Tom Fletcher, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, has warned that vast sums are being directed toward war rather than humanitarian relief as crises intensify across the Middle East.
Speaking at the United Nations headquarters in New York on Friday (6 March 2026), Fletcher said the scale of military expenditure contrasted sharply with shrinking aid budgets.
“We’re seeing staggering amounts of money, reportedly $1 billion a day, funding this war, spent on destruction, while politicians continue to boast about cutting aid budgets for those in greatest need.”
He added that the prioritisation of military spending over humanitarian assistance was deeply troubling.
“It breaks my heart that this is being spent on this conflict, rather than dealing with the existing huge humanitarian caseload.”
Fletcher also warned that the escalation risks worsening interconnected global crises.
“We’ve lost our bearings somehow in the world… this ingenuity and creativity that humans have is being spent on developing more and more sophisticated ways of killing each other.”
He described the current situation as “a moment of grave peril”, urging de-escalation, dialogue and respect for international humanitarian law to protect civilians.
His remarks come amid escalating regional tensions involving Iran, Israel and the United States, growing civilian casualties, and mounting humanitarian pressure in Gaza, Lebanon and across the wider Middle East, as the UN continues to call for de-escalation, dialogue and protection of civilians under international humanitarian law.
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