#ActForHumanity
World Humanitarian Day 2026
When the worst happens and lives are at risk, the people who come to help should never be targets. In 2025 alone, 350 aid workers were killed, the second-highest annual toll ever recorded. Behind every number is a family whose world has been torn apart.
From armed drones to emerging technologies, the nature of war is changing. Our humanity cannot. When misused, these technologies put civilians and humanitarians in even greater danger.
Act for Humanity
Humanitarians continue to be killed, injured, detained and blocked from reaching people in need.
The laws exist. The commitments exist. What is missing is consequence.
Concern is not protection. Condemnation is not accountability.
Those with power and influence must act. Protect civilians and humanitarians. Enable humanitarian access. Investigate violations. Hold perpetrators to account.
The time for concern is over. The time for consequence is now.
#ActForHumanity
Video transcript
When we cured the incurable? When we took steps together toward a brighter future? Outlaw for all time.
When human potential made us all proud.
And now, how does it feel having lost our way? Now that human ingenuity turned against us.
Now that hospitals and schools are being targeted, how does it feel to see that laws designed to protect us are being brazenly disregarded?
It is time to renew our promise.
Let's make protecting each other our greatest achievement.
Humanitarians under attack
Attacks harming humanitarians have become common and can be a violation of International Humanitarian Law (IHL).
In 2025, 1,187 aid workers faced major security incidents: 350 were killed, 322 wounded, 235 kidnapped, and 280 detained or arrested. Most were local staff serving their own communities.
By August 2026, more than 80 humanitarians have been killed. At least another 90 have been injured or abducted.
The human toll of ignoring IHL
From looting and obstruction to attacks and kidnapping, threats to humanitarian workers' safety and movement compromise a lifeline to millions of people in need.
Clinics close. Food stops. Protection disappears.
The destruction of hospitals, schools and other civilian infrastructure devastates communities for generations.
Humanitarian organizations are working to reach 87 million people facing the most severe needs this year.
Despite the challenges, humanitarians persist in striving to help all those in need.
Who is responsible?
The issue is not the absence of rules. It is the failure to uphold them.
Parties to armed conflict are obligated to uphold IHL.
All States must use their influence to prevent and end IHL violations.
Alleged violations must be investigated and those responsible held to account.
We need political will and courage to ensure respect for IHL.
Resources
UN Secretary General’s Report on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict
2026 Aid Worker Security Report
Rapid support for aid workers at risk
About World Humanitarian Day
World Humanitarian Day (WHD), which takes place every year on 19 August, was designated by the UN General Assembly in 2008 to coincide with the anniversary of the 2003 bombing of the UN headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq.
WHD aims to recognize aid workers and mobilize people from around the world to advocate for the broader humanitarian cause.
World Humanitarian Day is a campaign by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).