Delegations met in Istanbul for the first direct negotiations in three years, including on a potential ceasefire and large-scale prisoner exchange. The UN acknowledged the important role of Türkiye and the United States in facilitating the talks, said Stephanie Tremblay, a spokesperson for the global body in New York. “We hope this process will lead […]
“I believe in nothing right now. Our press vests are turning us into targets and it’s becoming a death sentence for us,” Christina Assi told UN News recently. On 13 October 2023, Ms. Assi – who was working as a photojournalist for Agence France Presse (AFP) – lost her right leg after two Israeli air […]
Volker Türk on Friday called the decree “draconian” and urged Mali’s Transitional President, General Assimi Goïta, to reverse the decree issued earlier this week. Signed on 13 May, the decree dissolves all political parties and “organizations of a political nature” nationwide. It was preceded by the repeal of legislation that had safeguarded political participation. “Any […]
OHCHR has urged Israel to stop all extrajudicial executions and other unlawful use of force and ensure all those responsible are brought to justice. Over the last two weeks, Israeli security forces killed two Palestinian men in planned summary executions, while seven others were killed in conditions that raise concerns over the use of unnecessary […]
It is the first time since 2017 that a famine has been declared anywhere on Earth. In the 20 months since the war between rival militaries erupted, 13 million Sudanese have been forcibly displaced and over 30.4 million are in desperate need of humanitarian assistance, according to UN estimates. The inhabitants of the Zamzam camp, like […]
Updating journalists in Geneva, Dr. Margaret Harris described another night of terror in the war-torn enclave. She said that some of those injured in the attacks had sought help from the Indonesian hospital in northern Gaza, even though it was now “just a shell” after 19 months of war. “We’ve done our best to […]
Each called for justice under international law and for perpetrators to be held accountable. Sung-Eui Lee, daughter of a South Korean man abducted by North Korean forces during the Korean War, and Ruby Chen, father of an Israeli soldier taken by Hamas during the 7 October 2023 attacks on Israel, spoke in the Security Council. […]
In addition to ongoing bombardment, Israel issued another three displacement orders over the past two days, covering seven per cent of the total area of the territory. Overall, some 71 per cent of the Gaza Strip is under displacement orders or in Israeli-militarized zones, where the Israeli authorities require humanitarian teams to coordinate their movements. […]
Tariff-driven price pressures are adding to inflation risks, leaving trade-dependent economies particularly vulnerable. Higher tariffs and shifting trade policies are threatening to disrupt global supply chains, raise production costs, and delay key investment decisions – all of this weakening the prospects for global growth. General slowdown The economic slowdown is widespread, affecting both developed and […]
Annalena Baerbock presented her priorities during an informal dialogue with Member States held on Thursday at Headquarters in New York. If chosen, she will only be the fifth woman to lead the UN’s main policy-making organ and most representative body, comprising all 193 Member States who elect a new president annually, rotating among regional groups. […]
Even more impressively, the number of Egyptian women with an account increased by 260 per cent, though gender gaps do remain. But how you widen financial inclusion overall is a question the Arab region is currently grappling with. A new report from the UN Economic and Social Commission in Western Asia (UNESCWA) published on Thursday […]
Clashes broke out earlier in the week across several districts of the Libyan capital, reportedly triggered by the killing of a prominent militia leader. The fighting, which involved heavy weaponry in densely populated areas, forced hundreds of families to flee and placed severe strain on local hospitals. UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged all parties to […]
“Behind every data point is a person – a child who didn’t reach their fifth birthday, a mother lost in childbirth, a life cut short by a preventable disease,” said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, as the organization’s latest statistics report revealed the pandemic’s deeper health impacts. Warning that overall progress is under threat today, […]
Every day, tens of thousands of massive ships criss-cross the world’s oceans, transporting grain, clothing, electronics, cars, and countless other products. Nearly 90 per cent of global cargo is moved this way. But this vital industry comes with an added cost: international shipping is responsible for three per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, which […]
Comparing data from 2018 and 2022, UNICEF found that the pandemic worsened existing trends: children are underperforming in school, more likely to be overweight or obese, and generally less satisfied with their lives. This data sets a “worrying benchmark for children’s wellbeing,” said Bo Viktur Nylund, Director of UNICEF’s research office, Innocenti. UNICEF ranked the […]
“There is no place for lethal autonomous weapon systems in our world,” Mr. Guterres said on Monday, during an informal UN meeting in New York focused on the use and impact of such weapons. “Machines that have the power and discretion to take human lives without human control should be prohibited by international law.” The […]
Many women came to the clinic who had walked multiple hours to receive maternal care – some of them with their newborns and some heavily pregnant. And then there were the health workers themselves, committed to serving those in need in hard-to-reach areas of the impoverished Taliban-controlled nation. ‘Off the radar’ These were some of […]
OCHA reported that hostilities intensified overnight, with an attack by Israeli forces on the European Gaza Hospital in Khan Younis which killed and injured several people. A team from the World Health Organization (WHO) was also inside the hospital at the time. The hospital premises were hit again on Wednesday morning, reportedly leading to additional […]
UN Secretary-General António Guterres meanwhile warned that peace operations are under growing strain and must adapt to meet today’s rising threats. The two-day conference on peacekeeping, hosted by the Government of Germany, brought together over 1,000 participants – including defence and foreign ministers – to reaffirm commitment to the UN’s flagship tool for maintaining peace […]
Ambassadors were briefed by the UN Special Envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, who commended Oman for its efforts to achieve the agreement which came into effect on 6 May. He said the cessation of hostilities represented an important and necessary de-escalation in the Red Sea following the resumption of deadly US airstrikes on Houthi-controlled areas […]