Armed Conflicts in 2026: Crisis Updates & Aid

The Russia-Ukraine war remains an active, high-casualty armed conflict, with recent reporting showing continued civilian harm from long-range missile and drone strikes. ACLED reported that Russian strikes killed at least 43 civilians across multiple Ukrainian regions during 21–27 February 2026, and the Institute for the Study of War reported that Russia launched 115 drones against Ukraine on 24–25 February 2026. Civilian protection, energy, transport, and housing infrastructure remain major concerns, and the UN continues to verify civilian casualties while noting that confirmed figures likely understate the true toll because some incidents cannot be immediately verified or occur in occupied areas. Humanitarian and displacement needs remain large, with millions of Ukrainians still displaced inside the country and abroad, and fighting and strikes continue to affect regions including Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Kyiv, Luhansk, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Sumy, Vinnytsia, and Zaporizhzhia.

Yemen’s humanitarian crisis is worsening in 2026 as acute food insecurity rises and aid funding falls. UN-backed food security analysis reported that around 18.3 million people — about 52% of the population — are acutely food insecure, including about 5.2 million in Emergency (IPC Phase 4) and around 41,000 in Catastrophe (IPC Phase 5) in some districts of Hajjah, Al Hodeidah, and Amran governorates. UN officials also warned in January 2026 that more than 20 million Yemenis would face acute food insecurity and tens of thousands could face famine-like conditions as humanitarian access becomes more restricted. The crisis is being driven by prolonged conflict, economic collapse, climate shocks, and sharply reduced humanitarian support. The 2026 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan says over 22 million people need assistance, including 10.95 million women and girls, and it seeks US$2.16 billion; it also estimates 14.4 million people need water, sanitation, and hygiene support, while more than 2.2 million children under age five face malnutrition, including 516,157 with severe acute malnutrition. UN and NGO reporting also says aid cuts are reducing food, nutrition, health, and WASH interventions, with the Food Security Cluster and Nutrition Cluster under severe strain and some health facilities already closed because of funding shortfalls.

Sudan’s health system remains near collapse in 2026 amid the ongoing war, mass displacement, repeated attacks on healthcare, and widespread hunger. WHO reported in January 2026 that more than one third of health facilities nationwide were non-functional, and it reiterated in April 2026 that 37% of facilities remained non-functional across the country’s 18 states. WHO also said the conflict had driven the system to the brink of collapse and left millions without access to essential care. The crisis is being compounded by attacks on hospitals and ambulances, disease outbreaks, and severe humanitarian needs. WHO reported 217 verified attacks on healthcare since April 2023, causing 2,052 deaths and 810 injuries by April 2026; earlier January 2026 figures were 201 attacks, 1,858 deaths, and 490 injuries. The 2026 humanitarian plan says 33.7 million people need assistance, including about 21 million who need health assistance, while outbreaks of cholera, malaria, dengue, measles, and polio continue to strain an already fragile system.

Myanmar’s post-coup conflict remains a severe, multi-front civil war, with the junta still under pressure from the People’s Defence Force, the National Unity Government, and multiple ethnic armed organizations. Recent reporting cited by the Council on Foreign Relations says the military government controls about 21% of territory while rebel forces and ethnic armies hold about 42%, and the United Nations and Human Rights Watch report more than 3 million people displaced, with the 2026 Human Rights Watch estimate at least 3.6 million internally displaced. The humanitarian situation remains extremely acute. Human Rights Watch says more than 15 million people face acute food insecurity, and AP reported in early 2025 that nearly 20 million people needed humanitarian aid and about 3.5 million were internally displaced; Amnesty reported in January 2025 that the junta had killed more than 6,000 people and that more than 20,000 had been arbitrarily detained since the coup. The Rohingya crisis remains unresolved, with Amnesty noting 2024 was the worst year of violence against the Rohingya since 2017 and the conflict in Rakhine continuing to block safe repatriation. The conflict is concentrated in Rakhine, Shan, Kachin, Sagaing, Magway, Mandalay, Karen, and Chin, with continued fighting and airstrikes against civilian infrastructure. UNHCR reported in May 2026 that around 299,000 people had fled Myanmar to neighboring countries such as Bangladesh, India, and Thailand, while Rohingya refugees remain largely in Bangladesh with no safe return in sight.

The conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo remains a severe and worsening humanitarian and security crisis, driven by fighting between the Congolese army, the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group, and other regional and local armed actors. In July 2026, the UN said fighting in South Kivu had continued despite peace efforts, with both sides using drones, heavy artillery, and other explosive weapons in civilian areas, causing civilian deaths, injuries, livestock losses, and destruction of homes. Recent UN reporting also said more than eight million people have been displaced across the DRC during decades of conflict, with more than one million refugees already having fled the country and fears of additional displacement if the violence continues. In early 2026, Reuters reported a ceasefire planned under the Doha framework, but both the Congolese government and M23 continued accusing each other of violations, while renewed clashes were also reported in South Kivu and around Minembwe. The crisis remains concentrated in eastern DRC, especially North Kivu and South Kivu, with spillover into areas including Goma, Bukavu, Uvira, Minembwe, and other towns affected by fighting and displacement. Human rights and humanitarian reports describe killings, sexual violence, attacks on IDP sites, and worsening disease risks in overcrowded displacement settings.