It is the highest figure since 2013, to which must be added 203 injured and 117 kidnapped. Most deaths took place in Syria
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has reported that 140 aid workers have been killed in armed attacks around the world throughout 2021, the deadliest year since 2013, to which must be added another 203 wounded and 117 kidnapped.
OCHA also denounces another 44 aid workers killed in 168 attacks since the beginning of this year, an example of the dangers that humanitarian workers face at a time when the needs of the world’s most vulnerable populations are approaching levels of seriousness “never seen until now”.
The OCHA report specifies gunshots as the main cause of death, followed by air strikes and bombardments, most of them in Syria. All but two of the deceased workers were citizens of the country where they were working at the time of their murder.
International Day
This document comes to light a few days before the commemoration, on August 19, of World Humanitarian Aid Day, which marks the anniversary of the catastrophic 2003 attack on the Canal Hotel in Baghdad that cost the lives of 22 humanitarian workers. , including the United Nations special representative in Iraq, Sérgio Vieira de Mello.
The attack, carried out by the terrorist organization of the Group of Monotheism and Jihad, was aimed at the headquarters of the UN mission in Iraq, created only five days before the attack.
“Humanitarian needs have reached unprecedented heights and humanitarian workers are working in increasingly dangerous environments,” said Martin Griffiths, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator and Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs.
“As we celebrate World Humanitarian Day, we pay tribute to all humanitarian workers who often work in dangerous conditions to help others in need, and we commemorate those who have lost their lives in the line of duty,” he added.
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