Briefing ambassadors at the UN Security Council, Geir Pedersen said that recent spike in violence, including airstrikes, rocket attacks and clashes between armed groups, underscored the urgent need for a political resolution. In addition, protests continue in some regions over unaddressed grievances and the presence of six foreign armies in the country are raising fears…
Last year saw a three per cent contraction, equalling roughly $1 trillion, compared to the record high of $32 trillion in 2022. Despite this decline, the services sector showed resilience with a $500 billion (eight per cent) increase from the previous year, while trade in goods experienced a $1.3 trillion, or five per cent, decline compared…
High Commissioner Volker Türk said, from the capital Ouagadougou, that his local office had been “engaging intensely with the authorities, civil society actors, human rights defenders, UN partners and others on many of the multifaceted human rights challenges” the country faces following a coup in January 2022 that saw Captain Ibrahim Traoré assume power. Solidarity…
“When we live in a chaotic world it’s very important to stick to principles and the principles are clear: the UN Charter, international law, the territorial integrity of countries and international humanitarian law,” the UN chief said, speaking at the opening of the European Council in Brussels. “That is the reason why we believe it…
“It’s important we don’t let the violence spill over from the capital into the country,” said Ulrika Richardson, briefing journalists at UN Headquarters via videolink from Haiti. She said orchestrated gang attacks on prisons, ports, hospitals and the palace have unfolded over the past weeks, but in the past few days these heavily armed groups…
Experts and UN leaders exchanged views about the best ways forward, centred on this year’s theme, A Decade of Recognition, Justice, and Development: Implementation of the International Decade for People of African Descent. While the decade ends in 2024, much work remains to be done, General Assembly President Dennis Francis told the world body. To galvanize…
UN rumour has it that the unofficial tradition began almost 40 years ago, when a delegate from the United Kingdom requested the floor to make a point of order at the end of an intense months-long session. The now annual tradition is flush with ribald diplomatic jocularity and acerbic wit. Watch the UK’s “poem lecture”…
In its latest update, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said that the first two weeks of March saw just 11 out of 24 missions “facilitated” by Israeli authorities. “The rest were either denied or postponed,” OCHA continued, noting that five convoys were refused entry and eight were postponed. “Facilitated missions primarily…
Based on over 2,300 testimonies from victims and witnesses, the report details measures taken by Russia to impose Russian language, citizenship, laws, court system and education curricula in the occupied areas, while at the same time suppressing expressions of Ukrainian culture and identity, and dismantling its governance and administrative systems. “The actions of the Russian…
Focusing on developments in 2023, the report builds on previous findings in the aftermath of large public protests which erupted in 2020 following a disputed presidential poll. Despite a lack of cooperation from Belarusian authorities, the UN human rights office (OHCHR) said evidence gathered shows that the scale and pattern of violations has continued. “The…
