The UN World Food Programme (WFP) has called for increased humanitarian access to Gaza, citing severe limitations caused by restricted aid deliveries, ongoing violence, and funding shortages. WFP Country Director for Palestine Shaun Hughes reported from a recent aid convoy mission that with only one crossing open at Kerem Shalom, all supplies destined for northern Gaza must travel through the south along damaged and congested roads. He stated, “Because of the security situation there's only certain roads that we can use inside the Gaza Strip... everything that we need to deliver to the north needs to come through here as well.”

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned that insecurity, airstrikes, and repeated displacement continue to hamper relief efforts. Funding shortfalls have caused a 37% drop in the number of families receiving shelter assistance between May and June, while shortages of fuel, generators, and other critical equipment disrupt humanitarian operations. According to Gaza health authorities, more than 1,080 people have been killed and nearly 3,500 injured since the ceasefire agreement announced on 10 October 2025.

In response to forecasts of a new El Niño weather pattern that could bring severe droughts, floods, and extreme heat across Latin America, Eastern and Southern Africa, Asia, and the Pacific, the UN is preparing to release up to $100 million in emergency funding. UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher warned that this El Niño could be even more severe than the 2023–24 event, which left tens of millions in need of food, nutrition, clean water, sanitation, healthcare, agricultural support, and protection. He noted, “It comes on top of widespread conflict, rising numbers of people on the move, and as soaring fuel, fertilizer and food prices are squeezing the most vulnerable families – while the humanitarian system reels from deep cuts.”

The UN has already allocated more than $20 million for anticipatory action in six countries through its Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF).

Additionally, a rigorous multi-year assessment has validated the elimination of a disease in El Salvador, finding no evidence of active transmission between 2023 and 2026, with no cases detected in children and no advanced disease capable of causing blindness found in adults. This achievement is described as "a testament to the power of political commitment, strategic investment, and community engagement."

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