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

• The conflict between ethnic armed groups and the Myanmar military has expanded to the country’s eastern and western regions (UN News), with urban areas increasingly affected by intense fighting and aerial bombardment, UN agencies have reported. More than two hundred Thais as well as some Filipinos and Singaporeans are being evacuated (Reuters) from northern Myanmar through China amid an uptick in fighting in the region between the ruling junta and ethnic minorities, Thailand’s foreign ministry said.
• The U.S. Department of State has updated the Ghana Travel Advisory to reflect threats against LGBTQI+ travelers.
• Yemen’s Houthi rebels hijack an Israeli-linked ship in the Red Sea and take 25 crew members hostage (AP). Yemen’s Houthi rebels seized an Israeli-linked cargo ship in a crucial Red Sea shipping route Sunday and took its 25 crew members hostage, officials said, raising fears that regional tensions heightened over the Israel-Hamas war were playing out on a new maritime front.
• An Israeli military push into the crowded south of the Gaza Strip (Reuters), expected in the coming days, may prove more complicated than its ground offensive in the north, with higher casualties likely for civilians and soldiers, a senior Israeli security source and two former top officials said.

Environment

• Bolivia – Wildfires (ERCC). On 17 November, Bolivian Civil Defense informed that wildfires are raging in three of Bolivia’s nine departments, mostly sparked by field burning to prepare farmland for planting. The fires have damaged thousands of hectares of forests, crops and pastures. The most affected departments are Beni, La Paz and Santa Cruz.
• Brazil – Floods (ERCC). Flooding and landslides triggered by heavy rains in southern Brazil have claimed at least six lives over the past days in Southern Brazil.
• Yemen – Cyclone TEJ (ERCC). Over 18,000 households are estimated to be affected by the landfall of tropical cyclone Tej in Eastern Yemen. The extremely heavy rains and floods have caused damage to civilian homes and public infrastructure, including healthcare facilities and water networks, across Al Maharah, Hadramawt and Socotra governorates.
• Bulgaria – Severe weather (ERCC). Heavy rain, strong winds and snowfall have been affecting Bulgaria since 18 November, causing casualties and damage.
• Philippines – Earthquake, update (ERCC). After the recent 6.7 M earthquake, that occurred on 17 November and affected southern Mindanao, the number of casualties and damage is increasing.
• Uruguay – Severe weather (ERCC). Heavy rainfall has affected north-western Uruguay, since 12 November, causing floods that resulted in displacement and damage.
• France – Floods and landslides (ERCC). Heavy rainfall has been affecting south-eastern France, in particular Haute-Savoie Department and Savoie Department, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region, bordering with Switzerland and Italy over the last 48 hours, causing floods, rivers overflow and landslides that have resulted in evacuations and damage.
• Guatemala – Severe weather, update (ERCC). Heavy rainfall and strong winds have been affecting most of the country since the beginning of the rainy season (May 2023) causing floods, landslides and a number of severe weather-related incidents that have resulted in casualties and damage.
• Dominican Republic (floodlist). 21 dead after “highest ever rainfall total” triggers floods and landslides. Floods, heavy rain and landslides have damaged 5 bridges and 6 roads. At least 45 communities have been left isolated. Emergency teams have been working across affected areas and managed to rescue 2,541 people.

Demonstrations

• El Salvador hosts Miss Universe as protesters denounce mass arrests (Reuters). At least 300 people protested in El Salvador on Saturday against an anti-gang crackdown they said was putting innocent people behind bars, hours before the Central American country hosts the Miss Universe competition for the first time since 1975.

Infrastructure

• Fuel restrictions are curtailing aid efforts in Gaza, UN agencies said on Saturday (UN News), as the World Health Organization (WHO) led a “very high risk” mission to Al-Shifa Hospital amid reports of fresh attacks on UN schools and rising needs among more than 1.5 million displaced Palestinians in the continuing Israel-Palestine crisis. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), as of Friday, almost 75 per cent of the hospitals in Gaza – 25 out of 36 – were not functional due to lack of fuel, damage, attacks and insecurity. Eleven hospitals across the Strip are currently partially operational and admitting patients with extremely limited services.

Health

• Salmonella multi-country outbreak (ECDC). Since 1 January, and as of 13 November 2023, 149 cases of Salmonella Strathcona have been reported in nine EU/EEA countries, the United Kingdom, and the United States. This constitutes a multi-country outbreak with genetically closely related cases reported since 2011. Based on available information and repeated, seasonally detected occurrence of cases, it is likely that there is a common source of fresh product. The risk for new infections remains as long as the seasonal deliveries of contaminated produce continue.

Migration and Displacement

• Indonesia – Refugee arrivals (ERCC). Between 14 and 19 November 2023, 5 boats carrying over 870 Rohingya refugees, originally from Myanmar, disembarked in Aceh Province, Indonesia. One boat was pushed back to sea before finally disembarking.

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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