After nearly three months of complete blockade by Israel, a “vastly insufficient” amount of aid was finally allowed into the war-ravaged enclave in the last week, insisted Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN aid coordination office, OCHA. “We have not stopped operating,” he said, referring to staff still inside Gaza,...
Addressing reporters outside the Security Council, António Guterres called once again for a permanent ceasefire to end the fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas militants, the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages and full humanitarian access so aid can flow in following nearly 80 days of Israeli blockade. ‘Cruellest...
UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) spokesperson James Elder insisted that the Israeli proposal to create a handful of aid hubs exclusively in the south of the Strip would create an “impossible choice between displacement and death”. The plan “contravenes basic humanitarian principles” and appears designed to “reinforce control over life-sustaining items...
Hostilities in the Gaza Strip resumed mid-March following the collapse of the ceasefire and Israel’s border closure. As it enters its sixth week, the denial of aid into the enclave has left more than 2.1 million Gazans trapped without access to food, drinking water, and basic services. Israel in recent...
People anywhere, at any age can be infected with meningitis, which is transmitted through respiratory secretions or droplets in close human contact. Low and middle-income nations are worst-affected. The so-called “meningitis belt” in sub-Saharan Africa sees most cases and outbreaks. It stretches from Senegal and The Gambia in the...
From embarking on a digital revolution to fill the gaping gender divide to ensuring a seat at decision making tables, the new plan builds on the landmark 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, which presented a blueprint for achieving gender equality and advancing women’s rights. UN Women chief Sima...
According to UN refugee agency, UNHCR, 600,000 people could be on the move in the next six months, according to its latest survey. UNHCR spokesperson Celine Schmitt said on Friday that people will need “housing, jobs, schools, hospitals, electricity and clean water” – all of which are lacking after 14...
The de facto rulers of much of the country, including the capital Sana’a, released the crew of a merchant ship who had been held for more than a year, earlier this week. The move raised hopes that more than 60 staff from the UN, international organizations and diplomatic missions already...
The plan was announced by the High Representative for the UN Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC), a platform for intercultural dialogue, understanding and cooperation. Miguel Ángel Moratinos called antisemitism – prejudice or hatred towards Jews – “a toxic ideology with deep roots in bigotry and racism that still plagues our world manifesting...
“There was a strong call for peace, putting an end to violence and conflict and calls for diversity and fighting against discrimination,” said the UN Alliance’s High Representative Miguel Ángel Moratinos at the closing session. The three-day forum drew participants from more than 150 countries, Mr. Moratinos said, also announcing...
The UN has described the current global situation as “uniquely dangerous”, with the risk of major powers engaging in conflict at its highest levels since the Cold War, the possibility of nuclear war breaking out higher that it has been for several decades, and the climate crisis driving migration and exacerbating...
Since 1 January, in Kabul and Daykundi provinces, UNAMA has documented a series of hijab decree enforcement campaigns by the de facto Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, aided by Taliban police units. In the capital, Kabul, large numbers of women and girls have been...