Unprecedented flooding displaces hundreds of thousands across east Africa

Unprecedented flooding displaces hundreds of thousands across east Africa

In an alert, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) noted that torrential rains have unleashed catastrophic flooding and mudslides while also severely damaging roads, bridges and dams.  More than 637,000 people have been affected by weeks of deluges including 234,000 displaced in just the last five days. There is no official figure for the number of…

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World News in Brief: Rafah escalation fears, Gaza war’s unprecedented death rate, Pakistan terrorist attacks condemned

World News in Brief: Rafah escalation fears, Gaza war’s unprecedented death rate, Pakistan terrorist attacks condemned

More than half of Gaza’s population of over two million is now crammed into the city, which is located on the border with Egypt and originally home to some 250,000 people. Congestion has reached a point where normal routes are blocked by tents set up by families seeking any flat, clean space available, OCHA said.  Garbage…

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World News in Brief: Unprecedented cholera spike in Africa, Julian Assange extradition update, locusts compound Sudan crisis

World News in Brief: Unprecedented cholera spike in Africa, Julian Assange extradition update, locusts compound Sudan crisis

Dr. Fiona Braka from WHO’s regional office in Brazzaville, Congo, said that eastern and southern Africa have been particularly badly affected. In just the first four weeks of the year, 10 African countries reported more than 26,000 cases and 700 deaths, which is nearly double the number reported last year over the same period. Zambia…

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INTERVIEW: Destruction, displacement, and grief. Senior UNRWA official reflects on ‘unprecedented’ conflict in Gaza

INTERVIEW: Destruction, displacement, and grief. Senior UNRWA official reflects on ‘unprecedented’ conflict in Gaza

135 UNRWA staff members are known to have been killed in Gaza since the escalation of fighting since the 7 October Hamas attacks on Israel. That’s the most ever in one incident but, despite the danger and extremely difficult working conditions, UNRWA is continuing to assist those caught up in the fighting through no fault…

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World News in Brief: Russia’s LGBT ban condemned, unprecedented Africa malnutrition crisis, health after childbirth

World News in Brief: Russia’s LGBT ban condemned, unprecedented Africa malnutrition crisis, health after childbirth

This, in effect, bans all public LGBT activities and organisations within the country. The nine UN Human Rights Council-appointed experts said the ruling “significantly distances” Russia from its obligations under international law to promote and protect human rights for all. The experts sent an official letter to the Russian Government on Monday, outlining their urgent…

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Unprecedented drought emergency demands urgent action

Unprecedented drought emergency demands urgent action

The Global Drought Snapshot report, released by the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) on Friday, coinciding with COP 28, paint a grim picture of the scale of lives and livelihoods lost to droughts. Ibrahim Thiaw, UNCCD Executive Secretary, emphasized the urgency of the situation. “Unlike other disasters that attract media attention, droughts happen silently,…

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Israel-Palestine crisis has ‘reached an unprecedented level of dehumanisation’: Independent rights expert

Israel-Palestine crisis has ‘reached an unprecedented level of dehumanisation’: Independent rights expert

In an interview with UN News, UN Human Rights Council-appointed expert Francesca Albanese, said it was “impossible to describe the pain and suffering that Israelis are going through because of what happened to them…because there are not only those who were killed, those who were taken hostage, but there is an entire population that was…

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Human rights experts: Humanity facing ‘unprecedented global toxic emergency’

Human rights experts: Humanity facing ‘unprecedented global toxic emergency’

The fifth session of the International Conference on Chemicals Management (ICCM-5), organized by UN environment programme UNEP and hosted by Germany, kicks off in Bonn on Monday. “ICCM-5 is expected to be a watershed moment for international cooperation on chemicals and wastes”, said a statement released by the group of more than 30 experts.  …

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