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

• Sudan (ERCC). The conflict that started in April 2023 is causing immense suffering among civilians, with recent reports of over 13 000 fatalities since April. Although the data remains partial due to the extreme violence, limited communication and access, violations of international human rights law and International Humanitarian Law by all parties to the conflict have been reported. Around 25 million people, of which 48% are children, currently need urgent humanitarian assistance in the country, representing over half of Sudan’s inhabitants.
• Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) – Conflict and violence (ERCC). Heavy clashes hit several localities on the outskirts of Kitshanga in the Masisi region (North Kivu), between the Congolese army, local armed groups and the M23 rebellion. On 25 January, mortar bomb attacks in a residential area of the town of Mweso (10 km north of Kitchanga) killed 19 people and wounded more than 20. Around 8,000 people sought refuge near Mweso hospital and the local Catholic parish. The situation remains very tense as renewed clashes are expected.
• Serbia considers reintroducing conscription as regional tensions grow (Euronews). Serbia’s relations with Kosovo and Bosnia are at a low ebb, raising concerns about a return to violence.
• Mexican leak of journalists’ personal data raises security worries (Reuters). The theft of the personal data of hundreds of journalists in Mexico, including addresses and copies of voter ID cards and passports, has raised fresh safety concerns in one of the most dangerous countries in the world for media professionals.
• Hong Kong Announces Details of Proposed National Security Law (Nikkei). The new law revealed today aims to close “loopholes”  in threats to national security. The bill would build on a security law that Beijing imposed on Hong Kong in 2020. The government will begin consulting with legal bodies, foreign chambers of commerce and foreign envoys on the law, which will cover offenses such as treason and the theft of state secrets, as well as prohibit foreign political organizations from forming ties with local bodies. Paul Lam, the city’s justice secretary, added that crimes under the new legislation would be subject to some of the same provisions as the Beijing-imposed national security law, such as trial without jury and a higher threshold for bail release. The new legislation would cover treason, insurrection, theft of state secrets, sabotage against public infrastructure including computer systems, and external interference in domestic affairs.
• A large Russian drone strike hit a power station in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region (Bloomberg) and disrupted electrical supplies, Kyiv said. It ranked the strikes as the largest since January 2 and said they targeted civilian and military facilities.

Demonstrations

• French farmers close in on Paris as government struggles to calm protests (France24). Convoys of tractors edged closer to Paris, Lyon and other strategic locations in France on Wednesday as thousands of protesting farmers appeared to ignore warnings of police intervention if they cross red lines laid down by the government.
• Strikes to Ground Flights at Major German Airports on Thursday (U.S. News and World Report). Strikes will ground flights on Thursday at some of Germany’s biggest airports, including the global hub Frankfurt, in the latest wave of industrial action by transport workers to hit Europe’s largest economy, officials said on Wednesday.

Environment

• Brazil – Floods (ERCC). Since 26 January, heavy rainfall has been affecting Bahia State, in north-eastern Brazil, causing floods that have resulted in casualties and damage.
• South Africa – Wildfires, update (ERCC). Wildfires continue to affect the southern coastal areas close to Cape Town City, Western Cape Province resulting in ongoing evacuations. The JRC Global Wildfire Information System (GWIS) registered nearly 3,500 ha of burnt areas in the nearby of  Cape Town, as of 30 January.
• Indonesia – Floods (ERCC). Heavy rainfall have been affecting parts of Sumatra and Java Islands since 24 January, causing floods and resulting displacement and damage.
• Philippines – Severe weather, update (ERCC). The amount of casualties and damage is still increasing following the effects of the Shear Line that caused widespread landslides and floods in Mindanao Island since 15 January.
• Thailand – Floods (ERCC). Heavy rainfall has been affecting southern peninsular Thailand, in particular the Narathiwat Province over the last week, causing floods that have resulted in damage.
• La Reunion (France) – Floods (ERCC). Heavy rainfall has been affecting Reunion, in particular southern areas of the Island since 28 January, causing floods and some severe weather-related incidents that have resulted in casualties and damage.

Health

• First H5N1 avian flu detected in Antarctic penguins (CIDRAP). The virus was confirmed in gentoo penguins, with a suspected detection in king penguins from another location in the region. Animal health groups have warned about the risk of further spread of H5N1 to Antarctica’s wildlife, especially given that some species, including penguins, live in dense colonies.

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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