(New York, 10 October 2014) The Special Advisers of the Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide, Adama Dieng, and on the Responsibility to Protect, Jennifer Welsh, express deep concern about the situation in Kobane, Syria.

The Special Advisers strongly condemn attacks against the lives and physical integrity of populations in Syria, including by terrorist and armed groups such as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). The recent offensive by ISIL on Ayn al-Arab, also known as Kobane, on Syria’s northern border with Turkey, has resulted in numerous deaths and injuries, as well as the massive displacement of civilians.

“ISIL and other armed groups have reportedly committed grave violations of human rights and international humanitarian law that may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity,” stated the Special Advisers. They noted that “the situation in Kobane raises the credible prospect that the population is at imminent risk of being subjected to similar acts.” The situation “requires urgent, concerted, and coordinated action from a variety of actors, including regional and global, to ensure the protection of the population and avert the possibility of further atrocity crimes.” The Special Advisers also raised special concern about the situation of religious and ethnic minorities in the area, noting that members of the Kurdish community have fled the city en masse. They stated that “this latest attack is part of a larger pattern of targeted violence committed by ISIL and other armed groups against religious and ethnic minority communities in both Syria and Iraq.” Given the prevailing context of sectarian polarisation and fear of persecution, the Special Advisers urge all leaders, whether religious, political or military, to avoid rhetoric that could exacerbate violence. They further call on all actors to “give particular consideration to assisting religious and ethnic minorities, which are especially vulnerable.”

The Special Advisers urged all actors “to fulfil the commitment reached by the Heads of State and Government at the 2005 World Summit to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity,” and to cooperate in fulfilling their collective responsibility to protect. In this respect, the Special Advisers reiterated the “primary responsibility of the Syrian Arab Republic to protect its population from atrocity crimes” and expressed concern at its continued failure to do so. They further stated that “the ongoing commission of atrocity crimes in Syria underlines the urgent need for the international community to redouble its efforts in order that it may take effective action to resolve the conflict.”

For media queries, please contact: Marion Arnaud Outreach Officer Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect http://www.un.org/en/preventgenocide/adviser/ Phone: +1 212 963 6275 Email: arnaud@un.org

Highlights

• Since the UNICEF SitRep of 3 October 2014, an additional 41 probable cases and 7 new confirmed cases of Ebola as well as 83 new deaths were added to the official totals for Liberia.

• Montserrado remains the epicenter of the epidemic, with 64 new cases recorded this week. While still the county of second-highest incidence, Lofa County recorded just 3 new cases, indicating the epidemic curve may be steadying in the county. Bong County continued to report a rise, adding an additional 12 cases and Nimba 1 additional case. Margibi, however, recorded 87 fewer cases.

• The first dedicated children’s Interim Care Center has opened in Monrovia for children who have lost one or both parents to Ebola, which will serve as a safe place for children during the 21-day quarantine period after the child last had contact with someone infected with Ebola.

• UNICEF is working with the MoHSW and key partners on developing specifications, standard operating procedures and training material in order to roll out Community Care Centres in the worst-affected counties.

• UNICEF has so far airlifted 19,635 Household Protection Kits and 7,081 kg of chlorine to Liberia. The kits, which contain protective gear and sanitation supplies, will be distributed to the five counties with the highest rates of EVD. A total of 50,000 kits have been procured and will be airlifted in the coming weeks.

• The Nutrition Sector comprising various governmental and non-governmental actors was officially reactivated. The sector has agreed to come up with Ebola-related nutrition guidelines and protocols.

Through radio programmes, psychosocial support and training women’s networks, UN Women is supporting efforts to address the gender dimension of the Ebola crisis in Liberia.

Radio host Justice Clarke and his guests sit in a semi-circular United Nations radio studio for a live discussion of ‘Ebola and Stigma’. This is a special edition of the UN Women-sponsored 12th Man radio talk-show, produced in partnership with UN Radio in Liberia — a show devoted to promoting men’s role in ending sexual and gender-based violence and helping empower women and girls.

However, considering the devastating emotional and psychological effects of the Ebola outbreak, the programme was modified to provide psychosocial support, targeting patients, health workers and the public, with a specific focus on the needs of women. Radio spots with messages on ending violence against women were also aired throughout the discussion.

“We know very well how the Ebola crisis is having a huge impact across the Liberian society. Think about the immediate benefit of psychosocial response,” said Francesca Crabu, Clinical Psychologist for the International Committee of the Red Cross in Liberia. “We see very quickly how even 20 minutes of intervention can lead to change in behaviour and one’s way of thinking. We are building resilience at community-level.”

Engaging women in community-based Ebola awareness

Preliminary data from Liberia’s Ministry of Health and Social Welfare showed that women accounted for between 55 to 60 per cent of Ebola related deaths, with the rate of infection of women at that time much higher than men. This is due to women’s roles as caregivers, nurses and cross-border traders. In rural areas, where the majority of smallholder farmers are women, food production is almost certain to drop, while the closure of borders is affecting cross-border traders, the majority of whom are women.

At least 50 representatives from partner institutions of UN Women and the country’s Gender and Development Ministry have been trained to raise awareness on the Ebola Virus Disease in various communities across Liberia.

“I found this training very helpful and educational especially in answering some of the doubts that we have in our community about Ebola. Now I am aware that bathing with salt solution or eating bitter kola (Garcinia Kola) cannot cure or prevent the spread of the virus. I have gained a lot of knowledge and I want to ask for more training about Ebola,” said​ Beatrice Joe, who took part in the Training of Trainers Ebola Workshop.

The training participants, 85 per cent of whom were women, learned different social mobilization skills aimed at providing Ebola prevention information to grass-roots women and reach the illiterate. The September training also focused on teaching the proper methods and formula for preparing chlorinated water for hand-washing and cleaning, how to use gloves or plastic bags to respond to suspected Ebola patients, what to do to prevent the spread of the virus as well as how to interact with survivors.

At the trainings, Liberia’s Gender and Development Minister Julia Duncan-Cassell urged the participants to go all-out in their communities and replicate the training to help prevent the further spread of the disease. She called for more focus on the specific needs of women and children affected by the virus and for proper gender-disaggregated data.

Ebola Patients Receive Support

“It is evident that the current Ebola situation poses a great threat to the economic gains made in Liberia over the years,” said UN Women Deputy Country Representative and Officer-in-Charge Peterson Magoola. “To try to mitigate the effects and impact of the outbreak, UN Women in partnership and close collaboration with other UN agencies, Government of Liberia and women networks, has continued to provide support and emergency assistance, and ensure that the overall response considers the different gender dimensions, including ensuring that the needs of women and girls affected are addressed.”

With support from UN Women, the Ministry of Gender and Development (MoGD) is scaling-up its prevention, awareness-raising and contact-tracing efforts through its women’s networks, including female traditional leaders, rural women groups, women in cross-border trade, women farmers and businesswomen at the various markets under the Liberia Marketing Association in Monrovia and across the country. UN Women is also extending its support to civil society organizations, men’s advocacy groups and implementing partners on various Ebola prevention interventions and related supplies.

“UN Women and MoGD believe that by increasing the chances of survival of women and by strengthening their economic viability, as well as working through these already established women networks at all levels, we will be building a major wall of defense for families in the fight against the Ebola Virus,” said Mr. Magoola.

Rohan Dua,TNN | Oct 11, 2014, 06.15 AM IST

ARNIA/PARGWAL (Jammu): With overpowering pain in her right arm, 41-year-old Neha Devi looked agitated while Kiran Bala (36) sobbed. The two from Arnia sub sector were wounded in cross-border shelling from Pakistan on Thursday. They are among thousands of civilians, who are too frightened to return to their homes even as nine days of firing and mortar shelling from across the border has de-escalated.

"Why should we return? Why does not the government provide us permanent homes if such border tension continues? It is not our problem if we have our land that earns us meager income," Bala said.

Most of these civilians grow rice or work as daily wage labourers. Many of them earn their livelihood by selling milk.

In Pargwal, 75-year-old Ram Lal and his son, Vijay Kumar, who lost their cow and calf, are now jobless.

"Our daily earning depended upon the milk our cattle produced. Even my third cow is now badly bruised. She can die anytime," Lal said, as he wept inconsolably.

In Akhnoor's Molu village, 78-year-old Chaggar Singh, who had lost his son Naresh Singh in a militant attack in 2003, has for years been receiving stray shells at his home.

This time, when the shell broke even the glass fixed outside the statue of his slain son, he too decided to quit the village. "I thought I could carry his bravery here but now time's up," he said.

JINGGU, Yunnan, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Relief measures are under way in southwest China's Yunnan Province three days after a 6.6-magnitude quake hit the region on Tuesday.

On Friday, the first shipment of prefab houses was sent to the No. 1 Central Primary School of Yongping Township in Jinggu County, Pu'er City. Dozens of volunteers, soldiers and workers were busy moving and assembling the materials.

After the earthquake, which killed one person and injured more than 300, the county's 100 schools were suspended. Four buildings of No. 1 Central Primary School of Yongping were hit hard by the quake.

"In an area of more than 1,400 square meters, we will build 24 prefabs that are fire-proof and insulated so students can resume class as soon as possible," said Shen Guangxin, president of Yunnan Youth Development Foundation.

The makeshift houses can accommodate 1,457 students from the first to fourth grades, and the school plans to resume classes next Monday after construction is completed, said school head Shi Zhaowei.

As of around 5:15 p.m. on Friday, safety was ensured for one of the dams in the quake zone. After 40 hours of effort, a trench was completed to discharge water from the at-risk Changhai Reservoir, whose dam had suffered a 107-meter-long, 15-cm-wide crack.

According to the provincial civil affairs department, a total of 11,360 tents, 12,800 quilts, 4,500 bottles of water and other supplies have already been sent to the affected area.

Fourteen injured in Jinggu County are still in hospitals or other medical institutions, while others were discharged after inpatient care, said the county's health authorities.

The epicenter of Tuesday's earthquake was about 67 kilometers from Lincang City and 85 kilometers from Pu'er City. A strong tremor was also felt in the provincial capital Kunming.

Editor: yanting

It is a great pleasure to welcome President Condé to the IMF.

Our discussion focused on how we can help Guinea respond to the devastating Ebola outbreak, a disease that poses a humanitarian and economic challenge to Guinea and its neighbors. Beyond the loss of life and social dislocation, it is threatening to reverse the advances made by these countries in recent years in economic development and poverty reduction. We all recognize that we have act decisively and urgently to stop this epidemic.

On behalf of the Fund, my main message today to President Condé and to the people of Guinea is that we stand with you in these times of trial. We have already provided $41 million to Guinea on an emergency basis. We are ready to do more if needed. And I appreciate all that President Condé is doing for his country and people.

We will continue to stand by Guinea and the Guinean people.

IMF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT

Public Affairs
E-mail: publicaffairs@imf.org
Fax: 202-623-6220

Media Relations
E-mail: media@imf.org
Phone: 202-623-7100

TNN | Oct 11, 2014, 01.50 AM IST

HYDERABAD: Bracing for Cyclone Hudhud that is currently on course to hit the Visakhapatnam coast by Sunday afternoon accompanied by wind speed of up to 155 kmph and very heavy rain, the Andhra Pradesh government is gearing up to evacuate as many as 4.56 lakh people from the coastal villages of east and west Godavari, Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam districts by Saturday evening.

The Met office said the cyclonic storm, centered about 500km east-southeast of Visakhapatnam and 550km south-southeast of Gopalpur as of Friday evening, is moving west-northwestwards and will intensify further into a very severe cyclonic storm by Saturday with a wind speed of 130-140kmph to 155kmph. Thereafter, it would cross north Andhra Pradesh coast near Visakhapatnam by the forenoon of October 12.

However, much before the expected landfall on Sunday, the cyclone will generate squally wind touching a speed of 70kmph along and off north Andhra Pradesh and south Odisha coasts from the morning of October 11 onwards, the Met office cautioned. The wind speed would gradually increase to 130-140kmph gusting to 155kmph from the morning of October 12 along and off north Andhra Pradesh (East Godavari, Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam districts) and 80-90kmph along and off adjoining districts of south Andhra Pradesh (West Godavari and Krishna districts) and south Odisha (Ganjam,Gajapati, Koraput and Malkangiri districts), it said.

NDRF personnel prepare for the impact of Hudhud in Visakhapatnam

Due to the cyclone, rainfall is expected at isolated places over Krishna, Guntur and Prakasam districts, and it might even create a storm surge of about 1-2 metres above astronomical tide which could inundate the low-lying areas of Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam districts. While informing fishermen that the sea conditions would be rough to very rough from the morning of October 11 itself, the authorities have advised them to suspend all fishing operations from Friday night itself. South Central Railway too has cancelled and diverted several train services to the coastal areas in view of the cyclone.

The state government has identified 63 mandals in Srikakulam (11), Vizianagaram (7), Visakhapatnam (10), East Godavari (25) and West Godavari (11) as cyclone-prone. According to Katta Hymavati, special commissioner, state disaster management, arrangements for the evacuation of 4.56 lakh people from 500 villages have been made. "The government has set up 392 relief camps in Srikakulam (110), Vizianagaram (65), Visakhapatnam (40), East Godavari (126), and West Godavari (51) districts. For the rescue operation, 39 boats and 522 swimmers along with 9 teams of NDRF and one team of SDRF have been stationed in Vizag," she said.

The Severe Cyclonic Storm ‘HUDHUD’ over westcentral Bay of Bengal moved north westwards, intensified into a very severe cyclonic storm and lay centered at 1430 hrs IST of today, the 10th October 2014 near latitude 15.0 ºN and longitude 86.8 ºE about 470 km east - southeast of Visakhapatnam and 520km south - southeast of Gopalpur. The system would move west - northwestwards and cross north Andhra Pradesh coast around Visakhapatnam by the forenoon of 12th October 2014.

Katarina Hoije, Jessica Berman

BAMAKO, MALI / WASHINGTON— A clinical trial of a promising Ebola vaccine has gotten underway in the west African country of Mali, which borders Guinea, the epicenter of the deadly viral epidemic that now has killed 4,000 people.

This phase of testing of the experimental vaccine against Ebola began this week in Mali when it was given to three health workers who volunteered. The health workers would be the first to fight the disease if it broke out in Bamako.

Health workers are on the frontline and run the highest risk of being infected, says the director of the Mali center for vaccine development, Dr. Samba Sow.

The trials are taking place to determine if the potential vaccine is safe and effective, explained Sow.

Mali has no Ebola cases but it borders Guinea, where the outbreak began.

So far the researchers haven’t seen any significant ill effects from the vaccine, including Sow, who was the first to be injected.

"Since I’m the one responsible for the study, it makes sense I’m the first one to volunteer," said Sow.

Health workers

The researchers will test blood samples of the volunteers to make sure there is an antibody response, the signal that the vaccine may teach the immune system to recognize the virus and fight it off. Until it is used in health workers actually treating people with Ebola, however, there will be no real proof that it works.

The trials are proceeding with unprecedented speed and the co-operation of a large number of international organizations and governments, in the hope of having something available that is at least partially protective before the end of the year.

"I have never seen such a rapid response in developing a vaccine against any disease before," said Sow.

Trials began in the U.S. and at Oxford University a couple of weeks ago. In Mali, four health workers have been vaccinated so far and an additional 37 will receive the vaccine in the coming weeks.

The researchers are in the process of “fast tracking” the vaccine to protect health workers, the group that have been hit the hardest since the Ebola outbreak started in late March this year.

Mali is the first country in Africa where the vaccine is being tested. In a couple weeks the vaccine will also be given to health workers in Ghana.

Vaccine development

The vaccine, developed by researchers at the U.S. National Institutes of Health and British drug manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline, was 100 percent effective in protecting monkeys against lethal exposure to Ebola in pre-clinical trials.

The vaccine stimulates the immune system using a non-infectious Ebola protein carried by a harmless cold virus, according to vaccine researcher Myron Levine, director of the Center for Vaccine Development at the University of Maryland. He is helping conduct the clinical trials in Mali.

“I’ve been doing vaccine development for 44 years. Hands on, I have never seen anything move so quickly,” said Levine.

Levine said Mali has good border security, but Ebola is continuing to spread unchecked in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Like the smallpox vaccine, the one against Ebola could potentially prevent full-blown disease in those exposed to the deadly virus, including health care workers.

Levine said regulatory approval could quickly follow successful clinical trials.

“Everybody wants to see the licensure of Ebola vaccine -- trying to get license as quickly as possible as long as the data are there to know that it’s safe, immunogenic and protective,” he said.

Rapid response

GlaxoSmithKline is manufacturing 10,000 doses of the vaccine, which Levine said could be administered as soon as the drug gets the nod from regulators in the United States and Europe. He said because of the limited supply, distribution of the vaccine will be targeted initially.

“When it’s recognized [all the data are in] at least, we can could come in and try to vaccinate family contacts and vaccinate the population around where cases are occurring,” said Levine.

In addition to Mali, trials of the experimental vaccine have also been carried out in Britain.

Levine says two more people in Mali received the vaccine Friday. Another 15 will be vaccinated after that, if all goes as planned.

11/10/2014 13:02 GMT

by Fulya Ozerkan with Mohamad Ali Harissi in Beirut

Kurdish fighters halted a thrust by Islamic State group jihadists towards the heart of the battleground Syrian town of Kobane Saturday, after the UN warned thousands of civilians risked massacre.

The pre-dawn attack came after the IS militants overran the Kurdish headquarters in the border town on Friday, sparking fears they would cut off the last escape route to neighbouring Turkey.

But US officials warned that while world attention is focussed on Kobane, the jihadists have been piling pressure on government troops in neighbouring Iraq, leaving the army in a "fragile" position in Anbar province between Baghdad and the Syrian border.

The renewed IS drive on the centre of Kobane sparked 90 minutes of heavy fighting with the town's Kurdish defenders before the jihadists fell back, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

US-led coalition warplanes also carried out two air strikes on IS targets south and east of the town early Saturday, according to the Britain-based monitoring group, which has a wide network of sources inside Syria.

US-led warplanes have intensified air strikes against IS, which has been attacking Kobane for three weeks, but the Pentagon has said that there are limits to what can be done without troops on the ground.

Small groups of Kurdish fighters were trying to harry the encircling jihadists with operations across the front line, Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.

UN envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura warned Friday that 12,000 or so civilians still in or near Kobane, including about 700 mainly elderly people in the town centre, "will most likely be massacred" by IS if the town falls.

Kobane was "literally surrounded" except for one narrow entry and exit point to the Turkish border, de Mistura said.

"We would like to appeal to the Turkish authorities in order to allow the flow of volunteers at least, and their equipment to be able to enter the city to contribute to a self-defence operation," he said.

• Tighter border security -

Twenty-one jihadists, including two suicide bombers, were killed along with eight Kurdish fighters in clashes in the town on Friday, the Observatory said.

Another 16 IS militants died in coalition air raids across the provinces of Aleppo -- which includes Kobane -- and Raqa, where IS has its main Syrian stronghold, it said.

Turkey has tightened security of its porous Syrian border after the escalating fighting in Kobane sparked the exodus of 200,000 refugees over the frontier.

Watching the events unfold from across the border, Ahmed Abu-Ammar told AFP that his son was killed when IS attacked Kobane -- three years after he lost his wife in a regime air strike in Aleppo.

"My eight-year-old son was martyred, God bless him. When the shelling became heavier we fled to Turkey and we suffered a lot to reach this place," said the refugee, who crossed over the border two weeks ago.

Turkey has been deeply reluctant to allow weapons or Kurdish fighters to cross the border despite repeated nights of protests among its own large Kurdish minority that have left 31 people dead.

The situation is complicated by the close ties between the town's Kurdish defenders and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has waged a three-decade insurgency for self-rule in southeastern Turkey that Ankara is determined not to embolden.

Washington has been frustrated over Ankara's reluctance to commit its well-equipped and well-trained forces to the coalition against IS but reported "progress" after two days of talks in Ankara by the coalition's coordinator, retired US general John Allen.

• Anbar province 'fragile' -

Military chiefs from the 21 countries already committed to the US-led coalition are to meet in Washington next week to discuss strategy, Pentagon officials said.

US defence officials insist the primary focus of the coalition's campaign remains Iraq, where there are capable local forces on the ground to work with, particularly Kurdish forces in the north.

But officials voiced concern about the "tenuous" position of Iraqi troops in Anbar province, where the few remaining government-controlled areas have come under repeated attack.

Some of Anbar province fell to IS at the start of the year and most of the rest was seized by the Sunni extremists in a lightning sweep through Iraq's Sunni Arab heartland in June.

"I think it's fragile there now," one senior US defence official told AFP.

"They are being resupplied and they're holding their own, but it's tough and challenging."

burs/kir/dr/hkb

11/10/2014 - 17:58 GMT

Car bomb blasts in two Shiite neighbourhoods of the Iraqi capital killed at least 34 people and wounded 54 on Saturday, police and medical sources said.

A suicide car bomb exploded at a police checkpoint guarding Kadhimiyah, a neighbourhood in northwestern Baghdad that is home to one of the holiest shrines in Shiite Islam.

A police colonel said at least 10 people were killed and 31 wounded, a toll confirmed by a medical source.

Farther west, in the district of Shoala, a car bomb went off in a busy commercial street, killing at least 24 people and wounding another 23, a medical source said.

There were conflicting reports as to whether the carnage in Shoala might have been caused by two consecutive explosions, but a source at the interior ministry gave a similar toll.

On Thursday, at least 12 people died in another car bomb attack on the sprawling Shiite neighbourhood of Sadr City.

The United Nations said more than 1,110 people were killed in acts of violence across Iraq in September. According to an AFP count, more than 250 have already been killed this month.

While the bloodshed has been mainly on the frontlines where federal, Kurdish and allied forces battle the Islamic State jihadist group, blasts and executions in Baghdad continue to take a heavy toll.

str/jmm/srm

11/10/2014 - 08:27 GMT

Shelling in eastern Ukraine's rebel-held eastern regions killed five people over the past 24 hours, local authorities said Saturday, in the latest deadly violations of a ceasefire.

"As a result of military actions in Donetsk on October 10, three civilians died and four more were injured and hospitalised," said the mayor's office in Donetsk, the largest eastern city.

All but completely controlled by the pro-Russian separatists, Donetsk has come under increased crossfire in recent days as rebels and the Ukrainian army battle over its airport.

Another victim was an elderly man killed by a shell that hit his house near the town of Popasne in the Lugansk region, the pro-Kiev governor of the region, Gennadiy Moskal, said on his website.

The Ukrainian army said Saturday that its positions had been attacked overnight in Donetsk and Lugansk regions.

One border guard was killed about 20 kilometres (12 miles) south of Donetsk when a convoy of border guards was fired upon, military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said Saturday.

More than 300 people have died since a ceasefire was signed September 5, according to the United Nations. The Ukrainian authorities report 120 dead civilians and Ukrainian troops, without including rebel casualties.

Under the truce, both sides must pull back heavy artillery by 15 kilometres, creating a 30-kilometre wide demilitarised zone. However, that has yet to happen, especially around Donetsk international airport, where Ukrainian units have held out against rebel attacks since May.

Lysenko said the "intensity of attacks appears to have subsided" and that Kiev was waiting for rebels to remove their artillery.

"We are ready to withdraw heavy weaponry as it was agreed in the Minsk deal," Lysenko told journalists. "We have prepared all territories and routes but we are waiting for the terrorist side to do this."

Donetsk rebels say they are ready for a withdrawal -- but again, only if the other side fulfills its side.

"Starting from 9:00 am (0600 GMT Saturday) there will be a no shooting period between Ukraine and the Donetsk People's Republic. If it is not violated for five days, the withdrawal of troops from the 30-kilometre zone will begin," the official website of Donetsk rebels said Saturday.

Donetsk rebel leader Alexander Zakharchenko said this week that an agreement between the separatists and Kiev commanders will see the Ukrainian army cede some villages it still holds in the region to begin creating a demilitarised zone.

Ukraine's military have denied any reports of an agreement with the separatists about surrendering any territory.

ma/sms/

Highlights

• Heavy rains on 5 October in Bentiu flooded 199 latrines, setting back progress on water and sanitation in the site. Engineers were on the ground pumping water out of the site.

• Cholera continued to decline, with only 3 new cases during the previous week. Kala-azar rates were about triple what they were the same period last year.

• The Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, visited South Sudan for a week. Her visit focuses on recommendations for measures to be taken to prevent and respond to sexual and gender based violence concerns.

3.8 million People to be assisted by the end of the year
3.1 million People reached with humanitarian assistance *
1.4 million People internally displaced by violence
463,000 People have fled to neighboring countries

Situation overview

Heavy rains flooded 199 latrines in Bentiu PoC site, Unity State, lowering sanitation coverage to 1 latrine for every 96 people.

An assessment to Renk, Upper Nile state found some 7,300 people displaced by recent fighting. Most were staying in host communities and abandoned homes. Some were living in the open. Key needs were identified as shelter and household items, food, education, protection, and health.

In Bor, Jonglei State, the situation was calm, with the market frequented by women and children during the day and administrative offices open as normal during business hours. However, some 2,700 people remained in the UN Protection of Civilians site seeking shelter. Elsewhere in the state, in Pibor County, the situation was tense due to clashes and movement of armed groups.

In Mingkaman, Lakes State, the situation was calm with about 400 individuals returning to Bor during the week.

Meanwhile, 169 people arrived to Mingkaman from nearby islands and were registered at the site. Many people, including school aged children, continued traveling between Bor and Mingkaman during the day.

Elsewhere, Lakes State’s situation, including in the capital, was fragile with continued criminality, revenge attacks, and gender-based violence.

Among displaced people, malaria, acute respiratory infection (ARI), and acute watery diarrhea remained the main causes of illness.

11/10/2014 - 04:38 GMT

Powerful Typhoon Vongfong churned towards Japan on Saturday, injuring at least 20 people as it pounded the southern Okinawan islands with ferocious winds and driving rain.

The monster storm was estimated to be about 110 kilometres (68 miles) southeast of Naha City in Japan's southernmost area of Okinawa at 0800 GMT, according to the nation's meteorological agency.

The Joint Typhoon Warning Center has downgraded the storm from a super typhoon, but Japanese officials said it remained "large and very strong" and warned of high waves, torrential rain and landslides.

Packing gusts of up to 234 kilometres (145 miles) per hour, the typhoon was moving north slowly, at 15 kilometres (nine miles) per hour.

Naha airport was closed with land transport also disrupted.

Vongfong is expected to approach Japan's southern main island of Kyushu by early Monday after brushing off Okinawa, and could make landfall, the meteorological agency said.

Okinawa has already been experiencing gusts and heavy rain, which caused a blackout in 33,000 households.

More than 10,000 residents mostly in coastal areas were advised to evacuate with the weather agency warning the prefecture could be hit by hourly rainfall of up to 80 millimetres (three inches) by early Monday.

At least 20 people have been injured, including a nine-year-old girl and a man in his 20s who lost fingers after they were caught in doors slammed shut by strong winds in two cities, municipal officials said.

Satellite images of Vongfong have shown a perfectly formed eye in the middle of a gigantic swirling disc of cloud.

The typhoon came just a week after another strong tropical storm whipped through the country, leaving 11 people dead or missing in a nation prone to natural disasters.

Earthquakes shook northern Japan on Saturday, two weeks after a volcano in the central part of the archipelago erupted without warning, killing at least 56 hikers.

In late August a downpour in western Japan's Hiroshima triggered massive landslides and killed more than 70 people.

mis/jom

This bulletin is being issued for information only, and reflects the current situation and details available at this time. The Indian Red Cross Society (IRCS) with the support of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), is monitoring the developing situation and at this stage is not seeking funding or other assistance from donors.

The situation

On 7 October a deep depression was formed over the North Andaman Sea, and has since turned into severe cyclonic storm named ‘Hudhud’, heading across the Bay of Bengal towards the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. According to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), it is likely to further intensify prior to making landfall on Sunday morning (12 October 2014) on the north Andhra Pradesh coast around Visakhapatnam. Any significant change of direction of the storm is not expected. When making landfall, the authorities predict maximum sustained surface wind speed will be around 170 km/h gusting to 180 km/h.

IMD have issued warnings for north Andhra Pradesh coast and south Odisha, predicting heavy to very heavy rainfall in the districts of west and east Godavari, Visakhapatnam, Vijayanagaram and Srikakulam districts of north Andhra Pradesh and Ganjam, Gajapati, Koraput, Rayagada, Nabarangpur, Malkangiri, Kalahandi, Phulbani districts of south Odisha commencing from 11 October onwards. Sea condition will gradually deteriorate from very rough to phenomenal on 12 October in the morning. Storm surge of about 1-2 meters above astronomical tide would inundate low lying areas of Visakhapatnam, Vijayanagaram and Srikakulam districts of north coastal Andhra Pradesh at the time of landfall. Some predictions put the potential storm surge much higher.

Damages are expected to kutcha[1] houses, alongside uprooting of large trees, partial disruption of power and communication lines and minor disruptions of the rail and road traffic. There is possibility of flooding of escape routes and damage to agricultural crops in low-lying coastal areas. IMD advised against fishing operations in area of cyclone influence, as well as evacuation from coastal areas.

OUTLOOK

• All major rivers are in falling trend and may continue to fall in next 72 hours.

• In following station, water is flowing above their respective danger levels recorded today at 06.00 AM.

Severe disruptions to markets and livelihoods if Ebola caseload grows drastically

If the number of Ebola cases continues to rise exponentially over the coming months, FEWS NET anticipates that a major food crisis would occur. Under such a scenario, fears of the disease and official restrictions on movement would severely disrupt market functioning, contribute to significantly below-average household incomes, and lead to food shortages at local markets. Large populations would face moderate to extreme food consumption gaps, equivalent to Crisis (IPC Phase 3) and Emergency (IPC Phase 4) food insecurity, by March 2015. Households with family members who have been ill or have died from Ebola, as well as poor households dependent on markets to access food, would face the most severe food security outcomes. In addition to efforts to reduce the spread of the disease, contingency planning for an expanded emergency food assistance response is urgently needed given that the size of the food insecure population could be two to three times higher than currently planned.

As of October 8th, 8,376 cases of Ebola had been reported in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. The size of the population that will ultimately contract Ebola remains very uncertain. However, modeling by both the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization suggest that the number of cases is likely to grow substantially, even with the response to date. Based on current information, FEWS NET has constructed a scenario using a planning figure of 200,000-250,000 cumulative Ebola cases by mid-January 2015 across the three worst affected countries. Based on this assumption, FEWS NET would anticipate the following:

• The availability of food on local markets will be severely disrupted, due to increasing trader fears of contracting Ebola, official and unofficial restrictions on population movement, increased trader and importer operating costs, market closures, and the possibility of currency depreciation.

• Reduced incomes will limit household food access, even if it is still available at local markets. Both rural and urban households would experience significant declines in income from most sources (e.g., agricultural labor, petty trade, and the sale of forestry products, bush meat, and crops) due to the effects of a general economic slowdown and major market disruptions.

• Main season rice harvests will be average to below average. In most areas, favorable 2014 rainfall conditions contributed to normal crop growth and development. However, in rural areas worst affected by the outbreak, recent reports indicate that some fields were abandoned and that collective harvesting teams have quit operating. Instead households in these areas are generally harvesting using only family labor. This may lead to slightly below-average harvests in localized areas, particularly those where landholdings are comparatively larger. For households with members who are ill or have died from Ebola, the loss of productive household members will also contribute to below-average harvests.

• Agricultural households will increase consumption of locally produced cassava, delaying the need to source food from local markets. Cassava harvesting occurs year-round and requires less labor for harvesting than other crops

1. Despite a return of seasonally normal rainfall during August, moisture deficits persist in northwestern Senegal. The delayed onset of the season in July has resulted in poor growing conditions and crop development.

2. Poor July rains in several local areas of Mali have resulted in poor crop and pastoral conditions. August and September rains have improved ground conditions, although the rainy season is quickly coming to a close.

3. Poor seasonal rainfall since mid-August, including prolonged dry spells, has led to late-season moisture deficits that have inhibited crop development throughout parts of the Tillaberi region of southwestern Niger and eastern Mali. Below-average rains are forecast in these areas for the next week.

4. Since the beginning of September, poor rains have inhibited crop development and compromised planting activities throughout Rwanda.

5. A second week of torrential rain is forecast for typically dry parts of the Greater Horn of Africa, including central and northeastern parts of Somalia. Localized flash flooding is likely in areas that receive heavy rains.