Middle East

As the conflict continues in Gaza and Lebanon, the United States vetoed the latest resolution on Gaza in the UN Security Council in New York which demanded an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire as well as the release of all hostages and full humanitarian access for civilians. UN News app users can follow here.

The United States on Wednesday vetoed a UN Security Council draft resolution that demanded an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Andrea Tenenti, spokesperson for the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), told reporters in Geneva that ground clashes inside Lebanon – some of them very close to UNIFIL positions – have become “more violent”.

At least 100,000 people have been forced to leave northern Gaza, with UN colleagues on the ground reporting worsening conditions and Israel's continuous denial of aid delivery requests as displacement and the death toll rises there and in Lebanon amid constant airstrikes. App users can follow our live update through the day here.

Intense Israeli military operations have continued in Gaza as UN humanitarians reported that multiple attempts to deliver lifesaving aid to besieged areas in the north of the enclave had been either “denied or impeded”.

Israeli military operations are blocking, denying or impeding lifesaving aid requests in Gaza on Thursday as the war there and in Lebanon continues to kill, injure and displace civilians. In an interview at UN Headquarters, UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said he would be reaching out to President-elect Trump, arguing the agency has a "positive and important role to play". App users can follow updates here.

Reports of ongoing bombardments, likely starvation and despair continue to emerge from Gaza where many basic daily staples now “barely exist”, UN humanitarians warned on Wednesday.

The UN agency for Palestine refugees, UNRWA, is living through the “darkest moment” of its 75 year history, Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said on Wednesday, pointing to a trifecta of legislative, operational and security challenges.

Top UN officials warned the Security Council on Tuesday that famine is imminent in Gaza unless immediate action is taken, with UN agencies on the ground reporting dire conditions as the conflict rages on there and in Lebanon. UN News app users can follow the live feed here.

Dead bodies are lying in the streets of besieged northern Gaza while hospitals run out of blood packs – a situation that’s “nothing short of catastrophic”, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said on Tuesday.

Amid intensifying military operations in Lebanon and deadly attacks on civilians, medical personnel and infrastructure, UN humanitarians warned on Monday that food insecurity in the war-wracked country is set to worsen.

Amid the ongoing turmoil in the Middle East, the World Health Organization (WHO) continues efforts to keep hospitals up and running and to evacuate patients requiring specialized treatment, a senior official with the UN agency said in Cairo on Monday. 

The global Famine Review Committee issued an alert on Gaza and the UN human rights office released a scathing report on possible atrocities as Israel Defense Forces (IDF) continued its military operations there and in Lebanon, where the UN peacekeeping force said the IDF deliberately bulldozed part of UNIFIL's post in Naqoura. Coverage for UN News app users is available here.

There must be “due reckoning” for horrific violations and possible atrocity crimes in Gaza, the UN human rights chief said on Friday following the release of a new report outlining actions taken by Israeli forces during the ongoing war with Hamas.

There is a strong likelihood that famine is imminent in areas within the northern Gaza Strip, food security experts said on Friday.