As highlighted by the UN Secretary General, 2024 has once again proven to be the deadliest year on record for humanitarians, with at least 390 aid workers killed1.
Behind these horrific numbers, however, lies one key driver: Gaza.
Since 2023, more aid workers have been killed in Gaza than in all other countries combined, making Gaza the deadliest place in the world for aid workers.
This is why, on this World Humanitarian Day, we as INSO feel we must dedicate our efforts to addressing these systematic attacks on aid workers in Gaza.
Airstrikes by the Israeli forces were the leading cause of deaths among aid workers in 20242. While some of these attacks prompted internal investigations, few findings have been made public and there has been limited accountability. Attacks have continued with impunity. Over the last 3 months, an average of 30 air and drone strikes have been recorded in Gaza every single day, presenting a significant threat to communities and aid workers alike.
What we are witnessing today in Gaza is the deliberate and systematic dismantling of the humanitarian system. Since March, many NGOs have been blocked from bringing in life-saving assistance and face imminent threat of de-registration by the authorities, denying Palestinians in need from critical food and medicine. In the absence of such impartial humanitarian aid, Palestinians have been faced with an impossible choice, to starve or risk being shot while trying to reach food distributed by the so-called ‘Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). This militarised distribution mechanism has resulted in extreme levels of violence and killings, with over 800 Palestinians killed around GHF run distribution sites since it began operating. This is not just an attack on humanitarians but an attack on the very core of the humanitarian system itself.
Our focus on Gaza does not seek to ignore the deaths of aid workers elsewhere or to diminish the threats that they face. Instead, by standing in solidarity with our colleagues in Palestine, we seek to strengthen our calls to end the current impunity. When the rules are ignored in one place, the protection they offer everywhere is undermined. By acting now to end attacks on aid workers in Gaza, those with power and influence on the global stage would almost half the number of aid worker deaths and send a clear signal to all others that such attacks will no longer be tolerated.
We therefore call on those with power and influence to act now to bring the systematic attacks on aid workers in Gaza to an immediate end and ensure increased accountability. This includes ensuring that all attacks on aid workers are investigated and the findings of such investigations are published as well as establishing clear correct measures should such attacks continue.
If we are to truly act for humanity, we must act now for Gaza.
1 https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k11/k11bm4192e
2 INSO Conflict and Humanitarian Data Centre