The African Union and West African ECOWAS bloc condemned the takeover, and the UN has paused humanitarian operations. The country hosts US drone bases and became the main hub for French anti-jihadist troops booted out of Burkina Faso and Mali. With no fiscal recovery in sight, there are concerns that the humanitarian effects of the current crisis will only intensify. ACAPS, the Geneva-based analysis outfit, has a new briefing that tries to spot where El Niño’s impacts might be most severe. Big aid groups rely on stark imagery to publicise their work and fundraise; journalists use them to tell stories from crises.