'Collective amnesia’ over causes of global financial crash - human rights expert

Nov 30, 2018, at 08:08 am

New York, Nov 30 (IBNS): 10 years on, governments are experiencing collective amnesia towards of one of the biggest factors behind the 2008 global financial crash –the housing crisis – which has not been addressed and is only getting worse, said Leilani Farha, UN Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, in a statement on Thursday.

Madagascar: UN chief commends nation on first round of peaceful elections

Nov 30, 2018, at 07:53 am

New York, Nov 30 (IBNS): The results of the first round of voting to choose Madagascar’s next President were announced on Wednesday, prompting the UN chief to commend the peaceful nature of the vote, which now moves to a second round run-off next month.

Canada: Conservatives call for official resignation of Raj Grewal

Nov 29, 2018, at 06:37 pm

Ottawa, Nov 29 (IBNS): Federal Conservatives have called for an official resignation of Liberal MP Raj Grewal, media reports said.

At least 27 Taliban militants killed in Afghanistan

Nov 29, 2018, at 01:22 pm

Kabul, Nov 29 (IBNS) : At least 27 militants of the Red Unit of Taliban were killed during the airstrikes in eastern Nangarhar province of Afghanistan.

Kabul: Car-bomb explosion leaves 11 injured

Nov 29, 2018, at 09:04 am

Kabul, Nov 29 (IBNS): A car-bomb exploded outside a  foreigners’ camp in Afghanistan's Kabul city on Wednesday which left at least 11 people injured, media reports said.

Africa Forum aims to boost business, reduce costs, help countries trade out of poverty

Nov 29, 2018, at 09:01 am

New York, Nov 29 Better transport, logistics and foreign investment are essential to smooth the way for the African continent to reduce trade hurdles, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

‘Global trust’ declining, ‘our world needs stepped-up global leadership’

Nov 29, 2018, at 08:51 am

New York, Nov 29 (IBNS): On the eve of the G20 international forum in Argentina, and ahead of next week’s COP24 climate conference in Katowice, Poland, UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for global leadership to be stepped up, “at a time of declining global trust.”

Afghanistan can rely on international support along harrowing road to peace, and beyond

Nov 29, 2018, at 08:47 am

New York, Nov 29 (IBNS): Afghanistan has undertaken significant reforms which the international community will continue to support long after peace is secured in the war-torn country, a top UN official pledged on Wednesday.

Negotiated two-State solution still ‘the only option’ for Palestine: Guterres

Nov 29, 2018, at 08:43 am

New York, Nov 29 (IBNS): A two-State solution where Israel and Palestine live side-by-side as sovereign nations is still “the only option” for lasting peace, and “containing the situation is not sufficient,” United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said on Wednesday, marking the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

World cannot be transformed without ‘ingenuity of the countries of the South’: UN Chief

Nov 29, 2018, at 08:34 am

New York, Nov 28 (IBNS): The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the plan to transform the world agreed at the UN by 193 countries, cannot happen without “the ideas, energy, and tremendous ingenuity of the countries of the South,” said UN chief António Guterres on Wednesday, speaking at the opening session of the 2018 Global South-South Development Expo (GSSD Expo), alongside María Fernanda Espinosa, President of the General Assembly, and other senior UN officials.

Increasingly under attack, women human rights defenders need better back up

Nov 29, 2018, at 08:31 am

New York, Nov 28 (IBNS): A group of United Nations human rights experts issued a joint statement on Wednesday calling on States to live up to their commitments to protect women human rights defenders, as they come under increasing attack, and with inadequate protection.

Central American migrants must be protected, urge UN experts

Nov 29, 2018, at 08:29 am

New York, Nov 29 (IBNS): Migrants who have made, or who are making the journey to the United States border in caravans confront increasing threats to their lives, liberty and security, United Nations independent experts said on Wednesday, calling for their full protection.

Canada Post says parcel delivery may be delayed

Nov 28, 2018, at 06:32 pm

Ottawa, Nov 28 (IBNS): Canada Post workers have been forced to join works with back-to-work legislation, which was passed in the House of Commons last week, media reports said.

Syrian man who was living in Malaysia airport reaches Canada

Nov 28, 2018, at 06:15 pm

Vancouver, Nov 28 (IBNS): Syrian man, who had spent seven months in the Malaysia airport, has finally arrived in Canada, media reports said.

Attack on Karachi consulate will not affect relationship between China and Pakistan: Officials

Nov 28, 2018, at 05:46 pm

Beijing, Nov 28 (IBNS): In the wake of the recent attack on the Chinese Consulate in Karachi city of Pakistan, China on Tuesday said such an incident will not  affect the relationship between the two countries.

Polio cases touch 20 in Afghanistan

Nov 28, 2018, at 05:42 pm

Kabul, Nov 28 (IBNS): The 20th instance of polio has been reported from Afghanistan this year, officials said.

Nepal: American climber dies on Mt Ama Dablam

Nov 28, 2018, at 05:23 pm

Kathmandu, Nov 28 (IBNS): An American climber died  on Mt Ama Dablam in Nepal on Wednesday, media reports said.

Pakistan: Imran Khan performs groundbreaking of Kartarpur corridor

Nov 28, 2018, at 03:49 pm

Islamabad, Nov 28 (IBNS): In a major development, Pakistan PM Imran Khan on Wednesday  performed the groundbreaking of the corridor connecting Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur area of his nation.

28 ISIS-K, Taliban militants killed in Afghan and U.S. forces operations

Nov 28, 2018, at 02:32 pm

Kabul, Nov 28 (IBNS) :At least 28 militants were killed during the separate operations conducted by the Afghan and U.S. forces in eastern Nangarhar and northeastern Kapisa provinces of the country.

Afghanistan: 25 passengers abducted by suspected terrorists

Nov 28, 2018, at 09:52 am

Kabul, Nov 28 (IBNS): At least 25 passengers were kidnapped by suspected terrorists from  Zari district of northern Balkh province in Afghanistan on Tuesday, media reports said.

China: Blast near chemical plant kills 22

Nov 28, 2018, at 09:26 am

Beijing, Nov 28 (IBNS): At least 22 people were killed as a blast occurred near a chemical factory in northern China on Wednesday, media reports said.

Migration deal U-turns ‘reflect poorly’ on countries concerned: UN Special Representative

Nov 28, 2018, at 09:12 am

Dubai, Nov 28 (IBNS): In an exclusive interview with UN News, Louise Arbour, the UN Special Representative for International Migration, said on Tuesday that the stated intention of several countries (including Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic and Austria) to pull out of the Global Compact for migration reflects poorly on them, and has seriously affected the spirit of multilateralism.

‘At risk’ Mediterranean forests make ‘vital contributions’ to development

Nov 28, 2018, at 09:06 am

New York, Nov 28 (IBNS): Between 2010 and 2015, forests around the Mediterranean have expanded by two per cent, but that has come at the price of significant degradation and increasing vulnerability to climate change, population pressures, wildfires and water scarcity, warned a new UN report launched on Tuesday.

UN chief highlights action across borders for ‘stable and prosperous Eurasia’

Nov 28, 2018, at 09:00 am

New York, Nov 28 (IBNS): Challenges such as climate change, violent extremism, illegal drugs and people trafficking, all require countries to work together across borders, to formulate creative and coordinated solutions, the United Nations Secretary-General said on Tuesday.

Suffering of thousands of war-affected Syrian children ‘unprecedented and unacceptable’

Nov 28, 2018, at 08:57 am

New York, Nov 28 (IBNS): Well over 7,000 child casualties in Syria’s brutal armed conflict have been verified over the last five years, but this is just “the tip of the iceberg,” the United Nations Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the crisis lamented on Tuesday, with thousands more cases likely going unreported.

UN launches new fund to advance sustainable development in Aral Sea region

Nov 28, 2018, at 08:52 am

New York, Nov 28 (IBNS): UN Secretary-General António Guterres has urged countries to fund a new initiative designed to reduce vulnerability, advance sustainable development and create decent living conditions for millions of people living around the Aral Sea, whose basin encompasses Uzbekistan, and six other countries in Central Asia.

‘Dire consequences’ for a million children in the Middle East, North Africa, as funding dwindles

Nov 28, 2018, at 08:45 am

New York, Nov 28 (IBNS): Amidst a $33 million funding shortfall, plunging temperatures in the Middle East and North Africa pose a major threat to children in the region, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Tuesday.

Despite violence, ‘tremendous hunger’ for peace in Afghanistan: top UN official

Nov 28, 2018, at 08:40 am

New York, Nov 28 (IBNS): high-level international conference on Afghanistan got underway at the UN in Geneva on Tuesday to show solidarity for the war-torn country’s people and help strengthen Government efforts to promote development, along with wider peace and security.

Afghanistan: Three US soldiers killed in IED blast

Nov 27, 2018, at 07:12 pm

Kabul, Nov  27 (IBNS): Three US service members were killed and four others, including a contractor, injured in an IED blast close to Afghanistan's Ghazni city, media reports said on Tuesday.

Burglary at High Commission in Dhaka: Pakistan Foreign Office lodges protest with Bangladesh

Nov 27, 2018, at 05:10 pm

Islamabad, Nov 27 (IBNS): The Pakistan Foreign Office on Tuesday said it has lodged 'strong protest' with the Bangladesh's authorities over the burglary incident in the Pakistan High Commission in Dhaka.