Its new session beginning on Monday is the longest ever, running until April, and promises a packed agenda, with ongoing wars in Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine, the situation of human rights defenders worldwide and more than 50 national human rights records under scrutiny. But, what does the Human Rights Council do and why does its work…
More than 7,000 delegates from 182 countries are scheduled to take part in the sixth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-6) which runs through Friday. Delegates are convening in the Kenyan capital as climate change intensifies, a million species face the risk of extinction, and pollution remains among the world’s leading causes of…
Writing on the social media platform X, Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said that “aid was supposed to increase not decrease” to meet the huge needs of Gaza’s two million people, who are living in desperate conditions. He listed some of the obstacles to aid delivery, including lack of political will, the regular closing of the two…
Addressing the Human Rights Council in Geneva at the start of its first high-level session of the year, the UN chief insisted that any further extension of Israel’s ground operation in the south of Gaza “would not only be terrifying for more than a million Palestinian civilians sheltering there; it would put the final nail…
Set up as a sort of ‘world parliament on the environment’, UNEA aims to define priorities for environmental policies and develop international legislation on the matter. Why is UNEA important? The 2024 Environment Assembly, or UNEA-6, is expected to host a record 6,000 delegates, including seven Heads of State and 139 Ministers and Vice-Ministers, as…
UN News’s Daniel Dickinson travelled to Madagascar ahead of the United Nations Environment Assembly, which is taking place in Nairobi, Kenya, from 26 February, to ask people how they are coping. Life is becoming increasingly challenging in the village of Zanavo Fagnalenga on the southernmost tip of Madagascar. Years of under-development, a series of humanitarian…
“They were flying by helicopter from the direction of the cargo airport in Hostomel [north of Bucha]. Then they marched with tanks along Vokzalna Street, crossed the railway and moved in the direction of Kyiv,” says Mykhaylina Skoryk-Shkarivska, founder of the Institute for Sustainable Development of Communities in Bucha and deputy of the Irpin City…
“For nearly a year now, accounts coming out of Sudan have been of death, suffering and despair, as the senseless conflict and human rights violations and abuses have persisted with no end in sight,” said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk. The report details multiple indiscriminate attacks by both the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and…
In a new report, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) noted a broad range of concerns, including unlawful killings, hostage-taking, destruction of civilian property, collective punishment, forced displacement, incitement to hatred and violence, sexual assault, and torture. These acts are all prohibited by international human rights and humanitarian laws. “The…
“As we reflect on the two years of anguish and hardship, let us emerge from this place with a resounding message of solidarity and unwavering support to the resilient people of Ukraine,” he said, speaking on the eve of the solemn anniversary. The UN Security Council is also set to meet on Ukraine later on…
