Ukraine: UN aid convoy reaches frontlines in Dnipro

Ukraine: UN aid convoy reaches frontlines in Dnipro

UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told reporters that access to the town had been “extremely difficult due to the continued fighting.” Of the 10,000 people who lived there before the full-scale invasion in February 2022, only about 500 remain, “most of them older people and people with disabilities.” According to Ukrainian authorities, hostilities between Tuesday and […]

Ukraine war keeps nuclear safety on a knife-edge, UN watchdog warns

Ukraine war keeps nuclear safety on a knife-edge, UN watchdog warns

Russian forces have been carrying out strikes on critical infrastructure amid freezing winter temperatures as their full-scale invasion approaches the four-year mark next month.  IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi said the electrical grid was again the target of military activity this past weekend, leading to significant impacts to several regions and nuclear power plant operations.  Power lines down  The fighting caused […]

Ukraine: Civilians injured, miners killed, in separate Russian attacks

Ukraine: Civilians injured, miners killed, in separate Russian attacks

Matthias Schmale was “appalled” by the attacks in Dnipro, Kharkiv and Kyiv, noting that many more people in several regions – including Dnipro, Odesa and Vinnitsya – are facing power outages.  “Systematic attacks by the Russian Federation Armed Forces on critical infrastructure affect the daily lives of millions and cause life-threatening conditions for the most vulnerable, including older people and children,” he said in a […]

UN watchdog warns Ukraine war remains world’s biggest threat to nuclear safety

UN watchdog warns Ukraine war remains world’s biggest threat to nuclear safety

Addressing the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors, Director General Rafael Grossi said the agency remains focused on preventing a nuclear accident as fighting continues to endanger critical infrastructure. “The conflict in Ukraine is about to enter its fifth year,” Mr. Grossi said. “It continues to pose the world’s biggest threat to nuclear […]

‘Cycle of attacks must end’: Lead UN official in Ukraine

The attacks on some of Ukraine’s most important population centres, which reportedly involved almost 400 drones, also left thousands without electricity, heating and water. Temperatures in the country have dropped to -20° Celsius, and the attacks on energy infrastructure have left families in freezing conditions. Many older persons and people with disabilities are often stuck in their […]

Keeping people warm amid hostilities and harsh winter weather in Ukraine

Russian forces continue to attack Ukraine’s energy grid, leaving families without electricity and heating as temperatures plummet to -20° Celsius.  Since 2022, the Government has established so-called “Invincibility Points” – located in tents or public buildings such as schools and libraries – where people can go to escape the cold, charge electronic devices and receive basic support.   Additional initiatives have also been launched, including mobile heating points operated by the State Emergency Services and Ukraine Red Cross Society. Humanitarian partners have supported these […]

World News in Brief: Winter attacks in Ukraine, looming food aid cuts in Nigeria, drought in Kenya

They include attacks in Odesa region on Wednesday that killed a 17-year-old boy, according to UN child rights agency UNICEF which called for an “end to attacks on civilian areas and the infrastructure children rely on.”  The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that attacks on the southeastern city of Kryvyi Rih on Wednesday had recommenced on Thursday.  Aid deliveries  “Teams delivered shelter […]

World News in Brief: Pandemic Treaty Update, DR Congo Ebola Response, More Casualties in Ukraine

World News in Brief: Pandemic Treaty Update, DR Congo Ebola Response, More Casualties in Ukraine

Pandemic Treaty Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called the world’s first pandemic trety “a generational accomplishment”, while speaking at the start of a meeting of the Intergovernmental Working Group on the WHO Pandemic Agreement, taking place in Geneva through Friday. It comes four months after countries adopted the pact. Tedros said the next step “is to bring this […]

Ukraine Records Highest Toll From Cluster Munitions for Third Year Running

Ukraine Records Highest Toll From Cluster Munitions for Third Year Running

The latest Cluster Munitions Monitor reports that over 1,200 people have been killed or injured in Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. The actual toll is likely far higher, but it may take years to establish, said Loren Persi, team lead for the report. Drawing parallels with conflicts in Syria and Yemen, where […]

Ukraine: Guterres greatly concerned over reported Russian incursion into Polish airspace

Ukraine: Guterres greatly concerned over reported Russian incursion into Polish airspace

Speaking at the regular news briefing in New York, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said António Guterres is following the ensuing diplomatic fallout across the NATO military alliance “with great concern” the incident, which reportedly occurred amid a large-scale Russian drone and missile attack on Ukraine. “There is an urgent need for a full, immediate and […]

Ukraine: Russian strike on village kills over 20, mostly pensioners

Ukraine: Russian strike on village kills over 20, mostly pensioners

The attack on Yarova injured nearly 20 others. Many elderly civilians have decided to stay at home in frontline communities, despite the escalating danger from Russia’s continuing offensive, said Assistant Secretary-General Matthias Schmale, the UN’s top humanitarian official in the country. “This lasting violence continues to tear lives apart. In recent days, the Donetsk region has […]

World News in Brief: UN chief condemns Russian attacks on Ukraine, Gaza crisis continues, protecting civilians in DR Congo

World News in Brief: UN chief condemns Russian attacks on Ukraine, Gaza crisis continues, protecting civilians in DR Congo

Secretary-General António Guterres said it marked a “further escalation” of the conflict. Authorities reported more than 80 civilian casualties, including a national non-governmental organization (NGO) worker and her two-month-old son in Kyiv. Other affected cities included Zaporizhzhia, Odesa, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Kremenchuk, Kryvyi Rih and Kherson. Energy infrastructure was also hit, causing temporary power and water […]

UN provides urgent support after ‘massive’ Russian attack across Ukraine

UN provides urgent support after ‘massive’ Russian attack across Ukraine

More than 800 drones were launched in waves designed to overwhelm Ukrainian air defences, according to news reports, and a Government building was hit in the capital Kyiv for the first time. Ukrainian authorities reported that four had been killed, with 44 injured. Air-raid sirens continued for 11 hours straight across the capital and although […]

Ukraine: ‘Diplomatic momentum’ at risk amid large-scale Russian strikes

Ukraine: ‘Diplomatic momentum’ at risk amid large-scale Russian strikes

Miroslav Jenča, Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and the Americas, was speaking a day after the latest wave of Russian airstrikes across the country, with at least 23 people killed in the capital, Kyiv. “The mounting death toll and devastation caused by the intensifying fighting over the summer, run counter to the significant efforts […]

SECURITY COUNCIL LIVE: Push for peace in Ukraine could rapidly fade if large-scale Russian attacks continue

SECURITY COUNCIL LIVE: Push for peace in Ukraine could rapidly fade if large-scale Russian attacks continue

The UN Security Council met in emergency session in New York on Friday afternoon following overnight strikes early on Thursday by Russia on Ukrainian cities including the capital, which left at least 23 dead, including four children. Assistant Secretary-General Miroslav Jenča told ambassadors that diplomatic momentum towards a possible peace deal was “at risk of […]

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 […]

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 […]

UN upholds readiness to support peace efforts in Ukraine

UN upholds readiness to support peace efforts in Ukraine

Stéphane Dujarric was responding to a journalist’s question about the meeting held the previous day between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, his American counterpart Donald Trump, and several European leaders at the White House. It followed talks last week between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin at a summit in Alaska. Engagement and dialogue “It’s […]

More young lives lost and devastated in Russia attacks on Ukraine: UNICEF

More young lives lost and devastated in Russia attacks on Ukraine: UNICEF

The development came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and a group of European leaders arrived in Washington to meet President Donald Trump, who held talks on a possible peace deal to end the war with President Vladimir Putin of Russia last Friday. “More young lives lost and devastated in brutal attacks in Ukraine,” UNICEF said […]

UN highlights need for peaceful resolution, as Trump and Putin prepare to meet on Ukraine

UN highlights need for peaceful resolution, as Trump and Putin prepare to meet on Ukraine

The UN is stressing that any peace effort or deal must be consistent with the principles of the UN Charter, including respect for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Speaking to reporters on Thursday, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric welcomed “dialogue at the highest level” between the two permanent members of the Security Council. The meeting is […]

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