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 

• Democratic Republic of the Congo – Conflict intensification and M23 advances in the North of South Kivu (ERCC) – Fighting has escalated since some weeks between the M23/Rwandan Defense Forces (RDF) and Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) with allied militias, with the former trying to get a foothold in the north of South Kivu, Eastern DRC. Rather sophisticated artillery is being used with a relatively high number of casualties, while more than 178,000 people are estimated to be newly displaced. 
• Turkey detains 11 over ski resort hotel fire that killed 79 (Reuters) – A deputy mayor of the northwestern Bolu province, the head of the municipality’s fire department, the owner and the manager of the hotel were among those detained, Tunc said on X. Several funerals were held on Wednesday for the victims of Tuesday’s blaze, including numerous children. The fire forced panicked hotel guests to jump from windows in the middle of the night. 
• Hamas’ tight grip on Gaza complicates plan for lasting peace (Reuters) – The group’s gunmen are guarding aid convoys on Gaza’s dusty roads, and its blue-uniformed police once again patrol city streets, sending a clear message: Hamas remains in charge. Israeli officials have described a parade of jubilant Hamas fighters that celebrated the ceasefire on Sunday in front of cheering crowds as a carefully orchestrated attempt to exaggerate the Palestinian militant group’s strength. 
• The Israel-Hamas ceasefire in Gaza is holding on its fourth day, but Israel has announced a new military operation in the occupied West Bank (NPR). The operation is centralized on the city of Jenin. Palestinians there are worried the focus of the conflict is shifting to them. Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz says the military has learned key lessons from the war. 
• Two killed in German park in stabbing attack; Afghan suspect arrested (Reuters) – A 28-year-old man from Afghanistan was arrested following a knife attack on Wednesday in a park in the German city of Aschaffenburg in which two people were killed, including a toddler, police and the state health minister said. The suspect deliberately attacked a kindergarten group in the park with a kitchen knife, Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann said. A 41-year old passerby, a German man, and a two-year old boy of Moroccan descent were fatally injured, while a Syrian two-year old girl was injured, he said. 

Infrastructure 

• Communications paused at US health agencies (CIDRAP) – The Trump administration has placed a pause on all external health communications from federal health agencies, including the CDC and FDA, according to media reports. 
• Earlier this week, Trump announced the US will leave the World Health Organization (Reuters World News podcast), sending global health leaders scrambling for plan. 

Health 

Lebanon: Food insecurity deepens following conflict, new report reveals (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. 

Migration 

• South Sudan – Displacements from Sudan (ERCC) – More than 1 million people displaced from Sudan to South Sudan, out of which half are children with critical humanitarian needs. Since April 2023 when an armed conflict broke out, Sudanese people and South Sudanese refugees have been fleeing war-ravaged Sudan. The arrivals have significantly increased in mid-December 2024 when fighting erupted along the border. 
• Mexico builds temporary shelters to prepare for mass deportations from US (Reuters) – Mexican authorities have begun constructing giant tent shelters in the city of Ciudad Juarez to prepare for a possible influx of Mexicans deported under U.S. President Donald Trump’s promised mass deportations. The temporary shelters in Ciudad Juarez will have the capacity to house thousands of people and should be ready in a matter of days, said municipal official Enrique Licon. 

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

---