World News In Brief: Iran sanctions, Yemen floods appeal, new SDG advocates

World News In Brief: Iran sanctions, Yemen floods appeal, new SDG advocates

“I can tell you that the Secretary-General is aware that today, the Security Council received this joint letter from the three countries,” UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told journalists. The three European nations were signatories to the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), an agreement that granted Iran sanctions relief in exchange for strict limits […]

‘The people of Haiti are in a perfect storm of suffering,’ warns UN chief

‘The people of Haiti are in a perfect storm of suffering,’ warns UN chief

Six million people are in need of humanitarian assistance, while 1.3 million people – half of them children – having been forced to flee their homes, he added. ‘Shamefully overlooked’ Haiti now ranks among the five hunger hotspots worldwide that are of “highest concern,” said the UN chief. Yet it remains the world’s least funded […]

Sudan: A staggering 30 million are in need, as war grinds on

Sudan: A staggering 30 million are in need, as war grinds on

Edem Wosornu, Director of Operations and Advocacy for the humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, briefed journalists on her recent visit to Sudan and neighbouring Chad – a critical entry point for aid and a haven for some 850,000 people who have fled fighting between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia.  The war […]

SECURITY COUNCIL LIVE: Haiti ‘shamefully overlooked’, warns Guterres

SECURITY COUNCIL LIVE: Haiti ‘shamefully overlooked’, warns Guterres

Haitians are enduring a “perfect storm of suffering” the UN Secretary-General António Guterres told the Security Council on Thursday as gang violence continues to paralyse daily life across the island. Around 1.3 million people – half of them children – have fled their homes and six million are relying on humanitarian assistance. Follow our live Meetings Coverage as […]

Israel’s plan to take over Gaza City marks ‘new and dangerous phase’: Guterres

Israel’s plan to take over Gaza City marks ‘new and dangerous phase’: Guterres

“Israel’s initial steps to militarily take over Gaza City signals a new and dangerous phase,” he told journalists in New York. “Expanded military operations in Gaza City will have devastating consequences. Hundreds of thousands of civilians – already exhausted and traumatized – would be forced to flee yet again, plunging families into even deeper peril. This […]

Ukraine: Toddler among four children killed in Russia’s attacks on Kyiv

Ukraine: Toddler among four children killed in Russia’s attacks on Kyiv

The youngest victim of the bombing raid was two-and-a-half years old, according to the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, which released video footage showing smoke billowing from a Kyiv apartment block with a massive hole where its roof had been. Leading condemnation of the attacks, the UN Secretary-General said that targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure violated […]

Latin America and Caribbean: Millions more children could face poverty due to climate change

Latin America and Caribbean: Millions more children could face poverty due to climate change

Even worse, the number could triple if countries do not meet their commitments to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and to ensure that climate financing prioritises social and climate resilience services for children. The finding comes in a report by the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the UN Children’s […]

Iraq unveils historic migration plan to boost development and stability

Iraq unveils historic migration plan to boost development and stability

Unveiled on Wednesday, it creates new opportunities for work, education and family reunification, while strengthening migration governance and placing migration at the heart of stability and economic development. It is being led by Iraq’s ministry for migration and the displaced, with the support of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the Government of the […]

UN calls for decisive steps to end conflict as Gaza and West Bank crises deepen

UN calls for decisive steps to end conflict as Gaza and West Bank crises deepen

“Today the world looks on in horror as the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory continues to deteriorate to levels not seen in recent history,” said Ramiz Alakbarov, UN Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, speaking from Jerusalem. He began by focusing on Gaza, which is “sinking deeper into disaster, marked by […]

Pakistan floods leave villages cut off as monsoon devastation continues

Pakistan floods leave villages cut off as monsoon devastation continues

Aid agencies are continuing to work tirelessly to reach the hardest-hit areas. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said nearly 800 people have died since late June – almost three times the toll during the same period last year. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has been hardest hit, where flash floods and landslides swept away homes and […]

UN peacekeeping mandate in Lebanon faces scrutiny ahead of Security Council vote

UN peacekeeping mandate in Lebanon faces scrutiny ahead of Security Council vote

As members of the UN Security Council negotiate the renewal of the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) ahead of a 31 August deadline, the mission’s future role and capacity are under intense debate. UNIFIL has long been a stabilising presence in southern Lebanon, working alongside the Lebanese armed forces, mediating between parties, and supporting […]

World News in Brief: More deaths in Ukraine, lengthy detentions in Egypt, AI governance, US postal tariffs

World News in Brief: More deaths in Ukraine, lengthy detentions in Egypt, AI governance, US postal tariffs

Since Friday, 11 civilians have been killed and more than 90 wounded, according to the authorities. Schools and energy infrastructure also were damaged. The Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine was the most affected, with the town of Kostiantynivka particularly hard hit.  Six other regions – Sumy, Kharkiv, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Dnipro and Zaporizhzhia – were also […]

One in four still lacks access to safe drinking water and sanitation

One in four still lacks access to safe drinking water and sanitation

The report from the World Health Organization (WHO) and children’s agency (UNICEF) issued as World Water Week gets underway, highlights persistent gaps in access, with vulnerable communities facing the greatest disparities. Some 2.1 billion people still lack access to safely managed drinking water, while 106 million worldwide are forced to rely on untreated surface sources. “Water, […]

Thailand grants work rights to long-term refugees from Myanmar, UN welcomes resolution

Thailand grants work rights to long-term refugees from Myanmar, UN welcomes resolution

Some 81,000 forcibly displaced people are hosted in temporary shelters along the Thai-Myanmar border where they have been living in the camps for decades. Nearly half the refugee population were born under canvas, where displaced families have largely depended on humanitarian assistance. Over a million Rohingya, a mostly-Muslim minority from Myanmar, have fled conflict and […]

Gaza: UN calls for probe following deadly strikes on Nasser Hospital

Gaza: UN calls for probe following deadly strikes on Nasser Hospital

At least 20 people were killed, including four health workers and five journalists, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesus said in a tweet. Fifty other people were injured, including critically ill patients who were already receiving care. Healthcare under attack “While people in Gaza are being starved, their already limited access to healthcare is being further […]

Putting water management at the centre of the climate change fight

Putting water management at the centre of the climate change fight

Currently underway in Stockholm from 24 to 28 August, the 35th World Water Week meeting highlights the crucial link between water and global warming, under the theme, Water For Climate Action. At the core of sustainable development and basic human survival, safe drinking water is critical for socio-economic development, energy and food production – and […]

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