The UN World Food Programme (WFP) is scaling up its emergency response in South Sudan's Jonglei state, where escalating conflict has displaced hundreds of thousands of people and pushed hunger to critical levels.
About 60 per cent of the population - some 1.2 million people - is already acutely food insecure, according to WFP .
Food assistance is being transported along river routes, but rising insecurity is hampering humanitarian operations and threatening to drive hunger to unprecedented levels.
WFP teams are registering newly displaced families in Canal Pigi and other northern areas of Jonglei to receive urgently needed aid, in some cases for the first time since fighting began.
The agency aims to reach more than half a million people facing catastrophic food insecurity. However, it urgently requires $341 million to support 4.2 million people across South Sudan this year.
Adham Effendi, WFP's acting country director, described the operation as a crucial step in assisting communities "caught in the crossfire," noting that many had already lost homes and livelihoods to flooding before being forced to flee again.
In New York, UN Spokesman Stéphane Dujarric highlighted the dangerous conditions faced by aid workers in South Sudan.
He reported that a private contractor working with WFP on humanitarian airdrop coordination was killed earlier this week by an unknown gunman in Upper Nile state. The incident is under investigation.
Mr. Dujarric expressed condolences to the victim's family and colleagues and stressed that humanitarian workers must never be targeted.
The United Nations continues to "call on all parties to de-escalate violence, ensure safe, rapid, and unimpeded access to all people in need and resolve all issues through dialogue."
Relief arrives in Gaza, yet restrictions keep assistance far below needs
As of Monday, humanitarians have reached some 670,000 people in Gaza with the monthly general food assistance for February.
Nonetheless, the ration size remains reduced at 50 per cent, as the current stocks in the Gaza Strip are insufficient to sustain larger rations for the rest of the month.
"Humanitarian partners report that impediments persist, and in recent weeks, the entry of humanitarian supplies from Egypt has remained critically low due to high rejection rates by Israeli authorities," said UN Spokesman Stéphane Dujarric.
Impediments must be lifted
As of mid-February, more than 20 UN partners produced and distributed over 1.7 million meals every day through 180 kitchens, accounting for around half a million meals in the north and 1.3 million in the south.
"UN partners are aligning the timing of cooked meal preparations, and distributions, with Ramadan fasting hours. They have also added additional fresh produce and protein products," he said.
UN agencies are on the ground providing tents, tarpaulins, sealing off kits, clothes, and other essential items to over 11,500 households in North Gaza, Deir al Balah and Khan Younis governorates.
Mr. Dujarric said the UN and partners "reiterate that impediments must be urgently lifted so that we can do more to meet the massive humanitarian needs in Gaza".
UN child rights envoy concludes first official visit to Syria
The UN Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict , Vanessa Frazier, ended a three-day visit to Syria on Thursday - her first official mission to the country since being appointed in October.
Ms. Frazier with Government representatives, UN partners, diplomats, as well as parents and children who have grown up throughout conflict spanning over a decade.
She aimed to discuss new opportunities for collaboration with the new Government of Syria to strengthen the protection of children and engage in areas in which the UN may offer further support.
She also praised the government's determination to turn the page and build a new Syria with children at its heart.
Challenges remain
Challenges persist, especially concerning children - or their parents - who are allegedly linked to armed groups, particularly in the country's northeast, the USG noted.
She recalled that children should not be detained but be treated as victims and handed over to child protection actors.
On top of that, the Ms. Frazier warned that unexploded ordnance and mines remained an immense challenge for Syria - hindering safe access to schools, hospitals and playgrounds for children
"The children of Syria have suffered enough from the consequences of armed conflict," she said.
"They deserve a future shaped by peace, stability, and opportunity - a future where classrooms replace conflict, dreams replace fear, and their voices help rebuild a nation rich in history and resilience."
Listen to an interview with Vanessa Frazier, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict.
