Hello, this is Michelle. The number of migrants embarking on a treacherous journey through the thick, inhospitable Darién Gap to reach the United States reached half a million in 2023, prompting the Panamanian government to beef up security at multiple crossing points.
While the influx has calmed down, violence and economic hardship still relentlessly push tens of thousands of people to risk their lives. The Panamian Red Cross is among a handful of humanitarian organisations struggling to cope with the humanitarian crisis.
In other news from Geneva, a UN analysis reveals seven decades of progress have been lost in the state of Palestine in just a year of war.
Finally, come join us at our next launch talk with the Geneva Press Club, where we'll unpack the financial stakes of the UN's climate summit in Baku. |
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A photo exhibit on migration through the Darién jungle between Colombia and Panama at the IFRC's headquarters. (Geneva Solutions/Paula Dupraz-Dobias)
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Panama’s Darién Gap: local Red Cross at crossroads of migration politics.
During a recent visit to Geneva, the head of Panama’s Red Cross society spoke to Geneva Solutions about responding to the significant surge in people crossing one of the world’s riskiest migration routes as the latest presidential election cycle in the United States adds pressure on the region to curb the flow. Migration will be top of the Red Cross conference's agenda next week.
Geneva Solutions
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Here's what else is happening
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📉Israel’s war on Gaza has set development back by 69 years, UN says.
An assessment by the UN Development Program found 74 per cent of people in the Palestinian territories will be under the poverty line in 2024. In the last year, unemployment has risen to 49 per cent and the economy has shrunk by 35 per cent.
Al Jazeera
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📑Israel launched a dozen attacks on UN troops in Lebanon, says leaked report.
According to a confidential document by a country whose forces are part of the Unifil, 15 peacekeepers were injured by white phosphorus, a substance not banned by international law but strictly regulated due to its potential for harm.
Financial Times🔒
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📩Ukraine blasts UN's Guterres over invitation to BRICS summit in Russia.
António Guterres has reportedly accepted an invitation to the conference in Kazan, after having declined Ukraine's invitation to its peace summit in Switzerland over the summer. The Kremlin said the UN chief is scheduled to meet with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Thursday for the first since April 2022. The UN hasn't confirmed any of the reports.
Reuters (EN)
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🛂UN 'deeply concerned' Kenya returned Turkish refugees.
The four men believed to be part of the Gulan movement blamed for the 2016 coup attempt in Turkey were repatriated at the request of Ankara.
BBC
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🇦🇫How the Taliban’s vice and virtue law is impacting foreign aid and engagement.
Foreign diplomats and aid organisations appear to be taking a wait-and-see approach to the Taliban’s new morality law, as it’s still too early to tell how strictly the rules will be enforced.
The New Humanitarian
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🛬Cameroon president returns home after long stay in Geneva.
Paul Biya, 91, landed in Yaoundé on Monday, putting to rest rumours about his health.
Le Temps (FR)
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4 November | How to Reclaim Our Humanity in an Age of Machine Thinking?
Technology is often seen as a beacon of hope for the future, with artificial intelligence at the forefront of this optimism. But despite being built from vast amounts of data, AI technologies frequently mirror the very errors we seek to overcome.
In this keynote public event, Professor Shannon Vallor from the Edinburgh Futures Institute will delve into AI’s potential to help us reclaim human moral and intellectual growth instead of reproducing the biases and mistakes of the past. She advocates for reimagining AI as a tool for shaping a better world. The keynote will be followed by a panel discussion featuring experts Mia Perry, Claude Bruderlein and Jérôme Duberry, who will focus on the importance of AI literacy for diplomats and professionals in international Geneva.
Register to attend
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Cop29: can countries unlock new climate finance?
The climate conference next month comes in a year dominated by wars, elections and extreme weather events. As climate change slips down the global agenda, raising the risk of governments slowing their pace in reducing greenhouse emissions, countries have a crucial task at hand: agreeing on a new funding target to help vulnerable nations cope with climate impacts. Will wealthy nations put aside their own political agendas and agree to turn billions of dollars in financial commitments into trillions, as poorer nations have called for? What of Cop28's promise to transition away from fossil fuels?
Join us on Monday, 4 November, at 12:15 pm at Domaine du Château de Penthes, Geneva, for a discussion featuring experts and advocates who will share their insights and expectations for Cop29. Snacks and drinks will be served after.
Sign up to attend in person or virtually.
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