The team went to Sweida City, as well as two districts – Shahba and Salkhad – where they met with local community representatives and partners, in addition to visiting displacement sites and reception centres.

Members also conducted assessments in the three districts of the governorate, where hundreds of people have been killed, and some 175,000 people displaced, in recent sectarian violence amid Syria’s ongoing political transition since the fall of the Assad regime last December.

A senior UN official told the Security Council earlier this week that a fragile ceasefire is “largely holding”.

More aid delivered

OCHA said a fifth humanitarian aid convoy organized by the Syrian Arab Red Crescent also arrived in Sweida on Thursday. It was the largest so far, with 40 trucks.

The convoy, which included UN assistance, delivered medical supplies, flour, fuel, canned goods, hygiene kits and shelter materials, among other assistance.

On Wednesday, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent also delivered four tankers carrying more than 120,000 litres of fuel.

Haiti: Armed groups expand activities

Armed groups in Haiti are expanding their presence and activities in the Artibonite region which has sparked waves of displacement, according to OCHA.

Last Monday, violence linked to armed groups flared in the town of Liancourt, where a vehicle and several homes were set on fire. This followed a week of violent clashes.

As of 19 July, nearly 15,000 people have been displaced across four communes in Artibonite. They are staying with host families, many of whom were already finding it hard to meet basic needs.

OCHA said response efforts are underway, led by local humanitarian partners. They have distributed hygiene kits to more than 500 displaced households and host communities, as well as hundreds of hot meals.

2017 lightning flash in US Great Plains sets new world record

A lightning flash in a notorious storm hotspot in the United States nearly a decade ago has been certified as the longest on record, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) announced on Thursday.

The megaflash – an incredible 829 kilometres long (515 miles) – occurred during a major storm in the Great Plains in October 2017 and was some 61 kilometres greater than the previous record, also set in the same region.

It extended from eastern Texas to near Kansas City, equivalent to the distance between Paris and Venice in Europe: a journey that would take roughly eight to nine hours by car, or at least 90 minutes by plane.

Value of early warning systems

The flash was not identified in the original 2017 analysis of the storm but was discovered through re-examination.

WMO’s Committee on Weather and Climate Extremes recognized the new record with the help of the latest satellite technologies and the findings were published in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society.

“Lightning is a source of wonder but also a major hazard that claims many lives around the world every year and is therefore one of the priorities for the international Early Warnings for All initiative,” said WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo.

Launched in 2022, the initiative aims to ensure that everyone on the planet is protected from hazardous weather, water, or climate events through early warning systems by the end of 2027.