PAPUA NEW GUINEA
Following the landslide in Enga Province in May, the Enga Provincial Disaster Office (EPDO) has been alerted to imminent threats at the Mulitaka Landslide area by emergency response and geotechnical teams on site. Assessments indicate ongoing geo-seismic activity and potential hazards threatening communities within the Mulitaka Landslide Disaster Site and the Disaster Management Emergency Care Center.
Bulges, cracks on the road and fault lines on the high ground have been observed, indicating the imminent risk of further landslides. Immediate evacuation and resettlement of the Care Center are recommended. The Enga Provincial Disaster Office (EPDO) issued the new direction to be immediately implemented for the Provincial Disaster Management Committee (PNGDF), Police, and UN agencies to coordinate evacuations, restrict access to the site, and identify new settlement areas.
AFGHANISTAN
A significant number of undocumented Afghan nationals are continuing to return to Afghanistan from Pakistan through the Torkham border crossing, according to reports by IOM and the the Directorate of Refugees and Repatriation. In the first two weeks of June 2024, a total of 542 families, amounting to 2602 people, are documented as having taken this journey back to Afghanistan. These returnees were provided with essential post-arrival humanitarian assistance facilitated by aid agencies through the border consortium.
MYANMAR
Amid ongoing conflict in many parts of Myanmar, the encroachment of landmines and explosive ordnance into residential areas since 2021 has significantly heightened risks to civilians and is now a critical humanitarian and development concern. Explosive ordnance contamination is a threat to people’s safety, survival and access to livelihoods and essential services.
In northern Shan, three children were injured, with one of them losing their hands, from the blast of an explosive device in Lashio Town on 19 June. In the Northwest, a boy died and two more children were severely injured by an explosion of a grenade that they found which accidently detonated in Gangaw Township in Magway on 21 June. There have been 9 fatalities and 34 injuries of civilians since the beginning of June.
In 2023, there was a total of 1,052 casualties reported nationwide - a 270 per cent increase from 2022. Children made up almost a quarter of the total casualties (21 per cent), underscoring the disproportionate impact on vulnerable populations.
Disclaimer
- UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
- To learn more about OCHA's activities, please visit https://www.unocha.org/.