Record number of aid workers killed in 2024, UN says

Geneva: A record 383 aid workers were killed last year, the United Nations said Tuesday, branding the figures and lack of accountability a shameful i...

Geneva: A record 383 aid workers were killed last year, the United Nations said Tuesday, branding the figures and lack of accountability a "shameful indictment" of international apathy, and warning that this year's toll was equally grim.

The 2024 figure was up 31 percent on the year before, the UN said on World Humanitarian Day, "driven by the relentless conflicts in Gaza, where 181 humanitarian workers were killed, and in Sudan, where 60 lost their lives".

It said state actors were the most common perpetrators of the killings last year, and most of the victims were local staff attacked in the line of duty or in their homes.

Besides those killed, 308 aid workers were wounded, 125 kidnapped and 45 detained.

"Humanitarians must be respected and protected. They can never be targeted," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement.