Situation Overview

Refugees in Lebanon are scattered across the country with the largest concentrations of registered refugees living in North Lebanon (50%) and the Bekaa Valley (38%). There are no camps in Lebanon, but most refugees are hosted or living in rented spaces, and 13% live in collective shelters and tented settlements.

Operational Highlights

The security situation, had remained largely calm during the month of May. Following recent events, in particular the arrival of an estimated 2,367 Niger citizens and 126 Nigeria citizens from Nigeria , as well as the declaration of a state of emergency in three federal states neighboring Diffa region, UNHCR Niger has dispatched on 17 May a contingency mission to Diffa town and region.

05/22/2013 10:12 GMT

NAIROBI, May 22, 2013 (AFP) - Kenya's reconciliation commission has said the president, security forces and judiciary should publicly apologise for past abuses going back 50 years, its final report seen Wednesday said.

Set up after bloody post-election violence in 2007-08, Kenya's Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) handed over its weighty four-volume report -- containing tens of thousands of testimonies gathered over four years detailing rights abuses the abuse of rights in the country -- to President Uhuru Kenyatta late Tuesday.

05/22/2013 11:16 GMT

by Reagan MASHAVAVE

HARARE, May 22, 2013 (AFP) - President Robert Mugabe signed Zimbabwe's new constitution into law Wednesday, clearing the path to crucial elections later this year.

The 89-year-old, who has ruled Zimbabwe since independence from Britain in 1980, signed the document two months after it was overwhelmingly approved by Zimbabweans at a referendum.

"This is a happening of joy, great joy indeed," Mugabe said at the signing ceremony, held in a marquee erected on the lush green lawns of the State House.

By BETWA SHARMA

NEW DELHI —After an earthquake in Jammu and Kashmir state on May 1 left thousands of people homeless and caused 6 billion rupees in infrastructure damage, state officials said Tuesday that they are petitioning the central government for a special relief package.

Read the full report

22-04-2013 Publication Ref. 4105 Christos Giannou, Marco Baldan, Asa Molde

This publication describes the ICRC approach to providing appropriate surgical care given the constraints of security, limited supplies, limited technology and limited human resources that are inherent to war. In modern conflicts, it is often the isolated general surgeon in a rural district hospital who is the first to receive war casualties, frequently with no possibility for further evacuation. In such situations, appropriate clinical techniques and protocols are more essential than ever.

(excerpt)

Djibouti

Events /trends/ data / analysis

New Arrivals: In April 2013, an estimated 4,615 migrants arrived on Yemen’s shores via Djibouti, a 46% decrease from March. 80% of these migrants were Ethiopians while the rest were Somali.

Boats: A total of 66 vessels left via the Red Sea for Yemen carrying an average of 69 passengers per trip in the month of April.

By Andrew O'Connor

VIDEO: Refugees unable to find rental accommodation (7pm TV News WA)

It is a measure of her desperation that Mary Deng would prefer a tent in a refugee camp in strife-torn Sudan to homelessness in Perth.

Three years after arriving in Australia, Ms Deng, her four children and her brother still have no house to rent.

Situation

On 16 May, Cyclone Mahasen made landfall in Patuakhali District of Southern Bangladesh causing widespread destruction and leaving 13 people dead. Of the ten coastal districts hit, the three districts of Patuakhali, Bhola and Barguna were the worst affected. The Government of Bangladesh has reported approximately 49,000 houses have been completely destroyed and 45,000 houses partially destroyed. Over 1.2 million people have been affected and 1.1 million people were evacuated.