Feb 01, 2019, at 08:55 am
New York, Feb 1 (IBNS): The Holocaust illustrates how easily “people can move from condoning brutality, to committing genocide” and shows that “leaders who sanction hate speech or make anti-Semitic or xenophobic slurs” are encouraging their own citizens “to do the same”, the UN’s head of Global Communications told leading members of the Jewish community at UN Headquarters in New York on Thursday.
Syria: ‘Violence, displacement’ and cold kill 11 infants ‘in the past two days’
Feb 01, 2019, at 08:51 am
New York, Feb 1 (IBNS): “Violence, displacement and extremely harsh conditions” in northern and eastern Syria have killed at least 32 children since December – including 11 infants in the past two days, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) revealed on Thursday.
Independent UN rights expert calls for compassion, not sanctions on Venezuela
Feb 01, 2019, at 08:48 am
New York, Feb 1 (IBNS): The crisis in Venezuela will not be solved by sanctions that “can lead to starvation”, a UN-appointed rights expert said on Thursday. Special Rapporteur Idriss Jazairy, who reports to the Human Rights Council, issued the warning against the background of widespread suffering in the South American country, linked to spiralling economic woes and deep political uncertainty.
Venezuela crisis: US President Donald Trump speaks with Guaido, congratulates him
Jan 31, 2019, at 03:23 pm
Washington, Jan 31 (IBNS): US President Donald Trump on Thursday called Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido and congratulated him for being the country's leader amid unrest in the South American nation.
Philippines: Explosion in Zamboanga mosque kill 2
Jan 30, 2019, at 03:48 pm
Manila, Jan 30 (IBNS): An explosion rocked a mosque in Zamboanga City of Philippines on Wednesday which left at least two people dead, media reports said.
Human trafficking cases hit a 13-year record high, new UN report shows
Jan 30, 2019, at 09:13 am
New York, Jan 30 (IBNS): The latest Global Report On Trafficking In Persons, released on Tuesday by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) at UN headquarters in New York, shows a record-high number of cases detected during 2016, but also the largest recorded conviction rate of traffickers.
Palestine refugee crisis ‘expanding’; leaving highest number at risk this century across Gaza
Jan 30, 2019, at 09:05 am
New York, Jan 30 (IBNS): “Alarming and expanding” problems affecting Palestine refugees, risk further destabilizing the Middle East, the head of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, UNWRA, said on Tuesday.
Nearly $4 billion needed to protect 41 million children from conflict and disaster
Jan 30, 2019, at 08:46 am
New York, Jan 30 (IBNS): Tens of millions of children living through conflict, disaster and other emergencies in dozens of countries urgently need protection, UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Tuesday, in an appeal for $3.9 billion to support its humanitarian work around the world.
New vulnerabilities soar, OT attacks on the rise and cryptominers reign supreme: Report
Jan 29, 2019, at 03:50 pm
San Jose, Jan 29 (IBNS): Skybox Security, a global leader in cybersecurity management, on Tuesday announced the release of its latest Vulnerability and Threat Trends Report which analyzes the vulnerabilities, exploits and threats in play over the previous year.
Jan 29, 2019, at 05:21 am
New York, Jan 29 (IBNS): More than seven decades ago in Auschwitz, Jewish teenager Marian Turski felt he “had no name, he had nothing, but a number” tattooed on his body. Speaking on Monday, at the annual Holocaust Memorial Ceremony, at United Nations Headquarters in New York, the 92-year-old called on the world to express renewed “empathy and compassion”.
UN chief of peace operations honours fallen Chadian ‘blue helmets’ serving in northern Mali
Jan 29, 2019, at 05:16 am
New York, Jan 29 (IBNS): After 10 Chadian peacekeepers serving with the United Nations mission in Mali (MINUSMA) were killedin a terrorist attack on 20 January, the UN chief of peace operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, went to N’Djamena, the capital of Chad, to pay tribute to them on Monday in a ceremony organised by the Government.
Link between conflict and hunger worldwide, ‘all too persistent and deadly’, says new UN report
Jan 29, 2019, at 05:14 am
New York, Jan 29 (IBNS): Conflict-driven hunger is getting worse, according to a snapshot of the eight places in the world with the highest number of people in need of emergency food support, and the link between them is “all too persistent and deadly” according to a new report delivered to the UN Security Council on Monday.
Bigotry ‘moving at lightning speed’ Guterres warns, as UN marks the Holocaust
Jan 29, 2019, at 05:12 am
New York, Jan 29 (IBNS): Amid an “alarming increase” in anti-Semitism, International Holocaust Remembrance Day was commemorated at UN Headquarters in New York on Monday, honouring the memory of some six million Jews who perished in the Holocaust during World War Two, along with many other victims of what the UN chief called “unprecedented, calculated cruelty and horror”.
Despite setbacks, ‘political will’ to end Yemen war stronger than ever: top UN envoy
Jan 29, 2019, at 05:09 am
New York, Jan 29 (IBNS): The ceasefire in Yemen’s crucial port city of Hudaydah is “generally holding” and deadlines have had to be extended, but the UN’s Special Envoy said on Monday that “more than any time in the past” the political will remains to end years of conflict that has left millions on the brink of starvation.
Solidarity needed to overcome ‘isolated’ attacks on Venezuela refugees, migrants
Jan 29, 2019, at 05:07 am
New York, Jan 29 (IBNS): Attacks and hate speech against Venezuelans seeking shelter in neighbouring countries should be condemned “with a clear and forceful message of rejection” and solidarity, a top UN refugee agency (UNHCR) and UN migration agency (IOM) official said in a statement on Monday.
ISIS claims responsibility for Philippines Roman Catholic church blasts
Jan 28, 2019, at 06:24 am
Manila, Jan 28 (IBNS): Suspected ISIS terrorists have claimed responsibility for the twin blasts which rocked a Roman Catholic cathedral in southern Philippines on Sunday.
UN chief condemns deadly terrorist attack on church in southern Philippines
Jan 28, 2019, at 06:18 am
New York, Jan 28 (IBNS): United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has condemned the deadly terrorist attack on a church in restive southern Philippines early Sunday, and has called for the perpetrators to be brought to justice
Brazil: Dam collapse kills 37, another dam at risk
Jan 27, 2019, at 10:53 pm
Brasília, Jan 27 (IBNS): The Brazil authorities on Sunday ordered more than 350 people to be evacuated and halted rescue operations following a dam burst ami fears that a second dam could collapse, reports said.
Jan 27, 2019, at 06:26 pm
New York, Jan 27 (IBNS): Warning that anti-Semitism, the world’s oldest prejudice, has persisted to torment new generations, Secretary-General António Guterres has pledged that the United Nations will always be at the forefront of the fight against all forms of hatred, and work to strengthen efforts to uphold human dignity for all.
Jan 27, 2019, at 06:19 pm
New York, Jan 27 (IBNS): The top UN political official told the Security Council on Saturday that dialogue and cooperation were vital to ending the crisis in Venezuela, but during a contentious debate, Council members disagreed over the appropriate response to mass protests in the South American country and competing claims to the presidency.
MIT researchers developed cryptocurrency is faster and efficient
Jan 27, 2019, at 05:54 pm
New York, Jan 27 (IBNS): MIT researchers have developed a new cryptocurrency that drastically reduces the data users need to join the network and verify transactions — by up to 99 percent compared to today’s popular cryptocurrencies. This means a much more scalable network.
Cyber attacks are now outpacing physical terror attacks: Study
Jan 27, 2019, at 05:15 pm
New York, Jan 27 (IBNS): Bombs exploding, hostages taken and masked gunmen firing machine guns are all types of terrorist attacks we’ve seen. According to new Michigan State University research, it’s the attacks we don’t see – cyberattacks – that happen more often and can cause greater destruction.
Philippines church blasts kill at least 27 people
Jan 27, 2019, at 03:38 pm
Manila, Jan 27 (IBNS): Twin blasts rocked a Roman Catholic cathedral in southern Philippines and left at least 27 people dead, media reports said on Sunday.
Jan 26, 2019, at 10:00 am
Mew York, Jan 26 (IBNS): United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has welcomed the announcement by the Emir of Qatar to allocate $50 million to support Syrian refugees and displaced persons affected by the recent severe weather in the Middle East.
Two peacekeepers killed in an attack against UN convoy in Mali
Jan 26, 2019, at 09:58 am
New York, Jan 26 (IBNS): Two peacekeepers from the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) were killed on Friday following an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attack against a convoy near Douentza, in the Mopti region, central Mali.
Myanmar Government side-lining democratic reform, resorting to military era repression: UN expert
Jan 26, 2019, at 09:55 am
New York, Jan 26 (IBNS): The human rights situation in Myanmar continues to deteriorate, as the civilian government fails to bring about democratic reforms and instead resorts to the kind of repression carried out under previous military regimes, said the UN human rights expert Yanghee Lee, speaking at the end of an 11-day mission to neighbouring Thailand and Bangladesh.
Alarm over violent attacks on lawmakers, opposition in Malawi, ahead of elections
Jan 26, 2019, at 09:24 am
New York, Jan 26 (IBNS): In Malawi, the UN human rights office, OHCHR, voiced alarm on Friday over increasing, horrific violence there, linked to upcoming elections.
UN welcomes Angola’s repeal of anti-gay law, and ban on discrimination based on sexual orientation
Jan 26, 2019, at 09:21 am
New York, Jan 26 (IBNS): In a move to embrace equality, Angola has decriminalized homosexuality and banned discrimination based on sexual orientation, in a sweeping review of its colonial era penal code, which had stood since independence from Portugal in 1975.
Jan 26, 2019, at 09:18 am
New York, Jan 26 (IBNS): The United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres congratulated the Greek Parliament over its ratification of a name change for the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia on Friday, and commended the leaders of both countries for signalling the end to a naming dispute that has roiled the region for some 28 years.
Jan 26, 2019, at 09:15 am
New York, Jan 26 (IBNS): UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet warned on Friday that the situation in Venezuela could “rapidly spiral out of control”, amid ongoing deadly violence and uncertainty linked to Wednesday’s declaration by Juan Guaidó that he had become the country’s interim president.