Sudan

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) warned today that at least 10,000 children in Sudan under the age of five may die by the end of this year due to increased food insecurity and disruptions to essential services since conflict broke out in the country.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) reports that this past September was the hottest on record — putting 2023 on track to be the warmest year on record. September saw a record-high monthly global ocean surface temperature and Antarctica also had its warmest September with sea ice remaining at record lows.

In Armenia, the UN, led by acting Resident Coordinator Natia Natsvlishvili, is boosting support to national authorities to address the needs of over 100,000 refugees, who recently arrived. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) continues to distribute locally procured core relief items requested by local municipalities.

The UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) has launched a joint operation in Djugu Territory, in Ituri Province, with the Congolese Armed Forces against the armed group CODECO in response to recent attacks against civilians and the presence of CODECO members in the area.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said today that more than 11,600 children crossed the Central Mediterranean Sea to Italy without a parent or legal guardian. That’s between January and mid-September 2023. This is an increase of 60 per cent compared to the same period last year.

In Sudan, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that intense clashes in Khartoum over the weekend resulted in civilian casualties. Furthermore, the UN’s humanitarian partners report that renewed clashes in South Darfur have displaced many people in the city of Nyala.

An increasingly violent and unstable situation in Sudan demands immediate action, a senior United Nations official warned the Security Council today, as millions are displaced and the country spirals towards a humanitarian catastrophe.

Worsening violence in Sudan could foreshadow a civil war alongside a humanitarian situation that will, in turn, dramatically deteriorate the possibility of needed and urgent action, senior United Nations officials warned the Security Council today, as speakers spotlighted the importance of regional engagement, dialogue and humanitarian relief to ameliorating the suffering of the Sudanese people.

A report released over the weekend by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) shows that methamphetamine trafficking in Afghanistan and neighbouring countries is surging.

In Liberia, the United Nations team there is boosting its response to national efforts to address food insecurity. This follows a recent report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) showing that over half a million people are currently facing acute food insecurity in the country.