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Source: United Nations (video statements)

“In the course of 2024, more than 4,600 cases of conflict-related sexual violence, including as a tactic of war, torture, terror and political repression, were documented, marking a staggering 25 percent increase from 2023, which was itself a 50 percent increase from the previous year,” the UN’s envoy on sexual violence in conflict told the Security Council.

Briefing the Council today (Aug 19), Pramila Patten, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, warned that even as needs rise, funding for women’s frontline organizations is collapsing. “We are told there is no money for lifesaving aid, even as military expenditure soars, and the world spends more in 24 hours on arms than it does in a year on addressing gender-based violence in conflict,” she said.

Patten’s remarks drew on the Secretary-General’s latest annual report on conflict-related sexual violence, published on 14 August and covering the period from January to December 2024.

She noted that women and girls accounted for 92 percent of verified cases last year, with victims ranging in age from one to 75 years old. “Sexual violence against children increased by a shocking 35 percent over the past year, with incidents of gang-rape rising dramatically, inflicting enduring, generational harm,” she said.

From Darfur, Ikhlass Ahmed of the Darfur Advocacy Group described how sexual violence remains widespread. “Hardly a day goes by without a new report of rape of a woman or girl,” she told the Council, adding that more than 30 women and girls have been detained by the Rapid Support Forces in El Fasher for over seven months. “These stories and these numbers are just the tip of the iceberg, as survivors often remain silent due to stigma and fear of retaliation,” she said.

Ahmed also reported at least 174 attacks on health providers and facilities since the conflict began, including clinics serving survivors of sexual violence. “In April, the RSF burned down a women-led community kitchen in Zamzam Camp, deliberately killing volunteers Hasanat Musa, who was pregnant, and Nana Bahar Idris,” she added.

Before the debate, the signatories to the Shared Commitments on Women, Peace and Security – Denmark, France, Greece, Guyana, Panama, the Republic of Korea, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, the UK, and the US – delivered a joint statement on conflict-related sexual violence, at a stakeout ahead of the meeting.

Speaking on behalf of the group, Panama’s ambassador to the UN, Eloy Alfaro de Alba, called for accountability and greater support for survivors. “We call for an end to impunity for sexual and gender-based violence and demand accountability as the norm for these crimes,” he said. “We stress the urgent need for sustained, flexible and predictable funding for victims and survivor-centered responses, including through a multi-partner Trust Fund on CRSV.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nkmsdv_peyw

Source: United Nations (video statements)

The commemoration of the bombing of the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad will be observed with a brief ceremony organized by the UN Staff Union’s Standing Committee on the Security and Independence of the International Civil Service.

Mr. Atul Khare, Under-Secretary-General, Department of Operational Support (accompanied by survivors of that bombing) will lead the Wreath-laying ceremony, he will lay a wreath in front of the plaque honouring those who lost their lives in Baghdad, followed by a moment of silence.

The ceremony also marks the observance of World Humanitarian Day designated by the General Assembly in 2008 to coincide with the date of the bombing in Baghdad. The Day also honours humanitarian aid workers who have been killed or injured in the course of their work.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMzTdiWRXXI

Source: United Nations (video statements)

On World Humanitarian Day, USG Gilles Michaud speaks from Gaza, honoring humanitarian workers and calling for their protection. Local colleagues—who make up 90% of the workforce—are the backbone of life-saving operations worldwide.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkZJeiVaeqM

Source: United Nations (video statements)

Noon Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

Highlights:
World Humanitarian Day
Occupied Palestinian Territory
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Security Council
Mauritania / Peacebuilding Fund’s Peacebuilding and Recovery Facility

WORLD HUMANITARIAN DAY
Today is 19th of August, and since 2009 it has been marked as the day we observed as World Humanitarian Day. August 19th was chosen because it is also the day back on 19th August 2003 when 22 of our United Nations colleagues were murdered by the terrorists who attacked the UN headquarters at the Canal Hotel in Baghdad.
Earlier today, on behalf of the Secretary-General, the Under-Secretary-General for Operational Support Atul Khare, accompanied by survivors of the bombing, led a remembrance ceremony here at the UN Headquarters.
In a Message for the Day, the Secretary-General notes that humanitarian workers are the lifeline for over 300 million people caught in conflict or disaster. Yet, he says, funding for that lifeline is drying up, and those who provide humanitarian aid are increasingly under attack.
The Secretary-General points out that last year, at least 390 aid workers, a record high, were killed across the world, from Gaza to Sudan to Myanmar and beyond. On this World Humanitarian Day, he called on all to honour the fallen with action. Together, he adds, let us say in one voice: An attack on humanitarians is an attack against humanity.
For its part, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is calling for urgent action as attacks on aid workers hit another record.
OCHA points out that the 31 per cent surge in aid worker deaths in 2024 compared to the previous year was driven by the relentless conflicts going on in Gaza, where 181 humanitarian workers were killed, and in Sudan, where 60 lost their lives.
In Gaza, 520 aid workers – mostly staff from the the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) – have been killed since October 2023. It is the deadliest place for humanitarians.
Speaking a short while ago, Tom Fletcher, our Emergency Relief Coordinator, said that this is more than just a statistical spike. It is a stain – the normalization of violence against this community. He added that each attack on a colleague is an attack on all of us and we do not accept it.

OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY
Every day and every night, aid workers in Gaza courageously put themselves in harm’s way to keep others alive. At the same time, they also struggle to feed themselves and feed their own families. The world cannot look away while attacks on aid workers and on the very people they try to help have become routine.
The UN once again calls on leaders to find the political will to end this conflict and to end the suffering of the people.
Over the past 24 hours, the UN has received more reports of casualties in shooting incidents that occurred along routes designated for our convoys, where crowds often wait to take supplies from the back of trucks. Such shooting incidents have been reported in Israeli-militarized areas in North Gaza, Deir al Balah and Khan Younis.
Meanwhile, the UN team on the ground also reports intense hostilities between Israeli military and Palestinian armed groups. Over the past 24 hours, this has included air strikes and shelling across five neighbourhoods of Gaza city, with reports of tanks and ground troops advancing.
Yesterday, the United Nations and NGOs officials working in the Occupied Palestinian Territory warned in a joint statement of the impact of the intensified offensive in Gaza city announced by Israeli authorities, which will result in mass displacement of human beings. They said that it will have a horrific impact on people already exhausted, already malnourished, already bereaved and displaced, and deprived of basics needed for their bare survival. Forcing hundreds of thousands to move south is a recipe for further disaster and could amount to forcible transfer.
The UN and NGOs stressed that their teams will remain in Gaza city to provide life-saving support as part of their commitment to serve people wherever they are. And they reminded parties of their obligation to protect civilians – including humanitarian workers and those who cannot or choose not to move – and safeguard humanitarian facilities and other civilian infrastructure.

Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=19%20August%202025

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjjGGlGk_fI