This statement was delivered by Human Rights Watch at the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) during an interactive dialogue with the Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic held on March 18, 2025.
In 2025, children in Lebanon are bearing the profound toll of the conflict that escalated across the country in 2024. A new UNICEF report exposes the deterioration of key support systems for children — such as safe learning environments, and access to healthcare, nutrition, and clean water — leading to heightened risks of exploitation, barriers to processing emotional trauma, and significant challenges to their cognitive and social development.
Ongoing turbulence and lack of investments in Syria’s civilian infrastructure threaten any attempts that Syrians are making to recover after 14 years of crisis.
On 2 March, Israeli authorities announced a halt to humanitarian aid entering Gaza, jeopardizing progress made in delivering vital, lifesaving assistance since the ceasefire took effect on 19 January.
Over 586,000 children under the age of 10 have been vaccinated for poliovirus across Gaza, reaching 99 per cent of the target population since the campaign began on 22 February.
The End of Year for 2024 Livelihoods sector dashboard summarizes the progress made by Livelihoods sector partners involved in the Lebanon Response Plan (LRP), identifies key challenges and priorities, and highlights trends affecting people in need.
Estimates of the number of people missing from Syria run as high as 200,000. They include persons missing as a consequence of summary execution, arbitrary and incommunicado detention, kidnapping and abduction, enslavement, sarin gas attacks, forced displacement and migration, as well as other human rights abuses.
The recent shift of power in Syria on 8 December 2024 has reshaped the humanitarian landscape, bringing both new challenges and opportunities for recovery across the country.
The scale of loss and destruction in Gaza is indescribable. For almost 500 days, Israel carried out atrocities against Palestinians in Gaza, used starvation and denial of humanitarian aid as weapons of war, and sought to destroy every part of the enclave’s infrastructure and social fabric – schools, hospitals, homes, power, water.
Sweeping sanctions imposed by the United States, European Union, the United Kingdom, and other countries are hindering the restoration of essential services in Syria, Human Rights Watch said today.
Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon between October 2023 and December 2024 destroyed vast swathes of critical civilian infrastructure and public services, preventing tens of thousands of Lebanese from returning to their homes, Human Rights Watch said today.
The Syria crisis entered its 14th year in March 2024. The UN estimates that 16.7 million people need humanitarian assistance across the country – a 9 per cent increase from 2023.
Since October 2023, the conflict in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) has caused widespread devastation, severely impacting the health and well-being of millions.
The overthrow of Bashar al-Assad’s government in December 2024 has created a historic opportunity to advance justice and the rule of law, ensuring accountability for years of atrocity crimes and implementing governance, judicial, and security sector reforms that protect and fulfil civil, political, and socio-economic rights.
Sixteen days have passed since the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Palestinian factions was announced, yet the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is still dire.
At the end of 2024, the Strategic Steering Group (SSG) in Syria agreed to publish a document highlighting the humanitarian response priorities for 1 January-31 March 2025, aiming to address the most urgent humanitarian needs across the country.
The Syria crisis entered its fourteenth year in March 2024. The UN estimates that 16.7 million people need humanitarian assistance across the country – a 9 per cent increase from 2023.
For our part, the United Nations will do all we can to advance these efforts — in particular, to scale up humanitarian aid across Gaza, fully aware of the significant obstacles, challenges and constraints that we still face.
