Pope Francis describes Uighurs of China as 'persecuted' people
Nov 25, 2020, at 04:09 am
Rome: Putting more pressure on China, Pope Francis has described the Uighur people as “persecuted” people.
UK pledges up to $207mln of development funding in 2021 to Afghanistan - Minister of State
Nov 24, 2020, at 10:10 pm
Moscow/Sputnik: The United Kingdom is pledging up to 155 million pounds ($207 million) of development funding to Afghanistan for the next year, UK Minister of State for South Asia and Commonwealth Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon said Tuesday.
UN ‘extremely concerned’ for safety of Tigray civilians in regional capital, as refugee numbers grow
Nov 24, 2020, at 10:06 pm
New York: The UN on Monday said it was “extremely concerned” over the safety of civilians across Ethiopia’s Tigray region, as fighting between Government troops and those loyal to the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) reportedly continued, with the Ethiopian Prime Minister having called on opposition forces to surrender the capital Mekelle, by Wednesday.
UN expert calls for urgent action to end ‘pandemic of femicide and violence against women’
Nov 24, 2020, at 09:33 pm
New York: COVID-19 is overshadowing what has become a “pandemic of femicide” and related gender-based violence against women and girls, said independent UN human rights expert Dubravka Šimonović on Monday, calling for the universal establishment of national initiatives to monitor and prevent such killings.
Somalia at a crossroad, UN envoy urges ‘deepened’ political consensus
Nov 24, 2020, at 03:46 pm
New York: The “broad political consensus” reached in September that ended a two-year stalemate in Somalia must be “preserved and indeed deepened”, the country’s UN envoy told the Security Council on Monday.
Italy announces temporary ban on Mink farming
Nov 24, 2020, at 02:27 pm
Rome/Sputnik: Italian Health Minister Roberto Speranza signed a decree on Monday banning mink farming until at least March, amid fears that coronavirus mutations may affect vaccine efficacy.
WHO hopes China to facilitate trip of Int'l team probing virus origins as soon as possible
Nov 24, 2020, at 02:22 pm
Moscow/Sputnik: The international expert team probing the origins of the novel coronavirus will travel to China, the World Health Organization (WHO)’s senior officials said on Monday, adding that they expect Beijing to facilitate the trip as soon as possible.
Nov 24, 2020, at 12:57 am
Canberra: Australian PM Scott Morrison has said he would not compromise his country's national security and sovereignty, amid growing bitterness in the relationship with Beijing.
France's Danone to cut up to 2,000 jobs worldwide as pandemic damage control
Nov 23, 2020, at 10:05 pm
Moscow/Sputnik: Paris-based multinational food company Danone is set to slash about 2,000 jobs both at its headquarters in the French capital and abroad as part of its recovery strategy following the COVID-19 crisis, the company announced on Monday.
Shanghai Pudong Airport shut down as all staff get tested for COVID-19: Reports
Nov 23, 2020, at 02:36 pm
Beijing/Sputnik: The Shanghai Pudong International Airport has been closed for massive coronavirus testing of the staff, the Chinese Global Times newspaper reported on Monday.
Appointment of AU envoys for Ethiopia’s Tigray crisis an 'initiative for peace': UN chief
Nov 22, 2020, at 08:40 pm
New York: UN Secretary-General António Guterres has welcomed the African Union’s (AU) appointment of three high-level envoys to help resolve the conflict in the Tigray region of Ethiopia, calling it an "initiative for peace.”
France 'shocked' by ‘deeply insulting’ comments made by Pakistan’s Human Rights Minister
Nov 22, 2020, at 04:41 pm
Paris/Sputnik: The French Foreign Ministry has condemned harsh statements against President Emmanuel Macron made by Pakistan’s Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari.
Turkish police detain 18 Islamic State suspects in Istanbul
Nov 21, 2020, at 11:18 pm
Istanbul/UNI: Turkish police launched simultaneous operations against suspected members of the Islamic State (IS) militant group in Istanbul and detained at least 18 people, local media reported on Saturday.
Poland to open shops from November 28 despite surge in COVID-19 cases - Prime Minister
Nov 21, 2020, at 10:57 pm
Warsaw/Sputnik: Trade centers and shops in Poland will resume operations starting November 28 while complying with sanitary rules, despite a surge in the number of COVID-19 cases per day, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Saturday.
Mexico announces green zones with low risk of COVID-19 in 2 regions for 1st time
Nov 21, 2020, at 10:14 pm
Mexico City/Sputnik: The Mexican Health Ministry has updated the levels of epidemiological danger for all regions of the country and announced for the first time a low level of threat in the southern state of Chiapas and neighboring Campeche.
‘Act urgently’ to stave off catastrophic famine in Yemen: Guterres
Nov 21, 2020, at 04:07 pm
New York: Yemen is in “imminent danger of the worst famine the world has seen for decades”, the UN chief warned in a statement released on Friday, calling for urgent action on the part of the international community to “stave off catastrophe”.
UN agencies uphold human rights considerations in COVID-19 data collection
Nov 21, 2020, at 03:56 pm
New York: The United Nations and 15 of its agencies have underlined their support for data collection during the COVID-19 pandemic which respects the right to privacy and promotes development.
This World Children’s Day, ‘reimagine a better future’, for every child
Nov 21, 2020, at 03:42 pm
New York: The global community is marking World Children’s Day on Friday, calling for societies to “reimagine a better future” for every child, where each one has the opportunity to thrive.
Death toll from sanitizer poisoning in Russia's Republic of Sakha rises to 7: Watchdog
Nov 21, 2020, at 03:18 pm
Moscow/Sputnik: The number of people, who have died after drinking sanitizer in Russia's Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), has risen to seven, the regional department of the federal public health watchdog, Rospotrebnadzor, said on Saturday.
Germany: Four people injured in stabbing attack in Oberhausen
Nov 20, 2020, at 09:23 pm
Berlin/UNI: Four people have been injured as a result of the stabbing attack in the western Germany city of Oberhausen, German media reported, adding that the incident is likely to have no terrorist background.
Heartbreaking stories from refugees fleeing Ethiopia violence
Nov 20, 2020, at 04:03 pm
New York: In a briefing to journalists on Thursday, a senior UN humanitarian official in Sudan recounted moving testimony from refugees who are crossing the border from Ethiopia in their thousands, fleeing fighting in Tigray province.
Libyans charting way to secure and prosperous future, but challenges lie ahead
Nov 20, 2020, at 03:54 pm
New York: Following years of political instability and conflict, Libya is making substantial progress on the path to peace, the top UN official in the country told the Security Council on Thursday.
Development funding and trade transparency needed, to stop COVID-19 dividing the world
Nov 20, 2020, at 03:24 pm
New York: The pandemic has redefined the world economy in ways that will deepen inequality and can only be reversed if a global transformation in attitudes towards trade and development allows the whole world to recover together, the UN trade body UNCTAD said, in a report published on Thursday.
Refugee resettlement numbers fall to lowest in two decades: UNHCR
Nov 20, 2020, at 03:19 pm
New York: Refugee resettlement numbers will be at a “record low” this year, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said on Wednesday, with only 15,425 people resettled in the first nine months of 2020, compared to more than 50,000 in 2019.
Future of an entire generation at risk, as COVID-19 pandemic drags on
Nov 20, 2020, at 03:08 pm
New York: While symptoms among children infected with COVID-19 mostly remain mild, infections are rising and the longer-term impact on the education, nutrition and well-being of an entire generation of young people can be life-altering, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has warned.
South Australia state going into 6-day lockdown for authorities to boost contact tracing
Nov 18, 2020, at 10:36 pm
Canberra/Sputnik: Australia's state of South Australia will lock down for the next six days in order for the authorities to carry out contact tracing in a timely manner amid an accelerated spread of the coronavirus, South Australian Premier Steven Marshall said on Wednesday.
Member of European Parliament demands sanctions on Pakistan, Turkey
Nov 18, 2020, at 10:22 pm
Brussels/UNI: As France has been the target of a series of terror attacks recently, French Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Jordan Bardella has called for strict sanctions against Turkey, Pakistan, Kuwait and Qatar.
Put digital technology to work ‘for those who need it most’: UN Secretary-General
Nov 18, 2020, at 03:48 pm
New York: While the COVID-19 pandemic has shown the importance of digital technologies and the benefits of connectivity, it has also exacerbated inequalities, including basic online access, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Tuesday in a video message to the closing session of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF).
UN releases $100 million to guard against famine
Nov 18, 2020, at 03:14 pm
New York: The United Nations released $100 million of emergency funding on Tuesday to stave off the risk of famine in seven countries most at risk from a hunger epidemic fueled by conflict, economic decline, climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic.
UN-backed fund to address crisis in global sanitation and hygiene
Nov 18, 2020, at 03:05 pm
New York: A UN-backed fund, launched on Tuesday, is set to take on the centuries-old crisis centred around sanitation, hygiene and menstrual health, which now impacts more than four billion people across the world.