2017: #NOTATARGET
This World Humanitarian Day we bring attention to the millions of civilians affected by armed conflict every day. People in cities and towns struggle to find food, water, and safe shelter, while fighting drives millions from their homes. Children are recruited and used to fight, and their schools are destroyed. Women are sexually abused by fighters, then shamed by their villages. As humanitarian workers deliver aid, and medical workers treat the wounded and sick, they are directly targeted, treated as threats, and prevented from bringing relief and care to those in desperate need.
The humanitarian concerns described here can’t possibly capture the lives of all those affected by conflict around the world. From people with disabilities, to the elderly, migrants, and journalists, all civilians caught in conflict need to be protected. Please sign the petition demanding world leaders do everything in their power to protect all civilians in conflict.
Resources
- Report of the Secretary-General on the protection of civilians in armed conflict (UN Security Council)
- World Humanitarian Day 2017 (OCHA)
- UN Secretary-General marks World Humanitarian Day calls for global action to protect civilians in armed conflict (OCHA)
- Violence against aid workers in 2016 (OCHA)