International leaders have again pointed to climate change as a key contributing factor to instability in the Sahel region, and urged action to get at the root causes of conflict and crisis. “These are found in discrimination, human rights violations, weak governance, conflict, and the impact of climate change,” said…
The head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the United States said Monday that he shares with international health experts a concern that the Ebola virus outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo may not be readily controlled. “I do think this is one of the…
The United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution Tuesday demanding that all armed groups in the eastern regions of Democratic Republic of Congo stop interfering with the response to a deadly and growing Ebola outbreak. “Humanitarian actors are operating under enormous difficulties to save lives,” said Taye Atske Selassie of…
New fighting that broke out Wednesday night in the North Kivu province of Democratic Republic of Congo has sent civilians fleeing again in a region where authorities are struggling to contain a deadly Ebola outbreak. This time the clashes between suspected Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) and Democratic Republic of Congo…
The Ministry of Health in Democratic Republic of Congo reports at least 12 people were killed and a dozen kidnapped in Beni by an armed rebel group long active in the same region where health workers are trying to contain the spread of the deadly Ebola virus. The clashes between…
The World Health Organization held an emergency meeting in Geneva on Wednesday to discuss the Ebola virus outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo, and concluded that the growing Ebola threat does not yet meet the threshold for a “public health emergency of international concern” designation. The assessment of the risk…
With the Ebola virus death toll now at 130 in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the country’s health minister announced Saturday a new approach in seeking to contain the outbreak in the face of security challenges. Dr. Oly Ilunga said health workers are turning to community-based teams to help…
Congolese physician Dr. Denis Mukwege has been named the recipient of the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize, an honor he shares with Nadia Murad for their work in ending sexual violence in the context of conflict. “This year’s Peace Laureate Denis Mukwege has repeatedly condemned impunity for mass rape and criticized…
The Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan and the Central African Republic serve as examples of how corruption is at the root of conflict, making war “good business” for profiteers who perpetuate atrocities. That’s according to John Prendergast, who with actor George Clooney co-founded the investigative work at The…
South Sudan’s oil production is recovering from years of conflict, according to Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth, the country’s Minister of Petroleum, but many obstacles remain even as oilfield operations come back online. Security was top of mind as South Sudan took the spotlight during the Africa Oil & Power conference in…
Ethiopia’s progress under Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has moved at an impressive speed, but a more transparent, democratic and peaceful nation isn’t the reality in Ethiopia’s ethnic Somali region. That needs to change in the country’s eastern region, the Human Rights Watch NGO said Monday. “To break with the past,…
Climate change is “inextricably linked to some of the most pressing security challenges of our time,” said Nigerian Amina Mohammed, the United Nations deputy secretary-general, during remarks made to the UN Security Council on Wednesday. During the last 18 months, the Security Council has recognized the adverse effects of climate…
The UN Refugee Agency released its annual Global Trends study on Tuesday, a report that finds 68.5 million people had been driven from their homes across the world at the end of 2017, primarily because of war and conflict. Seven of the Top 10 source countries of refugees were on the…
When it comes to conflict over water resources, the stories are as different as the cultures and the context – and since the 1980s, scientists at the Pacific Institute have been tracking how and why water is at the center of those conflicts. The database of incidents, now updated for…
Nigeria’s Amina Mohammed, currently serving as the United Nations Deputy Secretary-General to António Guterres, urged the international community to bring justice and remedy to the survivors of sexual violence in conflict zones including those in Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Mohammed, speaking during a UN Security Council…