The Final Report, led by former French foreign minister Catherine Colonna, was due to be released later on Monday; Ms. Colonna was also preparing to speak to journalists at a scheduled noon briefing in New York as Chair of the Independent Review Group on UNRWA. “The Secretary-General accepts the recommendations contained in Ms. Colonna’s report,” Mr….
UNICEF warned that as urban warfare increases, the use of weapons designed for open battlefields are now a common reality in cities, towns and villages, with devastating effects on their young residents. Between 2018 and 2022, explosive weapons were responsible for 49.8 per cent of the more than 47,500 instances of children killed and maimed…
“Israel made public claims that a significant number of UNRWA employees are members of terrorist organisations. However, Israel has yet to provide supporting evidence of this,” according to the 54-page final report, Independent review of mechanisms and procedures to ensure adherence by UNRWA to the humanitarian principle of neutrality. The UN Secretary-General, who received the final…
Climate change shocks caused record levels of disruption and misery for millions in Europe in 2023 with widespread flooding and severe heatwaves – a new normal which countries must adapt to as a priority, the UN weather agency said on Monday. PNP Deskpnp.com.pk
New data published jointly by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the Copernicus Climate Change Service confirmed fears that 2023 was the joint warmest or second warmest year on record in Europe. In practical terms, this led to a record number of days with “extreme heat stress” across Europe, “an increasing trend” in the number “strong…
“I was not aware that vegetables were that important or how to grow them,” said the 25-year-old farmer from Idas in West Kalimantan on the island of Borneo. “Now I do.” She, along with 50 of her neighbours in this village among the rolling hills of northwest Borneo, received vegetable seeds and the opportunity to…
44-year-old Vanessa Winston lives in Roseau, the capital of Dominica, where she runs a small-scale business primarily making bespoke, hand-made fashion accessories. She is also President of the UN-supported Dominica Arts & Craft Producers Association, which helps its members to promote their products. Hurricane Maria destroyed her home and the workshop where she produced all…
“The Secretary-General condemns any act of retaliation and appeals to the international community to work together to prevent any further development that could lead to devastating consequences for the entire region and beyond,” he said in a statement issued by his Office. Echoing those concerns, UN atomic energy agency chief Rafael Grossi urged “extreme restraint”…
Rakhine was the site of a brutal crackdown on the Rohingyas by the military in 2017, leading to killing of some 10,000 men, women and newborns, and the exodus of nearly 750,000 community members – many of whom continue to languish in refugee camps in neighbouring Bangladesh. “Rakhine state has once again become a battleground…
The World Health Organization (WHO) decision means that Euvichol-S vaccine can be added to other cholera-busting drugs which are not being produced in sufficient quantities to help countries battling outbreaks of the preventable disease. WHO reported 473,000 cholera cases in 2022 – double the number in 2021. “The new vaccine is the third product of…
