Speaking in Geneva, WMO spokesperson Clare Nullis said that a new altitude record for the freezing point had been set a day earlier, climbing to 5,298 metres (17,381 feet) – well above Europe’s very highest peaks including Mont Blanc, at 4,811 metres (15,784 feet). WMO figures show that this is 115 metres above the previous record…
A new publication from the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) presents “credible” reports that between 15 August 2021 and 30 June 2023, the country’s de facto authorities were responsible for 218 extrajudicial killings, 14 enforced disappearances, over 144 instances of torture and ill treatment, and 424 arbitrary arrests and detentions. ‘Betrayal of trust’ UN human…
At least 55 people were reported killed and over 100 injured – including civilians – in fighting between the Deterrence Apparatus for Combatting Organized Crime and Terrorism (DACOT) and the 444 Brigade, on 14 and 15 August, the head of the UN political mission in Libya, UNSMIL, told the Security Council. Lack of command and…
The study provides a global analysis of the potential exposure of occupations and tasks to generative artificial intelligence (AI) and the possible implications for job quantity and quality. It was written by three social scientists at the UN agency who predict the new technology will likely complement and not destroy jobs by automating some tasks…
The situation is particularly alarming in the east, where malnutrition has taken hold among 4.4 million people, exacerbated by compromised health services, lack of clean water, and an uptick in gender-based violence, highlighted Peter Musoko, WFP Country Director, during a press briefing in Geneva. “In my conversations with those displaced in eastern DRC, I was…
This week marks six years since over 700,000 mostly-Muslim Rohingya men, women, and children joined the hundreds of thousands of others already sheltering in Bangladesh, following a brutal crackdown by security forces in Myanmar. As humanitarian conditions in the world’s largest refugee settlement worsen, however, the challenges surrounding this protracted crisis continue to increase. Funds…
It represents the highest number of fatalities since 2005 and reflects “concerning trends” seen in recent months throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory “Palestinians and Israelis are killed and injured in near daily violence – including just hours before this briefing when another fatal shooting attack killed an Israeli in the West Bank,” he said, speaking…
Despite wide international condemnation of terrorism, victims and survivors of violence often struggle to have their voices heard, their needs supported, and their rights upheld. Most need long-term support – physical, psychological, social and financial. However, few Member States have the resources or the capacity to help those affected by terrorism fully recover, rehabilitate and…
GN Saibaba, a former English professor at Delhi University, was arrested in 2014 and accused of links to banned Maoist groups, according to media reports. He was sentenced to life imprisonment three years later for multiple offences under the country’s Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. ‘Shameful’ detention “GN Saibaba is a long-standing defender of the rights…
World Water Week is taking shape from Monday in Stockholm, Sweden. This is an annual gathering of thousands of organizations and individuals – Government experts, UN officials, scientists and academics – who come together to rethink how water is being managed. Serious challenges loom Among them is the President of the General Assembly, Csaba Kőrösi,…
