Millions of Lives at Risk from 'Brutal' Funding Cuts, UN Refugee Chief Says

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi speaks during press a conference in Beirut, Lebanon , October 6, 2024. REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki/File Photo
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi speaks during press a conference in Beirut, Lebanon , October 6, 2024. REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki/File Photo
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Millions of Lives at Risk from 'Brutal' Funding Cuts, UN Refugee Chief Says

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi speaks during press a conference in Beirut, Lebanon , October 6, 2024. REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki/File Photo
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi speaks during press a conference in Beirut, Lebanon , October 6, 2024. REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki/File Photo

Millions of lives are at risk from "brutal funding cuts" from donors, the UN refugee chief said on Thursday, warning that already displaced women are at greater risk of rape and that children were being pushed into trafficking or early marriage.

"Brutal funding cuts in the humanitarian sector are putting millions of lives at risk," said Filippo Grandi, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, in a statement which did not mention its top donor the United States by name.

"The consequences for people fleeing danger will be immediate and devastating," he noted.

US President Donald Trump's administration has announced major funding cuts that have sparked mayhem around the world and whose impacts on millions of vulnerable people are now emerging.



Spain to Limit Access to Madrid Airport for Nontravelers Because of Homeless Encampment Problem

A person sleeps on the floor of Terminal 4 at Adolfo Suárez-Madrid Barajas Airport in Madrid, Spain, Monday, May 12, 2025. (Diego Radames/Europa Press via AP)
A person sleeps on the floor of Terminal 4 at Adolfo Suárez-Madrid Barajas Airport in Madrid, Spain, Monday, May 12, 2025. (Diego Radames/Europa Press via AP)
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Spain to Limit Access to Madrid Airport for Nontravelers Because of Homeless Encampment Problem

A person sleeps on the floor of Terminal 4 at Adolfo Suárez-Madrid Barajas Airport in Madrid, Spain, Monday, May 12, 2025. (Diego Radames/Europa Press via AP)
A person sleeps on the floor of Terminal 4 at Adolfo Suárez-Madrid Barajas Airport in Madrid, Spain, Monday, May 12, 2025. (Diego Radames/Europa Press via AP)

Spain's airport authority will start to limit access to Madrid's airport during some parts of the day as a preventive measure to stop more homeless people from sleeping in its terminals.

Only travelers with boarding passes, airport employees and those accompanying someone with a ticket will be allowed to enter the airport during hours with few departing and arriving flights, Spain's airport authority AENA said on Wednesday night, The Associated Press said.

AENA said the limits would be implemented sometime in the next few days, but did not specify exactly when or during what hours of the day.

For months, the Spanish capital's airport has seen homeless encampments in some of its terminals with individuals in sleeping bags occupying space near walls and bathrooms. Local media described the number of homeless people to be in the hundreds.

This week, AENA said it had asked Madrid city officials for help in addressing the problem months ago, but so far has received insufficient help.

“Airports are not places designed for living in, but rather are infrastructure solely for transit, which in no case offers adequate conditions for overnight stays,” AENA said in a statement Wednesday.

A political blame game between authorities at different levels of government has left the issue largely unaddressed before the peak summer travel season.

Spain received a record 94 million international tourists in 2024.