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 […]

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 […]

World News in Brief: Gaza aid crisis latest, deadly floods in India and Pakistan, funding cuts exacerbate Somalia drought

World News in Brief: Gaza aid crisis latest, deadly floods in India and Pakistan, funding cuts exacerbate Somalia drought

In an alert from the World Food Programme (WFP), the agency said that half a million people “are on the brink of famine”, a claim backed up by multiple humanitarian agencies. The latest worrying data is showing widespread acute malnutrition. A ceasefire is the only way to scale up aid deliveries, the UN agency insisted. It explained […]

World News in Brief: Cholera strikes Sudan and beyond, humanitarian needs grown for returning Afghans, rising insecurity in DR Congo

World News in Brief: Cholera strikes Sudan and beyond, humanitarian needs grown for returning Afghans, rising insecurity in DR Congo

So far this year, cholera has killed more than 4,300 people across 31 countries. These figures are underestimates and there is particular concern for those impacted by war in Sudan, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan and Yemen.   In Sudan, the disease has already claimed over 1,000 lives since 1 January. It […]

World News in Brief: Shipwreck off Italy kills at least 27, anniversary of Taliban takeover, Peru amnesty law

World News in Brief: Shipwreck off Italy kills at least 27, anniversary of Taliban takeover, Peru amnesty law

UNHCR is supporting at least 60 survivors who have been brought ashore, but the Italian coast guard warned more bodies could still be recovered.   According to local news reports, the passengers were travelling from Libya in the hopes of reaching Italy. Migrants and refugees heading to Italy from the African coast often use leaky […]

World News in Brief: Casualties in Ukraine, Burkina Faso aid helicopter blast, Uganda urged to release opposition leaders

World News in Brief: Casualties in Ukraine, Burkina Faso aid helicopter blast, Uganda urged to release opposition leaders

The monthly total also marked a three-year high, topping June’s figure, with HRMMU verifying civilian deaths and injuries in 18 of Ukraine’s 24 regions.   “For the second month in a row, the number of civilian casualties in Ukraine hits a new three-year high,” said Danielle Bell, Head of HRMMU. “Only the first three months […]

World News in Brief: Sudan’s agony continues, Colombian presidential candidate dies, the world celebrates the steelpan

World News in Brief: Sudan’s agony continues, Colombian presidential candidate dies, the world celebrates the steelpan

The Director of Operations and Advocacy at the UN aid coordination office (OCHA), Edem Wosornu, warned on Monday that over 60 people reportedly died from malnutrition during a single week in the besieged government-controlled city of El Fasher in North Darfur State. Most of the deaths are those in vulnerable groups, such as women and […]

World News in Brief: Uganda’s refugee funding crisis, academic freedom tested in Serbia, rural resilience in Afghanistan

World News in Brief: Uganda’s refugee funding crisis, academic freedom tested in Serbia, rural resilience in Afghanistan

Uganda has a progressive refugee policy which enables refugees to work and access public services. This coupled with its geographic proximity to crises has made it the continent’s largest refugee-hosting country. “Emergency funding runs out in September. More children will die of malnutrition, more girls will fall victim to sexual violence, and families will be […]

World News in Brief: Hunger in the English- and Dutch-speaking Caribbean, climate and displacement crisis in Somalia, World Breastfeeding Week

World News in Brief: Hunger in the English- and Dutch-speaking Caribbean, climate and displacement crisis in Somalia, World Breastfeeding Week

Across the region, nations face food-related challenges notably due to geographical remoteness, lack of local available resources and exposure to climate change.  “The Caribbean is particularly vulnerable to natural hazards and supply chain disruptions, which can cause increases in food prices,” said, Brian Bogart. head of WFP for the region. “It’s deeply concerning that many people […]

World News in Brief: First UN mission to Syria’s Sweida, fresh displacement in Haiti, new lightning record

World News in Brief: First UN mission to Syria’s Sweida, fresh displacement in Haiti, new lightning record

The team went to Sweida City, as well as two districts – Shahba and Salkhad – where they met with local community representatives and partners, in addition to visiting displacement sites and reception centres.  Members also conducted assessments in the three districts of the governorate, where hundreds of people have been killed, and some 175,000 […]

World News in Brief: Remembering Dr. David Nabarro, deadly shipwreck off Libya, verdict in peacekeeper’s killing

World News in Brief: Remembering Dr. David Nabarro, deadly shipwreck off Libya, verdict in peacekeeper’s killing

The British physician and champion for global public health died this past weekend at the age of 75.  He was the World Health Organization’s (WHO) special envoy dealing with the COVID-19 crisis. Legacy of service “The Secretary-General pays tribute to Dr. Nabarro’s extraordinary legacy of service and reaffirms his commitment to advancing the principles he […]

World News in Brief: Thailand-Cambodia border hostilities, humanitarian efforts in Syria and attacks across Ukraine

World News in Brief: Thailand-Cambodia border hostilities, humanitarian efforts in Syria and attacks across Ukraine

The dispute dates to 1953 when France first mapped the border, but tensions resurfaced in May after the death of a Cambodian soldier in a border skirmish. Secretary-General António Guterres is “following with concern” reports of the clashes, his Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq told journalists in New York. “The Secretary-General urges both sides to exercise […]

World News in Brief: Houthi-Israel tensions, Sudan cholera cases rise, deadly attacks in Ukraine

World News in Brief: Houthi-Israel tensions, Sudan cholera cases rise, deadly attacks in Ukraine

These strikes occurred while the UN Mission to support the Hudaydah Agreement – established in 2018 to support the ceasefire between the Government of Yemen and the Houthis – was patrolling at locations to the northern parts of the Port.  The Secretary-General also expressed deep concern about the continuing missile and drone strikes conducted by […]

World News in Brief: Violence in Haiti, rising insecurity in DR Congo, expert panel on nuclear war

World News in Brief: Violence in Haiti, rising insecurity in DR Congo, expert panel on nuclear war

Displaced Haitians are dispersed among the 250 active displacement sites across the country, most of which are informal. Just over a fifth of these sites are managed by humanitarian organizations, meaning that many are living in precarious conditions.   In June alone, more than 200 alerts were reported across displacement sites, over 80 per cent of […]