Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and muscle cramps may also occur. Diarrhea can be so severe that it leads within hours to severe dehydration and electrolyte imbalance. This may result in sunken eyes, cold skin, decreased skin elasticity, and wrinkling of the hands and feet. Dehydration can cause the skin to turn bluish. Symptoms start two hours to five days after exposure.
Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir is a Sudanese politician who is currently serving as the seventh president of Sudan and was head of the National Congress Party. He came to power in 1989 when, as a brigadier in the Sudanese Army, he led a group of officers in a military coup that ousted the democratically elected government of prime minister Sadiq al-Mahdi after it began negotiations with rebels in the south. Since then, he has been elected three times as President in elections that have been under scrutiny for electoral fraud. In March 2009, al-Bashir became the first sitting president to be indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC), for allegedly directing a campaign of mass killing, rape, and pillage against civilians in Darfur.
Jonglei is a state of South Sudan. On 2 October 2015 the President Salva Kiir Mayardit decreed the creation of the new Jonglei State along with 27 other states replacing 10 previous states. The earlier Jonglei state comprised three counties of Bor, Twic East and Duk and was the largest state by area before reorganisation, with approximately 122,581 km2, as well as the most populous according to the controversial 2008 census conducted during present-day South Sudan's second period of autonomy. Bor is the capital of the state.
The United Nations Stabilization Mission In Haiti (UNSTAMIH), also known as MINUSTAH, an acronym of the French name, was a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Haiti that was in operation from 2004 to 2017. The mission's military component was led by the Brazilian Army and the force commander is Brazilian. The force is composed of 2,366 military personnel and 2,533 police, supported by international civilian personnel, a local civilian staff and United Nations Volunteers.
Riek Machar is a South Sudanese politician who served as the first Vice President of South Sudan from 2011 to 2013, and again from April to July 2016.
The War in Darfur, also nicknamed the Land Cruiser War, is a major armed conflict in the Darfur region of Sudan that began in February 2003 when the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) rebel groups began fighting the government of Sudan, which they accused of oppressing Darfur's non-Arab population. The government responded to attacks by carrying out a campaign of ethnic cleansing against Darfur's non-Arabs. This resulted in the death of hundreds of thousands of civilians and the indictment of Sudan's president, Omar al-Bashir, for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court.
The third cholera pandemic (1846–60) was the third major outbreak of cholera originating in India in the nineteenth century that reached far beyond its borders, which researchers at UCLA believe may have started as early as 1837 and lasted until 1863. In Russia, more than one million people died of cholera. In 1853–54, the epidemic in London claimed over 10,000 lives, and there were 23,000 deaths for all of Great Britain. This pandemic was considered to have the highest fatalities of the 19th-century epidemics.
The seventh cholera pandemic was the seventh major outbreak of cholera and occurred from the years 1961 to the 1970s and has continued to the present. This pandemic, based on the strain called El Tor, started in Indonesia in 1961 and spread to Bangladesh by 1963. Then it went to India in 1964, followed by the USSR by 1966. In July 1970 there was an outbreak in Odessa and in 1972 there were reports of outbreaks in Baku, but the USSR kept this information quiet. It reached Italy in 1973 from North Africa. Japan and the South Pacific saw a few outbreaks by the late 1970s. In 1971, the number of cases reported worldwide was 155,000. In 1991, it reached 570,000. The spread of the disease was helped by modern transportation and mass migrations. Mortality rates, however, dropped markedly as governments began modern curative and preventative measures. The usual mortality rate of 50% dropped to 10% by the 1980s and less than 3% by the 1990s.
The 2008 Zimbabwean cholera outbreak was an epidemic of cholera affecting much of Zimbabwe from August 2008 until June 2009. The outbreak began in Chitungwiza in Mashonaland East Province in August 2008, then spread throughout the country so that by December 2008, cases were being reported in all 10 provinces. In December 2008, The Zimbabwean government declared the outbreak a national emergency and requested international aid. The outbreak peaked in January 2009 with 8,500 cases reported per week. Cholera cases from this outbreak were also reported in neighboring countries South Africa, Malawi, Botswana, Mozambique, and Zambia. With the help of international agencies, the outbreak was controlled, and by July 2009, after no cases had been reported for several weeks, the Zimbabwe Ministry of Health and Child Welfare declared the outbreak over. In total, 98,596 cases of cholera and 4,369 deaths were reported, making this the largest outbreak of cholera ever recorded in Zimbabwe. The large scale and severity of the outbreak has been attributed to poor sanitation, limited access to healthcare, and insufficient healthcare infrastructure throughout Zimbabwe.
Sudanese nomadic conflicts are non-state conflicts between rival nomadic tribes taking place in the territory of Sudan and, since 2011, South Sudan. Conflict between nomadic tribes in Sudan is common, with fights breaking out over scarce resources, including grazing land, cattle and drinking water. Some of the tribes involved in these clashes have been the Messiria, Maalia, Rizeigat and Bani Hussein Arabic tribes inhabiting Darfur and West Kordofan, and the Dinka, Nuer and Murle African ethnic groups inhabiting South Sudan. Conflicts have been fueled by other major wars taking place in the same regions, in particular the Second Sudanese Civil War, the War in Darfur and the Sudanese conflict in South Kordofan and Blue Nile.
The 2010 Haitian cholera outbreak was the first modern large-scale outbreak of cholera – a disease once considered beaten back largely due to the invention of modern sanitation. Since its reintroduction to Haiti in October 2010, cholera has spread across the country and has become endemic, causing high levels of both morbidity and mortality. Since its reintroduction to Haiti following the 2010 Haitian earthquake, nearly 800,000 Haitians have been infected by cholera, and more than 9,000 have died, according to the United Nations (UN). Cholera transmission in Haiti today is largely a function of eradication efforts including WASH, education, and oral vaccination, and climate variability. Early efforts were made to cover up the source of the epidemic, but thanks largely to the investigations of journalist Jonathan M. Katz and epidemiologist Renaud Piarroux, today it is widely believed to be the result of contamination by infected United Nations peacekeepers deployed from Nepal. In terms of total infections, the outbreak has since been surpassed by the war-fueled 2016–17 Yemen cholera outbreak, although the Haiti outbreak is still the most deadly modern outbreak.
Seven cholera pandemics have occurred in the past 200 years, with the seventh pandemic originating in Indonesia in 1961. Additionally, there have been many documented cholera outbreaks, such as a 1991-1994 outbreak in South America and, more recently, the 2016–18 Yemen cholera outbreak.
Ethnic violence in South Sudan has a long history among South Sudan's varied ethnic groups. South Sudan has 64 tribes with the largest being the Dinkas, who constitute about 35% of the population and predominate in government. The second largest are the Nuers. Conflict is often aggravated among nomadic groups over the issue of cattle and grazing land and is part of the wider Sudanese nomadic conflicts.
The South Sudanese Civil War is an ongoing conflict in South Sudan between forces of the government and opposition forces. In December 2013, President Kiir accused his former deputy Riek Machar and ten others of attempting a coup d'état. Machar denied trying to start a coup and fled to lead the SPLM – in opposition (SPLM-IO). Fighting broke out between the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) and SPLM-IO, igniting the civil war. Ugandan troops were deployed to fight alongside the South Sudanese government. The United Nations has peacekeepers in the country as part of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). In January 2014 the first ceasefire agreement was reached. Fighting continued and would be followed by several more ceasefire agreements. Negotiations were mediated by "IGAD +". A peace agreement known as the "Compromise Peace Agreement" was signed in August 2015. Machar returned to Juba in 2016 and was appointed vice president. Following a second breakout of fighting within Juba, the SPLM-IO fled to the surrounding and previously peaceful Equatoria region. Machar was replaced by Kiir as First Vice President by Taban Deng Gai, splitting the opposition, and rebel in-fighting has become of major part of the conflict. Rivalry among Dinka factions led by the President and Malong Awan have also led to fighting. In August 2018, another power sharing agreement came into effect.
Events in the year 1977 in Japan. It corresponds to Shōwa 52 (昭和52年) in the Japanese calendar.
Wau Shilluk is a village of 50,000 located in the Upper Nile state of South Sudan. Many who reside in Wau Shilluk are IDPs in need of refuge due to the recent civil war which has ravaged much of the land. Living conditions in the town are grim. Many of the residents live in small tents constructed from tarps. During the rainy season they live knee deep in water leading to contamination and recently a cholera outbreak. Along with the problems of flooding and poor housing, the populace also faces the threat of severe malnutrition. Farmers displaced by the civil war have been unable to planet crops leading to a food shortage in the country. Many of the people now rely on food distributed by UNICEF and the United Nations, however it does not seem to be enough and Shilukians explain they are unable to feed their entire family. Food imported by these groups is often looted by soldiers and rebels before it is able to make it to the civilians. It's estimated nearly 50,000 South Sudanese children will be lost this year unless food is properly distributed throughout the land. Many humanitarian groups are calling for more food and supplies in order to aid the situation. Unfortunately more aid will not be given until an official famine declaration is made. In 2015 several school children were kidnapped by forces loyal to Johnson Olony with the intention of their being forced to serve in the armed forces.
In October 2016, an outbreak of cholera began in Yemen and is ongoing as of February 2019. In February and March 2017, the outbreak was in decline, but the number of cholera cases resurged after 27 April 2017, reportedly ten days after Sana'a's sewer system stopped working. Devastation of Yemeni infrastructure, health, water and sanitation systems and facilities by Saudi-led coalition air strikes led to the spread of cholera. Saudi-led coalition airstrikes are deliberately targeting water systems in Yemen. The UN accused the Saudi-led coalition of "complete disregard for human life".
