Officials say global outbreaks are accelerating as millions of children remain underimmunized after years of COVID-19 disruptions linked to the pandemic.

“Measles remains one of the most contagious respiratory viruses,“, said Dr. Kate O’Brien, WHODirector of Immunization, Vaccines and Biologicals.

“One person can infect up to 18 others. Many people think that measles is not serious – but it is and it can be fatal. One in five infected children end up in hospital.

Last year, around 11 million people worldwide were infected, almost 800,000 more than in the pre-pandemic period. Most deaths occurred in children under five, with around 80 percent in Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean.

“But no child should suffer the consequences of measles,” stressed Dr O’Brien. “Two doses of vaccine provide 95 percent protection. The tragedy is that children are not protected because the system is not reaching them.”

Epidemics have tripled since 2021

Measles epidemics continue to increase sharply. In 2024, 59 countries experienced significant or disruptive outbreaks – almost three times more than in 2021 – and a quarter of them had already eliminated measles.

Only 84 percent of children worldwide received their first dose of measles vaccine last year, but only 76 percent received the crucial second dose – leaving up to 30 million children underprotected. Three-quarters of them were in Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean, most in conflict-affected or highly mobile communities.

“Measles does not respect borders,“said Diana Chang-Blanc, head of WHO’s essential immunization programme.A country is only protected when all children everywhere are fully vaccinated.»

Why cases are increasing

According to the WHO, three factors are behind this increase:

Pandemic era declineas health workers redirected to COVID-19 response

A large number of children without a dosenow concentrated in fragile and conflict contexts

Weak routine immunization systemseven in otherwise strong health systems

Vaccine misinformation and limited access

Dr. O’Brien also addressed vaccine misinformation, saying misrepresentations — especially online — undermine trust, but noted that gaps in access, not hesitancy, remain the biggest barrier to stopping measles.

“The biggest barrier is access, not hesitation,” she said. “Parents everywhere want the best for their children. What they need is reliable information and a health system that can reach them.»

She nonetheless called on political, community and religious leaders to “share accurate, evidence-based information,” emphasizing that trust is “the beginning, middle and end of successful vaccination programs.”

A chance to correct the situation

More than 11 million children have already been vaccinated thanks to the global “Big Catch-Up” campaign, which will continue until 2025.

But the WHO said countries need stronger surveillance, a faster response to outbreaks and renewed political commitment to achieve the goals of the 2030 Immunization Agenda.

Jeremy Laurence, spokesperson for the UN human rights office, OHCHR, said journalists in Geneva that voting was expected to begin on December 28, in what he described as a poll controlled by the military and conducted in an environment “riddled with threats and violence” and actively repressed political participation.

Many major political parties have been excluded and more than 30,000 political opponents – including members of the democratically elected government and political representatives – have since been arrested. the 2021 coup.

“Far from being a process likely to launch a political transition from crisis to stability and the restoration of democratic and civil rule, this process seems almost certain to further entrench insecurity, fear and polarization throughout the country,» said Mr. Laurence.

“The top priority must be to end the violence and ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid. »

Civilians caught in the middle

Speaking from Bangkok, James Rodehaver, head of the OHCHR team in Myanmar, said THE The elections take place in an environment where civilians are caught between military pressure to vote and aggressive efforts by armed opposition groups to prevent their participation..

The junta claimed to have granted some 4,000 pardons to people accused or convicted of sedition or incitement. But Mr. Rodehaver said such announcements rarely match reality.

Of the approximately 4,000 people sentenced, only around 550 were seen leaving detention centers, while others were released before being rearrested. At the same time, the military boasted of arresting more than 100 people under recently imposed “election protection rules.”

OHCHR has credible information that three young people were sentenced to 49 years in prison for hanging posters showing a ballot box with a bullet.

AI and biometric tracking

Mr. Rodehaver also raised concerns over electronic-only voting system, introduced alongside expanded surveillance using artificial intelligence and biometric trackingwarning that this risks further undermining confidence in the process.

Humanitarian access is also deteriorating, with civilians forced to return to villages to vote despite insecurity, while the military continues to block aid to conflict-affected areas, a long-standing practice. Nearly 23,000 people remain in detention and “should not have been arrested in the first place,” he said.

U.N. human rights officials noted that the military is presenting the vote as a sign of the end of the crisis, despite the secretary-general’s statements. warning in October, that under current conditions, any election “risks greater exclusion and instability”.

“A masquerade”

Beyond the concerns raised by U.N. officials, Myanmar’s independent rights expert issued an even starker warning about the junta’s election plans.

In its October 2025 report at the General Assembly, Special Rapporteur Tom Andrews said the international community should “unequivocally reject and denounce the charade” of the junta’s planned elections.

Mr. Andrews – who is appointed and mandated by the Human Rights Council and is not a UN staff member – said recent institutional changes by the military were only “cosmetic,” intended to reposition the junta for its electoral ploy while power remains concentrated in the hands of military leaders.

Key opposition figures – including Aung San Suu Kyi – remain imprisoned. at least 40 political parties, including the National League for Democracy (NLD), have been dissolved.

New election laws criminalize dissent, restrict digital expression and impose harsh penalties for “disrupting” elections, while large areas of the country remain outside military control, making nationwide voting impossible, the report said.

“Elections organized on the junta’s terms will only deepen divisions and fuel more violence,Mr Andrews warned, adding that while the people of Myanmar are expected to “reject the results as illegitimate”, the junta’s real target audience is the foreign governments whose recognition it seeks.

The office said people in the region migrate “not by choice, but by necessity,” driven by systemic deprivation of economic, social and cultural rights in their countries. Poverty, unemployment, weak public services and climate stress are eroding livelihoods and leaving millions with no alternative but to leave.

“Migration should be a choice and not a necessity born of desperation,» said Cynthia Veliko, head of OHCHR Regional Office for Southeast Asia.

“When people do not see a future at home – because their rights, such as decent work, adequate education and health care, are not accessible to them – they can be forced into dangerous migration and exploitation, often at great personal cost to themselves and their families. »

Migration trends

In 2024, more than 72 million international migrants will originate from the region, an increase of almost 13% compared to 2020. Nearly a quarter of all international migrants in the world now come from the region.

Young people and women are particularly affected by unemployment, low wages and gender discrimination, while climate change is increasingly disrupting agriculture and informal work.

Rising food and electricity prices and the depreciation of local currencies are placing a heavier burden on the poorest households, who already spend more than half of their income on food. Without reliable education, health care, and stable employment, families are increasingly turning to migration as a survival strategy.

The consequences are increasingly deadly. At least 2,514 migrants will die in Asia in 2024the highest toll ever recorded in the region and an increase of 59 percent from the previous year, according to UN migration data.

A feeling of “no future”

A central conclusion is a growing sense of “no future” in some parts of the region, where people no longer believe they can provide a dignified life at home.

“These are not just about individual aspirations. Education, healthcare, decent work and a healthy environment are human rights – duties that states must respect to ensure dignity and equality for all,” Ms Veliko said.

“Governments should build inclusive societies through sustained investment in public services and ensure fair and equitable access to resources. »

Hidden costs of remittances

OHCHR also highlighted the the hidden costs of remittances, which are vital to many families and national economies but often mask deeper social harms.

For poorer households, money sent from abroad is frequently used to meet basic needs such as food, utilities and emergency health care, leaving little room for education or long-term stability. Children are growing up separated from their parents, aging parents are losing care, and communities are losing working-age adults.

“Behind every migrant there is a story of sacrifice, resilience and hope,» Ms. Veliko said. “Too often, their journeys are reduced to economic decisions, obscuring the deeper struggle for dignity for themselves and the loved ones they leave behind. »

Recommendations

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has urged governments of countries of origin to prioritize public investments in health, education, job creation and environmental protectionwhile reducing inequalities through inclusive economic policies.

It also calls on destination countries to expand safe and regular migration routes and on international financial institutions to align debt and fiscal policies with States’ human rights obligations.

The office said people will always move, but with adequate rights and opportunities in their home countries, migration should become a real choice and not an act of last resort.

UN agencies say conditions are deteriorating further in North Darfur and neighboring Kordofan, while independent human rights experts warned on Thursday that the collapse of protections following the city’s fall has significantly increased the risks facing women and children.

Rapid Support Forces (RSF) took control of El Fasher – the capital of Sudan’s North Darfur state – on October 26, after an 18-month siege that left residents without food, medicine and other essential supplies. The town was the last major government stronghold in the Darfur region.

According to to the United Nations World Food Program (PAM), families who fled the fighting are now scattered across five sites surrounding El Fasher, notably Tawila, while others reached more distant areas like Dabbah in the Northern State and even the national capital, Khartoum.

Currently, 1,485 tonnes of food and nutrition products – enough to feed around 130,000 people – are on their way to Tawila via the Dabbah crossing, adding to ongoing assistance to people displaced earlier this year.

Resumption of fighting in Kordofan

In the meantime, resumption of fighting in the Kordofan region leads to new large-scale displacements.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that more than 1,800 people were displaced on Tuesday alone in South Kordofan, while in North Kordofan, nearly 40,000 people were uprooted between October 25 and November 18.

War in Sudan broke out in April 2023 following a power struggle between the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF). It quickly degenerated into one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, marked by faminemass displacement and widespread atrocities.

Trafficking issues

In this context, independent human rights experts alarm expressed Thursday, following reports of trafficking of women and girls for the purposes of sexual exploitation and slavery, as well as the recruitment of children as fighters, particularly since the RSF takeover of El Fasher.

“We are deeply concerned by alarming reports of human trafficking since the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) took control of El Fasher and its surrounding areas,” the experts said.

“Women and girls have been kidnapped in areas controlled by RSF, and unaccompanied and separated women and children are at high risk of sexual violence and sexual exploitation.»

Since the start of the siege of El Fasher in May 2024, more than 470,000 people have been repeatedly displaced from the camps, including Shagra, Zamzam and Abu Shouk. In Sudan, nearly 12 million people – around half of whom are children – are now forcibly displaced or have fled to neighboring countries, and sexual violence has been reported in conflict zones across the country.

The experts – mandated and designated by the organization based in Geneva Human Rights Council and are not UN personnel – quoted multiple incidents of rape and sexual abuse near RSF checkpoints and at sites housing displaced people, including the reported gang rape of 25 women near El Fasher University.

They urged all parties to immediately end violations against civilians and called on Member States to take urgent action following the recent special session of the Human Rights Council on the situation in and around El Fasher.

UN envoy to push for dialogue

Meanwhile, the UN Secretary-General Personal envoy for SudanRamtane Lamamra, is preparing to travel to Port Sudan and Addis Ababa next week to push for renewed political dialogue. It should focus on the urgent need for protection of civilians and unhindered humanitarian access in Darfur and Kordofan.

The shooting occurred Thursday in Jenin and was apparently filmed by a television channel, OHCHR Spokesperson Jérémy Laurence said journalists in Geneva.

He said an internal investigation had been announced following the incident, but that statements made by a senior Israeli official sought to absolve the security forces of any responsibility, “raising serious concerns about the credibility of any future study or investigation carried out by an entity that is not completely independent of the government.”

Increase in murders

Mr. Laurence noted that the killings of Palestinians by Israeli security forces and settlers in the occupied West Bank have increased without anyone being held to account.

OHCHR has verified that Israeli forces and settlers have killed 1,030 Palestinians there, including 233 children, since October 7, 2023.

“Impunity for the illegal use of force by Israeli security forces and the ever-increasing violence by Israeli settlers must end,” he said.

Additionally, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk called for independent, prompt and effective investigations and for those responsible to be held fully accountable for their actions.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres is “deeply concerned by the events that are unfolding,” its spokesperson said in a statement. statement late Thursday.

“It strongly condemns the coup d’état perpetrated by military elements and any attempt to violate the constitutional order.”

He emphasized that ignoring “the will of the people who voted peacefully during the general elections of November 23 constitutes an unacceptable violation of democratic principles.”

Restoring constitutional order

The Secretary-General called for “immediate and unconditional restoration of constitutional order“, as well as the release of all detained officials, including electoral authorities, opposition leaders and other political actors.

He urged all stakeholders to exercise restraint, respect the rule of law and resolve disputes through “peaceful and inclusive dialogue and legal channels.”

According to media reports, soldiers overthrew civilian leaders in a quick takeover before official election results could be announced and installed Maj. Gen. Horta Inta-a as transitional president.

The deposed president, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, later arrived in Senegal, the reports added.

The coup marks the latest military takeover in West and Central Africa, underscoring ongoing regional instability.

Regional reactions

The Secretary-General also reaffirmed the full support of the United Nations for the efforts of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union and the West African Elders Forum to safeguard democracy, promote stability and help Guinea-Bissau peacefully conclude the electoral process and quickly return to the democratic path.

The African Union also issued a strong condemnation, with Commission Chairman Mahmoud Ali Youssouf reiterating the AU’s “zero tolerance” for unconstitutional changes of government. He called for the immediate and unconditional release of all detained officials and stressed that only the National Electoral Commission had the legal authority to proclaim election results.

ECOWAS also condemned the military takeover and announced on Thursday that it had suspended Guinea-Bissau from all its decision-making bodies following an emergency summit of regional leaders.