World Status Report

This report intends to give the UTD Community a snapshot of international risks, and other issues as reported by the linked media and official sources from the U.S. and other countries.

More health and security information for each country can be found in the travel advisories issued by the governments of the United States, Canada, the UK, New Zealand, and Australia, and the CDC, ECDC, and WHO sites. Not all advise in these sites will apply to US travelers.

Please note the publication date of this report and go to the direct sources linked for the most up-to-date information.  The information in this report may change without prior notice.

Security

• The UN Economic and Social Council voted 29-8 (CNN), with 16 abstentions, to remove Iran from the Commission on the Status of Women over the country’s crackdown on women-led anti-government protests.
• Peru’s government suspended the right to move freely (The Guardian) across the country and gave police expanded powers to search people’s homes. The measures follow a week of unrest caused by the ouster of former President Pedro Castillo Terrones.
• The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk said he was appalled by attacks against civilians in South Sudan by armed elements amid a surge in violence (UN News), urging the authorities and community leaders to act urgently to end the bloodshed. Over the past four months, at least 166 civilians have been killed, and 237 injured, as clashes have intensified between armed elements, and between rival community-based militias.

Demonstrations

• In Azerbaijan, the sole road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia remained closed for a second day on December 13 leaving hundreds of cars were stranded by the blockade (RFE/RL), which sparked standoffs between the protesters and Russian troops that have been deployed to the area since a Russia-brokered cease-fire ended fighting between Azerbaijani forces and ethnic Armenian fighters in 2020.

Natural Disasters

• A landslide occurred on the late evening of 15 December in the Batang Kali Town in Malaysia approximately 50 km north-east of Kuala Lampur capital city (ERCC). According to the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA), 16 people have died and 17 others are missing as search and rescue operations continue. Authorities have rescued more than 60 individuals.
• Following landslides, flash floods, mudflows and rivers overflow that occurred across the capital Kinshasa in western Democratic Republic of the Congo over 12-14 December (ERCC), the number of casualties has increased. Media report, as of 16 December, more than 140 fatalities, 12 people still missing, around 300 collapsed houses and approximately 40,000 flooded houses. Currently, a very large part of Kinshasa (around 12 million inhabitants) is still affected by severe floods.
• Severe weather, including heavy rainfall, and lightning were reported on 15 December across Namibia (ERCC), resulting in casualties.
• Strong winds, tornadoes and thunderstorms have been affecting several states of southern and south-eastern USA (ERCC), in particular Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and Florida, causing a number of severe weather-related incidents (particularly due to tornadoes) and leading to an increased number of casualties.
• Heavy rainfall has been affecting the south of Thailand (ERCC), particularly the provinces of Phatthalung, Songkhla, Pattani, Yala, and Narathiwat, causing widespread floods and resulting in casualties.

Health

• Japanese Encephalitis in Australia (CDC). In November 2022, JE virus was detected in pigs in the Murray River region, confirming risk for JE in humans during the current Australian summer season. Most travelers to Australia are at very low risk for Japanese encephalitis. All travelers to Australia can protect themselves by preventing mosquito bites. JE vaccination is recommended for longer-term (e.g., one month or more) travel to the main risk areas in Australia (areas surrounding the Murray River and Outer Torres Strait Islands). Travelers to these areas should seek medical care immediately if they develop a fever, headache, vomiting, disorientation, coma, or seizures.
• On 5 December, the President of Malawi declared the cholera outbreak a public health emergency due to the surge of complex cholera cases (ERCC). On 14 December, Ministry of Health (MoH) reported 12,854 cumulative cases across all 29 districts, out of which 14 districts reporting cases in the last 14 days, 133 new cases, 379 deaths (3 new), and a case fatality rate of 2.95%.
• At least five countries in Europe are reporting an increase in invasive group A Streptococcus (iGAS) disease and scarlet fever (CIDRAP), according to a disease outbreak update today from the World Health Organization (WHO). The WHO said that as of Dec 8, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom have been observing an increase in iGAS cases stretching back to the spring in the Netherlands and summer months in the United Kingdom. Many of the cases have been in children under 10 years of age, and some have been fatal, with 13 deaths reported in England within 7 days of diagnosis.

Please note the publication date of this report and go to the direct sources linked for the most up-to-date information.  The information in this report may change without prior notice.

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