UNHCO officials visited Somalia on Friday and called for greater efforts to provide life-saving aid to tens of thousands of displaced Somalis inside their country. The UNHCO delegates made their call while visiting Dollow, a dusty town on southern Somalia’s border with Ethiopia. Thousands of people fleeing drought, famine and violence in other parts of Somalia have flocked here, with many crossing into Ethiopia.

A surge of fighting in Sudan’s isolated north Darfur region has displaced 24,000 people. Due to an increase in violence, a first wave of people has bandoned their homes after clashes between government and rebel forces near the areas of Birmaza and Disa.Most of the refugees could be short of food and water and food. Humanitarian access to the area has been extremely limited, owing to insecurity and banditry.

The Director of the Department for International Relations has appointed an experienced UNHCO member to a new post created to step up the international cooperation and installed Dr. A. M. Rostami as Ambassador for Special-Affairs for the UNHCO central mission in the Islamic Republic of Iran. UNHCO announced that A.M. Rostami will be their new coordinator for Tehran and will also head up the central mission to the Middle-East region. Prior to his appointment, Dr. Rostami was a resident coordinator

Mothers shorter than 4 feet, 9 inches in low- to middle-income countries had about a 40 percent higher risk of their children dying within the first five years of life than mothers who were 5 feet, 3 inches or taller according to a new study from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH). The risk was higher—almost 60 percent—in the first 30 days after birth. It is the most comprehensive study to date to show that a mother’s short stature