Ten days ago, the Daraja Oula neighborhood in Darfuri city was attacked by drones, killing at least 57 civilians who had been displaced by the war.
Nearly 30 months of war in Sudan have left nearly two in three people in dire need of humanitarian assistance, including 16 million children.
Famine has been confirmed in several parts of the country and millions of people remain at risk of starvation.
Meanwhile, disease outbreaks are exacerbating the crisis, along with worsening climate crises, OCHA says, with more than 3,400 deaths from the current cholera outbreak since July 2024 and more than 120,000 suspected cases currently.
The displacement continues
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimates that more than 3,000 people were newly displaced in North Darfur just last week, including 1,500 from El Fasher, the besieged state capital, and another 1,500 from Abu Gamra, following renewed fighting.
Tensions are also rising sharply in the Kordofan region. Almost 1,000 people were displaced on Saturday from the city of Lagawa, in Western Kordofan state, due to increased insecurity, warned UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric.
Meanwhile, in South Kordofan, the city of Dilling and the state capital, Kadugli, remain under siege, with supply routes cut and shortages of basic goods worsening by the day.
“Civilians across Sudan continue to bear the brunt of this relentless violence,” Dujarric said.
“Despite numerous challenges, our humanitarian colleagues continue to provide life-saving assistance to displaced people in areas that we and our partners can safely access.”
Kyrgyzstan: Reintroduction of death penalty would violate international law, Türk warns
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on Monday called on authorities in Kyrgyzstan not to reintroduce the death penalty following the rape and murder of a girl there last month.
Volker Türk warned that this would be a serious violation of international law.
Kyrgyzstan stopped using capital punishment in 1998 and then permanently banned its use by law in 2010, when it ratified the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
Threat of withdrawal from the treaty
According to Mr. Türk’s office, Kyrgyz authorities want to amend the Constitution to allow the use of the death penalty in cases involving the rape of a child.
They have also proposed that the country withdraw from the optional protocol.
These rights “cannot be taken away, no matter what justification is offered,” the High Commissioner stated.
He added that no justice system is perfect and that if the death penalty were reintroduced, it would eventually lead to the death of innocent people at the hands of the state.
Health crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
OCHA reported on Monday that health systems in North and South Kivu in the restive Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have collapsed.
About 85 percent of health facilities in the volatile eastern region, where armed groups dominate, are experiencing shortages of medicines, while nearly 40 percent have experienced an exodus of medical staff, further weakening the delivery of essential health services.
In North Kivu alone, UN partners reported that a third of all health facilities in the province’s conflict zones have been destroyed, looted or abandoned, leaving millions of people with extremely limited access to medical care.
To make matters worse, the collapse of health systems is compounded by outbreaks of deadly epidemics.
“Since the beginning of the year, health partners have recorded more than 8,600 cases of cholera, 8,000 cases of monkeypox and more than 10,500 cases of measles,” said UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric.
Immediate action needed
Without urgent action, the UN estimates that 6,000 preventable deaths could occur between now and the end of the year.
So far, the Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan for the Democratic Republic of the Congo is only 16 percent funded, with $410 million received. The UN urgently needs an additional $6 million to procure essential supplies and maintain these life-saving services.
In more positive health news, health authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo discharged the last patient from the latest Ebola virus outbreak, marking what the World Health Organization described as “an important milestone.”
A total of 19 patients have recovered from the disease, the UN health agency said. No new cases have been reported since September 25. In total, 64 cases (53 confirmed and 11 probable) have been reported since the outbreak was declared on September 4 in Kasai province.
Increase in cholera in Haiti
Another focus of current crisis and the impact of the current gang war in Haiti: OCHA warns of a resurgence of cholera in the Oeste department during the last month.
Health authorities have reported new cases in the municipality of Pétion-Ville, after 11 weeks without any cases.
In just one week, between October 5 and 11, 139 suspected cases were recorded, including more than 20 laboratory confirmed. Five deaths were also reported.
Pétion-Ville, as well as parts of the capital Port-au-Prince, including the commune of Cité-Soleil, remain on red alert, amid concerns about the spread of cholera in sites hosting internally displaced people.
Haiti’s Ministry of Health, with support from the UN-backed Pan American Health Organization (WHO) and humanitarian partners, has intensified disinfection campaigns, community awareness activities, and the distribution of bleach, drinking water, and hygiene kits in the most affected areas.