NEW YORK — A memorial service took place on Monday morning at United Nations Headquarters in New York to honor 136 UN personnel who died in the line of duty in 2025. UN Secretary-General António Guterres hosted the service.
The 2025 fatalities included 97 civilian personnel and 39 uniformed military and police peacekeepers. Eighty of the deceased personnel served with UNRWA in Gaza. More UN personnel have been killed in Gaza than in any other conflict or disaster in the organization's history. The deceased personnel came from 32 countries.
"These tragedies weigh heavily on us all and should shock the conscience of the entire world," UN Secretary-General António Guterres said. "Let me be clear. United Nations personnel must never be targeted." He added, "Attacks on peacekeepers and humanitarian workers are a violation of international law, including international humanitarian law."
"Some died alongside their families in their homes or in the places they sought refuge," Guterres said. "Others were killed while carrying out their duties in offices, in shelters and in the communities they served." Commemorated personnel also served in peacekeeping missions in the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and South Sudan.
A UNIFIL peacekeeper was killed in Lebanon last week. This marked the seventh peacekeeper death for UNIFIL since the conflict between Hezbollah and Israeli forces began in March. During the ceremony, UN officials held a minute of silence and read the names of the deceased aloud. Officials also lit a candle representing an eternal flame. "The people we commemorate today prove otherwise. You made our world a better place," Guterres said.
The Secretary-General instituted an annual memorial service at UN Headquarters in New York in 2011. The 2023 service commemorated 188 UN personnel who died in the line of duty. The 2024 service commemorated 168 UN personnel who died in the line of duty.