For the next six months, the Bab al-Hawa border crossing will be accessible and allow much-needed assistance to reach millions of people in northwest Syria. Bab al-Hawa has been used since 2014, when the UN Security Council authorized cross-border relief deliveries “across conflict lines”. Around 85 per cent of aid deliveries have passed through Bab…
“We mourn those killed, whose memory will never fade. We remember the terrible destruction wrought upon this city and Hiroshima. We honour the unrelenting strength and resilience of the people of Nagasaki to rebuild,” he said. New arms race Yet despite the terrible lessons of 1945, humanity is now facing a new arms race as…
Services at the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)’s Health Centre II were suspended last week following clashes between Palestinian armed groups at the Ein El Hilweh camp, the largest Palestine refugee camp in Lebanon. At least 13 people were killed, more than 60 injured, and thousands displaced…
Climate change crisis Speaking at the end of his four-day visit on Wednesday, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk provided a first-hand account of the impact of climate change in Basra, in the country’s south. “In 50-degree-Celsius heat, in the midst of drought-ridden and barren fields, local community leaders and representatives showed me…
The 315-mile swim, roughly 507 kilometres, will take him from the river’s source in the Adirondack Mountains to where it meets the Atlantic Ocean in New York City, home to UN Headquarters. Mr. Pugh headed for the Hudson on Wednesday and expects to complete the journey shortly before 20 September, when nations will begin ratifying…
“There needs to be a negotiated solution to end this war as soon as possible. There is no other alternative,” said Martha Pobee, the UN Assistant Secretary-General for Africa, whose portfolio covers both political and peacebuilding affairs. “The longer this war continues, the greater the risk of fragmentation, and foreign interference and erosion of sovereignty,…
“The risk remains of a more dangerous variant emerging that could cause a sudden increase in cases and deaths,” he said. EG.5 is a sublineage of the omicron variant and has been detected in 51 countries, including the United States, China, South Korea and Japan, according to an initial risk evaluation. While overall risk is…
As many young Indigenous People are engaging in climate action, human rights and cultural conservation, the message from UN Secretary-General António Guterres resonates loudly – this year, it’s all about the youth. “We celebrate young Indigenous Peoples, and their role in creating change and shaping the future,” he said in his message for the Day….
A pregnant woman and a young child died when two boats carrying scores of migrants sank in rough seas off the Italian island of Lampedusa on Sunday, according to media reports. The boats had reportedly departed from Sfax, Tunisia, and many of the passengers were believed to be from sub-Saharan African countries. In a statement…
“The global average temperature for July 2023 is confirmed to be the highest on record for any month,” said Samantha Burgess, Deputy Director at the European Commission’s Copernicus Climate Change Service. “The month is estimated to have been around 1.5C warmer than the average for 1815 to 1900, so the average for pre-industrial times.” Briefing journalists…
