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 army ends two-year siege of key city (BBC) – The Sudanese army says it has broken a near two-year siege imposed by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on the key southern state capital of el-Obeid. The breakthrough came hours after the RSF signed a political charter in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, to establish a breakaway government in areas under its control. 
• M23 militia’s advance in eastern DRC has killed 7,000 since January (The Guardian) – DRC prime minister tells human rights council fighting has left about 450,000 without shelter after camps destroyed. 
• Three explosive devices thrown at the Russian consulate in Marseille, France (France24) – French police confirmed three projectiles were thrown at the perimeter wall of Russia’s consulate in the southern city of Marseille on Monday, but no one was injured. Only two of the three devices detonated in the attack that coincides with the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.     
• Residents attack Bangladesh air force base and clash with soldiers, leaving 1 dead (AP News) – The violence broke out after soldiers challenged a man on a motorbike for not wearing his helmet, according to the Bengali-language Prothom Alo newspaper. The military in a later statement said a local had been brought inside the base for questioning as he did not have the necessary documents for his motorbike. 
• Shariah court in Indonesia sentences 2 men to up to 85 lashes for having gay sex (AP News) – The couple, aged 24 and 18, were arrested on Nov. 7, after neighborhood vigilantes in the provincial capital, Banda Aceh, suspected them of being gay and broke into their rented room.             

Environment 

• Botswana – Floods (ERCC) – According to UNICEF, seven people died and one person is still missing. Additionally, 1,749 people have been sheltered, and almost 3,000 people have been affected across the country. UNICEF and Botswana Red Cross Society are providing help to the affected population. 
• Indonesia – Severe weather, floods and landslides (ERCC) – On 22 February, two fatalities and two destroyed houses. Furthermore, Bandar Lampung City in Sumatra island experienced flood and landslide events which resulted in two fatalities, 9,353 affected families and one damaged house. Furthermore, on 23 February, strong winds hit Bantul Regency in the Special Region of Yogyakarta where one person has been injured and 27 families affected. 
• Ecuador – Severe weather (ERCC) – Since January 2025, heavy rainfall has been affecting most of Ecuador, causing floods, triggering landslides, and resulting in casualties and significant damage. According to UN OCHA, nine people have died, while more than 7,500 others have been affected.  
• Colombia – Severe weather (ERCC) – As of 21 February, UN OCHA reports that 19,500 people have been affected, with widespread damage to homes and significant losses of crops and livelihoods. Additionally, the community of Tumaco has declared a public calamity due to damage to 15 schools, resulting in their closure and disrupting the education of approximately 2,660 students. 

Health 

• New round of polio vaccinations begins in Gaza (UN News) – The latest round of a large-scale polio vaccination campaign in Gaza targeting nearly 600,000 young children got underway on Saturday. It follows a campaign last year that reached hundreds of thousands of young children under the age of 10.  Polio virus was recently detected in wastewater samples in Gaza, indicating that circulation is ongoing, thus putting young lives at risk. 
• Breast cancer cases projected to rise by nearly 40 per cent by 2050 (UN News) – Breast cancer cases are expected to increase by 38 percent globally by 2050, with annual deaths from the disease projected to rise by 68 percent, according to a new report from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a specialised branch of the World Health Organization (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. 

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