Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.
Ongoing conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is causing mass displacement and pushing millions into severe hunger. Nearly 3.6 million people in the country face emergency food insecurity, one step from famine, with an additional 22.9 million in crisis. The situation is most critical in eastern provinces, where fighting between Congolese forces and Rwanda-backed M23 rebels and other armed groups has displaced tens of thousands since early 2026.
Approximately 3.59 million people are internally displaced in eastern DR Congo, with South Kivu and North Kivu provinces hardest hit. The closure of Goma airport after the city's fall last year has disrupted humanitarian access and supply chains. Despite the crisis, food aid reached only about 1.1 million people in the four worst-affected provinces during January and February, just 23 percent of those targeted for assistance. Funding shortfalls have forced some humanitarian partners to suspend operations, while insecurity, poor roads, and rising food prices worsen the crisis.
In Afghanistan, a UN human rights report indicates the Taliban carried out judicial corporal punishment against at least 312 individuals over three months, including 39 women and four boys. The report highlights a new decree (Decree No. 12 on Criminal Rules of Courts), issued in January and circulated to all de facto courts, expanding capital punishment to offenses such as blasphemy, heresy, and "persisting in corruption." The decree also criminalizes dissent, making criticism of Taliban authorities and their interpretation of Islamic law punishable by lashings or imprisonment.
The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan documented at least 336 arbitrary arrests by the “vice police” and the suspension of two media outlets during the same period. Women were removed from the civil service payroll in January, often discovering their dismissal after not receiving their salaries. Afghan women also faced continued bans from UN premises nationwide, marking the 205th consecutive day, while the ban on girls attending school beyond grade six entered its fifth year, affecting approximately 2.2 million girls.