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

• South Africa to deploy 2,900 troops to fight armed groups in eastern Congo (Reuters). South Africa will send 2,900 troops as part of its contribution to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) force deployed to tackle armed groups in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the president’s office said in a statement on Monday.
• DR Congo violence: Panic in Goma as M23 rebels advance (BBC). This major city in the region, with about two million people, has been cut off from the farms that feed it for several days. It is the latest episode in a resurgence of fighting that has seen tens of thousands added to the nearly seven million who have been forced from their homes in the country because of multiple conflicts.
• US calls for investigation into alleged civilian killings in Ethiopia’s Amhara region (ABC). The U.S. is calling for an investigation into an alleged massacre of civilians in Ethiopia’s Amhara region, where a local rights group says more than 80 people were killed last week following clashes between soldiers and armed groups.
• Haiti: Human rights deteriorating as gang violence spreads (UN News). The already dire human rights situation in Haiti has deteriorated even further amid unrelenting and expanding gang violence, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk warned on Friday.
• Aspiring Mexican congressional candidate killed in the state of Mexico (Reuters). An aspiring congressional candidate for Mexico’s ruling Morena party was assassinated on Saturday, the president of Ecatepec municipality said on social media, months before Mexico’s general elections.
• An activist who searched for her disappeared brother killed in Mexican border city (AP News). A gunman has killed an activist who led a group of volunteers searching for some of Mexico’s over 100,000 missing people, prosecutors said. León was at least the seventh volunteer searcher killed since 2021. An eighth activist was abducted in January and has not been heard from since.

Demonstrations

• Indonesia students protest alleged poll interference by Jokowi administration (Reuters). Hundreds of Indonesian students and activists staged protests on Monday over what they see as outgoing President Joko Widodo’s abuse of power to sway voters in this week’s election in favour of frontrunner, Prabowo Subianto, organisers said.
• Spanish farmers take to streets for fourth day, plan Madrid protests (Reuters). Spanish farmers on Friday blocked streets across the country in a fourth day of protests and announced plans to gather in Madrid as they railed against the EU’s environmental rules and what they see as excessive taxes and red tape.
• A sixteen-year-old was killed (RFI, AFP) in Senegal on Saturday during demonstrations that have taken place since President Macky Sall announced that presidential elections originally scheduled for the end of this month would be delayed until December. Authorities have so far arrested more than two hundred people, Amnesty International said. 

Infrastructure

• Ahead of planned march over vote delay, Senegal suspends internet access (Reuters). Senegal’s communications ministry told mobile operators to suspend internet access on Tuesday, ahead of a planned silent march by activist groups, which was banned by authorities, over the abrupt postponement of a presidential election.
• Hundreds of thousands lose power in Australia after weather downs power lines (Reuters). Large chunks of Australia’s Victoria state lost power on Tuesday afternoon when a major power plant shut down because a storm knocked out parts of the state’s electricity transmission network.
• German fast rail traffic paralyzed in south by metal thieves (Deutsche Welle). A high number of high-speed Intercity Express trains were canceled between Frankfurt and Stuttgart on Monday after metal thieves vandalized key infrastructure.

Environment

• Indonesia – Floods, update (ERCC). Heavy rainfall has been affecting central Indonesia (in particular the Java Island) since 6 February, causing floods, flash floods and rivers overflow and resulting in population evacuation and damage. 
• Oman – Floods (ERCC). Heavy rain has been affecting most of Oman, particularly the north of the country, causing floods and severe weather-related incidents that resulted in casualties and damage.
• Tanzania – Severe weather (ERCC). A sequence of lightnings and thunderstorms affected south-eastern Tanzania (in particular the Lindi Region) over the past few days, causing severe weather-related incidents that have resulted in casualties.
• Philippines – Landslide, severe weather and flood in Mindanao Island, update (ERCC). The humanitarian impact is increasing following the landslide which occurred in the village of Masara in Davao de Oro Province (Davao Region, northern Mindanao, southern Philippines) on 6 February and the severe weather and flood events that hit several parts of Mindanao since early February.
• Kazakhstan – Landslide (ERCC). On 8 February, a landslide triggered by heavy rainfall occurred in Almaty City, resulting in casualties and damage.
• Indonesia – Floods and landslides (ERCC). Heavy rainfall has been affecting eastern and central Indonesia, in particular Central Papua Province and the Java Island, since 6 February, causing floods and landslides that have resulted in casualties and damage.
• Brazil – Floods, update (ERCC). The toll of the floods continues to increase following the heavy rainfall that has been affecting Bahia State, central-eastern Brazil since 26 January.
• An offshore oil spill has caused a ‘national emergency,’ Trinidad and Tobago prime minister says (AP News). Trinidad and Tobago’s prime minister said a large oil spill near the twin-island nation in the eastern Caribbean has caused a “national emergency” as crews struggled to contain the oil already coating numerous beaches on Tobago’s southwest coast.
• First-ever UN report reveals complex threats to migratory species (UN News). Migratory species globally are facing critical challenges, with nearly half in decline and over 20 per cent threatened with extinction, a landmark UN report has pointed out. Of most concern is the threat to migratory fishes, with 97 per cent of the species on the brink of extinction. 

Health

• Cambodia reports fourth H5N1 avian flu case of the year (CIDRAP). Cambodia has reported its fourth human H5N1 avian flu case of the year, the brother of a 9-year-old boy who recently died from his H5N1 infection
• Measles (ECDC). 954 new measles cases were identified in six EU/EEA countries since the last monthly update, including reports on the ongoing outbreak in Romania.
• Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infections have been noted in the EU/EEA (ECDC) with 520 cases reported in ten countries in January 2024 (Table 1). An unusual increase is reported in Belgium, Czechia and Finland, when compared to the respective time period in 2023.
• Chikungunya in Timor-Leste (CDC). There is an outbreak of chikungunya in Timor-Leste. You can protect yourself by preventing mosquito bites.
• Dengue in Asia and the Pacific Islands (CDC). Dengue is a risk in many parts of Asia and the Pacific Islands. Some countries are reporting increased numbers of cases of the disease. Travelers to Asia and the Pacific Islands can protect themselves by preventing mosquito bites. Country List : Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Cambodia.
• Dengue in the Americas (CDC). Dengue is a risk in many parts of Central and South America, Mexico, and the Caribbean. Some countries are reporting increased numbers of cases of the disease. Travelers to the Americas can protect themselves by preventing mosquito bites. Country List : Colombia, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, Guadeloupe, Martinique (France), Jamaica, Costa Rica, Saint Martin, Saint Barthelemy, French Guiana (France), Haiti, Mexico, Turks and Caicos Islands (U.K.), Brazil, Paraguay.
• Brazil’s dengue outbreak is part of a recent upsurge in dengue cases globally (ECDC), with some health officials sounding the alarm that the disease could become more widespread as temperatures rise (UN News), making new areas hospitable to the mosquitoes that carry the virus. About half of the world’s population is at risk of dengue, according to WHO. The agency also warned of a potential uptick of other diseases (VOA) primarily carried by the same mosquitoes, including Zika and chikungunya.
• Chinese New Year 2024 (ECDC). The Chinese New Year falls on 10 February 2024. Large-scale population movement will accompany Chinese New Year and Lunar New Year celebrations across and to/from the Asian region. Mass gatherings and the movement of people increases the occurence of respiratory, foodborne and vaccine preventable infections.

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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