Global Briefs, June 3, 2024
Global Disaster Briefs are your weekly (or more often, if needed) summaries and headlines from around the world about natural and man-made disasters, climate change, disease and health, and international conflict. See endnotes for resources used in putting this report together. Data is retrieved and summarized on the day of publication unless otherwise noted.
Meteorological/Climatological
The UN has confirmed at least 670 deaths and possibly 2,000 persons assumed to be buried after a massive landslide in Papua New Guinea on May 24, 2024. Prime Minister James Marape made his first visit to the site of the disaster on Friday, May 31.
Ways to help those impacted by landslides in Papua New Guinea:
*NOTE: The Charity Navigator rating is shown next to organization name in parenthesis. Click on the organization name to donate; click on the rating to see the breakdown.
Hurricane Season Updates:
The Atlantic Hurricane season officially started Saturday, June 1, 2024.
There are currently no active tropical systems in any oceanic basin.
Geological
181 earthquakes ranging from 3 to 6.2 magnitude on the Richter scale have been reported since the last brief published on May 28, 2024.
The Global Volcanism Program, a program of the Smithsonian Institution, reported 27 volcanoes in active eruption status last week. New eruptions include Iceland’s Reykjanes, and Mount Dempo in Indonesia. An ash advisory is currently in effect for Sumatra.
International News
AFGHANISTAN: Taliban Praises Russian Plan to Remove Its Terrorist Designation
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Russian media on May 27 that the Taliban “hold real power” in Afghanistan and that Moscow is planning to remove them from its list of terrorist organizations.
AZERBAIJAN: Azerbaijan President Announced Resettlement of Nagorno-Karabakh Capital Will Start in September
Baku will begin efforts to resettle the region’s capital in September, President Ilham Aliyev said; Azerbaijan carried out a military campaign last fall in what was previously an ethnic Armenian enclave.
CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: United States Sanctions Two Firms That Supported Wagner Group
The Wagner Group is a Russian firm accused of exacerbating instability in the region. The Wagner Group and its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, provide guns for hire in a murky global operation with links to Putin and the Russian state.
HAITI: Haiti’s Transitional Government Names New Prime Minister
The council selected longtime international aid official Garry Conille as prime minister, tasking him with liaising with a multinational security mission and leading the country toward new presidential elections. Conille served briefly as Haiti’s prime minister more than a decade ago and has worked 25 years with aid agencies, including the United Nations.
MEXICO: Mexico elects Claudia Sheinbaum as its first female president
Mexico’s newly-elected President comes from an academic background as a Ph.D. physicist and climate scientist, having published more than 100 peer-reviewed articles and serving on the 2018 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
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