The aid response in Burundi to the crisis in neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) “is literally buckling”, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, warned on Friday, as it relayed dramatic testimonies from people forced to flee the unchecked advance of Rwanda-backed M23 rebels.

“Over 63,000 people now have crossed into the country, Burundi, fleeing atrocities, deadly conflict in parts of eastern DR Congo,” said Faith Kasina, UNHCR Regional Spokesperson for East and Horn of Africa and Great Lakes.

Amid the largest influx of refugees Burundi has seen in decades because of the hostilities in eastern DRC’s mineral-rich region, the UNHCR official issued an urgent appeal for immediate and sustained humanitarian funding to meet growing needs among the new arrivals. “This country, despite its best efforts, was not prepared for this emergency,” Ms. Kasina noted.

As more displaced Congolese enter Burundi, 'Shelters are bursting at the seams'

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and UN Women Executive Director Sima Bahous delivered remarks at the International Women's Day Event at UN Headquarters on Friday, 07 March. 

CLIP: International Women's Day Event at UN Headquarters

Explosive ordnance continues to claim lives across Syria, with more than 500 people killed or reported injured since December, according to the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS). 

The long Syrian civil conflict which drew in multiple foreign forces in over a dozen years of fighting, has left a “devastating legacy of landmines and unexploded ordnance throughout the country”, affecting most of populated Syria, particularly in the northwest. 

Speaking from Damascus to UN News’s Khaled Mohamed, the Chief of the Mine Action Programme in Syria, Joseph McCartan, highlighted UNMAS’s efforts to address the contamination and deadly impact of unexploded ordnance in the country. 

Audio Credit: Khaled Mohamed, UN News


Syrian conflict leaves ‘devastating legacy’ of landmines

Dangerously high stress levels and widespread mental health challenges continue to take a devastating toll on civilians in Ukraine, particularly on women and girls, UN humanitarians warned on Friday.

“It’s a terrifying dilemma: do we decide to stay and endure this pregnancy during this constant shelling, or do we uproot our entire life and leave?” says Ulla Muller from the UN sexual and reproductive health agency (UNFPA) in Ukraine, highlighting the situation confronting many women there today.

To mark International Women’s Day on 8 March, Ms. Muller talks to UN News’s Nathalie Minard about the “super women” of Ukraine who have been forced to give birth amid shelling – and to support their families and the wider economy – three years since the Russian full-scale invasion began.

Audio Credit: Nathalie Minard, UN News


Ukrainian war means that for many, life begins in an air-raid shelter

• As thousands continue to flee violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the aid effort in Burundi is ‘buckling’, warns UNHCR 
• Syria crisis: with hundreds of thousands returning, UNHCR issues urgent appeal 
• Sudan: UN Human rights office issues alert on plight of thousands of detained civilians 

Audio Credit: Daniel Johnson, UN News
Music composed and produced by Joachim Harris. All rights reserved.



UN News Today 07 March 2025 - DR Congo, Syria, human rights in Sudan

• Syria escalation: UN aid teams working to reach civilians in danger: OCHA 
• Gazans face substantial drop in drinking water access from Israel power cut
• DR Congo crisis: mpox centre looted amid ongoing violence

Audio Credit: Daniel Johnson, UN News
Music composed and produced by Joachim Harris. All rights reserved. 


UN News Today 10 March 2025 - Syria escalation, Gaza, DR Congo crisis

Cyclone Jude made landfall in Mozambique on Monday, bringing powerful winds and heavy rainfall that caused widespread destruction. 

This marks the third cyclone to strike the country in just four months, with significant flooding expected, particularly in the Zambezia and Nampula regions.

UNICEF’s Chief of Advocacy, Communications, and Partnerships in Mozambique, Guy Taylor, has been outlining the serious risks to children in affected areas, which are densely populated and face a heightened threat of waterborne diseases. 

Speaking to UN News’s Felipe De Carvalho, Mr. Taylor outlined the ongoing emergency response efforts and the lifesaving aid being provided on the ground.

Audio Credit: Felipe De Carvalho, UN News
Photo: UNICEF/Guy Taylor


Cyclone Jude hits Mozambique causing widespread damage, deadly threat to children


• Syria’s Alawite families ‘summarily executed’, the UN human rights office warns
• Myanmar’s Rohingya facing worst levels of hunger in years: UNICEF
• Rodrigo Duterte arrest: UN rights office hails courage of families of Philippines’ ‘drug war’ victims

Audio Credit: Daniel Johnson, UN News
Music composed and produced by Joachim Harris. All rights reserved 


UN News Today 11 March 2025 - Syria, Myanmar, Rodrigo Duterte

• Afghanistan: Opium prices approach historic peaks, organised crime benefits
• Significant increase in child victims of trafficking over the last five years
• Brain-changing tech in spotlight at Human Rights Council

Audio Credit: Daniel Johnson, UN News
Music composed and produced by Joachim Harris. All rights reserved

UN News Today 12 March 2025 - Opium in Afghanistan, child trafficking, brain-changing tech

• Rights investigators pin war crimes allegations on Israeli forces amid Gaza war 
• Europe, Central Asia report highest number of measles cases in more than 25 years 
• Conflict, hunger, poverty impede children's early development: Türk

Audio Credit: Daniel Johnson, UN News
Music composed and produced by Joachim Harris. All rights reserved.


UN News Today 13 March 2025 - Gaza war, measles, children's rights

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