Three dispatches from a world under strain.

Europe is warming twice as fast as the global average, according to a joint report by the UN World Meteorological Organisation and the Copernicus Climate Change Service. In 2025, at least 95% of Europe recorded above-average annual temperatures. A three-week heatwave struck sub-Arctic Scandinavia, with temperatures near and within the Arctic Circle exceeding 30°C. Annual sea surface temperatures reached record highs, with 86% of the region experiencing severe marine heatwaves. Wildfires burned more than one million hectares, the largest area ever recorded, while river flows were below average for 11 months of the year.

In Lebanon, one in four people now faces acute hunger. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification platform warns that approximately 1.2 million people could experience high levels of acute food insecurity between now and August 2026, a substantial increase from the 874,000 affected between late 2025 and March 2026. Among those facing crisis conditions are 725,000 Lebanese residents, over 460,000 Syrian and Palestinian refugees, and 50,000 people who have arrived from Syria since December 2024. The deterioration has been driven by renewed hostilities and widespread displacement since early March.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, UN peacekeepers operating under MONUSCO have been rapidly deployed to Djugu, in Ituri province, following an attack on Congolese forces and civilians. They rescued 191 civilians, including 59 women and 126 children. In the North Kivu province, more than 170,000 people across the Masisi Health Zone have been displaced since early February, with several villages entirely emptied.