World News in Brief: Ethiopia food aid resumes, ‘Stop the Lies’ campaign against big tobacco, Syria ruling, climate action – key to peace

World News in Brief: Ethiopia food aid resumes, ‘Stop the Lies’ campaign against big tobacco, Syria ruling, climate action – key to peace

WFP food aid in the country, which was suspended in June, will aim to reach 3.2 million people after the relaunch. ‘Working around the clock’ WFP chief Cindy McCain said that the agency’s teams and partners “have been working around the clock to get to this point.” The UN agency’s new approach will rely on…

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Gaza: UN agencies make plea for international action to end hospital attacks

Gaza: UN agencies make plea for international action to end hospital attacks

The regional directors of the UN sexual and reproductive health agency (UNFPA), children’s agency UNICEF and health agency WHO, said they were “horrified” at latest reports which indicate many have been killed – including children – in facilities across Gaza city and other northern areas of the Strip. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society is reporting…

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Women in Islam: Mohammed calls for action on education, empowerment and peace

Women in Islam: Mohammed calls for action on education, empowerment and peace

Addressing an international conference in Jeddah on the rights and the role of women in Islam, she called for action in the areas of education, economic empowerment and peace.  End Israel-Gaza conflict  With “the human catastrophe unfolding in Israel and Gaza”, she reiterated the Secretary-General’s condemnation of the killing of civilians, and the taking of…

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Countries urged to take more action against chemical pollution

Climate action: ‘Take steps to close the adaptation gap, now’

The Adaptation Gap Report 2023 issued by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), says the world is underprepared, under invested and lacking the necessary planning, leaving us all exposed. It warns that instead of speeding up, progress on adapting to climate change is stalling. The slowdown extends to finance, planning and implementation, says UNEP, with massive…

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World Habitat Day focuses on cities as drivers of growth

UN calls for global action to turn cities into engines of sustainable development

“World Cities Day is a time to consider the pivotal role cities play in sustainable development,” said António Guterres, setting the stage for a global call to action. Cities, he noted, are not only engines of economic growth but are also at the forefront of the world’s most pressing challenges. From the climate crisis to widening…

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Tackling climate mis/disinformation: ‘An urgent frontier for action’

Tackling climate mis/disinformation: ‘An urgent frontier for action’

Scientists agree that climate change is real and is caused by unsustainable human activity such as the burning of fossil fuels, yet certain actors continue to spread mis- and disinformation, creating harmful misperceptions that can stifle effective climate action. Climate action is one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. In a discussion Tackling mis/dis-information: An urgent…

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Upcoming COP28 summit must ‘respond decisively’ to gaps in global climate action

Upcoming COP28 summit must ‘respond decisively’ to gaps in global climate action

Ms. Mohammed, delivering opening remarks to a preparatory meeting, or Pre-Cop, being held in Abu Dahbi, underscored that the next UN climate summit was being convened at a critical moment in the fight against the climate crisis. The summit’s main outcome is under the so-called Global Stocktake, and it needs to respond decisively to the…

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