UN Warns Risk of Hepatitis E in S. Sudan Grows

The United Nations says an outbreak of hepatitis E has killed 111 refugees in camps in South Sudan since July, and has become endemic in the region. U.N. refugee agency spokesman Adrian Edwards says the influx of people to the camps from neighboring Sudan is believed to be one of the factors in the rapid spread of the contagious, life-threatening inflammatory viral disease of the liver. (..) He says the largest number of cases and suspected cases is in the Yusuf Batil camp in Upper Nile state, which houses 37,229 refugees fleeing fighting between rebels and the Sudanese government.

Becoming refugees once more: Palestinians from Syria return to Gaza

Dweik, his wife and child are among some 150 families who have returned to Gaza from Syria, according to the Action Group for Palestinians of Syria (begun by a number of Palestinian figures and NGOs in response to the flight of refugees from Syria). (..) Many, though not all, of those fleeing Syria have extended families in Gaza that offer some support. The returnees also have access to the same UNRWA-provided services as all other Palestinian refugees in Gaza: food, education, health care.

Sahel food insecurity threatens 10 million people in 2013

Up to 10 million people across the Sahel region are at risk of food insecurity in 2013 and 1 million children are at risk of severe acute malnutrition, according to the United Nations. The U.N. regional humanitarian coordinator for the Sahel, David Gressly, talks to AlertNet about preventing malnutrition, building resilience and other priorities for the region this year. He says getting the money for these activities is likely to be a challenge – without a drought being the rallying point for raising funds.

Locust invasion threatens underfunded Madagascar

After years of underfunding its locust management programme, Madagascar is threatened by a major swarm that could infest most of the island country. “If nothing is done this year, there is a risk that almost the whole country, except for the extreme north and the eastern coast, will be invaded by locusts,” Alexandre Huynh, country representative for the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), told IRIN. Locusts breed in the southwestern regions of Madagascar during the rainy season, from October to April. According to a 2012 World Food Programme (WFP) survey, an estimated 676,000 people in the 104 southern municipalities are considered at risk of severe food insecurity.