World faces ‘climate apartheid’ risk, 120 more million in poverty: UN expert
Jun 26, 2019, at 09:57 am
New York, June 26 (IBNS): Climate change “threatens to undo the last 50 years” of development, global health and poverty reduction, a United Nations expert said on Tuesday, citing the risk of a new era of “climate apartheid” where the rich buy their way out of rising heat and hunger.
Moratorium call on surveillance technology to end ‘free-for-all’ abuses: UN expert
Jun 26, 2019, at 09:49 am
New York, June 26 (IBNS): Surveillance technology should be banned immediately until “effective” national or international controls are put in place to lessen its harmful impact, a UN-appointed independent rights expert said on Tuesday.
Jun 21, 2019, at 10:02 am
New York, June 21 (IBNS): Although the Government of the Central African Republic (CAR), armed groups and civil society representatives are all taking part in the process that followed the signing of a deal signed in February, civilians continue to suffer daily acts of violence, the top UN official in the country told the Security Council on Thursday.
UN Security Council calls for protection of persons with disabilities in conflict zones
Jun 21, 2019, at 09:49 am
New York, June 21 (IBNS): The Security Council on Thursday adopted its first-ever resolution calling on UN Member States and warring parties to protect persons with disabilities in conflict situations and to ensure they have access to justice, basic services and unimpeded humanitarian assistance.
Persistent threat of war erodes prospects for Middle East peace, Security Council told
Jun 21, 2019, at 09:29 am
New York, June 21 (IBNS): Developments in the Middle East cannot be divorced from Israel’s military occupation of Palestinian territory and settlement-building, or Hamas’ hold over Gaza and its militant activity, a senior United Nations envoy told the Security Council on Thursday, warning that these actions “collectively erode the prospects of a two-State solution”.
Record number of Venezuelans arrive in Peru: UN steps up response
Jun 17, 2019, at 09:40 am
New York, June 17 (IBNS): The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, has sent extra teams this week to the border between Peru and Ecuador to support the authorities, as an unprecedent number of Venezuelan refugees and migrants – over 15,000 – have entered Peru this week.
UN suspending handover of camps in Darfur, peacekeeping chief tells Security Council
Jun 15, 2019, at 07:04 am
New York, June 15 (IBNS): The joint African Union-UN Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), is suspending the handover of any more camps for displaced civilians to the Sudanese military, against a backdrop of worsening violence and insecurity across the country.
UN cooperation with League of Arab States ‘pivotal’, UN chief tells Security Council
Jun 14, 2019, at 11:41 am
New York, June 14 (IBNS): Global problems require global solutions that rely on “essential” partnerships, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres told the Security Council on Thursday, stating that “our cooperation with the League of Arab States is pivotal”.
Tragedy of Mediterranean deaths continues, as seven drown, 57 rescued: UN migration agency
Jun 12, 2019, at 09:35 am
New York, June 12 (IBNS): A rescue operation on the Mediterranean concluded on Tuesday with confirmation that seven people drowned and 57 were rescued, following a shipwreck off the Greek island of Lesvos, the UN migration agency, IOM, said.
Macron leads EU-wide minimum wage call as Merkel, Medvedev warn of global injustice
Jun 12, 2019, at 09:22 am
New York, June 12 (IBNS): “Fundamental change” to the world of work – including an EU-wide minimum wage – is needed to address the growing gap between society’s haves and have-nots, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday.
Jun 11, 2019, at 10:13 am
New York, June 11 (IBNS): Nearly 100 people were reportedly killed during an attack on a traditional Dogon hunters’ village in Mali on Sunday, prompting a call from UN chief António Guterres for authorities to act fast and “bring the perpetrators to justice”.
The future of work ‘with social justice for all’ tops agenda of centenary UN Labour conference
Jun 11, 2019, at 10:07 am
New York, June 11 (IBNS): The Centenary International Labour Conference got underway on Monday at the UN in Geneva, with ILO chief Guy Ryder, calling on hundreds of delegates from around the world to help “construct a future of work, with social justice for all”.
UN makes ‘declaration of digital interdependence’, with release of tech report
Jun 11, 2019, at 10:01 am
New York, June 11 (IBNS): The digital future must be safer and more inclusive, says a new tech report, “the Age of Digital Interdependence”, released on Monday by the UN High Level Panel on Digital Cooperation, almost a year after the Panel was launched by Secretary-General António Guterres.
Jun 11, 2019, at 09:49 am
New York, June 11 (IBNS): The United Nations has urged all parties to the “ongoing intense conflict” across Afghanistan to meet their obligations to protect civilians from harm, denouncing a spate of attacks by militants which killed more than 100 civilians in Kabul alone during Ramadan.
Jun 05, 2019, at 09:14 am
New York, June 5 (IBNS): Against a backdrop of challenges in implementing the peace process in Colombia, six independent UN human rights experts condemned on Tuesday the killing of a former member of the FARC-EP guerilla movement, which they said constitutes a “violation” of the guarantees made by the Government in the 2016 peace agreement.
Jun 02, 2019, at 03:33 pm
New York, June 2 (IBNS): Kicking off on Saturday the first-ever global Parenting Month, the United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, is calling on world leaders to invest in family-friendly policies that support parents to give their children “the best start in life”.
May 31, 2019, at 09:21 am
New York, May 31 (IBNS): “To reflect critical advances in science and medicine”, the World Health Organization, WHO, has removed so-called “gender identity disorder” from its official manual of diagnoses, which is being hailed as a major win for transgender rights.
The UN’s unyielding effort to tackle sexual abuse and exploitation: our quarterly update
May 31, 2019, at 09:15 am
New York, May 31 (IBNS): In the first quarter of 2019, according to latest figures released on Thursday, the United Nations recorded a total of 37 allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) against UN personnel, including civilian and uniformed personnel from peacekeeping operations, agencies, funds and programmes. So far, most of these allegations remain under investigation.
A ‘strong and united Europe’ has never been more needed, declares UN chief Guterres
May 31, 2019, at 09:10 am
New York, May 31 (IBNS): With the post-world war international institutions eroded and under threat, a “strong and united Europe” standing alongside the United Nations, has never been more essential, said UN chief António Guterres in Germany on Thursday.
May 29, 2019, at 08:52 am
New York, May 29 (IBNS): After eight years of deadly air strikes and terrorist attacks that have left hundreds of thousands of Syrians dead and millions of others injured, United Nations Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator Ursula Mueller asked the Security Council on Tuesday, the hard-hitting question: “Can’t this Council take any concrete action when attacks on schools and hospitals have become a war tactic that no longer sparks outrage”?
UN honours peacekeepers who ‘paid the ultimate price’, for the sake of others
May 25, 2019, at 07:54 am
New York, May 25 (IBNS): Ever since the UN deployed the first of its 72 peacekeeping missions back in 1948, more than 3,800 peacekeepers have lost their lives, Secretary-General António Guterres said on Friday, at a wreath laying ceremony in honour of those “brave men and women” who serve.
May 24, 2019, at 04:39 pm
New York, May 24 (IBNS): Marking 20 years since the UN Security Council added the protection of civilians to its agenda, Secretary-General António Guterres told the chamber on Thursday that while safeguards were stronger, “compliance has deteriorated”.
Preserving biodiversity vital to reverse tide of climate change, UN stresses on International Day
May 23, 2019, at 07:11 am
New York, May 23 (IBNS): The food people eat around the world is becoming “alarmingly homogenous” according to UN data, even though access to a wide variety of nutritious food has never been greater. That warning comes as the world marks the International Day for Biological Diversity on Wednesday, which this year highlights the impact of environmental neglect on food security and public health.
Amidst high trade tensions and policy uncertainty, UN cuts economic growth forecast
May 22, 2019, at 09:29 am
New York, May 22 (IBNS) Against a backdrop of unresolved trade tensions, high international policy uncertainty and softening business confidence, the UN on Tuesday announced a broad-based slowdown in the global economy and cut its growth predictions.
UN sanctions committee warns of threats of IS and al-Qaida
May 21, 2019, at 09:56 am
United Nations, May 21 (Xinhua/UNI) A UN sanctions committee against the Islamic State (IS) and al-Qaida warned on Monday that the IS is evolving into a global network while al-Qaida may grow stronger.
Cambodia: Giving back to UN peacekeeping
May 21, 2019, at 09:09 am
New York, May 21 (IBNS): It’s an overcast morning, in South Sudan’s capital Juba, and growling thunder announces the start of some light rain. Standing in the drizzle in his military police uniform, is Colonel Channy Vongvannak, the commander of the Cambodian Force Military Police at the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
May 20, 2019, at 09:39 am
New York, May 20 (IBNS): Celebrating the importance of fitness, on Sunday morning in the Swiss city of Geneva, the United Nations health agency kicked off its second “Walk the Talk: The Health for All Challenge”.
North Korea sends letter to UN Chief, calls its Cargo ship seizure by US 'outrageous'
May 18, 2019, at 04:49 pm
Tokyo, May 18 (Sputnik) North Korea's permanent representative to the United Nations has sent a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, stressing that the recent seizure of a North Korean cargo ship by the US forces is an "outrageous and unlawful" act, the North's official Korean Central News Agency said on Saturday.
Repatriation of extremist fighters and families to Kazakhstan, welcomed by UN rights expert
May 18, 2019, at 06:37 am
New York, May 18 (IBNS): Stressing the need for some Governments to reform their laws and policies on fighting terrorism and extremism, an independent UN human rights expert welcomed on Friday Kazakhstan’s repatriation of 231 of its citizens from conflict sites in Syria and Iraq, earlier this month.
May 17, 2019, at 08:56 am
New York, May 17 (IBNS): The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres saw the frontline of “the battle against climate change” for himself on Thursday, by taking to the tropical waters of the South Pacific off the coast of Fiji, on a solar-powered boat.