16/08 • WORLD HUMANITARIAN DAY

World Humanitarian Day.

Monday 19 August, marks World Humanitarian Day - a day to remember the humanitarians that have been targeted and lost their lives in service to those impacted by conflict and disaster.  Mark Mitchell reflects.

This week’s Pray the News is a little different.  

As a humanitarian aid worker for over 25 years, I have worked in many of the locations we highlight through Pray the News and have personally seen the devastation of war, of hunger, and of dislocation from home. I have heard the stories of personal devastation and loss. It is a job of immense physical and emotional challenges and one of immense privilege.  

The 2024 WHD campaign, #ActForHumanity, focuses on addressing the alarming rise in attacks against humanitarian workers and civilians, advocating for the enforcement of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) to end impunity for these violations.  

In recent years, the delivery of aid has been made more difficult not only due to logistical and bureaucratic constraints but also increasingly due to insecurity and targeted violence against aid workers. The humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence which may once have provided some degree of protection are now often disregarded. A stark example of this was seen in April of this year, when the Israeli Defence Force attacked a World Central Kitchen aid convoy in Gaza, killing seven people.  

The Aid Worker Safety Database, which has recorded attacks of all kinds on aid workers since 1997, reported that 2023 was the deadliest year on record for humanitarians, and 2024 is already tracking to be equally bad, if not worse. National aid workers - those humanitarians responding in their own country - are overwhelmingly the target of these attacks.  

The database also highlights that the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT), which includes Gaza and the West Bank, is currently the most dangerous place to be an aid worker. Last year, 163 aid workers were killed in deliberate attacks. In 2024, 121 aid workers have been killed in OPT, according to the database. Sudan is the next most dangerous country with 12 aid workers killed, and eight have been killed in South Sudan already this year. 

As we take the time to reflect on aid workers who have paid the ultimate price in serving others we pray that all parties in conflict and other world leaders would take action to ensure the protection of civilians, including humanitarians, particularly in conflict zones. 

Prayer points: 

We pray for all people who are caught up in conflict and disasters around the world 

We pray for the national and international aid workers who work tirelessly to provide humanitarian support 

We pray for world leaders to ensure the protection of all civilians including humanitarians  

Click here for a printable version of Pray the News.

Image: Food distribution for Rohingya refugees in Coxs Bazaar/ Mark Mitchell