Officials highlight massive poverty, humanitarian despair in Afghanistan
Top officials from the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) briefed ambassadors at the 15-member Council, describing the impact on civilians since the Taliban took over in August 2021….
Gaza is more than two million stories of loss: UN agencies
“The population has been almost entirely dispossessed of the means and capacities to ensure food security, shelter, health, and livelihood,” said Maryse Guimond, UN Women’s Special Representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory. “Women were asking me, ‘When can we go…
‘World cannot afford Lebanon to become another Gaza’: Guterres
The situation along the Blue Line, the demarcation between Israeli and Lebanese armed forces, has been deteriorating since Israel launched its offensive in the Gaza Strip following the brutal 7 October attack by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups against…
China warns of possible ‘trade war’ with EU as Germany’s Habeck heads to Beijing
Beijing warned on Friday that escalating frictions with the European Union over electric vehicle imports could trigger a trade war, as Germany’s economy minister arrived in the Chinese capital with the proposed tariffs high on his agenda. Robert Habeck’s three-day…
Ukraine to begin negotiations to join European Union
The European Union has approved starting membership talks with Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly address that the negotiations will begin next week. Ukraine applied to become part of the European bloc shortly after the Russian invasion in…
Cybersecurity firm Kaspersky denies it’s a hazard after the US bans its software
The cybersecurity firm Kaspersky denied Friday that it is a security threat after the U.S. Commerce Department banned the use of its software in the United States. The Moscow-based company — whose CEO Eugene Kaspersky is Russian — said in…
Gas company finds 3,300-year-old ship off Israel’s coast
TEL AVIV, Israel — A company drilling for natural gas off the coast of northern Israel discovered a 3,300-year-old ship and its cargo, one of the oldest known examples of a ship sailing far from land, the Israel Antiquities Authority…
US bans Russia’s Kaspersky antivirus software
Washington — U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration on Thursday banned Russia-based cybersecurity firm Kaspersky from providing its popular antivirus products in the United States over national security concerns, the U.S. Commerce Department said. “Kaspersky will generally no longer be able…
Climate change intensifies US, Mexico heat wave, study finds
A recent study shows that intense and perpetual heat in the United States, Mexico and Central America is the result of human-caused climate change. Daytime temperatures that cause heat stroke cases in the United States were found to be 35…
US asks Vietnam to support Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial integrity
WASHINGTON — The United States called on Vietnam Thursday to support Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity following Vladimir Putin’s one-day visit to Hanoi, part of the Russian president’s brief Asian tour seeking to shore up alliances in the face of…