Wars, floods, earthquakes, famines, epidemics and forced displacement have always tested humanity. Yet amid every scene of devastation, there are people who willingly put themselves at risk to save others. Someone carries an injured person to an ambulance; another delivers food to a family trapped by floods; a health worker travels to a remote settlement with vaccines; a volunteer establishes a temporary classroom for displaced children; and a doctor treats the wounded amid gunfire and bombardment. It is to honour their service and sacrifice, and, more importantly, to demand their protection, that World Humanitarian Day is observed every year on 19 August.

This is not merely a day for paying tribute. Its message is more serious: those who set out to save human lives must not themselves become targets. World Humanitarian Day itself emerged from tragedy. On 19 August 2003, a bomb attack on the Canal Hotel in Baghdad killed 22 humanitarian workers, including Sergio Vieira de Mello, the United Nations Special Representative for Iraq. Five years later, the UN General Assembly designated 19 August as World Humanitarian Day. More than two decades later, the significance of the day has only increased.

The central message of World Humanitarian Day 2026 is particularly compelling: Concern is not protection. Condemnation is not accountability.

The central message of World Humanitarian Day 2026 is particularly compelling: Concern is not protection. Condemnation is not accountability.

The statement challenges the conscience of the international community. Expressions of sorrow after the killing of an aid worker are not enough. Condemnation after an attack on a hospital is not enough. Nor is expressing concern when a convoy carrying food is prevented from reaching people in desperate need. If international humanitarian law exists, it must be enforced. When it is violated, responsibility must be established and those responsible must be held accountable.

The figures reveal the gravity of the situation. According to the United Nations, at least 326 humanitarian workers were killed across 21 countries in 2025. In only three years, the number of humanitarian personnel killed exceeded one thousand. These are not merely statistics. Behind every number is a family: a mother whose son never returned, a child whose father died while trying to save someone else, colleagues who lost a companion, and communities that may have lost their last remaining source of assistance. An attack on a humanitarian worker therefore extends far beyond the individual victim. When a doctor is killed, hundreds of patients may lose access to treatment. When a worker delivering food is attacked, an entire aid convoy may stop. When a local relief worker is abducted, access to remote communities may disappear.

International humanitarian law consequently establishes limits even in war. Civilians, medical personnel and humanitarian workers are entitled to protection, and parties to conflict must facilitate humanitarian assistance to populations in need. Yet in 2025, the World Health Organization verified 1,385 attacks on health care across 19 countries and territories, resulting in approximately 1,984 deaths and 1,187 injuries. Hospitals, ambulances and health workers can no longer assume that their humanitarian function alone will keep them safe.

Modern warfare is being transformed by armed drones, automated surveillance, artificial intelligence, long-range weapons and increasingly sophisticated information systems. Technology, however, does not eliminate human........

© The Friday Times