US announces measures to help over 11,000 Cuban small businesses
WASHINGTON — The United States announced regulatory changes on Tuesday to increase support for the Cuban people and independent private sector entrepreneurs. The changes will enable more U.S. financial support for small private businesses in Cuba, enhance internet-based services on…
WMO warns of up to seven major hurricanes in North Atlantic in 2024
Typically, an average year sees 14 named storms with wind speeds exceeding 65 kilometres (40 miles) per hour. However, this year, 17 to 25 storms are expected, with four to seven of them potentially becoming major hurricanes, characterized by winds…
Ocean heat, La Nina likely mean more Atlantic hurricanes this summer
WASHINGTON — Get ready for what nearly all the experts think will be one of the busiest Atlantic hurricane seasons on record, thanks to unprecedented ocean heat and a brewing La Nina. There’s an 85% chance that the Atlantic hurricane…
Haiti’s health system nears collapse, UNICEF says
Haiti’s health care system is on the verge of collapse, the United Nations Children’s Fund warned in a statement this week. “The combination of violence, mass displacement, dangerous epidemics and increasing malnutrition has bent Haiti’s health system,” said Bruno Maes,…
Fearing rising tides, small island nations gain key win at UN ocean court
The U.N. maritime court has ruled in favor of greater protection of the oceans in the face of climate change in a case brought by small island countries. The countries brought the case in September after seeing disproportionate effects from…
Brazil floods leave trail of unprecedented devastation
Historic floods swept through southern Brazil early this month, destroying everything in their path. The floods claimed over 150 lives and left more than 500,000 Brazilians displaced. Scientists attribute this unprecedented destruction to a confluence of weather conditions, all influenced…
Surge in child migrants crossing the dangerous Darién Gap: UNICEF
In the first four months of 2024, more than 30,000 children traversed the dense jungle region separating Colombia and Panama, marking a significant increase compared to the same period last year. Among them, about 2,000 were unaccompanied or separated from…
Urgent needs of refugees, vulnerable people surge in flood-hit Brazil
GENEVA — As Brazil’s heavily flooded southern state of Rio Grande do Sul braces for a weekend of intense rain, the U.N. refugee agency, UNHCR, is calling for greater support to help tens of thousands of refugees, who are among…
UN expert raises alarm over unfair treatment of pro-Palestinian student protesters in US
“I am deeply troubled by the violent crackdown on peaceful demonstrators, arrests, detentions, police violence, surveillance and disciplinary measures and sanctions against members of the educational community exercising their right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression,” UN Special Rapporteur…
Americas: Regional cooperation crucial to address migration and forced displacement
UNHCR has renewed its call for a coordinated continental approach to the issue, as underscored during the ministerial meeting on the Los Angeles Declaration on Migration and Protection, held in Guatemala on Tuesday. New approach The landmark declaration aims to…