‘At this very moment the future of Lebanon’s people is imperiled’, Foreign Minister tells UN
“Today, we desperately need the United Nations to play its role as a refuge for small countries victimized by aggression, including my homeland, Lebanon,” said Abdallah Bou Habib, denouncing Israel’s attacks and calling for an end to the current conflict….
Lebanon escalation: UN boosts support at border with Syria
“Hundreds of vehicles are backed up in queues at the Syrian border; many people are also arriving on foot, carrying what they can,” UNHCR reported. “Large crowds, including women, young children and babies are waiting in line after spending the…
‘Hell is breaking loose in Lebanon,’ Guterres warns Security Council
“Hell is breaking loose in Lebanon” the UN chief warned, noting that the exchanges of fire along the UN-patrolled line of separation “have expanded in scope, depth and intensity.” Monday saw Lebanon’s bloodiest day in a generation, as Israel continues…
Trust in UN’s cornerstone ideals ‘crumbling’: King Abdullah II of Jordan
He noted that while the world has seen many conflicts over the years, “there has never been a time of greater peril than this.” Even the UN is under attack, both literally and figuratively, with its sky-blue flag “powerless”…
Lebanon escalation: Have we learned nothing from Gaza, UN humanitarians ask
Speaking from Beirut in the aftermath of Lebanon’s “worst day in 18 years”, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) deputy representative in the country, Ettie Higgins, said that unless the violence stopped, the consequences could be “unconscionable”. The wide-ranging Israeli strikes…
Qatar will continue to mediate for peace in Gaza, Amir Al Thani tells world leaders
Speaking at the Assembly’s high-level debate, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani described the “blatant aggression” against Palestinians in Gaza as the “most barbaric, heinous, and extensive” breach of human values, international charters, and norms. “This is not a war…
UN chief to world leaders: ‘We can’t go on like this’
United Nations — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told world leaders Tuesday that the state of the world is unsustainable. “We can’t go on like this,” he said at the start of the U.N. General Assembly annual debate. He said there…
SECURITY COUNCIL LIVE: Ambassadors meeting in emergency session over Lebanon; region ‘on the brink of catastrophe’
The Security Council is now in emergency session in New York following Israeli strikes on the Lebanese capital Beirut and in the south, on Friday which have left at least a dozen dead. It comes amid an uptick in cross-border…
‘Fear of war’ causing speech problems in Gaza
In a modest tent in a makeshift camp for displaced people west of the town of Al-Zawaida in Deir al-Balah governorate in Gaza, children whose lives have been turned upside down by a deadly war and widespread destruction are meeting…
Lebanon: WHO appeals for more support for civilians as crises intensify
Dr. Abdinasir Abubakar outlined how the UN agency has been supporting Lebanon’s Ministry of Health, including following the wave of electronic device explosions this week. Hundreds of pagers across the country simultaneously detonated on Tuesday, while walkie-talkies and even some…