South Sudan on the brink of civil war, top UN official warns
Briefing journalists at UN Headquarters in New York via videolink from Juba, Nicholas Haysom described indiscriminate attacks on civilians, mass displacement and rising ethnic tensions. He urged all parties to pull back from the brink and commit to peace before…
‘Don’t cut the aid’: Insecurity worsens for stateless Rohingya, says UNHCR’s Grandi
In a joint appeal, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, and the UN International Organization for Migration (IOM) urged all countries to step up to support the displaced Rohingya – the world’s largest stateless population. A ‘frightening’ place The humanitarian situation…
3-week Gaza aid ban ‘collective punishment’: UNRWA chief
Mr. Lazzarini made the remarks in a social media post, in which he noted that the siege, which is preventing food, medicines, water and fuel from entering the occupied Palestinian territory, has lasted longer than blockades imposed during the first phase…
Middle East crisis spirals amid mounting civilian deaths, aid blockade
Sigrid Kaag, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process (ad interim) briefed the Security Council on the latest report relating to resolution 2334 (2016), which calls for an immediate halt to Israeli settlement activity in the Occupied Palestinian…
Exhausted Gazans wake from another night of Israeli bombing: UN aid teams
“We’re waking up from another intense night of bombardments, the fourth night of bombardment since the ceasefire abruptly broke down on Monday night…the situation is gravely, gravely concerning,” said Sam Rose, Acting Director of Affairs in Gaza for UNRWA, the…
Running to bomb shelters, nothing new for Ukraine’s schoolchildren
There have been a staggering 1,614 recorded attacks on Ukrainian schools up to the end of last year says the report from the UN human rights office OHCHR – part of a legacy of death, injury, disability and family separation….
UNICEF condemns looting of lifesaving supplies for children in Sudan
The attack on one of the last operational hospitals in the area further deepened the ongoing humanitarian crisis sparked by the civil war between rival militaries, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which started…
Gaza: ‘Bring them all home now’, freed hostage tells Security Council
Briefing ambassadors, Khaled Khiari, Assistant Secretary-General at the Department of Political Affairs (DPPA), reiterated the UN’s unequivocal condemnation of the horrific attacks by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups on Israeli communities on 7 October 2023. More than 1,200 Israelis…
Syria’s humanitarian crisis: 16.5 million in need amid continuing conflict
Briefing journalists in New York from Damascus, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Syria, Adam Abdelmoula, explained that the country remains at a critical juncture as the situation continues to worsen despite the hope sparked by the fall of Assad. The…
Free societies are good for business says UN rights chief, wrapping up visit to Kyrgyzstan
Speaking in the capital Bishkek, Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights acknowledged the country’s recent economic growth but cautioned that narrowing space for civil society and press freedom could undermine progress. “For societies to thrive, they need to…