(UN News)* — The worsening security situation in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has forced many mpox patients to flee treatment centres, increasing the risk of transmission, the UN health agency (WHO) warned on Monday [].
UN News | Internally displaced persons (IPDs) sheltering at a camp in Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Fighting escalated sharply in late January, as Rwanda-backed M23 rebels seized control of parts of North Kivu, including areas near the regional capital Goma, and advanced towards South Kivu.
29 Jan 2025 – The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) remains one of the most volatile regions in the world, plagued by persistent conflict, exploitation, and foreign interference.
Raïs Neza Boneza
The ongoing offensive by the M23 rebel group in the eastern part of the Congo, backed by Rwanda, highlights the complex web of geopolitics and resource exploitation that fuels instability in the region.
This conflict is more than a localized struggle; it represents a broader pattern of global economic interests undermining the sovereignty and well-being of African nations.
(UN News)* —Four years after the military coup which plunged Myanmar into turmoil, the country is facing an unprecedented “polycrisis,” marked by economic collapse, intensifying conflict, complex climate hazards and deepening poverty, according to a new report by the UN Development Programme (UNDP).
Kinshasa, 31 January 2025 – The International Organization for Migration (IOM), is deeply concerned about the hundreds of thousands of civilians displaced over the last few days in Goma, North Kivu Province, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
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The Surge in violence has seen thousands already displaced by the insecurity in Goma fleeing the town. Photo: WFP 2025/ Moses Sawasawa
An upsurge in heavy fighting and violence in recent days has forced people– some already previously displaced – out of their homes.
On 10 December 1948, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a Declaration setting out, for the first time, the fundamental human rights that should to be universally protected.
UN Photo/Greg Kinch | An early draft of Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
“All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights,” states the Declaration’s Article 1.
Indeed, it enshrines “the inalienable rights that everyone is entitled to as a human being – regardless of race, colour, religion, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.”
In the nearly two years since war broke out in Sudan, almost one million people have fled into neighbouring Chad, including more than 720,000 Sudanese refugees and more than 220,000 Chadians who returned home because of the conflict.
Metche Camp in Chad has become a crucial refuge for Sudanese civilians fleeing the devastating conflict in Darfur. Photo: Karl Schembri/NRC
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Nine out of ten people forced into displacement are women and children and many have endured terrible acts of violence, including torture, rape and sexual slavery.
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Twenty-three international humanitarian organisations operating in eastern Chad warn that the majority of those refugees and returnees do not have access to the protection and education assistance they direly need.
(UN News)* — The latest reports from Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) from UN teams on the ground indicate a fast-deteriorating situation on Tuesday [] amid an ongoing assault by M23 rebels on the provincial capital.
Dead bodies lie in the streets, hospitals are overwhelmed and there has been an uptick in reports of sexual violence, rape and looting.
“Roads are blocked, ports are closed and those crossing Lake Kivu risk their lives in makeshift boats,” said Shelley Thakral, spokesperson for the UN World Food Programme (WFP) – one of many UN agencies on the ground striving to provide assistance and protection wherever possible.
, WFP Staff – After conflict intensified in Lebanon last September, around 1.2 million people were uprooted.
A second humanitarian convoy dispatched by WFP and UNICEF reaches Rmaych, one of the hardest-hit areas near Lebanon’s southern borders, in November. WFP/Mohammed Awadh
“While many are now returning home,” said Matthew Hollingworth, Country Director for the World Food Programme (WFP) in Beirut, others “face the devastating reality of having no home to return to.”
(UN News)* —Nearly a third of Lebanon’s population is facing acute food insecurity following the escalation of hostilities in late 2024, according to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis released on Wednesday [].
Developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Ministry of Agriculture, the report reveals that the impact of hostilities on agriculture and the economy will likely slow recovery.
Some 1.65 million people are now facing crisis or emergency levels of hunger,with 400,000 additional people classified as acutely food insecure compared to early 2024.
Zuckerberg, Trump, Musk. None care about free speech, least of all yours or mine. They care about power and remaining billionaires – or, better still, becoming trillionaires.
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8 Jan 2025 – A few observations on Mark Zuckerberg’s astonishing volte face today, declaring that he will end the crushing climate of censorship on his Meta platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram, in time for Donald Trump’s arrival in the White House.
It should not have taken a video admission from Zuckerberg for us to appreciate the degree to which we have been living for many years under a regime of political censorship on social media, with Meta leading the pack.
UN Photo/Greg Kinch | An early draft of Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
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HUMAN WRONGS WATCH 