UN sounds alarm as aid worker attacks hit record high

A record number of humanitarian workers were killed, injured or kidnapped in 2025, with the growing use of armed drones contributing to rising security risks, the United Nations said, describing the trend as “appalling," Reuters reports.

According to the Aid Worker Security Database, which tracks major security incidents involving aid workers and is funded by Canada and Australia, 907 humanitarian workers were killed, injured or kidnapped last year, up from 833 in 2024.

The number of aid workers killed stood at 350, down from a record 387 the previous year.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the escalating violence and called on states to uphold international humanitarian law and ensure that those responsible are held accountable.

“Serving others has become more dangerous than ever,” Guterres said ahead of UN ceremonies marking World Humanitarian Day, during which flags at UN headquarters in New York and Geneva were to be flown at half-staff in honor of humanitarian workers killed in the line of duty.

UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said the proliferation of inexpensive and adaptable armed drones has further increased risks for aid workers operating in conflict zones.

In March, drone strikes in Goma in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo killed at least three people, including a French aid worker. Humanitarian convoys in Sudan and Ukraine have also been repeatedly targeted.

Gaza was by far the deadliest location for humanitarian workers in 2025, with 186 aid workers killed there during the year, according to the database. Sudan ranked second.

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, has reported that at least 393 of its staff members have been killed in Gaza since the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza war on October 7, 2023.

Israel, which is fighting Hamas militants in Gaza, has said it takes extensive measures to avoid civilian casualties.

Philippe Lazzarini, the former UNRWA chief, said earlier this year that he was seeking the establishment of a high-level panel to investigate the deaths of the agency’s staff members.

Bushra Khalidi, Oxfam’s global humanitarian policy lead, called for stronger protections for aid workers, warning: “We're witnessing an assault on humanitarian action itself.”

By Vafa Guliyeva