Gaza: Human Rights Council resolution urges arms embargo on Israel

Gaza: Human Rights Council resolution urges arms embargo on Israel

In a resolution adopted by 28 votes in favour, six against and 13 abstentions, the 47-member Human Rights Council backed a call to cease the sale, transfer and diversion of arms, munitions and other military equipment to Israel, the occupying Power…to prevent further violations of international humanitarian law and violations and abuses of human rights”. …

Read More
Israel must allow ‘quantum leap’ in aid delivery UN chief urges, calling for change in military tactics

Israel must allow ‘quantum leap’ in aid delivery UN chief urges, calling for change in military tactics

Marking six months of war since the “abhorrent” Hamas-led terror attacks of 7 October, António Guterres told journalists at UN Headquarters in New York that nothing could justify the horror unleashed by Palestinian militants that day.  “I once again utterly condemn the use of sexual violence, torture injuring and kidnapping of civilians, the firing of…

Read More
Sudan: Aid lifeline reaches Darfur region in bid to avert ‘hunger catastrophe’

Sudan: Aid lifeline reaches Darfur region in bid to avert ‘hunger catastrophe’

“The UN WFP has managed to bring desperately needed food and nutrition supplies into Darfur; the first WFP assistance to reach the war-wracked region in months,” said Leni Kinzli, WFP Communications Officer in Sudan. The convoys crossed into Sudan from Chad in late March carrying enough food and nutrition supplies for 250,000 people facing acute…

Read More
Gaza: ‘No protection’ for civilians, aid workers, Security Council hears

Gaza: ‘No protection’ for civilians, aid workers, Security Council hears

Briefing the Council on the current situation on the ground, Ramesh Rajasingham, coordination director with UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, and Janti Soeripto of the non-governmental organisation (NGO) Save the Children, outlined the latest impact of the devastation that has followed the Hamas-led terror attack on Israel last October, which left more than 1,200 people…

Read More
World News in Brief: Security Council condemns DR Congo attacks, cholera testing breakthrough, ‘my health, my right’ campaign

World News in Brief: Security Council condemns DR Congo attacks, cholera testing breakthrough, ‘my health, my right’ campaign

In a statement following a briefing last week by Bintou Keita, the head of the UN mission, MONUSCO, ambassadors condemned all armed groups operating in the country and demanded the immediate cessation of hostilities and of any further advances by the M23. They expressed concern over ongoing displacement in Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu…

Read More
Haiti: Gangs have ‘more firepower than the police’

Haiti: Gangs have ‘more firepower than the police’

The consequences have plunged the Caribbean nation into an ongoing political and humanitarian crisis. Currently, there are “unprecedented levels of lawlessness”, UNODC’s regional representative Sylvie Bertrand told UN News. From Russian AK-47s and United States-made AR-15s to Israeli Galil assault rifles, a spike in trafficking increasingly sophisticated weaponry has gripped Haiti since 2021, said the…

Read More
Gaza: Resuming night-time aid deliveries, UN reports ‘dire’ conditions

Gaza: Resuming night-time aid deliveries, UN reports ‘dire’ conditions

“The situation in Gaza is disastrous,” World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. “Once again, WHO demands a ceasefire. Once again, we call for all hostages to be released, and for lasting peace.” UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said on Thursday that because of what happened to World Central Kitchen “we had to pause…

Read More
UN underscores commitment to stay and deliver in Myanmar

UN underscores commitment to stay and deliver in Myanmar

The expansion of fighting throughout the country has deprived communities of basic needs and access to essential services and has had a devastating impact on human rights and fundamental freedoms, said Khalid Khiari, a UN Assistant Secretary-General whose portfolio straddles political and peacebuilding affairs as well as peace operations. The open briefing marked the first…

Read More
World News in Brief: $12 million for Haiti, Ukraine airstrikes condemned, support mine action

World News in Brief: $12 million for Haiti, Ukraine airstrikes condemned, support mine action

“These funds will enable aid partners to reach the hardest hit,” UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths said on Thursday in a post on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter.  Port-au-Prince has been terrorised by armed gangs, and last month, they tightened their grip following a weekend jailbreak which allowed thousands of criminals to…

Read More
Crisis in Haiti worsens after month-long siege on Port-au-Prince

Crisis in Haiti worsens after month-long siege on Port-au-Prince

The surge of violence since February this year has reached “unprecedented levels” resulting in rampant food insecurity and multiple displacements, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM). As the country grapples with this unparalleled crisis, IOM said families continue to struggle to secure even the most basic necessities as desperation exacerbates. Unparalleled security challenges…

Read More