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 

• Nigeria – Abduction of civilians in the Northeast (ERCC). News emerged on 6 March that on 29 February, members of a non-state armed group (NSAG) abducted internally displaced persons (IDPs), many of them women, boys and girls, in the Ngala Local Government Area of Borno State. The IDPs were in search of firewood outside the safety trenches surrounding Ngala. The exact number of people abducted remains unknown, but it is estimated at over 200. 
• Deadly Russian missile struck close to Zelensky and Greek leader’s convoy (CNN). A Russian missile exploded just 500 meters from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis during a deadly attack on the Black Sea port city of Odesa.
• Ukraine’s drones sink another Russian warship, Kyiv says (CNN). Ukraine’s military on Tuesday claimed another successful attack on a Russian warship, marking the latest in a string of naval defeats for Moscow’s Black Sea Fleet that Kyiv says has reduced its
• Houthi missile attack kills 3 crew members in Yemen rebels’ first fatal assault on shipping (AP News). A missile attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on a commercial ship in the Gulf of Aden on Wednesday killed three of its crew members and forced survivors to abandon the vessel, the U.S. military said. It was the first fatal strike in a campaign of assaults by the Iranian-backed group over Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
• M23 rebels seize town in eastern Congo, killing at least 15 (Reuters). The M23 rebel group has taken over the town of Nyanzale in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, killing at least 15 people in bomb attacks, a local official said on Wednesday.
• Mozambique jihadist attacks: Fears for 70 missing children (BBC). More than 70 children are missing following recent jihadist attacks in Mozambique’s northern Cabo Delgado province, the authorities say.
• 3 farmers were killed by a roadway bomb in a cartel-dominated state in western Mexico (AP News). Three farmers were killed Tuesday by a bomb apparently planted in a dirt road in the cartel-dominated western Mexico state of Michoacan.

Demonstrations

• Strikes hobble German railways, airports as disputes mount (Reuters). Germany faced strikes on several fronts on Thursday, as train drivers and airport workers walked off the job, causing chaos for millions of travellers and adding to the country’s economic woes at a time of looming recession. 
• South Korea’s president vows not to tolerate walkouts by junior doctors (The Associated Press on MSN.com). South Korea’s president vows that he won’t tolerate the prolonged walkouts by junior doctors, calling them “an illegal collective action” that threatens public health and shakes the country’s governing systems.
• Thousands march in Colombia to protest government reforms (Reuters). Thousands of people marched through Colombia’s biggest cities on Wednesday to protest political, economic and social reforms backed by President Gustavo Petro, as well as to demand action against deteriorating security.
• Protesting students use pickup truck to batter down doors at National Palace in Mexico City (AP News). Protesters commandeered a pickup truck Wednesday and used it to ram down the wooden doors of Mexico City’s National Palace. The demonstration, like many others over the years, was called to protest the abduction and murder of 43 students a decade ago.
• Navalny’s widow calls on Russians to stage election day protests against Putin (Yahoo News UK). Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, called on Wednesday for Russians to stage an election day protest against President Vladimir Putin by forming long queues outside voting stations.

Infrastructure

• Millions of Sudanese go hungry as war disrupts food supply (Reuters). Dozens of accounts like these gathered by Reuters show how many people are going hungry in parts of Sudan worst hit by the war that erupted last April, including areas in the capital Khartoum and in the western region of Darfur.

Environment

• Thailand – Wildfires (ERCC). Several wildfires have been affecting north-western Thailand, in particular the Mae Hong Son Province, bordering with south-eastern Myanmar since 1 March, causing casualties and damage. 
• Indonesia – Landslides (ERCC). Heavy rainfall has been affecting central Indonesia, particularly the Java Island since 3 March, triggering landslides that have resulted in population evacuation and damage. 
• Ecuador – Floods (ERCC). Since 29 January, heavy rainfall is affecting most of Ecuador, causing floods and landslides, population displacement and damage. 
• France – Severe weather and flood (ERCC). Heavy rainfall, strong winds and hailstorms have been affecting southern France since 5 March, causing severe weather-related incidents that have resulted in casualties and damage. 
• Pakistan – Severe weather (ERCC). According to the Provincial Disaster Management Authorities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (PDMA), the number of fatalities reached 40 people while 62 others have been injured, 80 houses have been destroyed, 554 damaged as well as two shools. 
• Malawi – Flash floods (ERCC). Heavy rainfall has been affecting the central part of Malawi since last week, causing flooding and resulting in casualties and damage.As of 6 March, media reports six fatalities, four injured people and more than 14,000 displaced people in Nkhotakota District, in Central Region, due to flash floods. In addition, several areas are isolated due to flooded roads and several infrastructures have been damaged. 
• Bolivia – Severe weather, update (ERCC). Heavy rainfall is still affecting most of the country, particularly La Paz and Pando Departments, north-western Bolivia since November 2023, resulting in widespread floods and severe weather-related incidents. 
• Brazil – Severe weather and floods (ERCC). Heavy rainfall continues to affect Acre State in western Brazil since 25 February, causing flooding and the overflows of the Acre and Juruá Rivers, resulting in increasing numbers of displaced people and damage. 
• Argentina – Floods (ERCC). On 3 March, heavy rainfall – with more than 200 mm in 4 hours – was recorded across the Corrientes City area, Corrientes Province, northern Argentina and surroundings causing floods and resulting in evacuations and damage. 

Health

• European countries report unusual rise in psittacosis infections (CIDRAP). Five European countries have reported an unexpected rise in infections involving psittacosis, a respiratory disease from a bacteria known to affect birds, which began in late 2023 and has led to the deaths of five people. In an outbreak notice today, the World Health Organization (WHO) detailed recent reports from Austria, Denmark, Germany, Sweden, and the Netherlands. In most instances, people had contact with wild or domestic birds. 
• Dengue outbreaks on rise in Brazil as vaccine rollout lags (Reuters). Drones fly high above Sao Paulo in search of mosquito-ridden puddles in an effort to tackle the spike in dengue cases around Brazil, as experts say current vaccine supplies will not be enough to fully curb infections any time soon.

Migration

• South Sudan (ERCC). The Sudan conflict generates an unprecedented wave of returns and arrivals (570,000 as of 20 February 2024, in addition to the 300,000 refugees already in country before. 
• Ivory Coast – New influx of forced displaced people (ERCC). People fleeing violence in Burkina Faso arrive daily in Ivory Coast. In less than 15 days, more than 3200 people have reached the Tehini Department (Bounkani region) in dire situation. 
• UN raises alert for 780,000 people displaced in Mozambique, most due to violence in north (AP)The United Nations’ refugee chief raised a new alert Thursday over 780,000 displaced people in Mozambique, the vast majority of them because of a seven-year insurgency by a jihadi group that has thrown the north of the country into turmoil.

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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