Uganda: UN concerned over arrests of opposition leaders, use of force since elections
Feb 24, 2016, at 03:21 pm
New York, Feb 24 (Just Earth News/IBNS) The United Nations human rights office expressed concern on Tuesday over the “tense†post-election situation in Uganda, following reports that at least two people have been killed and an unknown number of people injured, heavy military and police forces deployed in the streets of Kampala, and the arrests of four opposition leaders since Thursday’s elections.
UN refugee agency calls on Nigeria to heed wishes of internally displaced
Feb 24, 2016, at 03:01 pm
New York, Feb 24 (Just Earth News/IBNS) The Nigerian authorities should heed the concerns of internally displaced people (IDP) in the north-east of the country, the United Nations refugee agency’s top protection official said following his visit to Borno, the north-eastern state hardest hit by the Boko Haram insurgency.
Afghanistan: UN calls on all parties to respect protected status of medical facilities and personnel
Feb 24, 2016, at 02:58 pm
New York, Feb 24 (Just Earth News/IBNS) Following two incidents in the past week that put access to health care in Afghanistan under attack, the United Nations mission in the country has urged all parties to refrain from targeting hospitals and to take all feasible precautions to prevent casualties among their patients and personnel.
Europe’s restrictive measures place added hardships on refugees and asylum-seekers – UN
Feb 24, 2016, at 02:55 pm
New York, Feb 24 (Just Earth News/IBNS) The United Nations refugee agency said on Tuesday it is concerned by recent restrictive practices adopted in a number of European countries that are placing additional undue hardships on refugees and asylum-seekers across Europe, creating chaos at several border points, and putting particular pressure on Greece as it struggles to deal with larger numbers of people in need of accommodation and services.
Syria ‘reduced to ruins,’ with civilians paying the biggest price, says UN human rights panel
Feb 23, 2016, at 03:42 pm
New York, Feb 23 (Just Earth News/IBNS) As the Syrian conflict is entering its sixth year, civilians are bearing the brunt of intensifying hostilities conducted by an ever-increasing number of warring parties, with aerial bombardments by pro-Government forces leaving “few safe places,†a new United Nations-mandated report has found.
Syria: head of panel for joint UN body says chemical weapons probing to begin in March
Feb 23, 2016, at 03:35 pm
New York, Feb 23 (Just Earth News/IBNS) The head of a United Nations-mandated body tasked with identifying those behind chemical weapons attacks in the Syrian civil war said on Monday that preliminary work on seven potential cases has been nearly concluded and that in-depth investigations will begin in March.
Ban welcomes cessation of hostilities pact in Syria as ‘signal of hope;’ condemns bombings
Feb 23, 2016, at 03:21 pm
New York, Feb 23 (Just Earth News/IBNS) United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the agreement announced on Monday by United States Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, as co-chairs of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) Ceasefire Taskforce, on the terms of a nationwide cessation of hostilities in Syria scheduled to come into effect on Saturday.
Ban arrives in Burundi in support of UN efforts to resolve political crisis
Feb 23, 2016, at 03:09 pm
New York, Feb 23 (Just Earth News/IBNS) United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon arrived on Monday in Bujumbura, capital of Burundi, for an official visit during which he is expected to meet President Pierre Nkurunziza and other actors in support of ongoing UN efforts at resolving Burundi’s political crisis.
Iraq: UN relief official calls for relocation of civilians to safer areas
Feb 23, 2016, at 03:02 pm
New York, Feb 23 (Just Earth News/IBNS)The top United Nations humanitarian official in Iraq has said she is deeply worried about thousands of civilians who are trapped in Fallujah city and in Sinjar district and are unable to access aid, calling on Government officials to redouble efforts to relocate civilians to safer areas before the situation deteriorates further.
UN panel chief, Thabo Mbeki, urges action plans to tackle illicit financial flow from Africa
Feb 20, 2016, at 03:06 pm
New York, Feb 20 (Just Earth News/IBNS) Addressing billions of illicit financial outflows from Africa is imperative as the continent needs domestic resources for its development, said the former President of South Africa, Thabo Mbeki, who chairs a United Nations panel on the issue, urging the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and partner institutions to relevant elaborate action plans.
South Sudan on ‘verge of fragmenting,’ UN officials warn Security Council
Feb 20, 2016, at 02:54 pm
New York, Feb 20 (Just Earth News/IBNS) With senior United Nations officials warning of escalating inter-communal violence and rampant human rights violations in South Sudan, the Security Council on Friday strongly condemned all attacks and provocations against civilians and the UN by armed actors, and called for calm on all sides.
Afghanistan recommits to ending recruitment of children in security forces – UN envoy
Feb 20, 2016, at 02:50 pm
New York, Feb 20 (Just Earth News/IBNS) Following a mission to Afghanistan, the United Nations envoy dealing with children and armed conflict issues, has welcomed the Government's recommitment to fully implementing its plan to end and prevent the recruitment and use of children in the national security forces.
Feb 19, 2016, at 03:10 pm
New York, Feb 19 (Just Earth News/IBNS) Seriously concerned at the ongoing conflict in Yemen and the dire humanitarian conflict it has produced, the United Nations Security Council on Friday urged all parties to the conflict in Yemen to take urgent steps towards resuming a ceasefire.
Yemen: UN envoy calls on Security Council to support efforts towards cessation of hostilities
Feb 18, 2016, at 02:32 pm
New York, Feb 18 (Just Earth News/IBNS) A deep divide between the warring parties in Yemen, following the collapse of a truce, is forestalling the next round of peace talks, the United Nations envoy told the Security Council on Wednesday as he depicted a tragic picture of the political situation there.
Senior UN relief official calls on Israel to halt demolitions in West Bank immediately
Feb 18, 2016, at 02:03 pm
New York, Feb 18 (Just Earth News/IBNS) A senior United Nations humanitarian official on Wednesday called for an immediate halt to the destruction of Palestinian-owned property in the occupied West Bank and for respect for international law.
UN mission in Central African Republic aims to ensure victims of alleged abuse receive help
Feb 17, 2016, at 03:17 pm
New York, Feb 17 (Just Earth News/IBNS) The United Nations is working to ensure that the victims involved in four new allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse involving UN peacekeepers in the Central African Republic (CAR) have access to the help they need, a spokesperson for the world body said on Wednesday.
At Security Council, UN relief chief spotlights need to end 'human catastrophe' in Yemen
Feb 17, 2016, at 03:12 pm
New York, Feb 17 (Just Earth News/IBNS) With a human catastrophe unfolding in Yemen, the Security Council and the international community must urge the parties to the conflict to ensure unconditional and sustained humanitarian access to all parts of the country, and take greater measures to protect civilians, the top United Nations emergency relief official said on Wednesday.
China's clampdown on lawyers and activists draws concern of UN human rights chief
Feb 17, 2016, at 03:06 pm
New York, Feb 17 (Just Earth News/IBNS) The top United Nations human rights official announced on Tuesday he has sought clarifications from the Chinese authorities about the recent arrests of lawyers, and intimidation of Government critics and workers of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), describing these incidents as “a very worrying pattern†that has serious implications for the activities of civil society there.
Syria: UN 'gravely concerned' over repeated attacks on hospitals, school
Feb 17, 2016, at 03:01 pm
New York, Feb 17 (Just Earth News/IBNS) The United Nations human rights office on Tuesday expressed grave concern over airstrikes on Mondayin Syria that hit at least four hospitals and a school, reportedly killing more than 45 people and injuring dozens of others.
Conflicts and violence take 'huge toll' on children in 2015 - UN envoy
Feb 16, 2016, at 03:14 pm
New York, Feb 16 ( (Just Earth News/IBNS) Increasingly complex and widening conflicts have taken a huge toll on children in much of the Middle East in 2015, with parts of Africa and Asia facing protracted and relapsing wars that show no signs of abating, a senior United Nations child rights official said on Monday.
UN experts urge Nigeria to make areas freed from Boko Haram 'truly safe' for returnees
Feb 16, 2016, at 03:13 pm
New York, Feb 16 ( (Just Earth News/IBNS) United Nations human rights experts have urged the Nigerian Government to ensure that the areas they claim to have liberated from Boko Haram forces are truly safe for the displaced persons to return.
World's most vulnerable must benefit from promise and ideals of UN Charter - Ban
Feb 16, 2016, at 03:05 pm
New York, Feb 16 ( (Just Earth News/IBNS) Although important steps were taken over the past year to uphold the values and advance the vision set out in the United Nations Charter, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stressed today that bringing the promise of the Organization's founding document to the most vulnerable must continue to be the goal of its Member States.
Haiti: UN welcomes election of provisional President
Feb 16, 2016, at 02:55 pm
New York, Feb 16 ( (Just Earth News/IBNS) United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, as well as the UN and its partners in Haiti, have welcomed the 14 February election by the Haitian National Assembly of Jocelerme Privert as the island nation's interim President, one week after the departure of former President Michel Martelly.
UN agency delivers added food supplies to besieged area inside Yemen's Taiz city
Feb 16, 2016, at 02:48 pm
New York, Feb 16 ( (Just Earth News/IBNS) For the second time this year, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has managed to deliver food inside an area undergoing heavy fighting in the central Yemeni city of Taiz, where residents are in desperate need of external food assistance.
Engagement with communities can help address factors underlying violent extremism - UN chief
Feb 14, 2016, at 02:53 pm
New York, Feb 14 (Just Earth News/IBNS) Fully understanding those who might be susceptible to poisonous ideologies – addressing root causes of radicalization and helping individuals and communities before problems escalate – will assist the international community in developing effective, dignified and rights-based responses to "one of the gravest threats our world faces," United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Saturday.
Syria: UN-backed task force seeks aid access to besieged areas 'without delay'
Feb 13, 2016, at 03:21 pm
New York, Feb 13 (Just Earth News/IBNS) Following agreement late yesterday by diplomats meeting in Munich as part of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) to work with Syrian parties to implement a nationwide cessation of hostilities, a United Nations-backed task force met on Friday on quickly delivering aid to besieged towns and war-weary civilians in hard to reach areas across the country.
Ahead of elections in Central African Republic, UN urges focus on children's needs
Feb 13, 2016, at 03:18 pm
New York, Feb 13 (Just Earth News/IBNS) As voters in the Central African Republic (CAR) prepare for the second round of presidential and legislative elections on Sunday, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is urging the candidates to make strong commitments to invest in the survival, education and protection of children to ensure lasting peace in the country.
'Rise to the challenges' to shape a common future, UN chief tells McGill students
Feb 13, 2016, at 03:11 pm
New York, Feb 13 (Just Earth News/IBNS) Humanitarian action must address the concerns of young people, who should be mobilized and empowered to effect lasting change, United NationsSecretary-General Ban Ki-moon told students at McGill University in Montreal earlier today, as part of a three-day visit to Canada.
'Child soldiers are boys and girls we collectively failed to protect' - UN envoy
Feb 13, 2016, at 03:02 pm
New York, Feb 13 (Just Earth News/IBNS) An upsurge in global conflicts and brutal war tactics continues to make children extremely vulnerable to recruitment and use by armed groups, the United Nations warned on Friday, appealing to the international community to take greater responsibility for the boys and girls used as child soldiers or risk failing to protect them.
Syria: diplomats agree 'cessation of hostilities;' UN rights chief warns of dire situation in Aleppo
Feb 12, 2016, at 03:43 pm
New York, Feb 12 (Just Earth News/IBNS) As the United Nations human rights chief warned on Thursday of “shocking†violence and abuses in and around the city of Aleppo and other parts of war-ravaged Syria, top-level diplomats meeting in Munich on ending the crisis agreed to work out the terms of nationwide “cessation of hostilities†in the coming week.