More than 37,000 civilians were killed in 2025 in 20 conflicts around the world, with one victim every 14 minutes according to OCHA. Speaking on Wednesday during an annual public debate of the Security Council on the issue of protecting civilians during armed conflict, Edem Wosornu, Director of the Crisis Management Division at the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), emphasized that “a civilian is killed every 14 minutes” in 20 conflicts.
Protecting civilians requires respect for the UN Charter. Edem Wosornu highlighted a record number of attacks against journalists and humanitarian workers, as well as a steady increase in sexual violence and serious violations against children. She acknowledged that the actual toll is likely “much heavier”, especially in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Sudan, and occupied Palestine.
These alarming trends are the result of “choices”, emphasized the OCHA official, whether it is ignoring the obligation to protect civilians, adopting permissive interpretations of international humanitarian law (IHL), subordinating civilian protection to military imperatives, or allowing impunity to prevail. Rather than mere expressions of occupation, protecting civilians requires respecting the UN Charter and preventing disagreements from escalating into armed conflicts, insisted Ms. Wosornu.
This also requires ensuring respect for IHL, without exceptions or selectivity, she added, advocating for the cessation of the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and arms transfers when there is a risk to civilians, for the protection of humanitarian personnel and journalists, for maintaining human control over the use of force, and for ending impunity.
