2024-04-04 16:53:57
The UN representative for Children and Armed Conflict reported this Wednesday that her next report should contain “a shocking increase” in the denial of humanitarian access worldwide, warning of the situation in Palestine, Yemen and Afghanistan.
In a UN Security Council briefing focused on addressing the consequences of denying humanitarian access to children, Virginia Gamba recalled that in the last annual report on children and armed conflicts, released in June 2023, the UN verified 3,941 cases of denial of humanitarian access, becoming one of the most recorded violations in 2022.
“Data collected for our next report, to be released in 2024, shows that we are on track to witness a shocking increase in incidents of denial of humanitarian access globally. The blatant disregard for international humanitarian law continues to increase”, highlighted the United Nations representative.
Since 2019, UN figures show exponential increases in verified incidents of denial of humanitarian access to children.
According to Gamba, in 2022, the highest values were recorded in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Yemen, Afghanistan and Mali, and, in general, this denial is linked to the restriction of humanitarian movements, interference in humanitarian operations or discrimination against children who would benefit from this aid.
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“Globally, the situation is expected to worsen over time due to the adoption of restrictive laws, administrative decrees and regulations, and increased control over labor and humanitarian workers. Some situations involve high levels of arbitrary impediments and/or outright denial of humanitarian access to children, including in situations such as the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Haiti, to name just two,” said Virginia Gamba.
2024-04-04 16:53:57