October 2026

More than 280,000 people have been displaced by fighting in Yemen, and many of the most vulnerable are unable to access lifesaving relief because doing so is too dangerous, the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said on Friday. In an alert, the agency stated that tens of thousands of refugees and asylum seekers are struggling to survive.

Some 50,000 people have crossed into northern Kenya following violent clashes in neighboring Ethiopia, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported Thursday, warning that further arrivals could put additional pressure on local services and resources, which are already stretched thin. The arrivals follow ten days of intercommunal clashes between Ethiopia's Somali and Oromo communities in and around Moyale, a border town.

Humanitarian organizations warn that the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has confirmed over 10,000 Ebola cases in the ongoing Bundibugyo outbreak, with a mortality rate of nearly 50 percent. Almost 5,000 deaths have been confirmed in DRC so far. This is the largest and deadliest outbreak in the country's history.

Israeli “aggressive operation” in Hebron, a city in the West Bank, raise serious concerns of ethnic cleansing, Volker Türk, the United Nations human rights chief, warned on Monday. As the number of Palestinians forced from their homes surpassed 3,000 on the eve of Israeli elections, Türk underscored that collective punishment constitutes a grave violation of international law.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported on Friday that additional aid is continuing to arrive in northern Ethiopia. Food assistance is reaching tens of thousands of people affected by the conflict and the impacts of El Niño across the northern regions. However, the ongoing response is not keeping up with the growing humanitarian needs, making additional resources and sustained access essential.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Friday that armed violence continues to displace people in Haiti. More than 10,000 people have fled their homes in the Artibonite and West departments in recent days. At the same time, funding shortfalls continue to hinder the work of humanitarian organizations.

Talks to stop the fighting in Sudan and alleviate the resulting humanitarian crisis continued Wednesday in Geneva, where nearly two dozen countries met to discuss a path to a ceasefire and a transition to a peaceful governance system that represents all Sudanese people. Although international engagement on Sudan is gaining momentum, a clear commitment from the warring parties to end the fighting is still lacking.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) teamed up on Wednesday to issue an urgent appeal for immediate assistance to communities already impacted by the strongest El Niño on record. They warned that this climate phenomenon could trigger humanitarian disasters across four continents.

More than 250,000 people have now fled renewed fighting in Yemen, the United Nations said Tuesday, expressing particular concern for those sheltering in the southwestern city of Taiz and its surrounding governorate, where access is "essentially blocked." This development follows the resumption of clashes last month between Houthi fighters and the internationally recognized government based in Aden.

Nearly 19.2 million people in Afghanistan are projected to experience acute food insecurity during the lean season (November 2026 to April 2027), according to a warning issued on Thursday by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the UN World Food Programme (WFP), who cited the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis. This is an increase from 15.9 million people in September–October 2026.

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Wednesday that the escalating conflict in Yemen has cut off life-saving assistance to 800,000 people ― a situation that could rapidly spiral into a humanitarian catastrophe. Shifting frontlines, blocked roads, and growing insecurity severely restrict humanitarian access in the city of Taiz and other areas affected by the conflict.

After almost two decades of progress, global hunger is rising again, driven by wars, climate shocks, and economic crises, according to the 2026 Global Hunger Index (GHI), released on Wednesday. The report reveals that hunger has worsened in 32 countries and that 57 countries are on track to miss even low targets for hunger by 2030.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) sounded again the alarm on Tuesday, warning that the intensifying insecurity in Ituri Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC, DR Congo) is endangering displaced families and hindering humanitarian operations amidst an already dire humanitarian crisis and the ongoing Ebola outbreak.

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) issued an alert on Monday, warning of the rapidly deteriorating situation in Sudan's Darfur and Kordofan regions. The risk of famine is growing due to conflict, displacement, drought, and the critical underfunding of humanitarian response efforts. New evidence published by the IPC points to a rapid rise in acute malnutrition across much of Darfur, raising further concerns about the survival of children and other vulnerable groups.

A humanitarian food convoy, the first since the recent escalation of hostilities, reached Ethiopia’s Tigray region on Thursday. The convoy delivered critical nutritional supplies amid continued hostilities driving new displacement and humanitarian needs. Four World Food Programme (WFP) trucks carrying 90 metric tons of nutritional supplies for the treatment of acute malnutrition arrived in Mekelle, the capital of Tigray.

The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) expressed increased concern on Friday about the deepening displacement crisis in the Central Sahel. Nearly 4 million people have been uprooted across Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, including over 818,000 refugees and asylum seekers, a figure that is roughly twice the number recorded six years ago.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that deadly attacks continue to take a devastating toll on Ukrainian civilians, damaging homes, public transportation, and energy infrastructure across the country. Between Wednesday and Thursday morning, nearly 50 civilians were killed, including 6 children, and 170 others were injured, according to Ukrainian authorities.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) expressed alarm on Monday over the continued deadly violence in Sudan, including attacks against humanitarian operations, alongside rising displacement and worsening food insecurity. Meanwhile, a coalition of international aid organizations has called for urgent protection of the nation's upcoming harvest, as Sudan enters a critical period to prevent another catastrophic hunger crisis.

The humanitarian organization Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders, MSF) warns that Israel is "progressively asphyxiating Gaza" through a systematic campaign that is dismantling the essential conditions for human survival. As the livable space shrinks, the means of survival are being destroyed by continued violence, the deliberate blockade of essential supplies, and the destruction of healthcare and vital infrastructure.

The United Nations allocated US$160 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) on Friday to support life-saving assistance in 12 of the world’s most underfunded humanitarian crises, spanning Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. This allocation is part of a broader effort to assist 87 million people facing the most severe humanitarian crises this year.

Humanitarian organizations are warning that the increased use of drones and airstrikes in northern Ethiopia is endangering civilians, critical infrastructure, and humanitarian operations. They are closely monitoring the rapidly evolving situation in the Tigray, Amhara, and Afar regions as large-scale conflict between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and the Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) has resumed.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) expressed alarm on Wednesday over the recent surge in gang violence in the Artibonite Department in Haiti. According to local authorities, at least 11 people were killed and homes were set on fire in the commune of Gros-Morne on Monday. Residents fled to surrounding neighborhoods and the commune of Gonaïves to seek safety.