Tag Archives: Urgent

World News in Brief: UN Support Office in Haiti, Goodwill Ambassador Theo James in Syria, urgent appeal for millions in DR Congo

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The office established through a resolution in September, will provide support to the new Gang Suppression Force and the UN political mission in the country (BINUH).

The Spokesperson’s updates included that Stephen McOwan has been selected as interim director of the office and he joined some 37 staff members already up and running in Port-au-Prince over the weekend. 

Furthermore, a second office was established in Santo Domingo, capital of the neighbouring Dominican Republic last week, to provide resources, finance and travel services.

The country will also serve as a designated medical evacuation destination should the organization need it. 

Mr. Dujarric added that the first air asset to be delivered, a helicopter, is now in Port-au-Prince, while more equipment is coming from the UN Logistics Base in Brindisi and from the UN’s now closed mission in Iraq (UNAMI).

Goodwill Ambassador Theo James ‘hopeful’ after visit to Syria 

Walking through Damascus, the Syrian capital currently being rebuilt after years of conflict, British actor Theo James contemplated his own grandfather’s journey years ago, who was welcomed in Syria after escaping war in Greece. 

“It’s a reminder that we all have the choice to provide safety to those fleeing conflict and persecution,” said the Hollywood star and UN refugee agency (UNHCR) Goodwill Ambassador. 

Renewed clashes over the past weeks in northeast Syria have forced thousands to flee their homes, a year after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime. 

Mr. James visited the country this week in his capacity as a top advocate for UNHCR’s work, which is on the ground providing assistance to Syrian families. He visited Damascus, Zabadani and Eastern Ghouta, meeting families who have recently returned home.

Optimism despite crisis 

“I am hopeful for the future after meeting with Syrians who chose to return to their homes – though for many people, not much is left,” said Mr. James. 

However, almost 90 per cent of the population needs humanitarian assistance, according to UNHCR.

Mr. James added that much of the infrastructure is destroyed and access to basic services remains limited, among other struggles. 

“That’s why UNHCR’s work in Syria is critical to ensure that those who return receive support,” he said.

New funding appeal for DR Congo 

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the humanitarian community have launched an urgent appeal for $1.4 billion to support millions in the country this year, the UN aid coordination (OCHA) agency announced on Wednesday. 

In what OCHA characterised as one of the ‘most neglected humanitarian crises’, nearly 15 million people are in need of aid. Due to limited funding, however emphasis is on reaching the 7.3 million most vulnerable, down from 11 million last year.

Impossible choices

The UN Humanitarian Coordinator in the DRC, Bruno Lemarquis, said “the combination of immense needs and limited resources, forces us to make extremely difficult, sometimes impossible, choices.” 

The funding appeal focuses exclusively on areas affected by three major shocks: conflict, climate hazards, and recurrent epidemics. It covers 228 health zones, compared to 332 in 2025.  

This drastic reduction comes in a humanitarian context that is already deeply disrupted, particularly in the east where the situation has continued to deteriorate since January 2025 following an offensive by M23 rebels.

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Sinking islands, vanishing forests: World leaders call for urgent climate action

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Their appeals, sharpened by rising seas, failed harvests and disappearing ecosystems, echoed Secretary-General António Guterres’s warning at a climate summit that the world is already in the “dawn of a new energy era” – one where clean energy must replace fossil fuels, and where finance and justice remain at the heart of the global response.

“The bottom-line: clean is competitive and climate action is imperative,” he declared, calling for “dramatic emissions cuts” aligned with 1.5°C goal of the landmark Paris Agreement on climate change, agreed by all nations in 2015.

“We know it can be done … COP30 in Brazil must conclude with a credible global response plan to get us on track,” he added, referring to the 30th UN climate change conference in November, which aims to accelerate global efforts to limit temperature rise and advance commitments on emissions, adaptation and climate finance.

The UN chief’s urgency provided the backdrop as world leaders presented compelling accounts of climate peril and promise on the second day of the Assembly’s annual general debate.

Spain – Accelerate energy transition

King Felipe VI of Spain addresses the general debate of the General Assembly’s eightieth session.

The “triple planetary crisis” – climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss – featured prominently in the address by King Felipe VI of Spain, who underscored that governments must accelerate a just energy transition.

He pressed for tripling renewable capacity, doubling efficiency and advancing decarbonisation in time for COP30, where Spain hopes to see consensus and ambition.

“These objectives are as ambitious as they are necessary,” he said, cautioning that hesitation can no longer be part of the global equation.

▶ Watch the address.

Panama – Nature, the first line of defense

President José Raúl Mulino Quintero of Panama addresses the general debate of the General Assembly’s eightieth session.

For Panama, which has long championed conservation despite contributing little to global emissions, the call was for integrated action.

President José Raúl Mulino Quintero unveiled the country’s ‘Nature Pledge,’ a single framework, uniting commitments on climate, biodiversity and land.

He stressed that as a carbon-negative country, Panama will go even further by restoring 100,000 hectares of priority ecosystems, from mangroves to watersheds.

“Nature is our first line of defense against climate change,” he said, linking national resilience to global solidarity.

▶ Watch the address.

Comoros – Small island, big stakes

President Azali Assoumani of Comoros addresses the general debate of the General Assembly’s eightieth session.

In the Indian Ocean, the Comoros faces a different frontline.

President Azali Assoumani spoke of rising seas, coastal erosion and intensifying cyclones that threaten the archipelago’s villages and ecosystems.

He urged equitable, simplified access to climate finance, insisting that small island states cannot wait on cumbersome mechanisms while their homes wash away.

At the same time, he highlighted his country’s ‘Emerging Comoros Plan,’ built on renewable potential, blue economy resources and digital transition.

But without international support, he warned, such plans risk being hampered by debt and global inaction.

▶ Watch the address.

Namibia – Linking climate action to desertification

President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah of Namibia addresses the general debate of the General Assembly’s eightieth session.

Namibia’s President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah tied climate impacts directly to her country’s daily struggles, citing prolonged droughts and floods that have dried rivers and disrupted lives.

She announced Namibia’s bid to host the Africa regional hub of the Green Climate Fund, positioning the country as a bridge for climate finance on the continent.

And she reinforced the need to implement the ‘Namib Declaration’ to combat land degradation, linking climate action with the fight against desertification.

▶ Watch the address.

Guyana – Nature’s tangible value

President Mohamed Irfaan Ali of Guyana addresses the general debate of the General Assembly’s eightieth session.

In South America, Guyana’s President Mohamed Irfaan Ali emphasised that climate and development cannot be separated.

He described how his country is protecting forests, strengthening sea defenses and advancing a low carbon development strategy to prove that economic growth can go hand-in-hand with environmental stewardship.

Guyana, he noted, has become a seller of carbon credits under international standards, showing that “nature has tangible value.”

▶ Watch the address.

Marshall Islands – Promises won’t save sinking atolls

President Hilda Heine of Marshall Islands addresses the general debate of the General Assembly’s eightieth session.

For the Marshall Islands, a Pacific nation of more than 1,200 islands and 29 coral atolls climate change is a question of survival.

President Hilda Heine delivered one of the day’s most urgent interventions, warning that promises alone cannot save sinking atolls.

“We’ve heard the promises – but promises don’t reclaim land in atolls. They don’t develop mangrove defenses, shore up our hospitals and schools against rising seas or preserve cultural stability tied to land that is slipping under waves,” she said.

“Those things require money.”

Ms. Heine pressed the international community to close the trillion-dollar climate finance gap, particularly for adaptation and loss and damage.

As COP30 approaches, she said nations must not only honor their pledges but also deliver stronger plans that show a clear pathway to phasing out fossil fuels and halving global emissions within this decade.

▶ Watch the address.

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

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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 a majority were shot down more than 50 drones and nine missiles hit their targets.

“Yet again, attacks impacted homes, a government building, a kindergarten and other civilian infrastructure in Kyiv and Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Kremenchuk, Kryvyi Rih, Odesa, Sumy region, Zaporizhzhia – leaving behind loss, destruction and grief,” said UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine, Matthias Schmale, in a post on social media.

The top aid official said that together with authorities, the UN and humanitarian partners had mobilised to provide urgent support to civilians and civilian areas where damage was sustained.

Civilians should never be a target

“Civilians and civilian infrastructure are protected under international humanitarian law – they are not a target,” he continued.

The UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, said that the news of a baby being killed along with their young mother in an attack on an apartment building in Kyiv was “devastating”. At least one other child was injured during the attacks on Sumy.

“Ukraine endured another terrifying night of attacks that impacted multiple cities. More young lives brutally cut short,” the agency tweeted.

The attacks came following weeks of high profile diplomacy from Western allies of the Ukrainian Government to broker a lasting peace deal between Kyiv and Moscow.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a social media post following the attacks that “such killings now, when real diplomacy could have already begun long ago, are a deliberate crime and a prolongation of the war.”

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The missing half: The urgent need for more women’s representation in the media

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“When women are missing, democracy is incomplete,” said Kirsi Madi, Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director with the UN gender equality agency, UN Women, responding to the latest analysis.

Ms. Madi emphasised that the underrepresentation and misrepresentation of women in the media needs to be recognised as a key issue, so that democratic standards are not eroded for future generations.

Seeing ourselves

UN assessments show that, despite severe restrictions on their rights in many countries, women continue to lead community initiatives, support education, and advocate for social and economic resilience under the most challenging conditions.

In Afghanistan’s Kunduz Province, *Mehrgan leads a women’s organization that once trained hundreds of women and supported local NGOs but lost much of its funding and staff in 2022.

With support from UN Women, it has since rebuilt its capacity and is now helping other women’s groups do the same.

When the media focuses only on women’s victimhood, it erases their leadership and obscures the full reality of their contributions to peace, stability, and social progress, the report highlights. Sharing stories like Mehrgan’s ensures that the public and policymakers recognize not only the challenges, but also the solutions women are driving on the ground, UN Women said.

Barriers to gender equality

Equally important is the lack of news coverage relating to gender-based violence (GBV).

Instead of challenging stereotypes, news media continue to reinforce skewed narratives such as victim-blaming typecasts, portraying GBV as isolated incidents, silencing survivor voices, and using gendered language and tropes in reports.

“Fewer than two in 100 stories cover the abuse that far too many women experience”, underscored UN Women.

Not only does severe underreporting on GBV distort reality, it also shapes public perception. Nearly four in five news stories focus on politics, the economy, or crime, leaving issues like gender-based violence underreported.

Representation is even bleaker for minority women. While individuals from racial, ethnic, religious, and other minority groups represent just six per cent of the people featured in news coverage, only 38 per cent of them are women.

The likelihood that a woman in the news is likely to be from a minority group is less than one in 10.

The way forward

Although the path to greater representation remains challenging, digital news offers a clear pathway to increased inclusion.

During the pandemic, the proportion of female online reporters increased from 25 per cent in 2015 to 42 per cent in 2020. Campaigns like the UN’s HeForShe Campaign continue to be effective vectors for promoting women’s coverage in the media and challenging stereotypes.

As the UN’s 80th General Assembly approaches, the need to reinforce gender parity and gender representation becomes even more pressing, especially considering that over the last 30 years, little to no progress has been made, said UN Women. 

For more information and details, see the summary of key findings from the GMMP report here.

*Her name has been changed to protect her identity

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Guterres: ‘Breaking point’ reached in Israel-Palestine conflict, urgent action needed on two-State solution

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Speaking Monday morning at the high-level conference on the peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine and the implementation of the two-State solution, the UN chief painted a stark picture of a conflict that continues to “take lives, destroy futures, and destabilise the region and our world.”

“We know that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has endured for generations – defying hopes, defying diplomacy, defying countless resolutions, defying international law,” Mr. Guterres said. “But we also know its persistence is not inevitable. It can be resolved. That demands political will and courageous leadership. And it demands truth.”

“The truth is: we are at a breaking point. The two-State solution is farther than ever before.”

The Secretary-General denounced the 7 October Hamas attacks on Israel and hostage-taking as acts of terror he has “repeatedly condemned.” At the same time, he said “nothing can justify the obliteration of Gaza that has unfolded before the eyes of the world.”

He also spoke out against the starvation of civilians, the killing of tens of thousands, mass displacement, settler violence and the “creeping annexation” of the occupied West Bank – a move he called “illegal”.

Stop undermining two-State solution

“Unilateral actions that would forever undermine the two-State solution are unacceptable and they must stop,” he said. “These are not isolated events. They are part of a systemic reality that is dismantling the building blocks of peace in the Middle East.”

The three-day conference is mandated by the General Assembly through resolutions ES-10/24 and 79/81, is co-organized by France and Saudi Arabia. It includes plenary sessions and thematic roundtables on issues such as security arrangements, humanitarian needs, reconstruction, and the economic viability of a future Palestinian state.

A group photograph of senior UN officials and ministers attending the high-level international conference.

Move beyond ‘well-meaning rhetoric’

In his speech, Mr. Guterres urged Member States not to let the event become “another exercise in well-meaning rhetoric.”

“It can and must serve as a decisive turning point – one that catalyses irreversible progress towards ending the occupation and realising our shared aspiration for a viable two-State solution,” he said.

Reiterating the long-standing UN position, the Secretary-General said the two-State solution remains the only viable path to peace – with Israel and Palestine living side-by-side within secure, recognised borders, based on the pre-1967 lines, with Jerusalem as the capital of both States.

“It is the sine qua non [Latin for indispensable or absolutely essential] for peace across the wider Middle East,” he concluded.

More to follow…

Jean-Noël Barrot, Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs of France; Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia; and Mohammad Mustafa, Prime Minister of the State of Palestine also spoke at the meeting.

The meeting continues with wrap-up sessions of the thematic roundtables. 

A plenary meeting in the General Assembly Hall will take place at 3 PM New York time.

You can follow the live coverage of the conference here.

In hard-hitting human rights address, Guterres calls for urgent action on Gaza, authoritarianism and climate justice

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Recalling his own experience living under dictatorship in Portugal, Mr. Guterres told participants at the Global Assembly of the international rights charity Amnesty International on Friday that the fight for human rights is “more important than ever”.

He called on States to uphold international law and defend human rights “consistently and universally, even or especially when inconvenient”, urging collective action to restore global trust, dignity and justice.

‘A moral crisis’

Mr. Guterres painted a stark picture of a world in turmoil, citing multiple ongoing crises, foremost among them, the war in Gaza.

While reiterating his condemnation of the 7 October 2023 terror attacks by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups in Israel, the Secretary-General said that “nothing can justify the explosion of death and destruction since”.

“The scale and scope is beyond anything we have seen in recent times,” he said.

“I cannot explain the level of indifference and inaction we see by too many in the international community. The lack of compassion. The lack of truth. The lack of humanity.”

Key takeaways from the address

  • Gaza – “A moral crisis that challenges the global conscience”
  • Ukraine – Call for a “just and lasting peace” based on the UN Charter, international law and resolutions
  • Authoritarianism – A “global contagion”, with political repression, attacks on minorities and shrinking civic space
  • Climate justice – Bold action needed to cut emissions; clean energy transition must uphold human rights
  • Digital threats – Concern over algorithmic spread of hate and falsehoods; manipulation via social media
  • Call to action – “Human rights are the solution, foundation of peace and engine of progress”

UN staff ‘neither dead nor alive’

He described UN staff in Gaza as working in “unimaginable conditions”, many of them so depleted they “say they feel neither dead nor alive”.

Since late May, he noted, more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed trying to access food – not in combat, but “in desperation – while the entire population starves”.

“This is not just a humanitarian crisis. It is a moral crisis that challenges the global conscience.”

Ready to scale up aid

Mr. Guterres said the UN stands ready to dramatically scale up humanitarian operations “as we successfully did during the previous pause in fighting”, but called for an “immediate and permanent ceasefire”, the unconditional release of all hostages and full humanitarian access.

“At the same time, we need urgent, concrete and irreversible steps towards a two-State solution,” he stressed.

He also spoke about other conflicts, including Sudan as well as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, where he called for a “just and lasting peace” based on the UN Charter, international law and relevant UN resolutions.

Secretary-General Guterres (left) addresses Amnesty International’s Global Assembly via video link.

Rising authoritarianism

The Secretary-General warned that authoritarian tactics are on the rise globally.

“We are witnessing a surge in repressive tactics aiming at corroding respect for human rights,” he said. “And these are contaminating some democracies.”

Political opposition movements are being crushed, accountability mechanisms dismantled, journalists and activists silenced, civic space strangled and minorities scapegoated.

Rights of women and girls in particular are being rolled back, most starkly, he said, in Afghanistan.

“This is not a series of isolated events. It is a global contagion.”

Weaponization of technology

He decried the growing weaponization of digital platforms, saying algorithms are “boosting the worst of humanity, rewarding falsehoods, fuelling racism and misogyny and deepening division”.

He called on governments to uphold the Global Digital Compact adopted by countries at the UN General Assembly last September and to take stronger action to combat online hate and disinformation.

© ICJ-CIJ/Frank van Beek

Activists outside the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague as the Court delivers its advisory opinion on the obligations of States in respect of climate change.

Climate justice is human rights

Turning to climate, Mr. Guterres described the environmental emergency as a “human rights catastrophe”, with the poorest and most vulnerable communities suffering most.

He welcomed the International Court of Justice (ICJ)’s advisory opinion this week, affirming that climate change is a human rights issue and that States have obligations under international law to protect the global climate system.

But, he cautioned against a transition to clean energy that sacrifices human rights.

“We cannot accept a clean energy future built on dirty practices…We cannot accept enormous violations of human rights, many of them against children, in the name of climate progress.”

He called for urgent emissions cuts, a just transition away from fossil fuels and real financing for developing countries to adapt, build resilience and recover from loss and damage.

A legacy of activism

The Secretary-General concluded by praising Amnesty International’s decades of activism, calling its work “indispensable” to the global human rights movement.

“When you stand for human rights, you stand with what is right,” he told delegates.

“Your courage continues to change lives. Your persistence is shifting the course of history. Let’s keep going. Let’s meet this moment with the urgency it demands. And let’s never, ever give up.”

Founded in 1961, Amnesty International is a global human rights movement that campaigns to end abuses and promote justice. The organization has long worked in collaboration with the United Nations, participating actively in the development of international human rights law and mechanisms.

Today’s speech by Mr. Guterres is first-ever address by a UN Secretary-General to Amnesty International’s Global Assembly, the charity’s highest decision-making body. The UN chief spoke via a video link to the event in Prague.

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UN reiterates call for urgent de-escalation amid Iran-Israel conflict, worsening Gaza crisis

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In a joint call to de-escalate, UN agencies have warned that further conflict risks triggering new displacement in a region already strained by decades of war and instability.

The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) noted military strikes have led people in both Iran and Israel to flee their homes in search of safety from tit-for-tat missile strikes.

“Movements have been reported from Tehran and other parts of Iran, with some choosing to cross into neighbouring countries,” the agency stated. Meanwhile, “shelling has caused people in Israel to seek shelter elsewhere in the country and in some cases abroad.”

“This region has already endured more than its share of war, loss, and displacement – we cannot allow another refugee crisis to take root,” said UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi. “The time to de-escalate is right now. Once people are forced to flee, there’s no quick way back – and all too often, the consequences last for generations.”

UNHCR urged countries in the region to respect the right to seek asylum and ensure humanitarian access to those affected, while calling on all parties to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure.

Nuclear risks rise as Iran facilities hit

The conflict escalated sharply following Israeli airstrikes on multiple Iranian nuclear-related sites in the past week, including a centrifuge manufacturing workshop in Esfahan, according to the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

“This is the third such facility that has been targeted over the past week,” Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi confirmed, noting that the facility had been under IAEA surveillance as part of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) – the nuclear deal signed with Iran in 2015, which the United States pulled out of in 2017.

“We know this facility well. There was no nuclear material at this site and therefore the attack on it will have no radiological consequences,” he said. However, Mr. Grossi warned that continued strikes on nuclear infrastructure are severely undermining nuclear safety and security.

“Though they have not so far led to a radiological release affecting the public, there is a danger this could occur.”

The IAEA has been tracking damage to sites in Esfahan, Arak, Karaj, Natanz and Tehran since the Israeli military campaign against Iran began on 13 June. T

he agency has been providing regular updates to the UN Security Council, which has yet to reach consensus on a response. On Friday, ambassadors debating the escalation heard during an emergency meeting in New York heard UN Secretary-General António Guterres warn that if fighting escalated it could “ignite a fire no one can control.”

Gaza in ruins, Palestinians face starvation

The mounting regional crisis is unfolding against the backdrop of the war in Gaza, where humanitarian conditions continue to deteriorate.

On Saturday, the head of the UN agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, painted a grim picture of life in the enclave during an address to the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation in Istanbul.

“In Gaza, two million people are being starved,” he said bluntly. “The newly created, so-called ‘aid mechanism’ is an abomination that humiliates and degrades desperate people. It is a death-trap, costing more lives than it saves.”

Lazzarini described a territory devastated by nearly two years of conflict, with more than 55,000 reported dead by local authorities in the Strip – the majority of them women and children.

Survivors, he said, “are shadows of their former selves; their lives forever changed by unspeakable trauma and profound loss.”

In the occupied West Bank, displacement and destruction of public infrastructure are altering the demography of Palestinian camps, he added, in what he described as an effort to erase the prospect of a Palestinian State under the UN-backed two-State solution and strip Palestinians of refugee status.

UNRWA in the crosshairs

“UNRWA has become an objective of this war,” Mr. Lazzarini warned, citing the deaths of at least 318 of the agency’s staff in Gaza since the 7 October terror attacks on Israel by Hamas and other militants, the expulsion of international staff, and a campaign of disinformation aimed at crippling its funding.

Despite these pressures, UNRWA continues to provide lifesaving services, including over 15,000 health consultations per day, waste management and shelter support.

UNRWA’s financial situation is now “dire,” the agency chief said. “Without additional funding, I will soon have to take unprecedented decisions affecting our operations across the region.”

He appealed to Member States to act urgently: “The sudden loss or reduction of UNRWA’s services will only deepen suffering and despair across the occupied Palestinian territory. It might spark unrest in the neighbouring countries. This is something that the region cannot afford, especially now.”

Iran-Israel crisis: UN rights office appeals for urgent de-escalation

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Israel began targeting nuclear and military sites across Iran last Friday, prompting a barrage of retaliatory strikes on Israeli cities.

“The UN human rights office urges de-escalation and urgent diplomatic negotiations to end these attacks and find a way forward,” said Ms. Al-Nashif. “We are following closely and are aware of reports that many thousands of residents are fleeing parts of the capital, Tehran, as a result of warnings covering broad areas.”

Latest reports from the region indicate that more than 200 people have been killed in Iran and 24 in Israel to date. The violence continued unabated overnight in both countries. 

Addressing the Human Rights Council in Geneva at a scheduled meeting to discuss Iran’s rights record, the Deputy High Commissioner highlighted serious concerns that populated areas have been hit in the escalation.

“It is imperative that both sides fully respect international law, in particular by ensuring the protection of civilians in densely populated areas and of civilian objects,” she said. “We urge all those with influence to engage in negotiation as a matter of priority.”

Nuclear watchdog update

In a related development, the UN-backed nuclear watchdog said on Wednesday that two Iranian centrifuge production facilities had suffered major damage after being targeted.

“The TESA Karaj workshop and the Tehran Research Centre, were hit,” it said in an update. “At the Tehran site, one building was hit where advanced centrifuge rotors were manufactured and tested. 

At Karaj, two buildings were destroyed where different centrifuge components were manufactured,” said the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Speaking at the Council after the Deputy High Commissioner, Iran’s Permanent Representative of Iran, Ambassador Ali Bahreini, condemned the Israeli strikes: 

“There has been no violation worse than [the] 13 June act of aggression against Iran,” he said, pointing to “continuous blind attacks on residential areas, bombardment of vital supplies, explosion of drinking water resources and reckless strikes on nuclear facilities are immediately impacting the civilians and people of Iran.”

Such “deliberate targeting” of his country’s nuclear facilities risked exposing local communities to a “possible hazardous leak”, the Iranian ambassador continued. “This is not an act of war against our country, it is war against humanity.”

In a short statement to the Council from which Israel announced its withdrawal earlier this year, Mr. Bahreini called for accountability and international condemnation of the Israeli attacks. 

“This impunity must come to [an] end,” he said. “Israel activities are not just against one or two countries. It is acting against all humanity and their actions target all human rights.”

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Without urgent funding, global hunger hotspots are set to grow, UN warns

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But hunger has followed them. Over 57 per cent of the population in the world’s youngest country to the south is already facing high levels of acute food insecurity.

Sudan and South Sudan are among five global hunger hotspots of “highest concern”, trapped in a worsening cycle of conflict, climate shocks and economic decline.

Continued fighting in Sudan, anticipated flooding impacting its southern neighbour and deteriorating economic conditions in both countries are set to intensify hunger in the coming months.

A new report released on Monday by the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) also identified Palestine, Mali and Haiti as the other top-priority hunger hotspots, with a further seven countries likely to see worsening food security over the next five months.

The report, which analyses existing data to project the nature of food insecurity, emphasised that without immediate humanitarian assistance, people living in these hotspots will face severe food conditions and high risks of starvation and death.  

“This report makes it very clear: hunger today is not a distant threat  – it is a daily emergency for millions. We must act now and act together to save lives and safeguard livelihoods,” said FAO Director General QU Dongyu.  

Conflict-driven hunger

The report identified that the main driver of hunger is conflict which is often compounded by climate and economic shocks.  

“There’s an on-going famine in Sudan and also a risk of famine in the case of Gaza. And all of those are driven by conflict and lack of access for humanitarians,” said Jean-Martin Baucer, FAO food security analysis director.

In Gaza, the entire population of 2.1 million people is projected to experience crisis levels of food insecurity in the next months as a result of protracted military operations, with almost 500,000 projected to face catastrophic levels of food insecurity.  

Sawsan was an artist in Gaza before the conflict began. Since then, she and her four children have been displaced, losing everything that they owned. They do not have enough to eat: Sawsan described to WFP that she now reduced to crushing macaroni to make bread for her children.  

The report also noted that climate shocks and conflict often cause protracted economic declines, diminishing the purchasing power and self-sustaining capacity of households and communities.

Window closing fast 

In recent months, humanitarian food operations have faced significant food shortages and have been geographically impeded by security crises which make the delivery of aid simply dangerous.  

WFP and FAO are calling for the international community to drastically step up funding for food and nutrition related humanitarian aid in the coming months and advocate for an end to the fighting.  

“Urgent, sustained investment in food assistance and recovery support is crucial as the window to avert yet more devastating hunger is closing fast,” said WFP executive director Cindy McCain.

‘Red alert’

In May, the food aid sector estimated that it would need $12.2 billion, but only nine per cent of this was funded.  

The report also underlined the importance of moving towards longer-term humanitarian strategies which equip communities with self-sustaining capabilities and are less expensive.

“This report is a red alert. We know where hunger is rising and we know who is at risk. We have the tools and experience to respond but without funding and access, we cannot save lives,” said Ms. McCain.   

Rising hunger in Gaza highlights urgent need for ‘unfettered’ aid supplies

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Only around 6,000 tonnes of wheat flour have entered the war-torn enclave since Israel began to allow limited supplies back in last month.  

However, 10,000 tonnes are urgently needed in the face of rising malnutrition, according to the UN aid coordination office OCHA.

“The only way to address the situation on the ground is by re-opening additional crossings,” said OCHA’s Olga Cherevko, speaking to UN News from Khan Younis.

Beyond food aid

She also stressed the need to allow “unlimited and unfettered supply of aid to enter,” which includes items that go beyond food such as shelter materials, fuel, cooking gas, “and other necessary elements to sustain life in Gaza.”

Ms. Cherevko urged the Israeli authorities to make the task of delivering aid easier by “providing a safe and enabling environment,” reducing waiting times for humanitarian missions and ensuring access to people in need. 

People in Gaza are suffering from harsh living conditions. Since March, Israeli restrictions on border crossings have tightened, making it even more difficult for Gaza’s population – more than two million people – to access food. 

Senior UN officials, including Secretary-General António Guterres and Humanitarian Affairs chief Tom Fletcher, have described the aid that has entered as merely  “a trickle” or a  “a drop in the ocean”.

Difficult decisions

Although markets are crowded with people, they lack two essential elements: liquidity and goods.

Most residents thus face three bitter choices: either seek food aid from the newly established US and Israel-backed distribution mechanism, which has already claimed dozens of lives in recent days; watch their children starve; or pay dearly for what’s left of the goods and looted humanitarian aid in markets.

“Prices are unnatural, much higher than in Europe,” civil servant Akram Yousef recently told our UN News correspondent in Gaza.

“The situation is very difficult, and we have been like this for two years. In addition to displacement, homelessness, bombing, destruction, and devastation, traders are raising prices, and citizens are unable to bear this burden. What can we do?”

More than 20 months of conflict have made living conditions in the Gaza Strip unbearable, and the cost of living is now among the highest in the world. 

Ahmed Al-Bahri, who was displaced from Beit Lahia with his family, said a loaf of bread now sells for seven shekels, or roughly $2.

“There is no flour, no milk, no diapers for children, or anything to eat,” he said. “We live in a state of constant hunger. Where can I get seven shekels to buy a loaf of bread for my child? What is this child’s sin?”

A flour seller in Gaza.

Exorbitant fees 

The cessation of Palestinian banks’ operations since the start of the war in October 2023 has exacerbated the suffering. 

People are forced to use phone apps to withdraw money from their bank accounts and to access their pensions through local merchants who charge exorbitant commissions.

Mr. Youssef, the civil servant, said the commission for withdrawing his salary was 20 per cent, but over time it has increased to nearly 50 per cent.

‘We have become envious of the dead’

Several residents told UN News that the price of one kilogramme of flour is now 100 shekels, equivalent to roughly $29.

“If a salary is 2,000 shekels, it becomes 1,000 shekels after commission,” another man, Ashraf Al-Deiri, explained.

“The daily expenses of an average or small family are no less than 500 shekels (roughly $143). So, we are experiencing great suffering and need someone to have mercy on us and stand by us.”

A young man called Raed Tafesh expressed shock over the high prices, especially since most of his peers are unemployed and lack any source of income. 

“We don’t earn a single shekel. We are not employed, and we don’t have jobs. We are dying slowly. We have become envious of the dead,” he said.

The tragic conditions are reflected in the eyes of mothers and fathers who see their children starving, such as Nimir Ghazal.  She said her salary is not even enough to buy fruits, vegetables or any healthy food for her children.

“Sometimes I cry when my hungry children ask for a piece of bread. A kilo of flour costs 100 shekels, and lentils cost 50. One kilo is not enough for my family, but I buy it and share it among them,” she said.

UN efforts continue

On Monday, UN teams were able to collect some supplies, mainly flour, from the Kerem Shalom border crossing.  The aid was bound for Gaza City when hungry and desperate people snatched it directly from the trucks.

There have also been previous instances of looting and attacks on truck drivers which the UN categorically rejects. 

OCHA has emphasized that Israel, as the occupying power, bears responsibility for maintaining public order and safety in Gaza. This should include allowing more essential supplies to enter through multiple crossings and roads to meet humanitarian needs and help curb looting. 

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Biodiversity loss demands urgent global action, says UN chief

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In a message marking Thursday’s International Day for Biological Diversity, the UN chief raised alarm over the “lightning pace” of degradation of the natural world.

“Biodiversity is the bedrock of life and a cornerstone of sustainable development,” Mr. Guterres said.

“Yet humanity is destroying biodiversity at lightening pace, the result of pollution, climate crisis, ecosystem destruction and – ultimately – short-term interests fuelling the unsustainable use of our natural world.”

He stressed that no country, “however rich or powerful,” can address the crisis in isolation, nor thrive without the ecological richness that defines life on Earth.

Alarm bells ringing

The International Day comes amid stark concern for the future: one million species are at risk of extinction, 75 per cent of land ecosystems and two-thirds of marine environments have been significantly altered by human activity.

Furthermore, if current trends continue, progress towards eight of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) could be jeopardized.

Mr. Guterres called for urgent implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, the landmark agreement adopted to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030.

This includes delivering on national biodiversity action plans, scaling finance for conservation, shifting harmful subsidies, and supporting local communities, Indigenous Peoples, women and youth.

Live in harmony with nature

Biological diversity underpins food security, livelihoods, health and climate resilience.

Roughly three billion people eat fish for 20 a per cent of their animal protein intake, and 80 per cent of rural populations in developing countries rely on plant-based medicine.

Yet the destruction of natural habitats is also increasing the risk of zoonotic disease transmission, making biodiversity preservation a key factor in global health.

“Living in harmony with nature and sustainable development is humanity’s path to a better world for all,” Mr. Guterres said, echoing this year’s theme.

“Together, let us take it.”

The International Day

The UN officially designated 22 May as the International Day for Biological Diversity in 2000 to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues.

The date marks the adoption of the Convention on Biological Diversity in 1992.

Urgent action needed to ‘pull Yemen back from the brink of catastrophe’

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Tom Fletcher said that with “time and treatment” Noor was able to recover fully.

But what happens to a child such as Noor when treatments are limited and time runs out?

A group of 116 aid organizations, including 10 UN agencies, called on Tuesday for “urgent, collective action” to prevent Yemen from descending into a humanitarian catastrophe.

They warned that without such action, specifically increased funding, their ability to provide life-saving assistance will be severely curtailed.

“Without immediate action, the vital gains achieved through years of dedicated assistance could be lost,” they said.

Non-stop crises

For more than a decade, Yemen has endured a series of crises – armed conflicts, climate disasters and economic decay. As a result, close to 20 million depend on humanitarian aid to survive and five million are internally displaced.

Half of all Yemeni children – some 2.3 million – are malnourished. Over 600,000 are severely malnourished, like Noor. Malnutrition also impacts over 1.4 million pregnant women, creating an intergenerational cycle.

The healthcare system is also in disrepair, with Yemen accounting for more than one-third of cholera cases worldwide and 18 per cent of related deaths. 20 per cent of children under the age of one are fully unvaccinated.

Providing humanitarian aid in Yemen has also come with extreme difficulties for aid workers, with some being arbitrarily detained, including UN staffers.

Strikes against the Hodeida port and Sana’a Airport have also damaged vital humanitarian pathways for food and medicine.

Time and treatment running out

The aid community’s call for urgent action comes amidst extensive funding shortages. The Yemen Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan is less than 10 per cent funded.

“We urgently appeal to donors to scale up flexible, timely, and predictable funding for the Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan,” the aid organizations said.

Already, the UN and aid partners are working to minimize operational costs while maximizing aid provision and there is no doubt suffering will increase due to the reduction in aid.

In the first quarter of 2025, over five million people in Yemen received emergency food assistance, 1.2 million received clean water and sanitation services and 154,000 children were able to resume their education.

But without immediate funding, Emergency Relief Coordinator Fletcher estimates that there will be gaps in this aid as early as June or July.

Nearly 400 health facilities will be forced to stop operating, including 64 hospitals, which will impact over 7 million individuals. Funding for more than 700 midwives is also quickly drying up.

Call to the international community

While the humanitarian crisis in Yemen has been overshadowed by other vast humanitarian crises in Gaza and Sudan among other places, the 116 aid organizations emphasized that “donor support saves lives.”

The 7th Humanitarian Senior Officials Meeting will be held Wednesday and should be a moment to work to avoid catastrophe in Yemen, the aid organizations urged.

“Now more than ever, swift and resolute support is crucial to prevent Yemen from sliding deeper into crisis and move towards a lasting peace,” they said.

Time and treatment are running out for children like Noor.

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