Humanitarian crises

A boy sits outside the entrance to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) building complex in Gaza City, on Sept. 6, 2025.

Interview

UNRWA plans Turkey office to boost Gaza, Syria aid as pledges dip

Speaking exclusively to Al-Monitor, UNRWA’s Tamara Alrifai said the upcoming Turkey office would help the agency to expand its operations not only in Gaza but also in Syria.

WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 21: Secretary of State Marco Rubio testifies before the House Committee on Appropriations | Subcommittee on National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs at the Rayburn House Office Building on May 21, 2025 in Washington, DC. Rubio testified on the proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2026 for the Department of State. (Photo by John McDonnell/Getty Images)

Analysis

US options constrained in Sudan as RSF snubs Washington, sanctions fail

Washington is attempting to broker a humanitarian truce between Sudan’s warring factions, but analysts warn there’s little sign either side is ready to stop fighting.

By Rosaleen Carroll

In Washington, DC, US, reporting on the Middle East

A South African Airways (SAA) flight is seen on the tarmac before departing from the O.R. Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg on Sept. 23, 2021.

After 13 hours, 150 Gazans allowed to enter South Africa: What to know

The group were reportedly stranded for several hours after opting to leave the war-torn Palestinian enclave.

Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Meet Rama Duwaji, Mamdani's wife and New York’s first lady of Syrian descent

New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani's wife, Rama Duwaji, largely stayed out of the spotlight during the campaign but her Syrian heritage has shaped her views and upbringing.

Latest News

Interview

International Red Cross chief says Gaza conflict goes beyond anything he has ever seen

Members of the Red Cross stand amid the rubble of destroyed buildings as heavy machinery operates in the al-Tuffah neighborhood of Gaza City on Oct. 27, 2025.

Pierre Krahenbuhl

Pierre Krahenbuhl

Director-General of the International Committee

Sudan PM orders state of alert as atrocity claims mount in Darfur

EBRAHIM HAMID/AFP via Getty Images

RSF’s el-Fasher takeover kills 2,300 in Sudan as UAE accused of aiding militia

Displaced Sudanese who fled el-Fasher after the city fell to the Rapid Support Forces rest near the the town of Tawila in war-torn Sudan's western Darfur region, on Oct. 28, 2025.

Rafah reopening in limbo as Israel accuses Hamas of delaying return of hostages’ remains

General view of the Rafah Border Crossing on Oct. 9, 2025 in Rafah, Egypt.

Syria aid

How Syria's Assad is using aid access to hasten normalization

Experts say Syria's proposal to coordinate UN aid delivery is an attempt to cast itself as a constructive partner at a time when the region is bringing Bashar al-Assad in from the cold.

Volunteers help to extinguish a wildfire that broke out in the Datca district of Mugla, Turkey, July 13, 2022.

Wildfires hit Turkey’s Mediterranean coast as temperatures soar

More than 250 fires have raged across the country in less than two months amid unusually high temperatures.

The Liberia-flagged bulk carrier Asl Tia en-route to China transits the Bosporus.

Russia pulls inspectors from Turkey after Kremlin nixes grain deal

The joint operation center in Istanbul, which was set up as part of the Black Sea grain deal, has been the sole mechanism through which Ukrainian and Russian officials were directly working together on a regular basis since the invasion of Ukraine.

The UN-chartered vessel MV Valsamitis is loaded to deliver 25,000 tonnes of Ukrainian wheat to Kenya and 5,000 tonnes to Ethiopia, at the port of Chornomorsk, east of Odessa on the Black Sea coast, Feb. 18, 2023.

Turkey, Russia discuss Ukraine grain export deal after Moscow halts pact

The conversation between the top Russian and Turkish diplomats comes as Ankara is amping up its efforts to salvage the deal critical for global food markets.

Vehicles carrying the first UN delegation to visit rebel-held northwestern Syria, arrive through the Bab al-Hawa border crossing with Turkey on February 14, 2023.

Syria tells UN it will grant aid access via Bab al-Hawa

The announcement comes two days after the UN Security Council failed to reauthorize its vital cross-border aid operation into Syria.

A convoy of trucks carrying humanitarian aid is seen parked after crossing the Syrian Bab al-Hawa border crossing with Turkey, on July 10, 2023.

Breaking | Last Updated: July 12, 2023, 5:33 pm

UN fails to extend Syria cross-border aid mission after Russian veto

Russia killed a compromise resolution that would have kept aid flowing into northwest Syria for another nine months.

A convoy transporting humanitarian aid crosses into Syria from Turkey through the Bab al-Hawa border crossing on Jan. 18, 2022.

US, Russia clash over UN's aid lifeline to Syria

Ahead of the vote, UN humanitarian leaders are urging the Security Council to keep open “any and all avenues” to deliver aid to Syrians in need.

Trucks move in a United Nations aid convoy en route to Syria's rebel-held northwestern city of Idlib on June 23, 2023.

Syria’s rebel-held northwest receives first UN aid convoy since earthquake

UN aid has not entered northwest Syria since the earthquake that hit the region in February left millions suffering in devastating humanitarian conditions.

Rukban aid

In a first, US military delivers NGO aid to Syria’s Rukban camp

A US-based nonprofit obtained permission to have the US military deliver humanitarian aid from Iraq to a displaced persons camp in Syria.

A large poster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is decorated with paper flowers during the opening of the 42nd International Flower Show in the Tishreen park in the capital Damascus on June 22, 2022. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP) (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA/AFP via Getty Images)

Syria's Assad accuses France of 'hysteria' for calling to put him on trial

Damascus is furious after French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said she thinks Syrian President Bashar al-Assad should stand trial for his role in the Syrian war.

People form a convoy as they celebrate in support of the Sudanese armed forces in Khartoum on May 12, 2023.

Sudan: 280 killed as fighting rages in West Darfur

The conflict in war-torn Geneina is ethnic in dimension and predates the current conflict between the Sudanese armed forces and the rebel Rapid Support Forces.

A relief cargo slated for war-ridden Sudan is loaded onto an airplane in Dubai, May 8, 2023.

More EU humanitarian flights expected to Sudan following agreement

After sending a first airplane with humanitarian aid, the European Union is now working on more air shipments.