World News in Brief: Wave of ‘fear and dread’ in Ukraine, UN expert slams Navalny disappearance, youth leaders for nuclear disarmament meet

World News in Brief: Wave of ‘fear and dread’ in Ukraine, UN expert slams Navalny disappearance, youth leaders for nuclear disarmament meet

That’s according to UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Regional Director Regina De Dominicis who said in a statement on Monday that bombardment was “particularly unrelenting” in the east and south of the country. The UNICEF official said the past week provided a concerning trend with an increase in ballistic missiles and mass drone attacks, including widespread…

Read More
UN teams up with FIFA at Women’s World Cup in score for gender equality

‘Illegal betting is the number one factor fuelling corruption in sports’, UN conference hears

The discussions at the international anti-corruption conference, convened in Atlanta by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), held between 11 and 15 December, built on the ground-breaking Global Report on Corruption in Sport, produced by the UNODC in 2021, which pointed to a dramatic increase in illegal betting, fuelled by the billions of dollars flowing through…

Read More
UN workers delivering aid to Gaza hospital describe ‘bloodbath’ in overflowing emergency department

UN workers delivering aid to Gaza hospital describe ‘bloodbath’ in overflowing emergency department

According to the team, Patients with trauma injuries were being sutured on the floor, limited to no pain management is available at the hospital, and the emergency department is so full that workers must take care not to step on patients on the floor.  Al-Shifa Hospital, formerly the most important and largest referral hospital in…

Read More
Global Refugee Forum ends with bold pledges, solutions for displaced

Global Refugee Forum ends with bold pledges, solutions for displaced

Speaking at the closing of the Global Refugee Forum, the Secretary-General said that protection and help for these most vulnerable of people, was “an obligation shared by all of humanity”.  He was speaking after three days of intensive activity geared to finding solutions and building partnerships, which saw pledges from multiple stakeholders that have the potential…

Read More
Draw inspiration from human rights advocates worldwide, urges Guterres

Draw inspiration from human rights advocates worldwide, urges Guterres

Speaking at the awards ceremony of the UN Prize in the Field of Human Rights for 2023, Mr. Guterres stressed that rights defenders themselves were in need of greater protection. “The world needs leaders of countries, corporations, political parties, religious and civil organizations and beyond, to speak out against antisemitism, anti-Muslim bigotry, attacks on minority…

Read More
Homicide a bigger killer than armed conflict and terrorism combined

Over 700 a day dying from small arms fire; main ‘weapons of choice’ for criminals and terrorists

That’s according to Izumi Nakamitsu, High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, who briefed the Security Council on Friday, quoting the latest figures available. “This is more than 700 people a day, or one person dying from small arms every two minutes”, she said. She added that “small arms and light weapons are the weapons of choice…

Read More
World News in Brief: Abused Afghan women face prison, UNICEF global alert, deadly mpox resurfaces in DRC

World News in Brief: Abused Afghan women face prison, UNICEF global alert, deadly mpox resurfaces in DRC

That’s just one of the shocking findings of a new report by the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), which found that instead of filing a formal complaint, many survivors prefer seeking redress through “traditional dispute resolution mechanisms” within the community for fear of the de facto authorities – including “fear of revictimization”. The report says…

Read More