1. Tracking the Toll: Measuring Violence Against Aid Workers

Despite their protected status as neutral aid providers under international humanitarian law, aid workers have fatality rates exceeding those of uniformed military and law enforcement personnel. Unlike military personnel, moreover, humanitarians have no system of “force protection,” and humanitarian principles preclude the use of deterrent weapons. Instead, their main tools are negotiations with belligerents for secure access and actively cultivating acceptance with local communities. Every year, since the data has been recorded, hundreds of aid workers have been killed, kidnapped, or seriously wounded in the course of their work, and deliberate violence is a more common cause of workplace-related death of aid workers than accidents or illness. Although these attacks are concentrated in a small number of countries, in these high-violence contexts, the problem is becoming more intractable and the violence more intense. Consequently, the ability of humanitarians to meet the needs of affected populations is greatly reduced.