians,” stated the UN chief, who also demanded governments put pressure on all parties to conflict to protect civilians, an end to arms transfers to armies and groups that violate international law, and “an end to impunity, so that perpetrators face justice.”
Celebrating humanitarians is not enough, said Guterres, calling on the international community to “do more to protect and safeguard our common humanity.”
In 2023, the number of aid workers killed more than doubled in two years: from 118 in 2022 to 261 in 2023, and 78 aid workers were kidnapped and 196 wounded worldwide, according to figures released by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. ■