World: Aid in Danger Bi-Monthly News Brief (01-15 September 2026)

Please refer to the attached file. Aid in Danger News Brief The impact of drones on aid operations In 2025, incidents where drone-delivered explosives impacted aid operations increased by 235%, from 23 recorded incidents in 2024 to 77. In these incidents, aid workers were killed or injured while aid assets and humanitarian supplies were damaged or destroyed, including in attacks on distribution sites and convoys transporting supplies. These incidents occurred amid over 1, 800 recorded drone-related incidents affecting aid operations and critical civilian services such as healthcare, education, food and water systems and IDP or refugee settlements areas – a 131% increase compared to 2024. In 2025 a growing number of aid workers killed by drones In 2025, at least 28 aid workers were killed by drone strikes, a 65% increase from 2024 and the highest annual toll since 2021, when Insecurity Insight documented an aid worker killed by a drone. Almost a third of aid workers killed or injured were employed by local non-governmental organisations (LNGOs), which deliver frontline assistance despite having more limited financial resources than UN agencies and larger international organisations. Aid workers were killed by drones whilst carrying out their duties, particularly when travelling in convoys delivering critical aid supplies or moving between project sites. Aid workers were also killed in drone strikes at aid compounds or residences, and at aid distribution points.

Read full story on Reliefweb