In Damascus, top UN envoy stresses need for credible, inclusive, ‘Syrian owned’ transition
The UN Independent Commission of Inquiry on Syria also called on Monday for all parties to prioritize the protection of civilians as the country grapples with a worsening humanitarian crisis and ongoing violence, including in the Golan. Special Envoy Geir…
Gaza death toll passes 45,000 as UN school suffers new deadly strike
Images taken at the school in Khan Younis showed the apparent impact point of one shell in a concrete upper floor where people had been living at the time of the attack late Sunday night. According to the UN agency…
Zelenskyy offers Syria humanitarian grain deliveries
Kyiv, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced Sunday that he would provide Syria with grain and other agricultural products on a humanitarian basis, a week after the fall of Moscow’s ally, President Bashar al-Assad. “Now we can help the…
UN envoy calls for increased aid for Syria in Damascus visit
The Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, arrived there a week after President Bashar al-Assad was overthrown by rebel forces led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTC). Responding to questions from the press upon his arrival, Mr….
Lime-flavoured memories drive innovation on Saudi farm
Mohamed Alnwairan stands in front of a verdant citrus tree which four months hence will bear his first harvest of limes. A former businessman turned farmer, he has been cultivating land in Al Ahsa, in the eastern deserts of Saudi…
Ukraine, Syria key focus of Biden talks with G7
WASHINGTON — U.S. President Joe Biden met virtually with G7 leaders Friday to secure support for Kyiv’s fight against Russia’s invasion, less than six weeks before President-elect Donald Trump, a skeptic of aid to Ukraine, is set to take office….
UN Special Envoy continues shuttle diplomacy on Syria
Geir Pedersen is due to confer with Arab foreign ministers, the Foreign Minister of Türkiye, US Secretary of State and other senior officials who will be present at a meeting in Aqaba, said UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric, briefing reporters in…
Gaza: ‘Sickening normalisation’ of suffering, amid attacks on people and aid convoys
According to local media reports, 30 Palestinians were killed in the central Gaza area overnight on Friday due to airstrikes, said Louise Wateridge, Senior Emergencies Officer with UN Palestine refugee agency UNRWA, speaking to reporters in Geneva from central Gaza. …
The de facto authority in Syria is a designated terrorist group: What happens now?
However, according to a core Security Council resolution on Syria adopted at the height of the civil conflict, HTS is regarded as a terrorist group. Resolution 2254, which was adopted unanimously by the Council in 2015, calls on Member States…
Gaza: ‘Devastation is absolutely staggering’, says senior WFP official
Speaking from Gaza, Jonathan Dumont said many people have been displaced multiple times, and that families are living either in tents or in the rubble of collapsed buildings, with no access to electricity or running water. The text has been…