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

• Armed gangs in Haiti control strategic access routes in the country and the capital (ERCC), Port-au-Prince, and have expanded their criminal activities throughout the country. They commit serious abuses against the population, including large-scale sexual violence, forcing entire communities to move.
• UN rights chief calls on President not to sign anti-homosexuality bill (UN News). The adoption by Uganda’s parliament of new legislation targeting lesbian, gay and bisexual people is “devastating” and could “erode gains made over years”, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, said on Wednesday. Adopted by Uganda’s parliament on Tuesday, the bill proposes the death penalty for the offence of “aggravated homosexuality” and lengthy prison terms for related offences. According to news reports, anyone simply identifying as gay would be breaking the law, while friends, family and other community members, would have a duty to report any individuals who are in same-sex relationships, to the authorities.
• Chad jails 400 rebels for life after ruler’s death (YAHOO!News). More than 400 rebels in Chad were handed life sentences on Tuesday following the death of former ruler Idriss Deby Itno, who was killed in 2021, a public prosecutor told AFP.
• Ukraine war: Russia launches new attack on cities (BBC). Russian forces have attacked several Ukrainian cities. At least eight people were killed near Kyiv and in Zaporizhzhia, and seven people died in an attack on student dormitories near the capital in Rzhyschiv.
• Concern over violence as Palestinians prepare for Ramadan in Jerusalem (The Guardian). Bloodshed and hardline Israeli politics raise tensions on eve of Muslim holy month

Demonstrations

• France: Protests Continue After Macron’s Pension Plan Push (U.S. News & World Report). Paris police say 234 people were arrested overnight in the capital mostly for setting fire to garbage in the streets
• Retired soldiers, policemen try to storm government headquarters in Lebanon (AP). Lebanese security forces fired tear gas on Wednesday to disperse hundreds of protesters, mainly retired soldiers, who tried to break through the fence leading to the government headquarters in downtown Beirut.

Natural Disasters

• On 19 March, heavy rainfall in Syria continued to affect several camps across the Governorates of Aleppo and Idlib (ERCC), causing widespread floods and resulting in damage. The camps are sheltering centres and residential compounds that were established after the seismic activity started on 6 February.
• Heavy rainfall has been affecting south-western Pakistan (particularly the Balochistan Province) since 17 March (ERCC), causing flash floods that have resulted in casualties and damage.
• A magnitude 6.5 earthquake with epicenter 40km south-southeast of Jurm district in Afghanistan at a depth of 187km hit the region on 21 March 2023 (ERCC). Three aftershocks of magnitude 3.9 were recorded so far in the Hindukush region bordering Afghanistan, Pakistan and Tajikistan. 13 deaths were reported but the number of fatalities may rise as search and rescue teams reach more affected villages.
• Pakistan reports nine fatalities and 44 injuries across the province due to the same earthquake of 6.5 on March 21 (ERCC). 19 houses collapsed in different parts of the province, particularly in Lower Dir district. Landslides and road closures are reported. Cracks were also reported in buildings in Islamabad and Rawalpindi
• The passage of the Tropical Cyclone FREDDY and its remnants on 11-15 March (ERCC), affected southern Malawi and central-northern Mozambique (in particular Tete and Zambezia Provinces), causing severe floods and landslides that have resulted in an increased number of casualties and widespread damage.

Health

• On March 21, 2023, Tanzania declared an outbreak of Marburg virus disease (CDC). Confirmed cases have been reported in the Kagera Region. Five dead as Tanzania detects first-ever Marburg virus outbreak (Al Jazeera English on MSN.com). Three of the eight confirmed cases are receiving treatment even as 161 contacts are being monitored, according to WHO.

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.

---

Tags

---

Related Posts

---