On 11 December 2008, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution proclaiming 19 August of each year as “World Humanitarian Day”, “to further raise public awareness of humanitarian assistance activities worldwide and the importance of international cooperation in this regard, to pay tribute to all humanitarian workers as well as UN personnel and associated individuals who work for the humanitarian cause, and to commemorate those who lost their lives while carrying out their missions.”
This year, the day falls while the Arab region, and in particular the Gaza Strip, is experiencing one of the most severe humanitarian crises in its recent history. Gaza is starving and living under a suffocating siege, amidst systematic destruction, at the heart of a war of extermination, while humanitarian organizations face unprecedented challenges in carrying out their missions.
Gaza suffers from deliberate famine and the near-total collapse of infrastructure, including health and educational facilities, resulting in the loss of the most basic living conditions and leaving more than two million people facing a worsening humanitarian catastrophe day by day. The targeting of hospitals, schools, mosques, as well as water and electricity facilities, constitutes not only a blatant violation of international humanitarian law but also a direct attack on the very foundations of humanitarian action.
Under these extremely difficult conditions, humanitarian organizations face severe restrictions that hinder their efforts and prevent them from delivering essential aid. Blocking access to food, medicine, and water, as well as restricting freedom of movement, are additional violations that worsen the suffering of Gaza’s population and undermine all the principles that World Humanitarian Day seeks to uphold.
Consequently, Alkarama calls on the international community—states and organizations, particularly the UN and regional and international bodies—to act urgently and effectively to:
Immediately lift the siege and allow humanitarian aid to reach the people of Gaza without obstruction;
Ensure the protection of health and educational facilities and respect their protected status under international humanitarian law;
Provide legal and practical protection for humanitarian workers and enable them to carry out their missions safely and freely;
Take immediate measures to end the war that threatens civilians’ lives and creates an unprecedented humanitarian crisis.
Commemorating World Humanitarian Day in the context of Gaza’s indescribable suffering must be far more than a symbolic occasion; it is a pressing call to renew collective commitment to fundamental humanitarian values, to respect international law, and to protect human dignity everywhere and at all times.