humanitarian crisis

Stories 21 - 40 | << Prev   Next >>

Thousands Flee Ethnic Violence in Burma

But US praises government response to clashes

(Newser) - Some 90,000 people who have fled ethnic violence in western Burma are in need of emergency food aid, the United Nations warns. The rape and murder of a Buddhist woman last month, for which two men have been sentenced to death, set off violence between Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims...

UN Aid Flows at Last to Parched Somalia

Al-Shabab militants allow aid groups in for first time in 2 years

(Newser) - UN aid groups have finally begun delivering supplies to areas controlled by islamist militants in Somalia, as the Horn of Africa faces its worst drought in 60 years, reports the BBC . Al-Shabab, an al-Qaeda-linked militant group, banned international aid groups two years ago, but tens of thousands of refugees streaming...

Japan Earthquake: How You Can Help

Seven ways to donate and spread awareness

(Newser) - If the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan has you feeling helpless, turn to Mashable . The site rounds up seven ways you can do something—even if you’re broke:
  • Like a page: For each person that “likes” the “Dog Bless You” Facebook page for search and rescue
...

Humanitarian Crisis Unfolds on Libya's Borders

Nearly 100,000 people have fled fighting to Egypt, Tunisia

(Newser) - The violence and unrest gripping Libya is creating a humanitarian crisis, as almost 100,000 people have fled the fighting for Egypt and Tunisia, reports the New York Times . About half of the refugees are Egyptians, but those fleeing includes Libyans, Chinese, and others, mostly poorer laborers. "We call...

Donors Slow to Respond to Pakistan Flooding Crisis
As Pakistan Drowns,
the West Sits on Its Wallet
AID NOT COMING

As Pakistan Drowns, the West Sits on Its Wallet

UN fears country's image problem is to blame

(Newser) - Western governments and individuals don't seem to care about Pakistani flooding victims nearly as much as they did about Haitian earthquake victims, UN officials say. The Pakistan crisis has left millions of people in urgent need of assistance but donations are trickling in much slower than needed, officials tell the...

Pakistani Town Beats Back Taliban

Locals raid militant invaders as army gains in Swat

(Newser) - Armed residents of a town in the troubled Swat Valley fought off Taliban forces yesterday,  the latest sign that locals are helping the Pakistan army beat back militants, reports the Wall Street Journal. Several Taliban fighters were captured when hundreds of residents stormed out of the mountain town of ...

Taliban Shave Beards to Elude Pakistani Troops

Fighters get desperate as army routs militants in Swat stronghold

(Newser) - Frantic Taliban fighters are shaving their notoriously full beards and hair as they flee the Swat valley to escape Pakistan’s military, which says it’s making inroads against the militants, Reuters reports. The military is asking civilians to expose Taliban fighters, but nearly 1 million residents have already escaped....

Pakistani Civilians Stuck as 55 Militants Die in War

Curfew curbs residents' flight in 'war of country's survival'

(Newser) - Pakistani troops and warplanes killed at least 55 Taliban militants today in what Prime Minister Raza Gilani is calling a "war of the country's survival," the AP reports. Fighting centered in the northwestern Swat Valley, where a curfew prevented residents from fleeing and the main town has...

UN Asks Davos for $613M in Gaza Aid

Funds would provide immediate aid, more money needed for long-term

(Newser) - The UN asked attendees at the Davos economic forum for $613 million to address “massive and multi-faceted” needs resulting from recent violence in Gaza, the BBC reports. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon says the funds will provide medical care and clean water for 6-9 months. As fresh violence heightened the need...

Red Cross Slams IDF After Grisly Gaza Find

Corpses, starving children in zone where army banned rescuers

(Newser) - The Red Cross has condemned the Israeli military in unusually harsh terms after finding 15 corpses in shattered houses the organization was prevented from visiting, the Washington Post reports. Officials said they received reports of casualties in the Gaza neighborhood Saturday but weren’t allowed to enter until yesterday. Four...

The World's Worst Humanitarian Crises
The World's Worst Humanitarian Crises
OPINION

The World's Worst Humanitarian Crises

Civil war and displacement fuel tragedies across the globe: aid group

(Newser) - Aid organization Doctors Without Borders has released its annual list of the world's worst humanitarian crises. Here's a sample:
  • Somalia: Increased friction between insurgents and the government unleashed some of the worst violence in a decade. One in five children there dies before turning 5.
  • Congo: Hundreds of thousands have
...

Sudan Prepares for Tougher US Stance

Obama's team of humanitarians prepare shift on Darfur

(Newser) - The government of Sudan is getting nervous about the Barack Obama White House. The Bush administration called the situation in Darfur genocide, but did little to stop the carnage that has left 450,000 dead and 2.5 million displaced in western Sudan. But several members of Obama's foreign policy...

Zimbabwe Bars Carter, Annan, Mandela's Wife

Ex-prez, Annan aimed to work on humanitarian crisis

(Newser) - Zimbabwe has denied Jimmy Carter, former UN chief Kofi Annan, and the wife of Nelson Mandela entry to the country to review its humanitarian crisis, Reuters reports. Even the support of former South African president Thabo Mbeki, who's been trying to mediate an end to the ongoing political stalemate, wasn’...

UN Boss Jets to Congo Amid New Fighting

Fears of a wider conflict grow as rebel leader threatens to take Goma

(Newser) - UN chief Ban Ki-Moon is traveling to the Democratic Republic of Congo to press for a peace deal just as new fighting breaks out, the Guardian reports. The Congolese government has rejected peace talks with the rebels, who have vowed to attack the provincial capital of Goma and continue a...

Congo's Crisis at Breaking Point

EU, African Union scramble to broker peace deal as Nkunda attacks

(Newser) - European and African officials held crisis talks last night to avert a complete meltdown in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the civil war risks degenerating into genocide. The diplomatic push came as Laurent Nkunda, the Tutsi general, led 10,000 rebels into battle in a province bordering Rwanda, which...

Junta Leader Visits Nargis Victims as UN Envoy Arrives

General meets survivors for first time since cyclone hit

(Newser) - The head of Burma's junta emerged today for the first time since cyclone Nargis struck two weeks ago to meet with survivors, CNN reports. Gen. Than Shwe visited a refugee camp 200 miles south of Yangon, touching the faces of infant survivors. The visit came as the UN's humanitarian secretary...

300,000 Dead in Darfur: UN
 300,000 Dead in Darfur: UN 

300,000 Dead in Darfur: UN

Security Council told that situation is worsening

(Newser) - The UN's humanitarian chief has painted a grim picture of the situation in Darfur, estimating that disease, war, and famine have claimed 300,000 lives in the region since conflict broke out in 2003—100,000 of them since 2006. People are continuing to die as efforts to solve the...

Iraq Still Lacks Clean Water, Health Care

Medical system worse than ever at 5-year mark, says Red Cross

(Newser) - Five years after the US-led invasion of Iraq, its health care system is “now in worse shape than ever,” and millions of Iraqis still don’t have clean water and medical care, Reuters reports. “The humanitarian situation in most of the country remains among the most critical...

Gaza, Israel Spar Over Power Outage, Embargo

Israel resolute amid condemnations, worries situation could spin out of control

(Newser) - Gazans awoke to a second day without its main power plant or fuel as international leaders condemned the “collective punishment of the people of Gaza,” and Israeli PM Ehud Olmert resolutely said Gazans "will walk, without gas for their cars" until their "murderous regime's" rocket attacks...

Humanitarian Relief is a Text Message Away

Social sites like Twitter, Facebook part of Google's new venture

(Newser) - A Google-funded website that uses technology to spread the word about emergencies launches today, CNET reports. The company's charitable arm has put $5 million into InSTEDD, which will use social software like Twitter and Facebook to alert humanitarian groups to crises and organize rescue operations. “Social networking in the...

Stories 21 - 40 | << Prev   Next >>