Rise in Afghan opium cultivation reflects economic hardship, despite Taliban ban
The rebound follows a massive 95 per cent decrease in 2023, when the ban nearly eliminated poppy production nationwide, leading to a severe decline in Afghanistan’s opium output. However, while cultivation has increased, the current levels remain substantially lower than…
Lebanon conflict at ‘critical point’ with more than 3,000 confirmed dead
According to the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, the updated death toll – which includes fatalities recorded since 8 October 2023 – is 58 per cent higher than the 1,900 people killed during the 34-day conflict in 2006 between Israel…
Middle East crisis: Live updates as General Assembly meets on UNRWA and more
Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini made an impassioned plea to protect the UN agency for Palestine refugees at the General Assembly’s meeting on UNRWA’s fate days after Israel informed the world body of new laws to ban it as bombings and displacement…
How has the war in Gaza affected UNRWA’s ability to support Palestinians?
As well as bringing emergency aid to those living in Occupied Palestinian Territory, UNRWA, the agency for Palestine refugees, also provides a range of crucial services. In Gaza, the year-long war has severely threatened the delivery of these crucial services….
Ukraine reports destroying 38 Russian drones
Ukraine’s military said Wednesday it shot down 38 of the 63 aerial drones that Russian forces launched in overnight attacks. The Ukrainian air force said it intercepted the drones over the Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Kirovohrad, Kyiv, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Sumy, Zhytomyr and…
Report: Russia deceives OPEC on oil sales to fund Ukraine war
LONDON — Russia is “flagrantly violating” its agreements with the OPEC oil cartel by concealing the true amount of oil it is producing and selling, according to a new report that says the profits are funding Moscow’s war on Ukraine….
Report: Russia deceives OPEC on oil sales to fund Ukraine war
Russia is “flagrantly violating” its agreements with the oil cartel OPEC by concealing the true amount of oil it is producing and selling, according to a new report that says the profits are funding Moscow’s war on Ukraine. Henry Ridgwell…
WHO: 2 UK mpox cases first local transmissions in Europe
London — Two new cases of the mpox variant clade 1b detected in the U.K. are the first locally transmitted cases in Europe and the first outside Africa, the World Health Organization said Tuesday. The U.K. Health Security Agency (UKHSA)…
WHO identifies priority pathogens for new vaccines development
Geneva — The World Health Organization on Tuesday listed 17 pathogens that cause widespread disease and death, including HIV, malaria and tuberculosis, for which it said new vaccines were “urgently needed.” The U.N. health agency said that it with its…
Middle East crisis: Live updates for 5 November
Conditions worsened amid rising death tolls and destruction in Gaza and Lebanon, but UN agencies reported some good news: the final phase of a Gazan polio vaccine campaign reached nearly 90 per cent of children in the north, and Palestinian…