World News in Brief: violence spurs displacement in Syria, Israeli forces cross the Blue Line in Lebanon, mall fire kills dozens in Iraq

World News in Brief: violence spurs displacement in Syria, Israeli forces cross the Blue Line in Lebanon, mall fire kills dozens in Iraq

As of Thursday, nearly 2,000 families have been displaced from violence-affected areas in Sweida governate and are currently sheltering in a dozen collective sites. Many are unable to return home due to damage, looting or destruction of their homes. The health systems in Sweida and neighbouring Dar’a governorate remain under critical strain, operating without power […]

World News in Brief: Haiti funding cuts bite, civilian suffering intensifies in Myanmar, Belarus deaths in custody alert

World News in Brief: Haiti funding cuts bite, civilian suffering intensifies in Myanmar, Belarus deaths in custody alert

Ongoing violence is compounding the country’s food crisis, disrupting local food production in critical areas such as the commune of Kenscoff and the Artibonite department, often considered the breadbaskets of Haiti. While the UN and its partners are responding “wherever and whenever possible,” UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said this Wednesday that humanitarians have only been […]

World News in Brief: Inter-ethnic violence in Syria, Indigenous Peoples’ rights, global information security

World News in Brief: Inter-ethnic violence in Syria, Indigenous Peoples’ rights, global information security

The violence erupted two days after a Druze merchant was abducted on the highway to Damascus. The incident marks the latest episode of sectarian bloodshed in Syria, where fears among minority groups have surged since Islamist rebels toppled former dictator Bashar al-Assad in December and installed a new caretaker Government, which is gaining increasing international […]

World News in Brief: Global investment plunges, hurricane season in Haiti, rising cholera and hunger in South Sudan

World News in Brief: Global investment plunges, hurricane season in Haiti, rising cholera and hunger in South Sudan

Their latest data shows that the outlook for international investment this year “is negative”, a sharp course correction from January, when “modest” growth seemed possible. The reasons for this range from trade tensions and tariffs whose main effect has been a “dramatic increase in investor uncertainty”, said UNCTAD Secretary-General Rebeca Grynspan. She said that investment […]

World News in Brief: ‘Indifference and impunity’ in Sudan, ICC judges speak out against sanctions, respiratory diseases overlooked in Europe

World News in Brief: ‘Indifference and impunity’ in Sudan, ICC judges speak out against sanctions, respiratory diseases overlooked in Europe

Tom Fletcher noted that over 30 million people require humanitarian assistance. Moreover, with famine declared in multiple places and over 14.6 million people displaced, Sudan represents the largest humanitarian crisis in the world. “Again and again, the international community has said that we will protect the people of Sudan. The people of Sudan should ask […]

World News in Brief: Global growth slows, deadly Ukraine attacks, Haiti hurricane hunger risk, legal migration for refugees

World News in Brief: Global growth slows, deadly Ukraine attacks, Haiti hurricane hunger risk, legal migration for refugees

Growth is projected to weaken to 2.3 per cent, or nearly half a percentage point lower than expected at the start of the year, according to the Global Economic Prospects report. “The global outlook is predicated on tariff rates close to those of late May prevailing,” it said. “Accordingly, pauses to previously announced tariff hikes […]

World News in Brief: Aid for Syria, children under attack in Mozambique, rights-based climate action

World News in Brief: Aid for Syria, children under attack in Mozambique, rights-based climate action

Despite limited resources, the UN and partners are reaching some 2.5 million people each month across the country. In May alone, more than one million people received assistance, according to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Cross-border aid has significantly increased this year. Since January, 1,185 humanitarian trucks have crossed from Türkiye […]

World News in Brief: Guterres condemns antisemitic attacks, ILO to debate pros and cons of working online, Sudan, Ukraine updates

World News in Brief: Guterres condemns antisemitic attacks, ILO to debate pros and cons of working online, Sudan, Ukraine updates

A man was arrested in Boulder after reportedly using a flamethrower and Molotov cocktails to set people on fire at an event in support of Israeli hostages in Gaza on Sunday. The suspect reportedly yelled “Free Palestine” during the attack and now faces federal hate crime charges along with multiple felonies. The attack injured at […]

World News in Brief: Education suffers amid DR Congo violence, WHO greenlights RSV vaccines, more hurricanes ahead for Haiti

World News in Brief: Education suffers amid DR Congo violence, WHO greenlights RSV vaccines, more hurricanes ahead for Haiti

According to UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, more than 290 schools have been damaged or destroyed in Ituri this year alone, bringing the total number of out-of-school children in the province to over 1.3 million. Protection crisis Between January and April 2025, a surge in violence displaced more than 100,000 people – half of them children. […]

World News in Brief: UK cedes sovereignty over Chagos Islands, suffering in Sudan deepens, UN releases new emergency relief funds

World News in Brief: UK cedes sovereignty over Chagos Islands, suffering in Sudan deepens, UN releases new emergency relief funds

Before granting Mauritius independence in 1968, Britain unlawfully separated the Chagos archipelago to create the British Indian Ocean Territory. In doing so, it expelled 1,500–2,000 islanders to lease Diego Garcia, the largest island, to the United States for joint military use. Under the agreement, the UK will lease the island of Diego Garcia for the […]

World News in Brief: Terror-crime link alarm, child detention in Australia, judiciary in Maldives, Protection of Civilians Week

World News in Brief: Terror-crime link alarm, child detention in Australia, judiciary in Maldives, Protection of Civilians Week

In recent years, criminal and terrorist groups have seized “every” opportunity afforded by growing instability to “entrench, expand, and escalate,” said Ghada Waly, in her opening remarks to the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, in Vienna. Challenges such as human and drug trafficking, smuggling of cultural and commercial goods, and environmental crimes are […]

World News in Brief: Russia-Ukraine talks, Sudan exodus worsens, Colombia displacement rises

World News in Brief: Russia-Ukraine talks, Sudan exodus worsens, Colombia displacement rises

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 […]

World News in Brief: Sudan refugees, aid for Syrian returnees, MERS alert in Saudi Arabia, Venezuela urged to end secret detentions

World News in Brief: Sudan refugees, aid for Syrian returnees, MERS alert in Saudi Arabia, Venezuela urged to end secret detentions

The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, reported on Wednesday that most of the new arrivals are women and children. Many have come from Zamzam camp and the city of El Fasher, locations targeted by paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, who’ve been fighting forces of the military government for more than two years. In Chad, the high numbers […]

World News in Brief: Sudan aid update, child migrant deaths at sea, nursing shortages, invasive pest scourge

World News in Brief: Sudan aid update, child migrant deaths at sea, nursing shortages, invasive pest scourge

Port Sudan – the main entry point for humanitarian supplies and personnel into the country – came under attack for the ninth consecutive day. As the UN’s main humanitarian hub in Sudan, drone strikes on the coastal city have gravely impacted aid delivery. Nonetheless, UN Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) flights were able to resume on 8 […]

Guterres welcomes India-Pakistan ceasefire | UN News

Guterres welcomes India-Pakistan ceasefire | UN News

The UN chief’s statement, released on Saturday, came shortly after news broke of a decision by the two countries to de-escalate a situation that has caused widespread alarm in recent days. Tensions had been steadily raising, after a group of gunmen fired on tourists visiting Jammu and Kashmir on 22 April, killing at least 26 […]

World News in Brief: ‘Massive’ needs in Sudan, DR Congo aid shortfall, support for Congolese refugees and Angola cholera relief

World News in Brief: ‘Massive’ needs in Sudan, DR Congo aid shortfall, support for Congolese refugees and Angola cholera relief

The UN estimates that in the past few weeks, over 330,000 people have fled into Tawila after the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) launched violent attacks in the Zamzam and Abu Shouk displacement camps and in El Fasher, the regional capital.  Over 100,000 people also remain trapped in El Fasher.  ‘Massive’ humanitarian needs Since the beginning […]

World News in Brief: South Sudan urged to avoid slide to war, Türk calls on EU not to weaken landmark law, Ukraine and Mali updates

World News in Brief: South Sudan urged to avoid slide to war, Türk calls on EU not to weaken landmark law, Ukraine and Mali updates

The Quartet is calling on the country’s leaders to end hostilities and return to dialogue to fully implement the 2018 peace agreement known as the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS). South Sudan, the world’s youngest nation, gained independence in 2011 but soon descended into a […]

World News in Brief: Deadly attacks in South Sudan and Ukraine, World Court rejects Sudan case, lifesaving aid in Yemen

World News in Brief: Deadly attacks in South Sudan and Ukraine, World Court rejects Sudan case, lifesaving aid in Yemen

According to the UN relief coordination office (OCHA), the hospital in Old Fangak was struck early Saturday, killing seven civilians and injuring at least 20 more. The attack also destroyed vital supplies and forced the withdrawal of aid workers, leaving the town’s population without access to critical care. “People in these areas are already battling […]