WORLD NEWS

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) released its emergency response and early recovery plan, outlining priority measures to protect agricultural livelihoods, restore production and strengthen the whole agrifood sector. The plan links immediate emergency assistance with early recovery and resilience-building. It prioritises protection of food production for vulnerable rural families and small-scale farmers, rehabilitating…

The US action made “all States less safe around the world”, said Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for the High Commissioner. Speaking to journalists in Geneva, Ms. Shamdasani rejected the US justification for its intervention on the grounds of the Venezuelan Government’s “longstanding and appalling” human rights record.  “Accountability for human rights violations cannot be achieved by…

Fuelled by artificial intelligence, anonymity, and weak accountability, online abuse is rapidly escalating. Yet, 1.8 billion women and girls still lack legal protection from online harassment and other forms of technology-facilitated abuse. The alarm is being sounded this week by the UN agency for women’s rights, gender equality and women’s empowerment (UN Women) as the 16…

António Guterres told the Fifth Committee the UN is facing its most fragile cash position in years, despite sharp reductions already built into next year’s budget plans. “Liquidity remains fragile, and this challenge will persist regardless of the final budget approved,” he said, pointing to the “unacceptable volume of arrears” owed by Member States. The…

Jeremy Laurence, a spokesperson for the UN human rights office, OHCHR, told reporters in Geneva that voting is expected to begin on 28 December, in what he described as a military-controlled ballot conducted in an environment “rife with threats and violence” and actively suppressed political participation. Many major political parties have been excluded and more…

Speaking in New York on Monday, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told journalists the UN humanitarian office, OCHA, was deeply concerned by the scale and spread of the latest attacks. “In recent days we’ve seen an alarming pattern of intensifying hostilities in frontline areas and persistent attacks on critical civilian infrastructure,” he said. Nationwide disruption “These…

Since Sunday, more than 1,000 people were newly displaced from Kadugli, capital of South Kordofan state, as well as the towns of Dilling and El Koaik.   They are reportedly seeking shelter in four other states: North and West Kordofan, Khartoum and White Nile. Thousands on the move Fighting across the Kordofans has intensified as the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary…

“The January round is the first since October 2023, in which partners had sufficient stock to meet 100 per cent of the minimum caloric standard,” UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told journalists on Monday. That’s compared to the end of 2025, when each family received just 50 to 75 per cent of the calories needed to…

In North Darfur, drone strikes on 3 January reportedly caused civilian casualties in the villages of Al-Zurq and Ghurair, including strikes on a market and a medical clinic, said UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric, briefing journalists on Monday.  And in West Darfur state on Saturday, one civilian was reported killed following two drone attacks in the…

That’s according to UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric, briefing reporters in New York on Monday.  News reports cited videos posted online Monday showing demonstrations in Tehran and the city of Yasuj, while demonstrations took place last week in a large majority of Iranian provinces, according to human rights activists. Deaths and injuries Rights groups also report…