U.N. Faces Nearly $5 Billion Shortfall in Aid

Staff / Truthdig Jul 21, 2009 The United Nations is facing a $4.8 billion shortfall in funding for humanitarian aid to some of the world's poorest peoples. At the top of that list are the inhabitants of Zimbabwe, Palestine and Kenya, which face increasingly dire financial needs. Although emergency relief donations have risen, the global credit crunch has made it harder for developed countries to keep pace with the need. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Darfur Food Disaster Looms

Staff / Truthdig Mar 25, 2009 Aid agencies fear that more than a million people in the African region of Darfur may not be getting humanitarian food rations starting in May. The worries come weeks after the Sudanese government expelled more than a dozen foreign aid groups after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar Hassan Ahmed Bashir. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Palestinians Push for War Crimes Inquiry

Staff / Truthdig Feb 11, 2009 On the heels of Israel's election and its bloody three-week assault on the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Authority is pressing the International Criminal Court to investigate the possibility of war crimes committed by Israeli commanders. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Halt! Who Goes There? Well, Not Aid

Staff / Truthdig Feb 6, 2009 Be it a political gamble or a mix-up of epic proportions, Hamas is being accused of stealing humanitarian aid from UN trucks in the Gaza Strip Due to the thefts, officials say, aid has stopped flowing into the battle-torn territory, where half the population depends on the U shipments for food. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Israel Blocks Aid Supplies

Staff / Truthdig Jan 28, 2009 A crossing point on the Egypt-Israel border has turned into a parking lot for supplies since Israel virtually halted the transport of aid and equipment for Gaza. Medical items are being allowed to pass, but well-drilling equipment, blankets and food are being blocked. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Israel Resumes Attack

Staff / Truthdig Jan 7, 2009 Following a three-hour pause in its aerial bombardment to allow those in the Gaza Strip to "get medical attention, get supplies whatever they need," Israel has resumed its attack, although it promised additional halts amid reports that Hamas and Israel are working out details of a cease-fire Overall, 660 Palestinians have been reported killed, including more than 200 children . Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Israel Offers Tidings, Lifts Blockade

Staff / Truthdig Dec 26, 2008 Israel has discovered the holiday spirit and decided that its blockade of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip should be lifted, allowing trucks of medicine, food and other supplies to enter the occupied territory beginning Friday. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Israel Rejects U.N. Aid Plea

Staff / Truthdig Nov 19, 2008 If it looks heartless and sounds heartless, it probably is heartless. A direct quote from a Voice of America news piece: "Israel is ignoring pleas by the United Nations to allow humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, standing firm on its blockade of the Palestinian territory." Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Blockaded Gaza ‘Faces Disaster’

Staff / Truthdig Nov 14, 2008 It's been only about a week since Israel closed the border into the Gaza Strip, denying the occupied territory humanitarian supplies and fuel and even blocking journalists, but the UK-based aid group Oxfam is already warning that Gaza "faces disaster" if the blockade is not immediately broken. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Darfur Camps Running Out of Room

Staff / Truthdig Mar 20, 2007 The Sudanese camps where some 2 million refugees live are nearing capacity. According to a new U.N. report on the Darfur crisis, 80,000 people already have fled their homes this year, and some camps have been forced to turn them away. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )