Deadly shipwreck in Italy must trigger action to save lives, UN officials say

World News in Brief: UN supporting East Africa flood victims, dozens more migrant deaths at sea, disinformation in Myanmar

In a statement released late on Wednesday the UN Secretary-General António Guterres said he had been deeply distressed to hear of the hundreds of lives lost and many others affected by the deluge in Kenya as well as Burundi, Somalia, Tanzania and other parts of East Africa. He extended his condolences to the Governments and…

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Gaza protests: UN rights chief flags ‘disproportionate’ police action on US campuses

Gaza protests: UN rights chief flags ‘disproportionate’ police action on US campuses

In recent days, demonstrations unfolding through tented encampments on school grounds – sparked by students at New York’s prestigious Columbia University who are demanding authorities divest from Israel due to its occupation and military assault on Gaza – have spread nationwide. University authorities from the west to east coast have taken different approaches, ranging from…

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‘Extraordinary, deep anxiety’ in Gaza over feared Rafah attack   

‘Extraordinary, deep anxiety’ in Gaza over feared Rafah attack   

“There is an extraordinary, deep anxiety prevailing right now in Gaza because the question everybody asks is whether, yes or no, there would be a military offensive,” UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini told journalists in Geneva. Following several reports by the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, of “intensive strikes on Rafah” that caused dozens of fatalities, Mr….

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UN agencies sound alarm over renewed clashes in eastern DR Congo

World News in Brief: DR Congo conflict could spell catastrophe, plastics treaty progress, enforced disappearances rise ahead of Venezuela poll

The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) called for greater international support for the Congolese people to avoid a potential catastrophe for the country and the region. Current conflicts have escalated levels of gender-based violence, displacement and hunger in the restive eastern region where multiple armed groups are battling the national army and each other for control….

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Security Council hears of progress in Bosnia despite ‘worrying’ trend of genocide denial

Security Council hears of progress in Bosnia despite ‘worrying’ trend of genocide denial

Miroslav Jenča, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and the Americas with the Departments of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations, provided an update of recent developments since his office’s last Council briefing in July. The country continues to grapple with issues stemming from the brutal war that killed 100,000 people across the…

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Thousands of children killed or maimed by explosive weapons in populated areas: UNICEF

Gaza at ‘most dangerous’ stage amid huge unexploded weapons risk, warns demining expert

“This is the most dangerous period; once people start returning to the north, that’s when most accidents will occur, because they won’t be familiar with where your unexploded ordnance is located,” said Mungo Birch, Chief of the UN Mine Action Programme (UNMAS) in the State of Palestine. “It’s important that once the returns start, we’re…

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