Security Council: Middle East envoy warns against escalation, highlights continued Israeli settlement activity
“The series of explosions across Lebanon and rockets fired toward Israel in recent days adds to the volatility,” said Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process. He urged all sides “to refrain from steps that will further…
Who still uses pagers?
As mobile phones became the world’s main communications tool, pagers, also known as beepers because of the sound they make to notify users about incoming messages, were largely rendered obsolete, with demand plunging from their 1990s heyday. But the tiny…
UN General Assembly demands Israel end ‘unlawful presence’ in Occupied Palestinian Territory
With a recorded vote of 124 nations in favour, 14 against, and 43 abstentions, the resolution calls for Israel to comply with international law and withdraw its military forces, immediately cease all new settlement activity, evacuate all settlers from occupied…
UN appeals for restraint after further devices explode across Lebanon
International media reported that walkie-talkies used by members of the Hezbollah militant group blew up on Wednesday, a day after hundreds of pagers across the country exploded simultaneously. Mr. Guterres was deeply alarmed by reports that a large number of…
Top UN official appeals for calm following wave of attacks in Lebanon
The coordinated attacks reportedly targeted the Hezbollah militant group, with hundreds of electronic pagers belonging to its members blowing up at the same time, according to international media reports. ‘Extremely concerning escalation’ “The developments today mark an extremely concerning escalation…
UN rights expert calls for immediate release of all Israeli hostages
Alice Edwards, the UN Human Rights Council-appointed Special Rapporteur on Torture, also condemned the killing of six Israeli hostages earlier this month and called for an immediate end to hostilities on all fronts. Approximately 250 Israelis and foreign nationals were…
General Assembly resumes emergency special session on Palestine
Ambassadors in the UN General Assembly again discussed on Monday the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza and the critical work of the UN agency for Palestine refugees, UNRWA, which is facing an existential threat, hearing a briefing by its Commissioner-General,…
How aid is (and is not) getting into Gaza
UN News looked at the needs triggered by the ongoing conflict through a lens of how much aid is getting into Gaza compared with what is required to address the grim situation on the ground, where 2.3 million Palestinians are…
More action on the ground needed to save civilian lives in Gaza, top UN official tells Security Council
Sigrid Kaag updated ambassadors on the implementation of resolution 2720, adopted last December, which established her mandate following the brutal 7 October Hamas-led attacks on Israel and the start of hostilities in Gaza. She was also tasked with establishing a…
Sanitary disaster in Gaza ‘worsening by the day’, warns UNRWA
In a new alert, UNRWA highlighted how Gazans’ shelters have become a target for insects and rodents after more than 11 months of war – echoing deep concerns among humanitarians about the lack of basic hygiene items that have left…