Ukraine: Top UN relief official deplores latest deadly strikes in Kharkiv

Ukraine: Top UN relief official deplores latest deadly strikes in Kharkiv

The attacks occurred in the city’s Novobovarskyi district late on Thursday. At least three people were killed and a further 16 injured, according to media reports. The repeated missile strikes caused significant damage to residential buildings.  They also affected rescue workers rushing to the scene. In a statement issued on Friday, UN Humanitarian Coordinator for…

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Top UN officials urge comprehensive approach to Syria’s protracted crisis

Top UN officials urge comprehensive approach to Syria’s protracted crisis

Martin Griffiths, the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, highlighted the worsening humanitarian crisis, noting that 16.7 million people now require humanitarian assistance – the highest number since the conflict began 13 years ago.   He stressed that the situation is deteriorating year by year, with a particular emphasis on the ongoing protection crisis, as children continue…

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Afghanistan is ‘not a hopeless crisis’, top UN aid official says

Afghanistan is ‘not a hopeless crisis’, top UN aid official says

Afghanistan is “not a hopeless crisis,” Edem Wosornu of the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, told journalists in New York, following a recent visit to the country, Pakistan and war-wracked Sudan.  Ms. Wosornu was part of an all-woman delegation in Afghanistan, where the climate crisis has caused widespread water scarcity, generating new food, health, and…

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World News in Brief: Palestinian journalists win top press freedom prize, child migrant detention, Niger meningitis epidemic

World News in Brief: Palestinian journalists win top press freedom prize, child migrant detention, Niger meningitis epidemic

The top award for reporters who have born witness to the destruction of much of their homeland under Israel’s relentless bombardment came at the recommendation of an international jury of media professionals. “In these times of darkness and hopelessness we wish to share a strong message of solidarity and recognition to those Palestinian journalists who…

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Libyan leaders must put national interests above their own, top envoy tells Security Council

Libyan leaders must put national interests above their own, top envoy tells Security Council

Special Representative Abdoulaye Bathily told the Security Council that since the end of 2022, UN-led efforts to resolve Libya’s political crisis have encountered national and regional pushbacks, “revealing an intentional defiance to engage in earnest and a tenacity to perpetually delay elections”. “With a deep sense of disappointment, it is disheartening to witness individuals in…

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Top UN official slams Russia’s illegal elections in occupied Ukraine

Top UN official slams Russia’s illegal elections in occupied Ukraine

“Russia’s intention to conduct presidential elections from today, 15 March, until 17 March in areas of Ukraine under its control are unacceptable,” said Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, said. Under international humanitarian law, the occupying power – in this case, Russia – must uphold the laws of Ukraine in the occupied territories, she…

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UPDATING LIVE: Civilians in Israel and Palestine 'cannot be abandoned', says top UN official on sexual violence in conflict

UPDATING LIVE: Civilians in Israel and Palestine ‘cannot be abandoned’, says top UN official on sexual violence in conflict

4:02 PM Mozambique: Intervention urgently needed Domingos Estêvão Fernandes, Deputy Permanent Representative of Mozambique to the UN, said that the relentless violence between Israeli settlers and Palestinians in the Occupied West Bank, coupled with the bombardment in the Gaza Strip demanded the “immediate intervention” of the Security Council. “All parties must fully respect international humanitarian…

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South Sudan: Top UN official calls for greater political investment as polls loom

South Sudan: Top UN official calls for greater political investment as polls loom

Briefing ambassadors at the Security Council, Jean-Pierre Lacroix said that if the parties display greater political will and invest adequate resources, credible elections can still take place before the end of the transition period. “Despite the shortcomings in implementation, the peace agreement did instill a period of stability at the national level and brought opponents…

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