“Another paradox lies at the heart of humanitarianism. Defined by the principle that all lives hold equal value, then crises affecting small populations should command the same moral urgency as those affecting millions. 🧵

As we close out the year, here’s a chance to read/reread some of our award-winning and nominated stories of 2025. They range from investigations exposing structural abuses to reporting that traces how power operates across humanitarian systems. (Thread)🧵

With every survivor account, the picture of RSF atrocities in El Fasher grows clearer. Here, we report from Al Dabbah, where displaced Darfuris sought refuge after crossing the desert. buff.ly/m8GzAGU

The latest humanitarian news, direct to your inbox. Our newsletters and timely email alerts keep you up to date with all the latest humanitarian news: reporting and analysis from around the globe as well as opinion and newly relevant coverage from our archives, going back 20+ years. 🧵 ⬇️

UN reforms: Budget cuts and dramatic restructuring aren’t going to cut it. Aid needs to tackle its economic inefficiency problem. ⬇️

When Bashar al-Assad was ousted from power one year ago, 38-year-old Amira* didn’t know how to feel. It had been 8 years since she was released from one of the regime's Damascus prisons, and watching as others were freed from captivity brought up complex emotions. ⬇️ buff.ly/CrXdbQd

The Trump aid freeze isn’t the death of humanitarianism, but restoring funding alone won’t fix a broken system. What comes next? Opinion piece by @tammam.bsky.social

Nepal: What began as anger over social media restrictions morphed into demands for fundamental political change. Read:

📰 The new Inklings newsletter: Notes and musings on how aid works, from @newhumanitarian’s policy desk. Sign up here ⬇️ buff.ly/aSOcsjV buff.ly/atXNskd

Humanitarian prioritisation: It’s not “hyper-crises” that should raise alarm, but those at risk of rushed exits. ⬇️

Despite global commitments to “inclusive, people-centred” early warning systems, Tamil-language alerts often never came – even in the hardest-hit areas.

How can LatAm countries counter Trump’s migration crackdown? By rallying into a coalition of nations working together to devise a proactive strategy to resist US pressure. Opinion by Sara McKinnon: ⬇️

A UN’s top representative in Gaza has enabled Israel’s weaponisation of aid, alienated Palestinian and international colleagues, and contributed to Israeli efforts to sow division among humanitarians, aid workers involved in the response told The New Humanitarian.

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. ⬇️

Natural resources play an important role for both eastern DR Congo and Rwanda’s political economy, but do conflict mineral narratives capture the complexity of the ongoing M23 crisis?

AUSSOM, the AU peace mission to Somalia launched in January 2025 is mandated to stabilise Somalia government but already faces criticism over AU troops' human rights abuses record and lack of accountability:

Somalis abroad send hundreds of millions of dollars home each year, more than official aid flows. Read: ⬇️

While the Haiti gangs smuggle large amounts of heavy weaponry and ammunition with ease the Kenyan and Haitian police forces are short of equipment and lack both air and maritime support. Read our investigation on why the Security Mission in Haiti is failing.

📊 By the numbers: The perils of donor concentration, and why a wider donor base means more funding: ⬇️

IOM, the UN’s migration agency, is claiming UN immunity to justify its refusal to release documents about its EU-funded Assisted Voluntary Returns and Reintegration (AVRR) programme in Greece. (Thread) 🧵

What Greenland reveals about humanitarian blind spots ⬇️

🗞️ In the latest Inklings aid policy newsletter: WFP’s awkward Starbucks collab, UNHCR’s new boss, the Global Refugee Forum, and seriously, what’s going on at Oxfam? buff.ly/atXNskd

Can talking about migrants and returns protect refugee rights? Unpacking the UN refugee agency’s “route-based” strategy: ⬇️

In this article, we try to unpack the impact of aid cuts on humanitarian responses in Mozambique, and work out what it might signal elsewhere. Read: ⬇️

In September 2023, Hisham al-Hakimi, Save the Children’s security director in Yemen, was arrested by the Houthis. After a few weeks, the organisation announced he had died in custody. More than 16 months later, there are still no official reasons for his detention or death. Thread (🧵 )

🚨 New newsletter: Inklings explores all things aid and aid-adjacent. Today: WFP’s awkward Starbucks collab, UNHCR’s new boss, the Global Refugee Forum, and seriously, what’s going on at Oxfam?

“We always hear that a force will come to fight the gangs, and then they disappear and nothing happens”, said a displaced Haitian about the new Gang Suppression Force approved by the UN. Read what others in Port-au-Prince think about it here. By Milo Milfort. ⬇️

Rights advocates in Syria say survivors must play an important role in efforts towards truth, justice, and reconciliation – and that the current government needs to make sure it is not repeating the mistakes of the past. Read our latest report from Syria, a year after Assad’s fall: ⬇️ buff.ly/CrXdbQd

Malawi is grappling with a triple crisis – a food emergency, diminishing aid, and soaring debt. With over four million Malawians facing the threat of acute malnutrition until the next harvest in March, Mutharika last month declared a nationwide state of disaster. Read more:

Media reporting on asylum seekers hotel black markets shows a broken system where people are compelled to work in secret just to get by – but also people’s desire to make themselves useful even in the direst conditions. ⬇️

Protecting refugees and asylum also means talking about returning home, says a UN refugee agency official: ⬇️ buff.ly/Nih7F3n

International norms are falling short. On the latest episode of the Rethinking Humanitarianism podcast , three legal experts discuss steps forward: enforcing laws, including non-state actors, and erasing legal loopholes. Listen: ⬇️

This year we launched a brand new podcast: Power Shift -where we explore what’s possible when decision-makers, and those affected by their decisions, commit to honest, one-on-one conversations about the aid sector’s inequalities.🧵

This year we launched a brand new podcast: Power Shift -where we explore what’s possible when decision-makers, and those affected by their decisions, commit to honest, one-on-one conversations about the aid sector’s inequalities. 🧵

The story behind the UN’s 2026 humanitarian appeals isn’t simply about unmet needs or underfunding. It’s also about what decision-makers are overlooking: ⬇️

Can humanitarian journalism organisations become Trojan horses for introducing ethical practices into the traditional media that are sorely missing? Read ⬇️

Humanitarians must find a consistent way of presenting needs and costs that is credible and fundable – now more than ever.

A year after Assad’s fall, more than 177,000 Syrians are still considered forcibly disappeared. Thousands were released from prisons last December, but the fate of most detainees is still unknown. ⬇️ buff.ly/CrXdbQd

On the latest episode of the Rethinking Humanitarianism podcast, we take a critical look at the systems and structure of international laws and norms, and discuss what it would take to move forward. ⬇️

A year after Assad’s fall, and eight years after Amira was released from a Damascus prison, she is still unpacking the emotions the fall of the regime brought up. Watching other detainees released opened old wounds. 🧵

📊 Behind the numbers: Humanitarians are targeting a smaller percentage of people in need, but it’s becoming more expensive to reach each person. buff.ly/1uMQgxZ

The first foreign boots since the UN approved a Gang Suppression Force (GSF) to tackle Haiti’s worsening security crisis have hit the ground, but there’s little confidence among Haitians that it will be anything but yet another pointless foreign intervention. ⬇️

Humanitarians are asking for less money despite rising need. And they’re getting less, no matter what they ask for: ⬇️ buff.ly/X33M1AW

Can talking about migrants and returns protect refugee rights? Unpacking the UN refugee agency’s “route-based” strategy: ⬇️

A group of nations is pushing for justice and accountability in Palestine. Can their effort help bring an end to the impunity of powerful states? Read: ⬇️

Members of Minnesota’s Somali community – a state Trump singled out in a recent White House speech, where he accused Somalis of contributing nothing and said he does not “want them in our country” – say fear and anxiety are now widespread among both refugees and US citizens.

What’s a priority, what’s not, who’s left out, and why Trump gets a nod: Behind the numbers of next year’s humanitarian response plans: ⬇️

Although the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD) officially opened for business at COP30, it remains significantly underfunded. The Fund has just $431.52 million. But campaigners say billions are needed.

M23 occupation has had a devastating effect on communities in eastern DR Congo. But in cities like Uvira, civilians face a different threat: pro-government militias who claim to be fighting the rebels.

Asia’s deadly rains, Haiti’s election plan, and Trump’s sycophantic peace prize: The Cheat Sheet A weekly read to keep you in the loop on humanitarian issues. ⬇️ buff.ly/o8TSiEy