Today’s top news: Venezuela, Lebanon, Occupied Palestinian Territory, Central African Republic
A World Food Programme staff member provides a hot meal to a woman at a response centre in La Guaira, Venezuela, as food assistance continues for families affected by the earthquakes. Photo: WFP/Gustavo Vera
UN Relief Chief begins visit to support earthquake-affected communities
The Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, today began a four-day visit in Venezuela to meet with survivors and front-line responders after the devastating earthquakes nearly two weeks ago
Fletcher will also meet senior Government officials and those supporting the search-and-rescue effort
Tomorrow at 8:30 a.m. New York time, Fletcher will speak from Caracas at a virtual ministerial-level Member States briefing about the humanitarian response so far and what comes next. The meeting will be livestreamed
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that the UN and its humanitarian partners continue to help coordinate and deliver assistance to meet people’s most urgent needs, in support of the Government-led response to the earthquakes
The World Food Programme (WFP) provided ready-to-eat food to nearly 2,400 people and family food baskets to over 4,100 people at response centres and shelters. They also provided about 5 metric tons of food to two community kitchens located in La Guaira. Since response efforts began, WFP has reached more than 25,000 people with food assistance
Before the earthquakes, this year’s US$632 million Humanitarian Response Plan for Venezuela had received around US$115 million. Since then, total reported funding for that plan has increased to $300 million.*
*Donations made toUN Crisis Relief help UN agencies and humanitarian NGOs reach people in Venezuela with urgent support
#Lebanon
Returnees face safety risks, lack of essential services
OCHA warns that the humanitarian situation in Lebanon remains critical, with major protection concerns and significant gaps in essential services, despite the reduction in hostilities after the ceasefire announced on 19 June. While returns continue, military activities and security incidents are still being reported, and conditions remain fragile in many areas
Returns of displaced families remain limited and geographically uneven. More than 500,000 displaced people have begun returning to their communities, but tens of thousands remain displaced, including more than 34,000 people still in collective shelters. Many families are reluctant or unable to return due to damaged housing, insecurity, the presence of unexploded ordnance, and absence of basic services
Humanitarian partners are concerned about explosive remnants of war, particularly in southern Lebanon, where returning families face heightened risks of injury and death, in addition to restrictions on movement, access to farmland, and the use of essential infrastructure
Partners also report increased protection concerns linked to child labour, school dropout, exploitation, gender-based violence, domestic violence, harassment, movement restrictions, and barriers to accessing humanitarian assistance
The UN reiterates that all returns must be safe, voluntary, and dignified and stresses the importance of unimpeded humanitarian access and the protection of civilians, humanitarian personnel and health workers
Children continue to bear a disproportionate burden in this crisis. According to UNICEF, an estimated 308,000 children remain displaced, more than 1 million children require humanitarian assistance, and 62 unaccompanied and separated children have been identified. Disrupted education, psychosocial distress, and limited access to services continue to affect children across conflict-affected areas
Humanitarian partners are responding despite these challenges, but funding is falling short. The revised Flash Appeal launched by the UN and the Government of Lebanon on 5 June seeks $640 million to support 1.4 million vulnerable people through August. As of today, the appeal is only 42 per cent funded, leaving critical gaps in the response
#Occupied Palestinian Territory
UN, partners support newly displaced families in Gaza
OCHA reports that people continue being displaced in areas along the so-called “Yellow Line” in Gaza, as Israeli troop advancement is shrinking the area that families can still stay in
According to initial information this morning, at least nine families were displaced from Dahab displacement site in southern Gaza, with some saying they fled advancing tanks. Shooting and injuries were also reported nearby
Humanitarian partners are responding by providing newly displaced people with tents, shelter items and other assistance. Support to those facing protracted displacement continues
Last week, the UN and its partners supported more than 30,000 households, including through vouchers. The aid included more than 250 tents, over 10,000 tarpaulins, over 10,000 bedding items, and nearly 15,000 kitchen sets
However, the number of families assisted is declining because of funding shortfalls that compound restrictions on the entry of items into Gaza
So far, just over a quarter of the $4.1 billion required for humanitarian operations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory this year has been secured
Meanwhile, yesterday, the World Health Organization said in a social media post that while teams are providing wheelchairs, crutches, prosthetic limbs, and walking aids to people with complex injuries, this support falls short of the needs
Over 43,000 people with life-changing injuries require rehabilitation in Gaza – yet only one third of the need for assistive devices has been met
Partners working to support healthcare in Gaza note that attempts to bring medical equipment and devices into the Strip continue to face delays and denials. This includes equipment for laboratories, diagnostic, physical rehabilitation and physiotherapy, as well as prosthetic devices
#Central African Republic
Humanitarians mobilize for people displaced by fighting in Am-Dafock
OCHA reports that the UN and its humanitarian partners are mobilizing emergency assistance to meet people’s urgent needs following clashes just over a week ago in the town of Am-Dafock in the Central African Republic, near the country’s border with Sudan
People displaced by the fighting there urgently need protection support, healthcare, and access to safe drinking water. The security situation remains volatile, with the town’s sole health facility reportedly looted
While humanitarians were able to deliver 400 tarpaulins and other shelter assistance to Am-Dafock over the weekend, the rainy season has rendered the main road into the town impassable, hampering efforts to scale up the response. Some two dozen tons of humanitarian cargo are still awaiting transport
Meanwhile, about 1,000 people displaced from villages around Am-Dafock have sought safety in Birao, putting pressure on already stretched re from Sudan
