Today's Edition
USA (AFP)
The United Nations on Monday condemned the "unacceptable" level of violence becoming commonplace against humanitarian workers.
It stated that a record number of 280 workers were killed worldwide in 2023.
Acting director of the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Joyce Msuya, said in a statement on World Humanitarian Day, "The normalisation of violence against aid workers and the lack of accountability are unacceptable, unconscionable and enormously harmful for aid operations everywhere."
"With 280 aid workers killed in 33 countries last year, 2023 marked the deadliest year on record for the global humanitarian community," a 137 percent increase over 2022, when 118 aid workers died, OCHA said in the statement.
It cited the Aid Worker Security Database which has tracked such figures back to 1997.
In all the conflicts, most of the deaths are among local staff.
Despite 2023's "outrageously high number" of aid worker fatalities, OCHA said 2024 "may be on track for an even deadlier outcome."
As of August 9, 176 aid workers have been killed worldwide, according to the Aid Worker Security Database.
