GENEVA / PEACOCKS RETURN

WHO Technical Advisory Group recommended Ervebo vaccine to be evaluated in vaccine trial for Bundibugyo virus disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a UN spokesperson said. UNIFEED

Rising fertilizer prices are threatening Afghanistan’s 2027 wheat harvest as farmers prepare for the winter planting season. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is urgently appealing for USD 38.3 million to help up to 600 000 farming households access fertilizer and certified wheat seed before the critical planting window closes. FAO

New health data from the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DRC) Ituri Province shows a sharp decline in the number of children and women accessing essential healthcare services, including childhood immunizations and births in health facilities, as fear of infection and service disruptions keep families away from care. UNICEF

Women's participation and leadership "remain indispensable to sustainable peace" in South Sudan, the Security Council President told reporters. UNIFEED

The Special Representative of the Secretary-General for South Sudan, Anita Kiki Gbeho, told the Security Council that “important questions remain to be addressed regarding the political security and institutional conditions necessary for credible peaceful and inclusive elections” in South Sudan. UNIFEED

“The Secretary-General strongly condemned the latest large-scale missile and drone attacks by the armed forces of the Russian Federation on Kyiv and other cities in Ukraine, that reportedly killed and injured dozens of civilians, and led to extensive damage to civilian infrastructure,” a UN Spokesperson said. UNIFEED

Analysis from the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) shows that the strengthening El Niño weather pattern is set to significantly worsen food insecurity in some of the world's most vulnerable countries into 2027. WFP

“The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights expresses alarm at the rise in executions and death sentences issued in Iran since March. Capital punishment continues to be used to instill fear among the population and suppress dissent,” a UN human rights spokesperson said. OHCHR

The Security Council was told Wednesday that the Islamic State (ISIL/Da'esh) remains a resilient and adaptive threat despite sustained counter-terrorism pressure that has degraded its central leadership, as the Council reviewed the Secretary-General's 23rd biannual strategic report on the group. UNIFEED

After navigating muddy terrain and flood-damaged road, a peacekeeping patrol from the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) reached to an isolated community of Rii-rangu in Western Equatoria State. Theye heard directly from residents about the challenges they face. For women, the burden of the isolation weighs heavily as they struggle to find water, care for sick family members, and raise children. UNMISS