#Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan

[humansolidarityday]

Investing in solidarity.

With UNHCR, UNDP co-leads the Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan (3RP) to the Syria Crisis.

Investing in solidarity refugee hosting countries deserve greater support.

[jordanianroyals]

28 August 2024: Crown Prince Hussein inaugurated the High-Level Global Forum on Youth, Peace and Security, and witnessed the launch of the Arab Strategy for Youth, Peace and Security (2023-2028).

The strategy aims to implement UN Security Council resolutions (2250, 2419, 2535) on youth, by enhancing the role of Arab youth in decision-making, increasing their political and economic engagement, and ensuring economic security.

The strategy was prepared by an Arab ministerial committee headed by Jordan, in cooperation with the League of Arab States.

Jordan is hosting the two-day forum as part of efforts to implement the UN Resolution 2250 “Youth, Peace and Security”, which resulted from an initiative put forward by Crown Prince Al Hussein, when he chaired the open discussion session on this matter in the Security Council in 2015.

In remarks at the forum’s opening session, Prime Minister Bisher Khasawneh highlighted the need for the region’s youth to have a roadmap in light of regional challenges, stressing the need to develop national plans that take into account the different priorities in each Arab country, in order to implement this strategy.

The prime minister reaffirmed that Jordan is moving forward with comprehensive modernisation across the political, economic and administrative tracks, noting that the upcoming parliamentary elections will witness broader youth representation.

Moreover, Khasawneh warned of the youth’s fading trust in the international system in light of the Israeli aggression on Gaza, reiterating Jordan's firm position on the importance of ending the war on the Strip and ensuring the sustainable flow of humanitarian aid.

For his part, Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit stressed the importance of the strategy that resulted from the efforts of His Royal Highness, voicing hope it would contribute to enhancing the role of youth in political decision-making at the national and regional levels, as well as achieving peace and stability in the region.

Aboul Gheit praised young Palestinians’ resilience in defending their identity and their right to life, highlighting their heroic roles in rescue and relief operations, assisting refugees, and documenting crimes committed against the Palestinian people.

For her part, UN Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo commended Jordan’s role in promoting the youth, peace and security agenda in the region, highlighting the importance of the strategy in encouraging youth participation to reach lasting peace and security, especially since about 60 per cent of the region’s youth are under the age of 30.

The High-Level Global Forum on Youth, Peace and Security includes dialogue sessions on ways to implement the youth, peace and security agenda, and the priorities of member states in developing the strategy’s executive plan.

The forum, organised by the Ministry of Youth in partnership with the League of Arab States, is attended by ministers of youth and sports from various Arab countries, Arab youth delegations, and representatives of civil society organisations and international organisations.

On the sidelines of the forum, the League of Arab States will hold an extraordinary meeting of the Council of Arab Youth and Sports Ministers to discuss the national priorities of Arab countries regarding the youth, peace and security agenda.

[beardeddetectivepaper]

€77,265/€100,000‼️‼️

Hi everyone, I am Bilal, 22 years old, from Gaza, Palestine. I am reaching out to you during these trying times to seek help evacuating my family who have been living their worst nightmare since the beginning of the war against my people. I have been living in Germany for 7 months now. Life has not been easy on me here as I have been struggling to make ends meet and adjust to new responsibilities. I made the difficult choice to leave my home because of the instability in the region, namely the consecutive Israeli offensives, unfair restrictions, and constant blockades that have crippled my beloved city for years. All I wanted was to build a decent life for myself and my family. Unfortunately, my hopes and dreams were mercilessly crushed by war and injustice. Yet, the pain I am experiencing pales in comparison to the hardships my family members have been enduring due to the ongoing relentless Israeli hostilities that have made life in Gaza an everyday struggle for survival.

My family consists of my mother, my father, my five brothers, and two sisters as well as my sister-in-law and my brother-in-law. My oldest sister already has two lovely daughters respectively aged 7 and 2; and she has only recently given birth to a beautiful baby boy who is now only a few weeks old. My elder brother and his wife, who have been raising two sweet little boys (ages 3 and 1), have also just had two adorable twin girls. The babies make us feel blessed but, at the same time, fearful for their safety and well-being under the current perilous circumstances. We had just finished building our new house in Northern Gaza when the war broke out and destroyed everything we had including my father's shoe business, which was our family's only source of income. Now, we have to start from scratch again _something we have been forced to do every few years_ but the damage caused this time is unprecedented and almost impossible to repair.

Trying to escape Israeli aggressions, my family first fled to Khan Younis where they stayed at the Al Helal hospital there. Sadly, the hospital was also bombed and the city was not as safe as they were told it would be. Consequently, they were displaced again. They are now living in a tent in a refugee camp in Rafah city where basic amenities are denied to them. They have to strive and risk their lives every day to provide the bare minimum of food and water for everyone, and even that is not always available. Due to the siege imposed on Gaza the markets are almost entirely empty, prices are rocketing, and little to no humanitarian aid is allowed to enter the strip.

In addition to food and water scarcity, the healthcare system in Rafah, has almost entirely collapsed. As a result, my family’s health, already at risk due to malnutrition, poor hygiene, little access to sanitation and the harsh weather conditions in the tent, is now also in serious peril because of the shortage of medicines and medical care. The three newborns face the same threats, if not greater ones; as baby essentials including formula are barely available. Moreover, the only medical assistance they and their mothers have access to is that of an overcrowded maternity clinic or a field hospital with limited capabilities and equipment. My family remained resilient throughout the cruellest conditions but now their very survival is more than ever at stake; as Rafah, formerly described as a “safe zone”, is presently being indiscriminately and more aggressively bombed. Furthermore, The Israeli occupation has repeatedly stated that a ground invasion of the city is being planned to take place at the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan. Consequently, even the overpopulated and disease-ridden last refuge my family has is now threatened with total annihilation. With no ceasefire in sight, I am embarking on an endeavour to rescue my family from the imminent Israeli attack. As you well know, the only way out of Gaza under the current situation is through the Egyptian border with Rafah. I have been doing everything within my power to provide my family with what they need but the evacuation costs have proven to be a challenge. That is why, I am humbly asking for your help in raising the necessary funds to get my loved ones to safety. We are a family of 18 people, including 10 adults and 8 children under 16 years old. To ensure safe passage and basic needs of every member: - €45,685 (€4,570 per person over 16 x 10) - €18,339 (€2,292 per person under 16 x 8) Total current fees for coordination: 64,024 euros Your generous donations will primarily cover: - Transportation from Gaza to Egypt - Shelter rental in Egypt - Purchasing clothes, urgent healthcare and other humanitarian needs Nearly €3,200, if not more, will be allocated to these vital expenses. In addition, we expect to receive €2,800 to cover GoFundMe transaction fees. Total amount = 70,000 euros

Words fail to describe the pain and loss my family has been through as their future remains uncertain and the atrocities of the war continue to lay waste to everything they held dear. It is not just about bricks and walls that were turned into rubble. Their most precious memories as well as the warmth and simplicity they used to cherish in their home were reduced to ruins and smoke in the blink of an eye. The thought of losing my loved ones haunts me now more than ever. However, I believe every donation, no matter how small, can make a difference and help me alleviate my family's suffering by offering them a new chance at life and restoring the hopes and dreams they have been forced to forsake. I would be sincerely grateful for any kind of support whether through donations or simply sharing the link to this fundraiser with friends and family and as widely as you could within your social networks. Despite the brutality of the war, I still trust in the humanity of those pure of heart to help my family get through the hardest times of their lives. As they continue to be trapped in the harshest and most life-threatening situation, your generosity and support are their only hope. Every contribution is a step closer towards achieving some sense of normalcy and stability my family desperately longs for and deserves.

[jobtendr]

Communications and Knowledge Products Consultant at the Near East Foundation. Remote.

Communications and Knowledge Products Consultancy Consultancy · Remote Communications and Knowledge Products Consultancy Terms of Reference Background   In Jordan, the Near East Foundation’s (NEF’s) microenterprise creation and resilience-building program includes training in life and business skills, cash grants to finance microenterprises, and additional support for these enterprises. The program, which serves vulnerable Jordanians and refugees, is funded by a Development Impact Bond (DIB) and implemented through five Siraj centers across the country that are embedded within existing CBOs. Siraj centers are critical to the overall objectives of the program, as these hubs are the primary location where capacity building activities take place and where a host of other services are offered to project beneficiaries (and to the wider community). The program includes three cohorts that began training in February 2022, January 2023, and April 2024, respectively. Training participants develop a business plan and apply for the program’s grants to fund the startup or expansion of the businesses, which are awarded to successful applicants about five months after their cohort starts training.   In northern Syria, NEF’s Revolving Credit Fund (RCF) program launched in November 2020 to support credit-ready entrepreneurs in Syria who have little or no access to appropriate loan products to gain access to safe, structured and affordable financing to support their existing or startup businesses. The RCF aims to improve household economies through the provision of financial and non-financial services. Tailored, demand-driven financial and non-financial services help families graduate from poverty, as borrowers gain access to opportunities to start or expand businesses and build skills and competencies that facilitate the success of their businesses. As a key component of the RCF, a robust set of non-financial services (including life skills training, business development training, agricultural extension support, marketing/market access coaching) are offered through NEF’s successful Siraj model, which has evolved over the past 8 years in the region and is driven by four key elements that have developed through learning and adaptation: (1) livelihoods-focused selection of borrowers; (2) structured livelihoods services monitored using shared performance standards; (3) Master Trainers who teach and mentor entrepreneurs; and (4) standardized curricula in relevant topics (e.g. entrepreneurship, financial literacy, agribusinesses and agricultural production, etc.). NEF offers several types of loan product based on the size and needs of the entrepreneur and to this point has provided more than 3,500 loans totaling more than $4,000,000 across northwest and northeast Syria. NEF has operated in the governorates of Ar-Raqqa, Al Hasaka and Deir Ez-zur in northeast Syria and in Aleppo in northwest Syria. Duties and Responsibilities   The consultant will:   - Develop New Beneficiary Profiles: The purpose is to develop profiles for participant beneficiaries in ongoing programs focused on micro and small enterprise development in Jordan and northern Syria using innovative financing mechanisms. The profiles will capture both internal and external dynamics affecting enterprises as well as benefits deriving from the intervention. - - Develop new participant profiles. - Ensure profiles effectively convey success stories, beneficiaries' circumstances, levels, and types of participation, business overviews, and overall results. - Capture market and sectoral dynamics as well as business value proposition and internal conditions relevant to beneficiaries' enterprises. - Capture contextual barriers and challenges faced due to entrepreneurship in conflict, migration, and climate change-affected contexts. - Tailor profiles for strategic audiences such as institutional donors and impact investors.   - Review and Refine Existing Profiles: - Review and refine business beneficiary profiles for programming in Jordan and Syria for external stakeholders and broader publication. - Ensure that profiles accurately and effectively distill human interest with financial and impact data at the individual, household, business, and community level.   - Produce Several 1-Pager or 2-Pager Technical Briefs: Given the sophistication and scalability/multiplication potential of evolving methods and approaches employed by applicable programs, we aim to capture those methods to support scalability and transfer of knowledge. The audience is technical but not necessarily subject experts. Therefore, the resulting technical briefs are accessible to wide range audience and required to remain more high level, strategic, and informative for thought leaders (e.g., key features and characteristics, high-level impact and benefits/evidence to-date, comparative analysis with global best practices, wider applicability, etc.). - - Develop concise, 1- or 2-page technical briefs for both Jordan and Syria, summarizing technical approach, differentiators and value additions, key findings, program impacts, and strategic recommendations for practitioners.   - Develop Online Profile for Siraj Financial Services (SFS): SFS has developed a draft and basic website that includes essential information such as SFS intro, SFS services, and partnership options. - - Review SFS’s draft website and propose recommendations to improve it by creating an engaging online presence for the SFS, highlighting its objectives, achievements, and impact.   - Develop a learning paper on Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) supported through NEF’s Refugee Impact Bond Given the outsized importance of Siraj centers to the Jordan DIB program, NEF aims to improve the overall sustainability of each CBO by providing targeted assistance and developing a multi-year strategy to invest in the sustainability of each community organization and ensure services offered to beneficiaries are high quality and are meeting the needs of the community. Through this learning paper, NEF will assess the overall impact of project activities on the sustainability, service delivery, and inclusivity of CBO services. NEF has already collected data related to the learning questions. The approach employed was qualitative and quantitative. - - Develop a learning paper by building on available data and information.   Methodology   - New Beneficiary Profiles: - Review and improve template for data collection. - Review list of proposed beneficiaries. - Interview relevant staff to gauge additional insights. - Use data collected to develop profiles. - Collect feedback and integrate in final profiles.   - Refined Existing Profiles: - Interview relevant staff to gauge additional insights. - Use data collected to develop profiles. - Collect feedback and integrate in final profiles.   - 1- or 2-Pager Technical Briefs: - Propose and implement lean methodology for information and data gathering. - Interview relevant staff to gauge additional insights. - Use information and data collected to develop brief. - Collect feedback and integrate in final document.   - Online Profile for SFS: - Review SFS’s draft website and propose recommendations. - Update content as needed. - Collect feedback and integrate.   - Develop a learning paper on Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) supported through NEF’s Refugee Impact Bond - - Review available data and written information and propose structure to the learning paper. - Draft the paper by building on available data and information. - Collect feedback and integrate   Deliverables - New Beneficiary Profiles: - Profiles for beneficiaries in Jordan. - Profiles for beneficiaries in Northern Syria.     - Refined Existing Profiles: - Updated and refined profiles for existing beneficiaries.   - 1- or 2-Pager Technical Briefs: - Several 1- or 2-page technical briefs from both Jordan and Syria programs.   - Online Profile for SFS: - Update to the online presence for SFS.   - Learning paper on CBOs - A learning paper.   Level of Effort (LoE) The Level of Effort (LoE) for this assignment is up to 60 working days. The LoE provided is indicative; NEF will agree on the LoE and/or pricing of each deliverable in advance. Please provide breakdown of proposed LoE and associated pricing.   Competencies - Strong knowledge of development and humanitarian issues, preferably with relevant technical expertise. - Ability to articulate messages clearly. - Ability to produce exceptional-quality written materials for publication. - Ability to work in a high-pressure work environment and meet urgent deadlines. - Ability to respond positively to critical feedback and differing points of view.   Experience - At least 5 years of relevant work experience in humanitarian/development programming communications and/or external representation for INGOs/International Organizations. - Demonstrable experience in publishing articles and reports. - Experience in the usage of media technology and social media for public information/advocacy. - Experience engaging with humanitarian/development institutional donors (such as the European Union and United States Government), corporate stakeholders, and private foundations.   Language Skills - Fluency in written and spoken English. Arabic language is an advantage. The deadline is Sunday June 16, 2024.   For more than 100 years, the Near East Foundation has pioneered innovative solutions to social and economic development challenges impacting communities throughout the Middle East and Africa. Near East Foundation is funded by a range of institutional and private donors, including USAID, DoS, Government of Netherlands, and UN agencies. For more information, please visit www.neareast.org. Read the full article

[mariacallous]

Let’s conduct a mental exercise. It’s Oct. 7, 2025, two years after Hamas’s devastating terrorist attack that killed around 1,200 people, and Israel’s Gaza Strip policy is in ruins. Hamas emerged from the rubble of the war in 2023 and again controls Gaza, with its prestige in the West Bank and elsewhere greatly enhanced. Israel’s international standing, including in Washington, is in tatters. At home, Israel’s political and social divisions are even more pronounced than before the war, effectively paralyzing the country. Perhaps most troublingly, Iranian proxies are more aggressive than ever before, with regular rocket attacks into northern Israel by Hezbollah and with Houthi fighters in Yemen menacing Israeli shipping.

This kind of exercise is known as a pre-mortem, a technique first proposed by the psychologist Gary Klein to reduce the risk of failure and recommended by Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman as a way of countering overconfidence. The idea is simple. Imagine that a plan or policy currently being pursued ends up failing horribly. Now ask what went wrong. The result is a list of potential pitfalls that leaders can study today to craft better policies.

I learned about some of these potential failure points on a recent trip to Israel with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, where we interviewed security officials and other senior figures. For Israel in Gaza, the pitfalls could stem from underestimating Hamas itself, unwittingly strengthening the group, weakening domestic cohesion, failing to transition from war to governance in Gaza, and undermining Israel’s relationship with the United States.

Underestimating Hamas’s Resilience

Israel seeks to destroy Hamas, killing its leaders and much of its military rank and file. Of the roughly 25,000-strong Hamas force that existed before Israel invaded Gaza, Israel claims to have killed around 7,000 cadres as of mid-December, including many key operational leaders.

Yet Hamas will prove exceptionally difficult to destroy completely, and it could well regrow in Gaza. Israel can estimate Hamas’s strength by assessing numbers in Hamas formations, monitoring funerals and death announcements, and counting dead combatants. However, as one Israeli expert told me, “I would be very skeptical about [Israeli estimates regarding] the number of Hamas fighters killed.” Troops in combat are not likely to carefully catalog enemy dead and may easily count all males of fighting age as presumed combatants. In addition, some people in Gaza may take up weapons because they are being attacked, thus adding to Hamas’s overall numbers.

Hamas is also deeply embedded in Gaza. It has controlled the strip since 2007: A generation has grown up under its control. It works closely with Gaza’s clans and has a power base in the Gaza refugee community. Well before 2007, it ran schools, hospitals, and mosques, giving it a presence in almost every aspect of society. This stands in sharp contrast with groups like the Islamic State, which was a relative newcomer to the areas it conquered and whose fighters were often foreigners with few connections to the local population.

With these deep roots, Hamas can easily regrow, even if the vast majority of its fighting apparatus is destroyed. To prevent this, a different polity must take Hamas’s place and ensure that the group does not reappear once Israeli pressure eases.

Strengthening the Resistance Narrative

Hamas is more than an organization: It also embodies what it calls “resistance,” using violence to end the Israeli occupation in the West Bank and Gaza and eventually to destroy Israel—a credo embraced by many Palestinians as well as Lebanese Hezbollah, Iran, and other regional actors.

The Oct. 7 attack electrified many Palestinians and much of the Muslim world, with approval of the attack soaring to above 80 percent in the West Bank. (Perhaps not surprisingly, those in Gaza, whose family members are dead and whose homes are destroyed, are less enthusiastic.) Israel’s aggressive response and the high levels of civilian casualties have further vindicated Hamas’s methods among many in the region. In Gaza, this means Hamas or any other resistance group has fertile soil in which to grow—an important long-term factor, as almost half of Gaza’s 2.2 million people are under 18. Outside Gaza, this narrative generates support for Iran and other enemies of Israel, and it makes it harder for friendly states in the Arab world such as Egypt and the United Arab Emirates to openly work closely with Israel, despite their hostility to Hamas.

A Crisis of Faith

The Oct. 7 attack forced many Israelis out of their homes in the south near the Gaza border. The near-constant rocket and mortar fire in northern Israel from Hezbollah has displaced tens of thousands more. A total of 250,000 Israelis are now living away from home, either in hotels paid for by the government or with family. Giving these people the confidence to return to their homes is an Israeli priority.

But restoring confidence will prove difficult, both militarily and psychologically. Israel must be able to defeat or deter both Hamas and Hezbollah. But “defeat” and “deter” are elusive concepts, and Israel must convince its own people that they are safe. That is difficult given the fiasco of Oct. 7, when Israeli intelligence failed to detect and warn of the attack and Israeli troops failed to defend communities near Gaza.

In the south near Gaza, restoring confidence will require a comprehensive and visible defeat of Hamas; in the north, it would necessitate Hezbollah moving more of its elite Radwan units farther from Israel’s borders to ensure there would be no surprise attack. Israel also might need to station large numbers of forces on every front and provide each populated area with greater self-defense capabilities. Such measures are expensive and are particularly hard for Israel because its military force depends on reservists, making it difficult to sustain a large army in a long war.

Making all this worse, there is a crisis of faith in the political system. Before Oct. 7, Israel was a highly divided society, with sharp splits between religious and secular communities, Israeli Arabs and Israeli Jews, and Jews from European countries versus Jews from Arab countries. The Netanyahu government further polarized the country by bringing far-right figures into the government and by undermining judicial independence. Already, some right-wing people are claiming Hamas attacked because it saw Israel as weak due to anti-government protests. Israelis might support higher taxes to fund the military, an extension of service for reservists, and other painful measures—but not if these proposals are seen as part of the partisan jockeying.

The Hezbollah Dimension

A potential disaster for Israel could occur if a full-scale war breaks out with Hezbollah. The Lebanese group has far more fighters who are more skilled and more experienced—and a rocket and mortar arsenal that dwarfs that of Hamas and includes precision-guided munitions. So far, Hezbollah has launched limited attacks on Israel to demonstrate solidarity with Hamas. Israel has responded by increasing its military presence along the border and conducting small-scale attacks designed to push Hezbollah away from its border and, through a limited use of force, demonstrate Israeli resolve. These exchanges of fire could easily spin out of control, and Israel might even decide that it needs to attack Hezbollah in order to end the threat it poses. Indeed, it might have initiated such a war were it not for U.S. pressure.

The Transition Failure

At some point, Israel will end high-intensity military operations in Gaza, either because it has largely destroyed Hamas or because the cost in lives and shekels—and its own international standing—proved too high. At that point, to avoid becoming an occupying power over a hostile population, prevent chaos on its Gaza border, and stop Hamas from regrouping, Israel will need to hand off at least some governance in Gaza to a Palestinian entity. This might be the Palestinian Authority (PA), which rules in the West Bank with Israeli support, or perhaps a group of unaffiliated technocrats.

Here Israel’s options are poor. The PA is corrupt and deeply unpopular, Israel’s West Bank policies have undermined the PA’s credibility, and the Hamas attack and Israel’s response have further eroded its popularity. The PA cannot manage security in the West Bank without substantial Israeli help, and Gaza would be a far bigger challenge. Yet there are no better options.

A Failure to Manage the U.S. Relationship

International criticism of Israel’s campaign is mounting. Israel depends on the United States for munitions (particularly necessary for a campaign against Hezbollah). The United States also offers much-needed financial support and is vital for deterring Iran and stopping groups like the Houthis in Yemen, which have tried to attack Israel. So far, U.S. President Joe Biden has generated tremendous goodwill in Israel with his heartfelt and strong support after the Oct. 7 attack.

Yet the relationship could easily go awry. Biden is trying to manage a fractious Democratic Party, much of which opposes his strong support for Israel, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is already playing politics with his critical relationship with Washington. The United States has pressed Israel to reduce civilian casualties in its military operations and avoid an escalation with Hezbollah, while many Israelis believe that they need to destroy Hamas completely, even if many Palestinian civilians die in the process. These political and strategic gaps could split the United States and Israel, leaving the latter more isolated internationally and without the military support it needs.

What Can Be Done Now?

Some of these challenges cannot be overcome without creating additional problems and stresses. Israelis I talked to recognize that killing Palestinian civilians increases support for Hamas’s narrative and undermines Israel’s international standing. But they feel that, to destroy Hamas, they have no other option but to pursue an aggressive military campaign that inevitably leads to many civilian deaths. Similarly, to avoid a war with Hezbollah, the United States urges restraint, but an approach that keeps the status quo ante will not persuade Israelis to return to their homes in the north.

This list of potential problems, however, also suggests that Israel will need to scale back its objectives. It may need to settle for regular raids on and deterrence with Hamas and a chaotic situation in Gaza, even as it builds up its defenses in order to reassure its people. Israel must also plan for the long term, recognizing that it cannot be perpetually at war and must preserve its relationship with the United States.

[places-to-visit-in-uttarakhand]

Government Issue Visas to Those Escaping Climate-Related Catastrophes

People trying to get out of places where climate change has caused natural disasters have asked the UK government to give them visas.

To reduce the effect of related migration on border security, the center-right think tank Onward urged the government to provide safe, legal routes for climate refugees to reach the UK.

The think tank suggested instituting a natural disaster visa scheme that would enable people to either earn money to help rebuild their lives before returning home or settle permanently if they had no place to go after an environmental disaster.

The think tank also suggested a plan in its Forced to Move report for people in vulnerable countries to be trained in sustainability skills and then either remain to help their country adjust to climate change or move to the UK for a limited time to work on the net-zero transition.

Over the next 30 years, the impacts of climate change are anticipated to displace hundreds of millions of people, with some likely to seek refuge in the UK, including through illegal routes.

The report’s authors said: “A robust immigration system and an enforced border to lower the level of illegal migration into the country are key to maintaining public confidence. However, new controllable visa schemes for those displaced by climate change to come to the UK would enable the government to help those most in need while protecting the integrity of the immigration system”.

The UK lacks the resources to assist everyone who might face forced relocation due to climate change over the course of the next century.

“But, as mentioned throughout this report, the UK has demonstrated time and again that it is willing to play its part to help those most in need.”

The report asked private investors to put more money into adapting to climate change in developing countries. This would cut down on the number of people who have to leave their homes because of bad weather.

Following progress on the UN’s Global Goal on Adaptation at Cop27 in Egypt, where the UK announced £200 million in adaptation funding for African nations and promised to triple its total support for climate change adaptation to £1.5 billion by 2025, funding for adaptation measures is likely to be a focus of this year’s Cop28 meeting in Dubai.

According to Onward, 46% of the public supports increased financing for climate adaptation, compared to 28% who reject it, but only 29% believe the UK has an obligation to host climate refugees.

One of the report co-authors, Ted Christie-Miller, said: “We cannot allow climate-related migration to become the defining crisis of the 21st century. The Government needs to act now to build climate resilience in the most vulnerable regions on the planet and open up safe and legal visa routes for those fleeing environmental disasters.”

Read more about visa news visits here-

[creatiview]

[ad_1] Tucked away in the southeastern corner of Europe, Moldova’s winters may be drab and harsh, but the road from Ukraine’s border spools out through bare, brown hills like a ribbon of hope.To Larysa, who came from the Donetsk region of Ukraine, the silent heath means safety. It means a pause in the constant barrage of artillery, the whine of sirens and drones, the rush for the bunker, the dark, the cold, the smell, and the grime of war. The terror can be set aside, and life can start again.When Larysa got off a bus from the border to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) station outside the small town of Palanca, she left behind the Donetsk region, having made a 2,000-kilometre, three-day journey with her sick daughter.‘Mama, will we wake up tomorrow?’Her conversation, like all those who have just left the hell of war, comes in ebbs and flows. Torrents follow silences, stifled tears and too raw memories. At first, disbelief, then relief. But, she is already planning her next move, to Romania.“When I get to Bucharest, I want to apply for a job, find work, accommodation,” she says. “The most important thing is that there is no shooting there, that it’s peaceful and your child goes to bed without saying ‘mama, will we wake up tomorrow?’”Larysa and her daughter are two of a few dozen people sitting around a tent staffed by IOM and other agencies. Before the bus leaves for a 10-hour-long trek to the Romanian capital, there is time for a hot meal, a health check-up, to get information needed for the coming days and weeks and even a shower.“When we first came here in late February, immediately after the Russian invasion, there was total chaos on the border,” remembers Lars Johan Lonnback, IOM’s Chief of Mission in Moldova. “It was immediately clear to us that, along with food, shelter, medical care and counselling, transport was a massive need. Well-meaning volunteers were arriving, offering to take vulnerable families – who, you have to remember, left their men behind to fight – to Portugal, Norway, Italy. It was totally unorganized and a dream scenario for human traffickers, who always turn up when people are at their most vulnerable.”Bussed to BucharestIt was also abundantly clear to Lonnback that the thousands of people coming across the border would place a massive strain on Moldova’s scarce resources, risking a social crisis. IOM, partnering with the Moldovan authorities and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), assessed the needs and worked towards finding solutions. The partners quickly established a dedicated bus service that decongested the border area, protected the vulnerable, and added a raft of services to the massive relief effort.In the same vein, IOM has been helping people, particularly the most needy – including persons with disabilities, the elderly and those who are bedridden – to get to European Union countries by plane. To date, more than 15,000 people have entered the European Union by bus and plane with IOM support, which Lonnback believes has helped to stave off a difficult situation in Moldova, a country already wracked by poverty and social tensions.“The critical thing is that the international community continues to help Moldova in any way it can,” he says. “We’ve seen that the Ukrainians are proud and resilient, and they really don’t want to leave their homes. But, as the attacks on infrastructure mount, and as the snow piles up, it gets more and more difficult to live, to simply exist. We have established a system that is flexible and responsive, and we can scale up in the event of large numbers of people once again fleeing Ukraine.”About 10 per cent of those who have fled from Ukraine via Moldova have decided to stay in the country.  Many of those who stayed are from cities relatively close to the border; have family and friends in Moldova; or, like people in any war, they want to remain close to their homeland.Four generations uprootedSvitlana, a 60-year-old real estate agent from Odesa,

40 kilometres from Moldova, is now a mainstay for four generations of women living in a small house about an hour outside Chisinau. She speaks slowly, sometimes mechanically, describing the horrors she saw and heard. Her mother quietly reads as her daughter prepares borscht and her granddaughter sketches.But, she doesn’t cry. Svitlana gives the impression that sorrow is something she must not, will not, make time for. Her husband and sons-in-law are on the front line, and her task is to lead the family, alone.Moldova has welcomed them warmly, she says, with humanitarian aid and simple kindness. She and her daughter are learning Romanian so they can compete on the local job market and use their skills for the benefit of their host country and themselves. Much as they appreciate the aid they have been given, they don’t want to survive on it.“It’s sustainability through solidarity,” says Margo Baars, IOM’s Emergency Coordinator in Moldova, describing the organization’s approach. “We provide livelihood support, grants for small businesses, training and transitional shelter support, particularly to get people through this difficult winter. One of the main things we do is psychological support, because people have been through a lot and need more than just material aid.”Leaving Ukraine along with the mothers, young children and grandmothers, are old men. Yurii, 73, vividly remembers his parents talking about the Second World War, and never thought that he would see such death and destruction in his homeland. “It’s horrible,” he says. “Every day we have victims being brought in. Every day. There are so many victims, so much grief, so many people suffering.”Five-month-old Ivan, conceived in peace and born into war in Ukraine, is now safe in Moldova with his mother Ksenia. While heavily pregnant, Ksenia had run through a minefield as cluster bombs rained down. She fell, but escaped, with a birthmark on Ivan remaining as a memory of the day they had both cheated death.“I want this war to end so I can enjoy motherhood to the fullest,” says Ksenia. “I think I would have gone crazy with this war without Ivan. He’s the one who brightened up all the horror.” In this cold, miserable field, her own smile is a beam of sunlight. [ad_2] Source link

[ukrfeminism]

Donations for Ukraine: UK drop-off points and the most useful items to give

Support for refugees fleeing Russian invasion floods in across Britain

People across Britain and the wider world have been deeply moved by the courage and resilience shown by the citizens of Ukraine over the last week as their country came under attack from Vladimir Putin’s Russia, an invasion that brought international condemnation and has already seen the aggressor become a pariah state on the world stage.

While many were caught up in the violent warfare playing out across Ukrainian cities, others have been forced to flee for safety in neighbouring states like Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Moldova.

Both the resistance and the refugees need the help and generosity of Ukraine’s European neighbours to survive their ordeal and millions of Britons have already donated generously to fundraising drives and supported causes like The Independent’s Refugees Welcome campaign, which seeks to persuade the British government to do more to help asylum seekers escaping the conflict.

At a local level, charitable endeavours have meanwhile sprung up across the country to take in and deliver supplies to the frontline.

Below is a list of some of the places across Britain currently accepting donations of goods like clothing, toys, medicine and food to help those under siege in their hour of need.

READ MORE

Ukraine news – live: Russia warns WWIII would be ‘nuclear and destructive’, as Kharkiv shelling kills 25

Ukrainians need open, unconditional, generous help – now

How to help and support the people of Ukraine

It is by no means a definitive record, however, so please check your local listings for other collections in your area.

Readers are also encouraged to share further information and links to other regional hubs in the comments section that follows.

Anyone planning to vist a drop-off centre is further advised to check up on the site’s social media accounts or call ahead beforehand for more information on which resources are most in demand to avoid a surplus, given that the situation on the ground is changing all the time.

London

The Polish White Eagle Club in Balham, South London

The organisers are accepting clothing, bedding and other items to help refugees in Ukraine. They say they have already been overwhelmed with donations, however, so members of the public are advised to contact them before dropping off supplies.

Address: 211 Balham High Road, SW17 7BQ

02086721723

North London Collection Centre

The organisers here say items needed include nappies, sanitary items, towels, reusable cutlery, toothbrushes and underwear.

Address: 233 Willesden Lane, NW2 5RP

UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies

Students at the university are collecting for Ukrainian refugees but no longer require food items. Instead, medical supplies, toiletries, hygiene products and clothes are needed.

Address: 16 Taviton Street, WC1H 0BW

Lewisham Donation Hub

Takes donations every Sunday from 1-4pm. Items particularly needed are posted on the organisation’s website on Saturdays so donors are advised to check there first.

Address: 261 Lewisham High Street SE13 6AY

Rest of England

The Polish Integration Support Centre’s British and Polish Solidarity with Ukraine campaign has been collecting donations at sites across the country since 27 February and will continue to do so until at least 4 March (they’re also behind the Balham site listed above and have two additional sites in Wrexham).

It is asking for foil survival blankets, toys, nappies, sanitary towels, crayons, towels, first aid kits, sleeping bags, metal cups, thermal clothing, hair brushes, shampoos, toothbrushes, children’s clothes and bandages.

These can be donated at the following locations (again, donors are advised to call ahead to check what’s needed as the situation is constantly evolving):

St Francis Church, Chester

Collecting Monday-Friday 10am-2pm

Address: Grosvenor Street, Chester, CH1 2BN

07858457164

Oswestry, Shropshire

Collecting Monday-Friday 5pm-9pm

Address: 54 Laburnum Drive, SY11 2QR

07544061801

Continental Convenience Store, Whitchurch, Shropshire

Collecting Monday-Friday 9apm-8pm

Address: 36 Green End, Whitchurch SY13 1AA

07528014924

Polish Merseyside, Liverpool

Collecting Monday-Friday 8pm-9pm

Address: 254 County Road, Liverpool, L4 5PE

07919203069

Polish Club, Bury

Collecting Monday and Thursday 8pm-9.30pm, Saturday 11am-1pm and Sunday 11am-1.30pm

Address: Back East Street, Bury, BL9 0RU

07432113290

Vilnius Polish Centre, Manchester

Collecting Monday 2pm-8.30pm, Tuesday 2pm-10pm and Wednesday, Thursday and Friday 2pm-7pm

Address: Worsley Road, Manchester, M30 0RU

07432113290

BeeHouse, Manchester

Collecting Monday-Friday 12pm-10pm

Address: Deansgate Locks, 2 Whitworth Street, Manchester M1 5LH

07432113290

Other sites around the country include:

Polish Social Club, Southampton

This organisation is collecting supplies to be sent specifically to Medyka on the Polish-Ukrainian border to support refugees fleeing the fighting in their homeland.

They are asking for donations of: nappies and wet wipes, including nappies for elderly; dry sanitary products; thermal clothes and gloves; batteries, flashlights and candles; food for children – long term and dry; warm blankets and sleeping bags;

Painkillers; dressings; face masks and hand gels; dog/cat food.

For more information, check out the club’s Facebook page.

Address: 507 Portswood Road, SO17 2TH

Common Ground, Oxford

Collecting until 4pm on Wednesday and then again from 8am to noon on Thursday, according to the organisers’ latest Facebook post. Clothes are not currently a priority but medical supplies and toiletries needed.

Address: 37-38 Little Clarendon Street, Oxford OX1 2HF

Westbury, Wiltshire

Seeking clothes, blankets, sleeping bags, children’s toys, pet food and long-lasting dry food supplies like pasta and rice for delivery to a hostel in Zgierz and a volunteer centre in Lodz in Poland in order to pass on to Ukrainian refugees.

Address: Daykin Estates, Unit 4 Rockhaven Business Park, Commerce Close, Westbury BA13 4FZ

Malvern Bakehouse, Worcestershire

This local bakery has been collecting baby clothes, soft toys, first aid items, blankets and sleeping bags to be delivered to refugees in Poland. However, it has been so overwhelmed by the generosity of the public that it cannot take any more supplies so is instead directing donors to the collection point below.

Address: Unit 6, Phoenix Works, Windsor Road, Redditch, B97 6 DJ

Country Living has more information on other local donation sites across England, Scotland and Wales.

Wales

Sklep u Pauli, Bridgend

This Polish supermarket is accepting donations for Ukraine during opening hours – 9am to 7pm Monday-Saturday and 10am to 5pm on Sundays. All donations welcome barring clothing.

Address: 8 Derwen Road, Bridgend, CF31 1LH

Park Vets, Cardiff

Accepting donations at its Cardiff site – but says it is in need of assistance transporting items to a larger collection point in Newport. If you can help, please contact the business.

Clothing is no longer required but volunteers are collecting food with a long expiry date, toiletries and medical products until 7pm on Wednesday 2 March.

Address: Sanatorium Road, Cardiff, CF11 8DG

02920382211

Supermarket ABC, Newport

Organisers say they are especially keen to receive donations of baby products (including nappies, modified milk, bottles and wet wipes), feminine hygiene items, thermal blankets, sheets, pillows, rain coats, toiletries and hygiene products.

Instant food like soup, dried fruit and nuts, pasta, canned meat or fish, coffee, tea and sugar is also appreciated.

Address: 158-152 Chepstow Road, Newport NP19 8EG

01633961601

Rogue Fox Coffee House, Newport

Le Pub at 14 High Street in Newport is also accepting donations during opening hours as part of the Women of Newport campaign group, as is the Rogue Fox Coffee House (Monday-Friday 8am to 4pm).

Organised by local resident Kamila Jarczak, this latter operation is asking for toiletries, baby nappies (different sizes) and wipes, sanitary products, dog and cat food, batteries, flashlights and candles, thermal clothes, hats and gloves, duvets, blankets, sleeping bags and pillows.

Address: 3 Clytha Park Road, Newport NP20 4NZ

01633250647

Supermarket ABC, Swansea

Organisers say they are especially keen to receive donations of baby products (including nappies, modified milk, bottles and wet wipes), feminine hygiene items, thermal blankets, sheets, pillows, rain coats, toiletries and hygiene products.

Again, instant food like soup, dried fruit and nuts, pasta, canned meat or fish, coffee, tea and sugar is also appreciated.

Address: 18 Woodfield Street, Morriston, Swansea SA6 8AQ

08438868235

Wales Online has more information on other donation sites open across the country.

Scotland

Edinburgh

Donations are being taken at many of the city’s Polish supermarkets, cafes and at St Andrew’s Ukrainian Catholic Church, the details of which are as follows.

Address: 24 Dalmeny Street, Edinburgh EH6 8SA

01315563447

Aberdeenshire

In Dyce, local resident Paula Sledzinska has set up a collection point and has asked for flasks, hot water bottles, protein bars, bandages, dry foods like rice and pasta, sleeping bags, wet baby wipes, sanitary pads/tampons, first aid kits and pet food.

She has set up a Facebook page with more information, which currently reports that donations have had to be paused temporarily for lack of storage space.

Address: Craigievar House, Howe Moss Ave, Kirkhill Industrial Estate AB21 0GP

07578272767

There are also donation points in Inverurie, Fraserburgh, Banff and Ellon in the same county while the Ukrainian Crisis Pet Appeal Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire is working to coordinate drop-offs and donations to support animals caught up in the conflict.

Mossgiel Organic Farm, Mauchline, Ayrshire

Clothes, blankets, duvets, sleeping bags, toys, nappies and canned food are being accepted here, with regular updates posted on the farm’s Twitter account.

Address: West Mossgiel Farm, Tarbolton Road, Mauchline KA5 5LL

Oban, Argyll and Bute

The Oban Helps Ukraine Facebook page is meanwhile a useful resource for updates on where you can donate in that region.

[joyikstvo]

MUN // Position paper

Committee: Economic and Financial Affairs Council - C2 Agenda: Economic Resonance during COVID-19 Goals: Overcome the economic crisis impact Delegate of: Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Represented by: _______

COVID-19 crisis has created extraordinary circumstances which have an impact on various areas. The Ethiopian government moved swiftly to implement containment measures, first responses have been the scattering national policy initiatives leading to severe limitations with regards to freedom of movement and an overall increased concentration of power in the hands of the executive branches which largely turned to govern by decree in order to legislate the lockdowns. As an extraordinary step, the government pardoned more than 4,000 prisoners to prevent the spread of the virus through the prison system.

The lockdown measures put in place by the Ethiopian government are rapidly causing the unraveling of an economic crisis which has the potential to be of bigger proportions than the recession of 2008. The paralyzation of most economic activities translates into a simultaneous business and employment crisis. The unemployment Rate in Ethiopia has increased to 2.08%. National Bank of Ethiopia set aside a 15-billion-birr ($450 million) liquidity facility for private banks to support their clients, especially businesses adversely affected by Covid-19.  Ethiopia’s financial sector is in its infancy, dominated by the state-owned Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE), with about 57% of deposits and 45% of profits from the total of 18 lenders.

Furthermore, due to the difference in loaning abilities between countries, there is a risk of an asymmetric financial crisis that would disrupt Ethiopia’s integrated monetary and economic cohesion for decades to come. Ethiopia has a substantial amount of debt: external debt and domestic debt account for approximately 30% and 27% of the GDP, respectively. Servicing external debt was already a stretch for the government’s budget prior to the pandemic. The constraints on the country’s balance sheet have been exacerbated in the last few months. Unless crushing debt payments are delayed, the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s emergency funding of $411 million and the World Bank’s $82.6 million are a drop in the bucket. The country’s foreign exchange is weak and poses a significant near-term challenge to its economy. Already, the exchange rate has fallen to 33.53 Birr/$1 at the end of April 2020, representing a 15-17% depreciation from the same time last year, according to conversations with the Ethiopian Ministry of Finance officials. The country’s foreign exchange status can be attributed to its poor-performing sectors, particularly its national airline, agricultural exports, hospitality sector, and production targets.

Ethiopian Airlines, the country’s largest foreign exchange earner, saw a decline in revenue of over $550 million between January and April 2020. This is particularly worrisome as the airline supports over 1 million jobs and contributed over 5% of Ethiopia’s GDP in 2019.

Ethiopia’s agriculture exports— 60% of total exports in 2019 have also been dealt a major blow as demand slows in major European and North American trading partners. The agriculture sector is the largest employer in the country and generates significant foreign exchange for Ethiopia, particularly coffee and oil seeds. According to Deloitte, Ethiopia’s agricultural exports as of April 2020 were only at 20% of their usual volume, translating into a year-to-date (YTD) loss of about $132 million. In addition, a significant amount of Ethiopia’s cropland and pastures have been impacted by a locust invasion, pushing over one million people into hunger.

Ethiopia’s hospitality sector has collapsed as travel bans have gone into effect around the world. The collateral damage is significant as hospitality accounts for over 8% of the total employment in the country. At the same time, Ethiopia’s manufacturing sector—a key focus of the government in recent years—has weakened due to the disruption in supply chains worldwide. Ethiopia’s textile and apparel industries, in particular, have been affected by supply shortfalls in China, as well as the slowdown in demand in Europe and North America.

However, numerous governments are promoting measures aimed at alleviating the situation for businesses and employees. Using peacebuilding networks of the project’s boundary partners, and collaborating with the EU funded Resilience Building and Creation of Economic Opportunities in Ethiopia project (RESET II) and Woreda Administrations. SEEK (SELAM EKISIL) project is raising awareness of Covid-19 and cholera as well as distributing sanitary items, personal protective equipment (PPE), and hand washing containers to households, health facilities, and local markets. With a small grant from SIPED II, the land rehabilitation effort aimed to restore 310 hectares to improve local livelihoods. Based on past experience and the area’s topography, the project used “level soil bund construction” to reduce soil erosion, degradation and deforestation.

The situation led the then-Ministry of Federal and Pastoral Development Affairs, the current Ministry of Peace and USAID to select the area for a project to build community-government engagement to reduce land degradation through the SIPED II program. Funded by USAID and implemented by Pact, SIPED II is increasing the resiliency of Ethiopian communities to manage and respond to conflict.

While liquidity has been made available to the banks, the impact of such measures can only be assessed in terms of their positive effects on the businesses they were intended to reach. It is also critical to engage and encourage private sector creditors to participate in debt relief efforts. The government plans to sell 40% of the state-controlled telecommunications monopoly as it moves to open up the industry to international operators for the first time. The government should press ahead in these efforts to bring about much-needed investment, job growth, critical revenue in the government treasury, and much-anticipated mobile money efficiencies for customers.

The Ethiopian government has considered subsidizing with the Development Assistance Group (DAG) $1.6 billion of emergency funding to help keep them afloat during this crisis. The U.S. Embassy has a variety of funding opportunities available to Ethiopians and has granted $4.3 million to 300 projects that benefited more than 7 million people in all regions of Ethiopia. The government is also currently formulating a 10-year prospective development plan with the UN for the period 2019/20 to 2029/30 which is fully aligned to the 2030 agenda and SDGs. The World Food Programme (WFP) supports this goal through a range of lifesaving and resilience-building activities, targeted at vulnerable populations experiencing acute and chronic food needs (including refugees and IDPs) and those at risk of malnutrition.

I think the government should see this as an opportunity to investment in public goods such as welfare, education, research and healthcare, thereby came up with Recovery Action Plan: A Green Deal based on disinvestment on carbon-intensive sectors and investment in carbon-neutrality of production, transportation and delivery of energy and goods. The economic crisis resulting from the current health crisis must not become an excuse to delay the action on climate and environmental sustainability – this would only create even more severe problems in the future both for the economy and public health. Instead, Ethiopians must see the synergies between the massive investments that will be necessary to boost the economy and the urgently needed investments in the green transition. When thousands of Ethiopians lose their jobs due to COVID-19, let us make sure the new jobs we stimulate are green jobs, for example by investing in energy renovation of buildings and electrification of the transportation system.

To finance this plan, new resources need to be at disposal of the Union. The Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) needs to be bigger than the currently negotiated proposals. New forms of autonomous resources for the country should be developed while envisaging the possibility to use a new common financial instrument, directly managed by the Union and targeted on the member’s states’ implementation of the objectives and the measures as set out in the Action Plan. _______________________________________

Sources:

In Ethiopia: more than 4,000 prisoners to be released for fear of coronavirus ▷ Africa BuzzFeed • Ethiopia - unemployment rate 1999-2020 | Statista National Bank of Ethiopia to inject $450 million as liquidity for private banks | Nasdaq Financing for Ethiopia’s development - Ethiopia Insight (ethiopia-insight.com) Ethiopia Battles the Pandemic and Its Economic Consequences | Center for Strategic and International Studies (csis.org) RESET Plus: Innovation Fund for Resilience in Ethiopia - ICCO EN (icco-cooperation.org) Keeping it local: How the SEEK project (Ethiopia) has helped boost the local economy and contributed to peace in cross-border areas during COVID-19 | EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa (europa.eu) Restoring farmland and livelihoods builds peace in Ethiopia | Pact (pactworld.org) Africa News: Ethiopia to Open Telecoms Industry to Investors - Bloomberg Ethiopia Requests $1.6b Emergency Funding (addisfortune.news) Funding Opportunities | U.S. Embassy in Ethiopia https://ethiopia.un.org/en/sdgs Ethiopia | World Food Programme (wfp.org)

[newstfionline]

Thursday, May 20, 2021

For Migrant Children in Federal Care, a ‘Sense of Desperation’ (NYT) In a federal shelter in Dallas, migrant children sleep in a windowless convention center room under fluorescent lights that never go dark. At a military base in El Paso, teenagers pile onto bunk cots, and some say they have gone days without bathing. And in Erie, Pa., problems began emerging within days of the shelter’s creation: “Fire safety system is a big concern,” an internal report noted. Some of the hot water heaters were not working, and lice was “a big issue and seems to be increasing.” Early this year, children crossing the southwestern border in record numbers were crammed into Customs and Border Protection’s cold-floored, jail-like detention facilities. They slept side by side on mats with foil blankets, almost always far longer than the legal limit of 72 hours. Republicans declared it a crisis. Democrats and immigration groups denounced the conditions, which erupted into an international embarrassment for President Biden, who had campaigned on a return to compassion in the immigration system. The administration responded by rapidly setting up temporary, emergency shelters, including some that could house thousands of children. But the next potential crisis is coming into view. “I know the administration wants to take a victory lap for moving children out of Border Patrol stations—and they deserve credit for doing that,” said Leecia Welch, a lawyer and the senior director of the legal advocacy and child welfare practice at the National Center for Youth Law, a nonprofit law firm focused on low-income children. “But the truth is, thousands of traumatized children are still lingering in massive detention sites on military bases or convention centers, and many have been relegated to unsafe and unsanitary conditions.”

Ceasefire calls and U.S. credibility (Foreign Policy) As the bombings [in Gaza] continue, the human toll is becoming clearer. More than 52,000 people in Gaza have been displaced by Israel’s aerial assault, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Tuesday, with most seeking refuge in U.N.-run schools. The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) confirmed that 11 of the more than 60 children killed so far by Israeli airstrikes were participants in an NRC program helping children deal with trauma. Even if hostilities soon end, the Biden administration’s resistance to a U.N. Security Council resolution calling for a cease-fire has tested U.S. credibility. “They pledged to come back and support the U.N. system and multilateralism,” one council diplomat said in a report by Foreign Policy’s Colum Lynch and Robbie Gramer. “We don’t see that happening now in the Security Council.” The episode also encouraged China to carve out a leadership role at the Security Council on Middle East issues, a topic where it usually takes a back seat, while at the same time allowing it to dodge questions on its actions in Xinjiang. Multiple reports appeared on Tuesday, attempting to shine light on Biden’s approach not to call publicly for a cease-fire. They depict an administration wary of getting on the bad side of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The tactic has been criticized as a misreading of U.S. leverage over an ally to which it provides significant military aid and political support. Shibley Telhami, writing in the Boston Globe, voiced some of that criticism on Tuesday. “If an American president cannot leverage this extraordinary and unprecedented support to advance core American values,” Telhami writes, “what hope is there for succeeding anywhere else?”

Spain Sends Troops to African Enclave After Migrant Crossings Jump (NYT) Spain deployed troops, military trucks and helicopters in its North African enclave of Ceuta on Tuesday after thousands of people crossed over from Morocco, one of the largest movements of migrants reported in the area in recent years. More than 8,000 migrants, including nearly 2,000 minors, arrived on the beaches of Ceuta on Monday and Tuesday, mostly swimming or aboard inflatable boats, according to the Spanish authorities, who said that Spain had already sent back 4,000 people. The sudden arrival of thousands of people in Ceuta—more than had attempted the crossing in all the rest of the year so far—comes amid a deepening diplomatic spat between Spain and Morocco over the hospitalization in Spain of the leader of a rebel group that has fought for the independence of Western Sahara from Morocco. Videos broadcast on Spanish television on Tuesday appeared to show Moroccan border guards opening fences to the Spanish enclave. While Morocco has warned of “consequences” for harboring the rebel leader, it was not immediately clear if the spike in migration was linked to the diplomatic dispute.

Grand day for the French: Cafe and bistro terraces reopen (AP) It’s a grand day for the French. Cafe and restaurant terraces reopened Wednesday after a six-month coronavirus shutdown deprived residents of the essence of French “joie de vivre”—sipping coffee and red wine with friends. The French government is lifting restrictions incrementally to stave off a resurgence of COVID-19 and to give citizens back some of their world famous lifestyle. As part of the plan’s first stage, France’s 7 p.m. nightly curfew was pushed back to 9 p.m. and museums, theaters and cinemas reopened along with outdoor cafe terraces. France is not the first European country to start getting back a semblance of social and cultural life. Italy, Belgium, Hungary and other nations already allow outdoor dining while drinking and eating indoors began Monday in Britain.

Indian navy searches for 78 missing from barge sunk by storm (AP) Indian navy ships and helicopters searched in rough weather and seas Wednesday for 78 people still missing from a barge that sank off Mumbai as a deadly cyclone blew ashore this week. Navy Cdr. Alok Anand said 183 people were rescued within 24 hours by three ships and helicopters engaged in the operation. Cyclone Tauktae, the most powerful storm to hit the region in more than two decades, packed sustained winds of up to 210 kilometers (130 miles) per hour when it came ashore in Gujarat state late Monday. The storm left at least 25 dead in Gujarat and Maharashtra states. The Hindu newspaper Wednesday tallied more than 16,000 houses damaged in Gujarat state and trees and power poles uprooted.

How Myanmar's military moved in on the telecoms sector to spy on citizens (Reuters) In the months before the Myanmar military's Feb. 1 coup, the country's telecom and internet service providers were ordered to install intercept spyware that would allow the army to eavesdrop on the communications of citizens, sources with direct knowledge of the plan told Reuters. The technology gives the military the power to listen in on calls, view text messages and web traffic including emails, and track the locations of users without the assistance of the telecom and internet firms, the sources said. The directives are part of a sweeping effort by the army to deploy electronic surveillance systems and exert control over the internet with the aim of keeping tabs on political opponents, squashing protests and cutting off channels for any future dissent, they added.

Restrictions reimposed as virus resurges in much of Asia (AP) Taxi drivers are starved for customers, weddings are suddenly canceled, schools are closed, and restaurant service is restricted across much of Asia as the coronavirus makes a resurgence in countries where it had seemed to be well under control. Sparsely populated Mongolia has seen its death toll soar from 15 to 233, while Taiwan, considered a major success in battling the virus, has recorded more than 1,000 cases since last week and placed over 600,000 people in two-week medical isolation. Hong Kong and Singapore have postponed a quarantine-free travel bubble for a second time after an outbreak in Singapore of uncertain origin. China, which has all but stamped out local infections, has seen new cases apparently linked to contact with people arriving from abroad. The resurgence hasn’t come close to the carnage wrought in India and parts of Europe, but it is a keen reminder that the virus remains resilient.

Immigration In Japan Under Pressure (NYT) For months Japanese jailers said they ‘thought’ the young migrant from Sri Lanka was faking her illness, even as she wasted away before their eyes before dying alone in her cell. Wishma Rathayake had a lifelong fascination with Japan. She entered the country in the summer of 2017 to study Japanese at a school in the Tokyo suburbs, hoping eventually to teach English. She met another Sri Lankan student in Japan who became her boyfriend. Sadly, after a series of unwise decisions, unfortunate events, and a now-expired residence permit, she found herself in a detention center a few hours south of Tokyo, awaiting deportation. It was August 2020. While in detention she was threatened by her ex-boyfriend, now back in Sri Lanka. She thought she’d be safer in Japan, and with the encouragement of advisers at START, a local nonprofit, she decided to try to stay. That move irritated officials at the detention center, who demanded she change her mind. In late December Wishma fell ill with a fever. Within weeks she was having trouble eating, standing, and speaking. In late January 2021 a doctor prescribed her vitamins and painkillers, but they made her even sicker, so she filed for a provisional release. Detention centers had already released hundreds of healthy detainees due to coronavirus concerns, but in mid-February Wishma’s request was denied without explanation. She submitted a second request on medical grounds; by this time she was so weak she could barely sign the form. Despite the severity of her symptoms, officials waited until March 4 to take her to a hospital. Two days later the 33-year-old was dead.      Japan has a long history of hostility toward immigration. Despite being the world’s third-largest economy, it settles less than 1% of asylum applicants—just 47 in 2020. Critics of the country’s immigration system say most decisions are made in secret; detainees who have overstayed their visas can be held indefinitely, with little access to courts. Detainees who apply for asylum, as Wishma did, are particularly unwelcome. Critics say Wishma was the victim of an opaque and capricious bureaucracy that has nearly unchecked power over foreigners who run afoul of it. And while there have been other instances of inhumane treatment of foreigners that ended in death, especially for people of color, the particularly egregious circumstances of Wishma’s death have driven national outrage to a whole new level. Protesters have gathered almost daily in front of Parliament, and objections by opposition lawmakers have been unusually fierce.

Experts warn shuttered Australia is becoming a ‘hermit nation’ (AFP) Prime Minister Scott Morrison defended his “Fortress Australia” Covid-19 restrictions Tuesday, as experts warned that plans to keep the borders closed for another year will create a “hermit nation”. Last March, Australia took the unprecedented step of closing its borders to foreign visitors and banning its globetrotting citizens from leaving. That prompted the first population decline since World War I, stranded tens of thousands of Australian citizens overseas and separated hundreds of thousands of residents from family members. But the country now has almost no community transmission and life for most is relatively normal. And the government’s recent suggestion that borders could remain closed for another year has sparked fierce debate. Australian Medical Association president Omar Khorshid on Tuesday warned: “Australia cannot keep its international borders closed indefinitely.” A University of Sydney task force examining how Australia can safely reopen this week went further, warning the country “cannot continue to lock itself off from the world as a hermit nation indefinitely”.

Powerless (NYT) Abeer Ghanem, like many Gazans, long struggled to work around the long blackouts that blighted the besieged Palestinian enclave along the Mediterranean Sea. But with the outbreak of hostilities a week ago between Israel and the Hamas militant group that governs the Gaza Strip, she said, she now gets at best four hours of electricity a day, intermittently. When it comes on, her family scrambles to charge their lights and batteries for the long, sleepless nights punctuated by outgoing Hamas rockets and the thunder of Israeli airstrikes. A combination of fuel shortages, damage to the electricity supply lines running from Israel and an aerial bombardment that has torn apart local power lines means that many families are receiving at most three to four hours of electricity a day, according to Gaza’s power company. “What we have now for fuel will last for two or three days,” said Mohammed Thabet, a spokesman for the Electricity Distribution Co. of Gaza. The power shortages are compounding the daily misery for Gazans and are also taking a toll on the provision of water, sewage treatment and the ability of hospitals, swamped with casualties, to function. Even if supplies resume, the crisis has caused millions of dollars in infrastructure damage.

Palestinians go on strike as Israel-Hamas fighting rages (AP) Palestinians across Israel and the occupied territories went on strike in a rare collective protest Tuesday as Israeli missiles toppled a building in Gaza and militants in the Hamas-ruled territory fired dozens of rockets that killed two people. The general strike was a sign that the war could widen again after a spasm of communal violence in Israel and protests across the occupied West Bank last week. Although the strike was peaceful in many places, with shops in Jerusalem’s usually bustling Old City markets shuttered, violence erupted in cities in the West Bank. Hundreds of Palestinians burned tires in Ramallah and hurled stones at an Israeli military checkpoint. Troops fired tear gas, and protesters picked up some of the canisters and threw them back. Three protesters were killed and more than 140 wounded in clashes with Israeli troops in Ramallah, Bethlehem, Hebron and other cities, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. The Israeli army said two soldiers were wounded by gunshots to the leg. The general strike was an uncommon show of unity by Palestinian citizens of Israel, who make up 20% of its population.

[ontarionewdemocrats-blog]

*4 beefy men break down your door and hand you a note, inside, you find your important news for June 5, 2019*

Families of patients with SMA meet with Ontario health minister, hope ‘miracle drug’ will get funded

https://globalnews.ca/news/5351193/spinal-muscular-atrophy-spinraza-ontario-drug-coverage/

TDSB ‘bumping’ of teachers not covered by attrition fund, minister says

https://www.thestar.com/politics/provincial/2019/06/04/tdsb-bumping-of-teachers-not-covered-by-attrition-fund-minister-says.html

Air conditioners in every classroom? Not a chance. But TDSB has a plan to keep schools cool

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2019/06/03/air-conditioners-in-every-classroom-not-a-chance-but-tdsb-has-a-plan-to-keep-schools-cool.html

Ford’s plan to axe Beer Store deal could deter investment, warns business group

https://globalnews.ca/news/5350279/fords-plan-to-axe-beer-store-deal-could-deter-investment-warns-business-group/

Fedeli dismisses Chamber of Commerce concerns about canceling Beer Store contract

https://www.thestar.com/politics/provincial/2019/06/04/fedeli-dismisses-chamber-of-commerce-concerns-about-cancelling-beer-store-contract.html

Ontario government’s plan to cancel Beer Store contract ‘alarming,’ says business group

https://www.thestar.com/ipolitics/provincial/2019/06/04/ontario-governments-plan-to-cancel-beer-store-contract-alarming-says-business-group.html

Who has the right to compensation in Beer Store dispute and who doesn’t

https://www.thestar.com/ipolitics/provincial/2019/06/04/who-has-the-right-to-compensation-in-beer-store-dispute-and-who-doesnt.html

Ontario PC MPPs sent to neighbourhood fridges with tweet templates in hand, leaked e-mail reveals

https://globalnews.ca/news/5349674/ontario-mpps-coordinated-social-media-campaign-alcohol-leaked-emails/

What alcohol coming to corner stores means when you’re an alcoholic

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/alcohol-corner-stores-1.5162031

Ford government to rewrite Toronto’s development plans to allow taller buildings in more of midtown, downtown

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-ford-government-to-majorly-revise-toronto-development-plans-and-allow/

Ministry inspections of Fiera Foods left out a partner factory. Months later, another temp worker died

https://www.thestar.com/news/investigations/2019/06/04/ministry-inspections-of-fiera-foods-left-out-a-partner-factory-months-later-another-temp-worker-died.html

Cuts to Legal Aid Ontario mean asylum seekers are on their own, refugee lawyer says

https://globalnews.ca/news/5352782/legal-aid-ontario-budget-cats/

Costs of Ontario climate plan would be double Liberal carbon tax, raise household costs: report

https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/costs-of-ontario-climate-plan-would-be-double-liberal-carbon-tax-raise-household-costs-report

Ottawa throws lifeline to 50 Million Tree Program cut by Ontario government

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/50-million-tree-program-ontario-funding-1.5162571

Ontario government ready to work towards reconciliation, Ford says

https://www.thestar.com/politics/provincial/2019/06/04/ontario-government-ready-to-work-towards-reconciliation-ford-says.html

Queen’s Park opposition parties ask government to pause passage of Bill 108

https://www.qpbriefing.com/2019/06/04/queens-park-opposition-parties-ask-government-to-pause-passage-of-bill-108/

TTC upload bill passes, new rules for drivers too

https://torontosun.com/news/provincial/ttc-upload-bill-passes-new-rules-for-drivers-too

BRAUN: Pride month more important than ever

https://torontosun.com/news/local-news/braun-pride-month-more-important-than-ever

After Ford spurns Pride parade over police ban, Saunders says he’s focused on divide with LGBTQ community

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2019/06/04/after-ford-spurns-pride-parade-over-police-ban-saunders-says-hes-focused-on-divide-with-lgbtq-community.html

OPP laid more than 300 street-racing charges on 400-series highways in May

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/opp-dangerous-impaired-driving-charges-1.5161330

Residents turn in 380% more guns than last year during 2019 amnesty program: Peel police

https://globalnews.ca/news/5350593/peel-region-gun-amnesty-program-380-per-cent-more-guns/

Fourth stop proposed for already-costly Scarborough subway extension

https://www.thestar.com/news/city_hall/2019/06/04/fourth-stop-proposed-for-already-costly-scarborough-subway-extension.html

Government outlines policy principles for smart cities

https://www.qpbriefing.com/2019/06/04/government-outlines-policy-principles-for-smart-cities/

Sidewalk Labs vote pushed back several months: Waterfront Toronto

https://globalnews.ca/news/5350928/sidewalk-labs-vote-pushed-back-waterfront-toronto/

Toronto unveils ‘resilience’ strategy to counteract future effects of climate change on city

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/toronto/article-toronto-unveils-resilience-strategy-to-counteract-future-effects-of/

New ‘tele-resuscitation’ tech helped ER doctors in different cities save Ontario child’s life

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2019/06/04/new-tele-resuscitation-tech-helped-er-doctors-in-different-cities-save-ontario-childs-life.html

Region announces important change to emergency alert system

https://kitchener.ctvnews.ca/region-announces-important-change-to-emergency-alert-system-1.4451726

Lake Erie's water level hits highest point ever recorded

https://london.ctvnews.ca/lake-erie-s-water-level-hits-highest-point-ever-recorded-1.4452362

Ontario still committed to safe consumption site in London: mayor

https://london.ctvnews.ca/ontario-still-committed-to-safe-consumption-site-in-london-mayor-1.4451434

'Layoffs are coming' at Thunder Bay Bombardier plant

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/thunder-bay-bombardier-layoffs-coming-1.5161673

Hamilton's Native Women's Centre hopes for local action on final MMIWG report

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/mmiwg-report-mcmaster-1.5160763

Missing building permit spurs Hamilton order against a second major tower development downtown

https://www.thespec.com/news-story/9409195-missing-building-permit-spurs-hamilton-order-against-a-second-major-tower-development-downtown/

All illegal pot shops now shut down in Hamilton, police say

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/pot-shops-1.5162002

Overdoses the deadly result of Hamilton’s opioid and crystal meth epidemic

https://www.thespec.com/news-story/9407732-overdoses-the-deadly-result-of-hamilton-s-opioid-and-crystal-meth-epidemic/

GOLDSTEIN: Ford making same financial mistakes as the Liberals, says Fraser report

https://torontosun.com/news/local-news/goldstein-ford-making-same-financial-mistakes-as-the-liberals-says-fraser-report

EISEN: Globe and Mail understates Ontario’s fiscal challenge

https://torontosun.com/opinion/columnists/eisen-globe-and-mail-understates-ontarios-fiscal-challenge

LILLEY: Schools spend big on tech that doesn't help

https://torontosun.com/opinion/columnists/lilley-schools-spend-big-on-tech-that-doesnt-help

[jordanianroyals]

7 November 2022: King Abdullah II said that with its track record of successful, climate change-responsive projects, Jordan is keen to serve as a regional hub for green growth.

Delivering Jordan’s address at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27), hosted by Egypt, he said Jordan is working with Egypt, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain, among others, to increase the entire region’s climate resilience.

His Majesty added that Jordan offers a wide array of opportunities for investment in climate-smart initiatives, such as green infrastructure, electric mobility, agriculture and other sectors.

The King noted that Jordan has put forward the Climate/Refugee Nexus Initiative, which prioritises support for host countries bearing the brunt of climate change, and invited participating countries to endorse this initiative. (Source: Petra)

Following is the full text of His Majesty’s speech:

“In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

My brother, Mr President Abdel Fattah El Sisi Mr Secretary General, Mr President, My friends:

It is my pleasure to begin by thanking my brother Mr President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, and the people and government of the Arab Republic of Egypt, for the warm welcome and for hosting this important global summit.

Our meetings here carry forward 30 years of progress in the fight against climate change. Consensus has grown; goals have been set; yet, the lethal dangers have been growing even faster. Every country is paying the price, and especially so, in the developing world.

COP27 now has an urgent task—to kick-start a new level of climate action, transformative action, that can achieve tangible results, faster and more effectively.

This is Jordan's commitment. Climate change is no stranger to us. We share similar climate threats with our entire region. Our rainfall average has dropped by almost half its levels over the past five decades, while the water share per capita fell by nearly 80 per cent. The Dead Sea water levels are declining by three feet per year. Just around 7 per cent of the water now flows in the Jordan River, compared to its historic average. Oases with rich biodiversity have disappeared within a few decades, while climate change and zero sum policies are raising concern for the future of the Nile and the historic rivers of Mesopotamia.

In Jordan’s case, rising temperatures and water scarcity have put heavy pressure on our limited resources—resources strained further by an unnatural population growth driven by the massive influx of refugees.

The UN has recognised that global refugees and their hosts are among the most vulnerable to climate change. To address this crisis, Jordan has put forward a Climate/Refugee Nexus Initiative. It will prioritise support for host countries that bear the brunt of climate change. Join us in endorsing this initiative.

My friends,

Destructive climate change does not have to define our future. Today we have more expert knowledge, better practical tools, and more targeted approaches than ever before. The opportunities are immense, if we will grasp them. Let me briefly touch on two important drivers of success.

First is close integration between climate-change action and economic development. This holistic approach reflects a basic reality—in the 21st century, sustainable economic development requires green resources and practices, and in turn, a greener world must provide for the aspirations of the world's people.

We are starting to find solutions in renewable energy, water desalination, advanced irrigation technologies, and shifting to electric modes of transportation.

Today, Jordan's green recovery programme goes hand in hand with our Economic Modernisation Vision. We are making the most of our country's significant solar and wind resources. Jordan is a leader in the region in clean energy production, with 29 per cent of electricity powered by renewables, and we plan to reach 50 per cent by 2030. In the meantime, Jordan has boosted our contribution to greenhouse gas reduction, to double our 2030 goal. And across our economy, green-focused partnerships are set to create new jobs, for a future of hope.

This brings me to a second driver of successful climate action—strong collaborations at the global and regional levels, as well as between public and private sectors, in order to target opportunities and match up resources and capabilities. One critical area is financing for developing countries to mitigate climate damage and adapt to its impact.

Jordan, with a track record of successful, climate-responsive projects, is keen to serve as a regional hub for green growth. We are working in partnership with Egypt, Iraq, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and others to strengthen our entire region. In Jordan itself, we offer a wide array of opportunities for investment in climate-smart initiatives: green infrastructure, electric mobility, agriculture and other sectors. We have joined with the UAE in Project Prosperity that will expand clean energy and water. Another innovative project is taking place at Aqaba's Marine Nature Reserve, where we and international partners will be helping find solutions to ocean climate crises far beyond our shores.

And let me mention one more cause close to Jordan's heart—the urgent call to help save World Heritage Sites endangered by climate change. The Dead Sea and the sacred Jordan River are treasures of the past and legacies for our future. Our generation must not be the broken link.

My friends,

Good or bad, the world's climate is indivisible; so must we be. In the fight for life on Earth, no one is a bystander; every contribution counts. COP27 has brought us together, to link forces and stand our ground.

We are at the beginning of a long, challenging, and urgent transformation. There may be difficult choices to make, but we need to make them while we can. Let's do so together, as a region and as an international community, and achieve the green, resilient and just world our people deserve.

Thank you.”

The conference, launched by Egypt President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, continues until 18 November, with the participation of leaders and heads of delegations from around the world.

The Jordanian delegation included Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, and Director of the Office of His Majesty Jafar Hassan.

[justgotham]

New York, NY, December 21, 2018 — International Rescue Committee (IRC) voice and Deadpool star Morena Baccarin has called for urgent international support in the face of the largest refugee crisis in Latin American history at the end of a three-day visit to Colombia to meet Venezuelan refugees.

In Cucuta, on the Colombian border, Baccarin met with some of the Venezuelan refugees who have settled in Colombia, and who benefit from the IRC’s health, cash, women’s and children’s protection assistance. Baccarin spoke with parents forced to leave their children behind, unable to feed them due to prices of basic goods doubling or tripling even within the span of a week. A recent IRC assessment revealed Venezuelans living in Colombia are forced by hunger and poverty to undertake desperate measures in order to earn money, separated from their children at five times the emergency average.

Morena Baccarin, IRC voice and actress said: “The Venezuelans fleeing for a better place don’t look the part of the desperate refugee fleeing a war-torn country- they look like you and me. I ask myself, how bad would things have to be for me to leave my home and rebuild everything? Including having nowhere to turn and having to place my children’s little bodies in the street to sleep at night. It’s hard to imagine - and yet it’s happening every day with thousands of people migrating to Colombia.

"The stories are many and each one echoing the same needs. The need to survive. The need to work in order to afford the basics: food, water, medicine, diapers, even toilet paper. It may not be a war zone emergency, but it is certainly a humanitarian one.

"I did not expect the resilience, pride and goodness of people undergoing such adversity. The feeling I thought I would experience of not knowing how to make a difference changed. I now know what can help. Beyond the essential assistance the IRC provides to children and their families, a long-term solution is needed that allows these human beings a chance to contribute, to access healthcare, to send their children to school, to be documented and not fall prey to terrible circumstances.

"The holidays are quickly approaching and my heart and thoughts are with those families I met in Colombia. The ones separated and living in such desperate need.”

One of the refugees Baccarin spent time with, 29-year old mother of two and former student Andrea, came to Colombia when her baby was a few months old. “Before the crisis, I was studying, I had a small shop and my daughter was learning in school. Now, we are living day by day, seeing how we will afford water, food, and our rent.” She continued, “Venezuelans need help. Not just those who had to leave- but those who are still inside.”

3 million Venezuelans and counting have left their country since 2015, 1 million of which have settled in Colombia, in the face of the unprecedented collapse of the country’s economy and health systems. As Venezuela’s crisis deepens, the UN has estimated that over 5 million refugees will be displaced by this time next year, with 2 million expected in Colombia alone -  eclipsing the Syrian refugee crisis.

IRC Country Director for Colombia, Marianne Menjivar added, “The scale of this crisis is absolutely staggering. With each passing day the crisis in Venezuela worsens and families are paying the price. The Government of Colombia has extended extraordinary support to Venezuelans - but conditions remain dire. We encourage the government of Colombia and other regional states to take concrete steps to ensure Venezuelans have access to documentation, regularization, and access to basic services such as health and shelter of which they are in dire need.

"Regional and international donors must step up their support including by fully funding the UN Regional Refugee and Migrant Response Plan. In the US, the introduction of a bipartisan bill by Senators Menendez, Rubio, and colleagues to increase support for regional asylum mechanisms and grant Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Venezuelans in the U.S. is a promising start - a recognition of their plight and of our moral and humanitarian obligations.

"The international community must step up and honor its commitment to supporting and protecting those who are forced to flee across borders in search of safety.

Since April 2018, the IRC has been working in Cucuta, supporting Venezuelans and vulnerable Colombians with specialized services for women and children, cash and health services. In the coming months we will be expanding our programs to support Venezuelans across the country. To date IRC has reached over 3000 people in Colombia.

More information on the IRC’s current response in Colombia here.

Photos and b-roll of Baccarin’s trip can be accessed here.

[globalcourant]

In a rare move, Japan grants asylum to 98 Afghans

In a rare move, Japan grants asylum to 98 Afghans

(Last Updated On: August 23, 2022)UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency announced the start of a more than US$14 million community-based construction effort to build 2,300 earthquake-resilient houses to help residents in southeastern Afghanistan region devastated by the deadly 22 June earthquake. Under the plan, UNHCR is providing materials and supporting building costs for the construction of 2,000…

[thxnews]

UN Launches $97M Emergency Plan for Karabakh Refugees

  United Nations Mobilizes for Urgent Humanitarian Response

In a concerted effort to address the dire needs of refugees who have fled the Karabakh region and their generous hosts in Armenia, the United Nations and its partners have taken decisive action. They launched an emergency response plan on Saturday, urgently seeking $97 million in funding. This vital initiative aims to provide immediate and substantial assistance to the vulnerable, including 136,000 refugees and 95,000 members of the local host community, all profoundly affected by the recent escalation of hostilities.   UN High Commissioner's Plea for International Support UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, issued a passionate plea for international support in the wake of this humanitarian crisis. Grandi emphasized the critical role that international assistance plays in sustaining the refuge and bolstering the resilience of those affected.  

Rapid Influx of Refugees

Since the end of September, an astonishing influx of over 100,000 refugees arrived in Armenia within just one week. Fleeing conflict and instability, these individuals found refuge in Armenia, placing immense pressure on the nation's resources and services.   Remarkable Solidarity and Local Support Recognizing the remarkable response from local host communities, Grandi commended the profound generosity and unwavering solidarity exhibited by the people of Armenia. In a remarkable display of unity, national authorities, volunteers, and civil society have tirelessly worked hand in hand, collaborating closely to provide indispensable support and assistance to those in need, thereby forging a cohesive and compassionate response to the crisis.  

Six-Month Emergency Response Plan

The Armenia emergency refugee response plan, supported by a coalition of 60 partners, among them 43 national NGOs, meticulously outlines relief efforts spanning a six-month period, slated to conclude at the end of March 2024. This comprehensive and far-reaching initiative is designed with the overarching goal of providing vital assistance to a substantial total of 231,000 individuals, encompassing both refugees and the resilient members of the local host communities.   Meeting Critical Needs in Challenging Conditions Among the refugees are approximately 30,000 children and many vulnerable individuals, such as pregnant women, those with disabilities, and individuals with chronic health conditions. Over half of the refugees are either children or elderly individuals who require immediate and critical support.  

Overwhelming Strain on Host Communities

With the sudden arrival of over 100,000 refugees, Armenia's host community faces immense pressure, equivalent to over 3.4 percent of the country's population. This influx adds to the pre-existing refugee, asylum seeker, and stateless population of approximately 35,000 people, further stretching national resources.   A Comprehensive Response Plan The response plan, which complements the government-led efforts, will prioritize emergency protection and assistance. Simultaneously, it will emphasize inclusion, resilience, and long-term solutions, reaching both refugees and host communities. The plan spans multiple sectors, including protection, gender-based violence prevention, child protection, education, food security, nutrition, health, resilience, shelter, and non-food items. It also aims to strengthen national public services for a sustainable future. In the face of this humanitarian crisis, the United Nations and its partners have steadfastly embarked on a mission to provide critical aid. This resolute commitment reaffirms the paramount importance of global cooperation in addressing the urgent needs of those profoundly affected by the conflict in the Karabakh region.   Sources: THX News & United Nations. Read the full article

[don-lichterman]

Integrating Social Cohesion in the 3RP: A regional guidance note - Syrian Arab Republic

Integrating Social Cohesion in the 3RP: A regional guidance note – Syrian Arab Republic

Attachments Executive Summary Since the establishment of the Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan in response to the Syria crisis (3RP), social cohesion and social stability have become a growing source of concern across 3RP countries. The main drivers of tensions between host communities and refugees include increased job competition, rising costs of living, and pressure on municipal and local…