The United Nations has reported that 2024 has become the deadliest year on record for humanitarian workers, with more aid workers, healthcare staff, delivery personnel, and other humanitarians killed than in any previous year.
According to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), 281 humanitarian workers have lost their lives so far this year, surpassing the previous record of 280 deaths in an entire year. The majority of these deaths occurred in conflict zones, with violence in the Middle East, particularly in Gaza, identified as the leading cause.
“Humanitarians are working courageously and selflessly in places like Gaza, Sudan, Lebanon, Ukraine, and other crisis zones. They represent the best of humanity, yet they are being killed in record numbers,” OCHA spokesperson Jens Laerke said during a press briefing in Geneva. He added that the data will send “shockwaves” through the humanitarian community, particularly those working on the front lines.
The Aid Worker Security Database, managed by the group Humanitarian Outcomes, revealed that 268 of those killed were local staff, while 13 were international personnel. Among these fatalities, 230 occurred in the occupied Palestinian territories, though the database does not specify whether these were in Gaza or the West Bank.
The threats to humanitarian workers extend beyond the Middle East. High levels of violence, kidnappings, injuries, harassment, and arbitrary detention have been reported in countries like Afghanistan, Congo, South Sudan, Sudan, Ukraine, and Yemen.
Since the conflict between Israel and Hamas reignited on October 7, 2023, the toll on humanitarians has been severe. A total of 333 aid workers have been killed since the outbreak of the latest hostilities, OCHA reported. The conflict, which began with an attack by Hamas militants that killed approximately 1,200 people in Israel and abducted 250 others, has led to a devastating toll in Gaza. Local health officials report over 44,000 fatalities in Gaza since the start of the war, with more than half of the casualties being women and children. The Israeli military claims to have killed over 17,000 militants, though it has not provided evidence to substantiate these figures.