The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has released its 2024 Emergency Watchlist, a global list of humanitarian crises monitoring 20 countries expected to see worsening conditions this year. The countries on the watchlist are divided into the top 10 ranked nations and a second half that is unranked.
**Sudan** ranked first among the top 10 countries on the watchlist. The ongoing war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces has pushed the country to the brink of collapse. Less than a year of fighting has doubled the number of people needing humanitarian assistance. In Darfur, human rights groups have reported mass killings and forced displacement based on ethnicity. The crisis is expected to deteriorate significantly into 2024, leaving millions without adequate food and unable to access healthcare and other essential services.
**Palestine** came in second, with Gaza entering 2024 as the deadliest place for civilians in the world. The population is bearing the brutal consequences of the latest round of conflict between Israel and Hamas, occurring with little regard for international laws and norms designed to protect civilians even in the darkest times. Israeli forces began airstrikes and ground operations following a deadly ground incursion and rocket fire by Hamas into southern Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of 1,200 people and over 200 hostages taken from Israel. Israeli operations since then have caused severe destruction, deaths, and widespread displacement across Gaza, especially in the north, leading to more than 28,000 fatalities. The occupied Palestinian territories have reached their highest ranking ever on the Emergency Watchlist as the humanitarian emergency is expected to persist long after fighting eventually ceases.
Ranking third among the worst global crises is South Sudan, followed by Burkina Faso in fourth place, Myanmar (Burma) in fifth, Mali in sixth, and Somalia in seventh. Niger is in eighth place, Ethiopia is ninth, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo is tenth.
In the second half of the unranked humanitarian emergency countries are Afghanistan, the Central African Republic, Chad, Ecuador, Haiti, Lebanon, Nigeria, Syria, Ukraine, and Yemen.
According to the report for 2024, record levels of humanitarian crises were observed by other key metrics. An estimated 299.4 million people will require humanitarian assistance in 2024, with 86% (258 million) in countries on the watchlist. The total number of people in need in 2024 is projected to be 17.5% lower than the record high of 363 million in 2023. However, the number of people in need in unlisted countries has decreased by 43%, while the need in watchlist countries has remained stable, showing little change from 260 million in 2023 (a 1% decrease).
