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Reporting from a recent aid convoy mission, WFP Director for Palestine Shaun Hughes said that with only one crossing open at Kerem Shalom, all supplies destined for northern Gaza would have to pass south through damaged and heavily congested roads.
“Because of the security situation, there are only certain roads we can use inside the Gaza Strip… everything we need to send north has to go through here too,” he said.
Assistance barriers
The application came as United Nations Office of Assistance Coordination (OCHA) warned that insecurity, airstrikes and repeated displacement continued to hinder relief efforts.
The agency also reported that funding shortfalls had led to a 37 percent drop in the number of families receiving shelter assistance between May and June, while shortages of fuel, generators and other essential equipment disrupted humanitarian operations.
According to Gaza health authorities, more than 1,080 people have been killed and nearly 3,500 people injured since the ceasefire agreement was announced on October 10, 2025.
The UN set up a $100 million aid fund as El Niño threatened millions of people
The UN is preparing to release up to $100 million in emergency funding as forecasters warn that the new El Niño weather pattern could bring severe drought, flooding and extreme heat to vulnerable communities in Latin America, East and Southern Africa, Asia and the Pacific.
In a statement on Monday, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher warned that the coming El Niño could be more severe than the event in 2023-2024, leaving tens of millions of people in need of food, nutrition, clean water, sanitation, health services, agricultural support and protection.
“This comes amid expanding conflict, rising numbers of people displaced, and soaring fuel, fertilizer and food prices that are putting pressure on the most vulnerable families – while the humanitarian system is reeling from deep cuts,” he said.
The UN has allocated more than $20 million for anticipatory action in six countries through this program Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF).
Increases risk
Calling for greater investment in early action, Mr. Fletcher emphasized that acting before a disaster occurs is more effective and cheaper than acting after the damage has occurred.
“The choice is clear: we can wait for disaster to happen, or we can invest in resilience,” he said.
He also urged stronger support for refugee communities and more ambitious climate action.
El Salvador has eliminated blinding eye diseases
That World Health Organization (WHO) has validated El Salvador as a country that has eliminated trachoma as a public health problem, making it the first country in Central America and the second country on the continent overall to achieve the milestone in fighting the world’s largest blindness-causing infectious disease.
The validation follows a rigorous multi-year assessment that found no evidence of active transmission between 2023 and 2026, no cases detected in children, and no advanced disease capable of causing blindness in adults.
Trachoma spreads through contact with the eyes and nasal discharge from an infected person. Recurrent infections can cause eyelashes to turn inward, ultimately leading to permanent blindness if left untreated.
WHO Director General Tedros congratulated all Salvadorans, calling the achievement “testament to the power of political commitment, strategic investment and community engagement.”
The global fight continues
El Salvador has strengthened surveillance, primary health services, eye care services, and water, sanitation and hygiene programs to help prevent the disease from returning.
The country’s success marks an important step towards the global goal of eliminating trachoma worldwide by 2030.
Trachoma remains a public health problem in some of the world’s poorest and most remote communities.
