Looking for a regular catch-up and lookahead on global humanitarian news from a dedicated team of editors? Sign up to receive our weekly Cheat Sheet: ⬇️ https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/subscribe

The US is co-opting pooled funds. Other donors must draw a line, writes Ed Schenkenberg van Mierop: ⬇️

Aid workers say mounting pressure from Burkina Faso’s military rulers is making it much harder for them to reach civilians affected by the country's long-running jihadist conflict.

After Rwanda-backed M23 forces withdrew from the Congolese city of Uvira, Banyamulenge civilians faced looting and attacks, but also political instrumentalisation from rebel forces and government officials. buff.ly/Nk5K7QP

🗣️ “We don’t yet know how humanitarians are going to deal with this because they've never had to deal with it before.” Humanitarians and the global gag rule: ⬇️ https://bit.ly/4tqZuwT

Opinion: “The latest version of the US global gag rule is an ideological throttlehold on foreign aid.” buff.ly/WdULXT7

Overwhelmed by the new levels of violence, many underserved communities in Peru have seen their daily lives disrupted, as they lose their livelihoods, struggle to get their children educated, and develop mental health issues. Read our report here.

Our latest reporting on the M23 conflict in DR Congo focuses on the minority Banyamulenge community, who are facing violent attacks and political instrumentalisation.

"Management is psychologically and politically easier than justice. But from Gaza, the demand remains stubbornly political." Read Nour ElAssy's latest on the attempt to shift the international narrative on Gaza: ⬇️

On our latest #RethinkingHumanitarianism, we’re talking about burnout in the aid sector: What drives it, how people can identify it and take action, and what organisations must do better. Listen: buff.ly/5BwIR3U

Humanitarians have a “burnout culture”, experts say. They work long hours in difficult environments. They’re trying to help people in the worst moments of their lives. In the middle of today’s funding crisis, they’re also deciding who gets aid and who does not. 🧵

🗞️ In the latest Inklings aid policy newsletter: Why $2 billion and the global gag rule are the biggest pivot point for the humanitarian system’s funding crisis since, well, the US aid cuts. https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/newsletter/2026/02/05/inklings-humanitarians-global-gag-dilemma

The New Humanitarian conducted a months-long investigation into NGOs that are scaling up their operations in Gaza as Israeli authorities push out established aid groups. Here’s what we found 👇

"Once a committee exists, once investors are invited, Western audiences can believe that the catastrophe has entered a solvable stage. The crimes become past tense, even when their consequences remain in the present." Palestinian journalist Nour ElAssy's latest: ⬇️

⚖️ Why the global gag rule makes all US funding an ethical dilemma 💸 Why some are urging donors to pause transfers to UN pooled funds 🐯 What’s a humanitarian “tiger team”? More in the Inklings newsletter: ⬇️

Decolonise How? A column that charts efforts towards more ethical reporting of humanitarian crises. In this edition: Building new structures and developing ways of working to support ethical communications under real-world pressures. ⬇️

"Management is psychologically and politically easier than justice. But from Gaza, the demand remains stubbornly political." Read Nour ElAssy's latest on the attempt to shift the international narrative on Gaza: ⬇️ buff.ly/EuCgX0r

Humanitarians, traditionally, have had little reason to think of the Arctic. But the recent transatlantic political crisis has highlighted a region with dynamics sharing stark parallels to crises across the Global South. Read more:

Opinion: What aid groups do with $2 billion in humanitarian funding can hardly be called principled if the US has its way.

The latest wave of violence in Balochistan marks a deadly escalation in a decades-long conflict between separatist groups and the state, in a region where the central government has long been accused of exploiting vast resources while marginalising local communities. ⬇️ https://bit.ly/4rgBRG4

Chaos, confusion, and more ethical dilemmas: Humanitarians are still trying to understand the impacts of a sweeping expansion to the so-called “global gag rule” on US funding. https://bit.ly/4tqZuwT

"Treating Gaza as an engineering project is easier than acknowledging that Palestinians in Gaza are a people: a people have rights, a project has deliverables; a people demand accountability, a project demands efficiency." Read Nour ElAssy's latest on Gaza: ⬇️

We urge UNHCR to take a stronger line in holding the Tanzanian government to account rather than facilitating the forced removal of Burundi refugees under the guise of voluntary repatriation. https://bit.ly/3Zj1hq1

Burkina Faso’s military junta is tightening control over relief groups, introducing new rules and detaining aid workers, even as humanitarian needs remain extremely high in the country. https://bit.ly/4tkdhVS

“As soon as you start something new, threatening extortionist messages begin,” said Pedro, a Peruvian cab driver about the rise of organised crime in his country. Political instability has allowed cartels to thrive, disproportionately affecting poor communities. Read here. https://bit.ly/4caAl3e

Want to stay in the loop on global humanitarian issues? Our editors break down the week’s most important humanitarian developments and what they mean. ⬇️

Thousands of children remain unlawfully detained in al-Hol and al-Roj camps in northeast Syria. Six years of evidence shows repatriation protects children and strengthens long-term security. Prolonged detention does neither. https://bit.ly/3M7aQp8

Tanzania is ramping up efforts to push out the remaining 142,000 Burundian refugees in the country, threatening to close all camps in the coming few months. https://bit.ly/3Zj1hq1

Aid workers say mounting pressure from Burkina Faso’s military rulers is making it much harder for them to reach civilians affected by the country's long-running jihadist conflict. https://bit.ly/4tkdhVS

In Peru, homicides and extortions are rising fast, as political instability gives ground to the surge of organised crime. The humanitarian impact has been significant enough for some aid groups to reprioritise their assistance. Read more: ⬇️

The recent eruption of violence in Balochistan should also draw attention to an ongoing epidemic of forced disappearances and extrajudicial killings. Read: ⬇️

A peace deal was signed by the presidents of DR Congo and Rwanda in Washington last December, yet days later the Kigali-backed M23 rebel group launched a new offensive. A reporter travels the road the rebels advanced along, exposing the agreement's emptiness: ⬇️

Detentions, torture, and the extra judicial killings of government opponents is prevalent in Burundi, and a threat to returning refugees. Read: ⬇️

Reversing course, MSF announced on 30 January that it had decided not to comply with an Israeli law aid workers see as an attempt to silence advocacy and manipulate the aid response. Read Riley Sparks write-up of the controversy that preceded the decision: ⬇️ buff.ly/rwwwrAU

Chaos, confusion, and more ethical dilemmas: Humanitarians are still trying to understand the impacts of a sweeping expansion to the so-called “global gag rule” on US funding.

Read Riley Sparks’ nuanced rundown of MSF's back-and-forth over whether to provide staff names in the occupied Palestinian territories to Israeli authorities – and what's at stake for the aid response in Gaza:

"I do not reject peace. On the contrary, I desperately want it. But peace, for me, is not a council without Palestinians nor an administration imposed from the outside. Peace is being part of the decision, not its subject" From journalist Rasha Abou Jalal: ⬇️ https://bit.ly/4qibH4s

From the return of territorial conquest and the growing risk from drone warfare to climate disasters in a world beyond 1.5°C and skewed crisis coverage, our specialist editors break down 10 humanitarian trends to watch in 2026. Read the full story: ⬇️

Opinion: Bangladesh’s Bhasan Char project, a man-made floating refugee camp with the stylings of a penal colony in the Bay of Bengal, was destined, from the outset, to fail Rohingya refugees. https://bit.ly/3Z7Kd6g

On the Rethinking Humanitarianism podcast: the Rohingya community’s long wait for justice, how a case in The Hague opened the door for accountability elsewhere, and humanitarians’ complex role delivering aid amid a genocide. Listen: https://bit.ly/4t8RqAE

The New Humanitarian spoke to Iranians who have been forced to choose between healthcare and food while well-paying jobs were drying up. Their stories paint a stark picture of how macroeconomic decisions affect the most fundamental aspects of daily and drive people to protest: https://bit.ly/4q5G5P4

"Ordinary people are the first responders, and they will continue wanting to help." Read Henrik Kjellmo Larsen on the role of spontaneous volunteers during a time when formal humanitarianism is being forced into retreat: ⬇️ https://bit.ly/4bZAoim

"We know one thing for certain – any future that does not see us or hear us will not be safe, no matter what name it carries." Palestinian journalist Rasha Abou Jalal on Trump's Board of Peace: ⬇️ buff.ly/jjxyLZJ

"As it is being presented, the Board of Peace does not seem to view us as a people with the right to self-determination, but rather as a humanitarian file that needs management, not justice." Read Palestinian journalist Rasha Abou Jalal's latest: ⬇️

The New Humanitarian spoke to Iranian-Canadian journalist Samira Moyeddin to find out more about what started the protests in Iran, what the people inside Iran actually want, and what the threats of US military action could mean for millions of Iranians in the country. buff.ly/bAihQIx

For minority groups, the fragile ceasefire in the northeast comes with more profound questions over their future in Syria.

In the Inklings aid policy newsletter: If it sticks – that’s a big if – the US plan to send humanitarian cash through UN pooled funds could reshape the funding landscape. And that has some other agencies in a fix. buff.ly/a5lA10H

“I thought war could only destroy, yet in Sudan I witnessed courage, compassion, and the endurance of ordinary people”. Sudanese writer Samah Fawzi reflects on the small gifts of war – a jug of water, a wad of cash, a 2x1 meter shop – that reveal moments of grace and hope. buff.ly/atFTCxL

Sudanese fleeing RSF massacres in El Fasher crossed the desert to reach a displacement camp in Al Dabbah in Northern State. Local communities have welcomed them with food but conditions remain harsh. buff.ly/8YgxfvG

What happens when a refugee exposes human trafficking inside a refugee camp? According to one journalist now living in a safe house, it is neglect and a broken system that prefers silence. ⬇️ buff.ly/BhOoSPr