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world news Diahuebs 8 september 2022

China earthquake deaths rise to 74 as lockdown anger grows

(AP) — The death toll in rently under varying levels of
this week's earthquake lockdown. The government
in western China has is also discouraging domes-
jumped to 74 with anoth- tic travel during the Mid-
er 26 people still missing, Autumn Festival on Saturday
the government reported and the weeklong National
Wednesday, as frustration Holiday at the start of Octo-
rose with uncompromis- ber.
ing COVID-19 lockdown
measures that prevented Outbreaks have been report-
residents from leaving ed in 103 cities, the highest
their buildings after the since the early days of the
shaking. pandemic in early 2020.

The 6.8 magnitude quake Monday's quake was centered
that struct just after noon in a mountainous area of
Monday in Sichuan province Luding county, which sits on
caused extensive damage to the edge of the Tibetan Pla-
homes in the Ganze Tibetan teau roughly 200 kilometers
Autonomous Region and (125 miles) from Chengdu,
shook buildings in the pro- where tectonic plates grind
vincial capital of Chengdu, up against each other.
whose 21 million citizens
are under a strict COVID-19 China's deadliest earthquake
lockdown. in recent years was a 7.9 mag-
er restrictions, even while the chanting "lift the lockdown, sentence people to months or nitude quake in 2008 that
Following the quake, police rest of the world has largely refuse to be tested" at police. years in prison on loosely de- killed nearly 90,000 people in
and health workers refused reopened. fined charges such as "pick- Sichuan. The temblor dev-
to allow anxious residents The restrictions have ing quarrels and provoking astated towns, schools and
of apartment buildings out, Footage circulating online prompted protests online trouble." rural communities outside
adding to anger over the gov- showed residents of the cen- and in person, rare in Chi- Chengdu, leading to a years-
ernment's strict "zero-COV- tral city of Wuhan, where na's tightly controlled soci- In all, 65 million Chinese long effort to rebuild with
ID policy" mandating lock- the pandemic is believed to ety where the all-powerful in 33 cities, including seven more resistant materials.
downs, quarantines and oth- have originated in late 2019, Communist Party can easily provincial capitals, are cur-

UN: At least $1 billion needed to avert famine in Somalia

(AP) — The U.N. hu- The Famine Early Warning according to a recent analysis Griffiths said meteorologists via telephones.
manitarian chief predict- Systems Network, created by the Integrated Food Secu- have predicted the likelihood
ed Tuesday that at least by USAID, said in a report rity Phase Classification or of a fifth failed rainy season But many thousands are
$1 billion will be needed Monday that famine is pro- IPC, used by the network to from October to December, not getting help and hungry
urgently to avert famine jected to emerge later this describe the severity of food and a sixth failed rainy season families in Somalia have been
in Somalia in the com- year in three areas in Soma- insecurity. from January to March next staggering for days or weeks
ing months and early next lia's southeastern Bay region, year is also likely. through parched terrain in
year when two more dry including Baidoa without ur- The Horn of Africa region search of assistance.
seasons are expected to gent humanitarian aid. has seen four straight failed He said the U.N. World
compound the historic rainy seasons for the first Food Program has recently Griffiths said a big challenge
drought that has hit the Up to 7.1 million people time in over half a century, been providing aid for up to is to get aid to people before
Horn of Africa nation. across Somalia need urgent endangering an estimated 20 5.3 million Somalis, which they move from their homes,
assistance to treat and pre- million people in one of the is "a lot, but it's going to get to help avoid massive dis-
Martin Griffiths said in a vent acute malnutrition and world's most impoverished worse if famine comes." He placement.
video briefing from Somalia's reduce the number of ongo- and turbulent regions. said 98% of the aid is given
capital Mogadishu that a new ing hunger-related deaths, through cash distributions Many Somalis raise livestock,
report from an authoritative which is key to their surviv-
panel of independent experts al, but he said three million
says there will be a famine animals have died or been
in Somalia between October slaughtered because of the
and December "if we don't lack of rain.
manage to stave it off and
avoid it as had been the case He said the international
in 2016 and 2017." community needs to help
Somalis find an alternative
The undersecretary-general way of life and making a liv-
for humanitarian affairs told ing, which will require devel-
U.N. correspondents that opment funding and funding
more than $1 billion in new to mitigate the impact of cli-
funds is needed in addition to mate change.
the U.N. appeal of about $1.4
billion. That appeal has been Griffiths, a British diplomat,
"very well-funded," he said, said the war in Ukraine has
thanks to the U.S. Agency had an impact on humanitar-
for International Develop- ian aid, with U.N. humani-
ment, which announced a tarian appeals around the
$476 million donation of hu- world receiving about 30% of
manitarian and development the money needed on aver-
aid in July. age.