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UN chief calls for justice and ‘real change’ for people of African descent

On the International Day for People of African Descent, celebrated each year on 31 August, UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for justice, dignity and equality for people of African descent around the world…

Teachers are the ‘guardians of our future’, says UN deputy chief

In every corner of the world, educators are making choices that echo across generations – influencing everything from the preservation of forests to the writing of poetry, the building of bridges to the holding of peaceful elections…

World News in Brief: Executions surge in Iran, nuclear test threat, Burkina Faso declares top official unwelcome

In Iran, the increase in executions carried out this year indicates that the death penalty is being used as a tool of State intimidation, the UN human rights office (OHCHR) said on Friday. At least…

Despite Taliban ban, over 90 per cent of Afghans support girls’ right to learn

Despite the ongoing ban on girls’ secondary education, more than 90 per cent of Afghan adults support girls’ right to be in class, according to a new alert from the UN’s gender equality agency, UN Women.…

‘Our livelihoods have been cut off’, say West Bank farmers ahead of olive harvest

In the occupied West Bank village of Kufr Qaddum, *Yousef stands behind a sealed iron gate, cut off from the olive trees that have sustained his family for generations. Like thousands of…

The descent into ‘a massive famine’ in Gaza has begun, relief agencies warn

Amid reports of increased Israeli military operations across Gaza City on Friday, UN aid agencies repeated urgent warnings of ongoing famine and a likely rise in preventable disease, linked to the dire living conditions in the war-shattered enclave…

SECURITY COUNCIL LIVE: Push for peace in Ukraine could rapidly fade if large-scale Russian attacks continue

The UN Security Council met in emergency session in New York on Friday afternoon following overnight strikes early on Thursday by Russia on Ukrainian cities including the capital, which left at least 23 dead, including four children. Assistant Secretary-General Miroslav Jenča told ambassadors that…

Ukraine: ‘Diplomatic momentum’ at risk amid large-scale Russian strikes

Large-scale attacks by Russia against civilians in Ukraine could see any hopes of a lasting peace deal there rapidly fade, a senior UN official said during an emergency session of the Security Council on Friday.…

Sudan: Guterres calls for ceasefire in El Fasher, deplores ‘relentless’ militia attacks

The UN Secretary-General appealed on Friday for an immediate ceasefire in and around the besieged Sudanese city of El Fasher, where hundreds of thousands of civilians have been trapped for over a year. …

Security Council: UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon extended for a ‘final time’

The UN peacekeeping mission which patrols the so-called Blue Line of separation between Israel and Lebanon received the unanimous support of the Security Council on Thursday to extend through 31 December next year…