DR Congo
At least 55 people have been killed in the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo after pounding rains triggered flooding and landslides. Footage and photographs shared on social media showed entire neighborhoods awash with muddy water and large sinkholes opening in roads. Located along the Congo river, Kinshasa, an Africa megacity of 15 million people, has become more vulnerable to flooding as it has rapidly expanded. Many shanty-style homes are built on flood-prone slopes. Police say they are still searching for survivors and they expect the death toll to rise.
More from AFP via France 24 here.
Brazil
Supporters of Brazil’s outgoing president, Jair Bolsonaro, have tried to storm the headquarters of the country’s federal police force. They blocked roads and set cars ablaze, police said, as they “attempted to invade” the building in an apparent attempt to free a pro-Bolsonaro Indigenous leader who had been arrested for “anti-democratic acts.” The far-right Bolsonaro lost last month’s presidential election to left-wing rival, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, but some of his supporters have refused to accept the result.
More from BBC here.
Somalia
More warnings today that parts of Somalia could fall into full-blown famine as the country continues to struggle through its worst drought for 40 years. More than eight million people are badly food insecure, a new report from the United Nations and other groups said, and famine is projected between April and June of next year in several regions. Formal famine declarations tend to release more funding for humanitarian responses but, by then, the worst of the damage is often done or too late to see off. “If the world only waits for famine to be declared (to help), that will be very disheartening,” Islamic Relief’s country director, Aliow Mohamed, said.
More from AP here.