With some 1,000 refugees arriving daily, Greek islands under 'severe strain,' warns UN agency
Jul 11, 2015, at 09:20 pm
New York, July 11 (IBNS) Close to 1,000 refugees are now arriving on the Greek islands every day, creating an unprecedented emergency for Greece and other countries, the UN refugee agency warned on Friday.
Burundi: UN rights office warns about consequences of country's 'extremely tense' situation
Jul 11, 2015, at 09:16 pm
New York, July 11 (IBNS) One day after United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein alerted the Security Council about the seriousness of the electoral crisis in Burundi, his Office on Friday issued a new warning about the impact the "extremely tense situation" there could have on the stability and the development of Central Africa.
Marking World Day, UN spotlights plight of vulnerable populations in emergencies
Jul 11, 2015, at 09:13 pm
New York, July 11 (IBNS) The United Nations plans to raise awareness of the needs of women and girls in emergencies on World Population Day 2015 with campaigns including an outdoor event in the Kazakh capital of Almaty and a panel discussion in the Thai capital of Bangkok on this year's theme 'vulnerable populations in emergencies.'
UN experts report uptick in flow of Tunisian militants to conflict zones, call for urgent response
Jul 11, 2015, at 01:51 pm
New York, July 11 (IBNS) The number of Tunisian militants flocking to join the hostilities in Syria and Iraq is one of the highest among those traveling to fight alongside extremists in the Middle East's two most dogged conflicts, the United Nations Working Group on the use of mercenaries confirmed today.
Jul 11, 2015, at 01:49 pm
New York, July 11 (IBNS)Main UN economic forum closes high-level segment with calls to bolster sustainable development agenda.
Thailand's deportation of ethnic group prompts grave concern by UN human rights office
Jul 11, 2015, at 01:42 pm
New York, July 11 (IBNS) The United Nations human rights office on Friday expressed grave concern over Thailand's deportation to China of more than 100 people understood to be ethnic Uighurs – including some 20 women – and strongly urged Thai authorities to ensure the protection of 60 others who remain in detention.
Thailand's deportation of ethnic group prompts grave concern by UN human rights office
Jul 11, 2015, at 01:23 pm
New York, July 11 (IBNS) The United Nations human rights office on Friday expressed grave concern over Thailand's deportation to China of more than 100 people understood to be ethnic Uighurs – including some 20 women – and strongly urged Thai authorities to ensure the protection of 60 others who remain in detention.
Libya: UN envoy calls for end to fighting in Benghazi, urges political solution to crisis
Jul 11, 2015, at 01:18 pm
New York, July 11 (IBNS): The Secretary-General's Special Representative for Libya, Bernardino León, has condemned the escalating hostilities in the country's eastern city of Benghazi and the heavy toll being felt by the area's civilians, the United Nations mission in the country confirmed on Friday.
Man arrested over death of two people in Germany
Jul 10, 2015, at 11:20 pm
Berlin, July 10 (IBNS) A person has been arrested by police in connection with the deaths of two people who were shot dead in Germany's Ansbach city, media reports said on Friday.
Leaders' personal rivalry has undermined South Sudan's hard won independence - Security Council
Jul 10, 2015, at 05:05 pm
New York, July 10 (IBNS) Months of politically motivated violence in South Sudan has left thousands dead and caused a "man-made catastrophe," the United Nations Security Council declared on Thursday, expressing "profound disappointment" with President Salva Kiir, former Vice-President Riek Machar and other leaders "who have put their personal ambitions ahead of the good of their country and their people."
A week from presidential polls, Burundi on 'brink of devastating violence,' Security Council told
Jul 10, 2015, at 04:55 pm
New York, July 10 (IBNS) Two weeks after the contested legislative and communal elections that took place in Burundi and with presidential polls just days away, senior United Nations officials warned the Security Council on Thursday that situation prevailing in the Central African country is once again at risk of sliding into violence.
Yemen: UN chief welcomes announcement of humanitarian ceasefire
Jul 10, 2015, at 04:52 pm
New York, July 10 (IBNS) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the decision by Yemeni stakeholders to implement a humanitarian pause in the country's ongoing conflict and has reiterated his belief that the only sustainable solution to the crisis is through “peaceful and inclusive dialogue and negotiations,†the United Nations confirmed on Thursday.
Syrian refugee numbers pass four million as war rages on - UN
Jul 10, 2015, at 04:48 pm
New York, July 10 (IBNS) The exodus spawned by the four-year long Syrian conflict has now become the United Nations refugee agency's largest crisis in almost a quarter of a century and risks deteriorating even further as fighting in the country shows no sign of abating.
Forecasting positive 2015 world crop prospects, UN agency warns of food insecurity 'hotspots'
Jul 10, 2015, at 03:45 pm
New York, July 10 (IBNS) Favorable worldwide conditions for cereal crops will lead to better-than-expected production this growing season at the global level, on Thursday said the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
Jul 09, 2015, at 07:09 pm
New York, July 9 (IBNS): As the United Nations Security Council failed to adopt a resolution that some of its permanent members called “vital†and others called “divisive,†senior UN officials stressed that the horror of the genocidal massacre at Srebrenica continued to haunt the Organization 20 years after thousands of ethnic Bosnian Muslim men and boys were slaughtered during a week of preventable brutality.
South Sudan: four years on, UN marks 'grim' independence anniversary amid ongoing conflict
Jul 09, 2015, at 07:05 pm
New York, July 9 (IBNS) The people of South Sudan are preparing to mark the fourth anniversary of their country's founding amid ongoing suffering, unconscionable levels of violence and unspeakable sexual abuse, according to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
With fast action to rescue staple crops 'we can save lives' in DPR Korea, 'UNICEF says
Jul 09, 2015, at 06:59 pm
New York, July 9 (IBNS) Children are already suffering as a result of drought in some parts of the Democratic Peoples' Republic of Korea (DPRK), where deaths of young children attributed to diarrhoea have increased seriously in the first six months of 2015 in the drought-affected provinces, according to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Amid stalled reconstruction, UN official says 'root causes' of Gaza crisis still unresolved
Jul 09, 2015, at 06:51 pm
New York, July 9 (IBNS) The root causes of last year's conflict in Gaza – which claimed nearly two thousand lives and ravaged large swathes of the Palestinian enclave – remain unaddressed despite a growing humanitarian crisis in the area, the head of the United Nations agency assisting Palestinian refugees has warned.
Greece pledges to enact reforms next week
Jul 09, 2015, at 01:33 am
Athens, July 8 (IBNS) Greece on Wednesday said the country will implement pension and tax reforms next week.
Nigeria: Ban strongly condemns Boko Haram attacks targeting Muslims and Christians
Jul 08, 2015, at 03:23 pm
New York, July 8 (IBNS)United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today strongly condemned attacks by Boko Haram in Lake Chad Basin countries, including the deliberate targeting of Christian and Muslim worshippers during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in Nigeria's northeast states of Borno and Yobe.
Jul 08, 2015, at 03:21 pm
New York, July 8 (IBNS) One year after the escalation of hostilities in Gaza, the United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territory, Robert Piper, today expressed concern over the ongoing humanitarian situation and the slow pace of reconstruction there.
UN rights chief concerned by 'broad scope' of China's new security law
Jul 08, 2015, at 03:17 pm
New York, July 8 (IBNS) The top United Nations human rights official today expressed deep concern about the human rights implications regarding the scope of a new law on national security adopted by China on 1 July.
South Sudan: UN Mission deplores killing of civilian in Organization compound
Jul 08, 2015, at 03:13 pm
New York, July 8 (IBNS) The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has condemned "in the strongest terms" the fatal shooting of an internally displaced person (IDP) at one of its 'protection-of-civilians' sites - the second attack of its kind to strike the African nation and the Organization in less than a week.
Education 'essential to vision of a life of dignity for all,' says Ban at Norway summit
Jul 08, 2015, at 03:08 pm
New York, July 8 (IBNS) The Oslo Summit on Education for Development is a chance to reaffirm the human right to education, an opportunity to mobilize political commitment, and “our moment†to galvanize international support for education, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon declared today in Norway, where he has been attending a number of high-level events over the past two days.
UN chief says further probe needed to 'finally establish the facts' of Dag Hammarskjold's death
Jul 07, 2015, at 03:12 pm
New York, July 7 (IBNS) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced on Monday that “a further inquiry or investigation would be necessary to finally establish the facts†of the death of the second Secretary-General of the United Nations, Dag Hammarskjöld, in a plane crash in Northern Rhodesia, now Zambia, along with 15 others more than 50 years ago.
At Oslo forum, Ban warns capacity to meet humanitarian needs under 'unprecedented strain'
Jul 07, 2015, at 03:10 pm
New York, July 7 (IBNS) The capacity of the United Nations and its partners to meet humanitarian needs is under "unprecedented strain," Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned on Monday at a forum in Oslo, Norway, where he highlight the critical role civil society plays as part of the global effort to save lives, support livelihoods and protect people from violence.
At high-level forum, UN official calls for final push towards new sustainability agenda
Jul 07, 2015, at 03:04 pm
New York, July 7 (IBNS) The international community stands on the cusp of eradicating extreme poverty and reaching the world's most vulnerable people with "a chance to live a life of dignity," the Vice-President of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) declared on Monday, as he appealed to delegates to strengthen the platforms for implementing the new development agenda that will be adopted in September.
Nigeria twin bomb attacks kill 44
Jul 07, 2015, at 01:18 am
Jos, July 6 (IBNS): Twin bomb attacks rocked Nigerian city of Jos on Sunday which killed at least 44 people, media reports said.
A day after referendum verdict against austerity measure, Greek Finance Minister resigns
Jul 06, 2015, at 07:17 pm
Athens, July 6 (IBNS) Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis has resigned a day after the country’s resounding rejection in a referendum to the eurozone’s austerity terms for a bailout.
UN hails cooperatives as vehicle to make sustainable development a reality for all
Jul 05, 2015, at 04:28 am
New York, July 4 (IBNS) Cooperatives will play an "invaluable role" in the international community's roll-out of a sustainable development goals, said United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who today marked the International Day of Cooperatives with an appeal for all to recommit to the business model, which could help make the vision of a sustainable future a reality for everyone.