-1548180446.jpg "China reduces army troops by half in modern overhaul")
China reduces army troops by half in modern overhaul
Jan 22, 2019, at 11:37 pm
Beijing, Jan 22 (IBNS): China has reduced its army by an "unprecedented" 50 per cent and the number of its officers by 30 per cent, South China Morning Post said, citing the country's official Xinhua news agency.
Taiwan's 'Bikini Climber' Gigi Wu dies
Jan 22, 2019, at 05:24 pm
Taipei, Jan 22 (IBNS): Taiwan's "Bikini Climber" Gigi Wu died from suspected hypothermia after falling down from Yushan national park, media reports said on Tuesday.
‘Compelling case’ for urgency around global disarmament, UN-led forum told
Jan 22, 2019, at 10:15 am
New York, Jan 22 (IBNS): Michael Møller, head of the UN in Geneva, has warned delegates to the Conference on Disarmament that cyber-security challenges, and the existence of new weapons systems and technologies, are not being sufficiently addressed or reflected in current arms control regimes.
World’s human rights watchdog spotlights Afghanistan, Yemen and 12 others: Here’s the scoop
Jan 22, 2019, at 10:11 am
New York, Jan 22 (IBNS): The United Nation Human Rights Council (HRC) kicked off its Universal Periodic Review, or UPR, on Monday at the Palais des Nations in Geneva to examine the human rights situation in 14 countries, including Afghanistan and Yemen.
Human rights are ‘key’ for economic policymaking says UN expert
Jan 22, 2019, at 10:01 am
New York, Jan 22 (IBNS): Calling on governments to take human rights obligations into account when designing economic reforms, an independent United Nations rights expert said on Monday that “human rights impact assessments are key to the process”.
Ten UN peacekeepers killed in a terrorist attack in northern Mali
Jan 21, 2019, at 08:33 am
New York, Jan 21 (IBNS): Ten ‘blue helmets’ from the United Nations Stabilization Mission In Mali (MINUSMA) were killed on Sunday following a complex terrorist attack against the mission’s camp in Aguelhok, in the Kidal region, northern Mali.
Israeli museum to remove sculpture depicting Ronald McDonald as Jesus following violence
Jan 21, 2019, at 12:00 am
Jerusalem, Jan 20 (IBNS): An Israeli museum triggered a controversy over an artwork which showcased a sculpture depicting the McDonald’s mascot as the crucified Jesus, forcing officials to remove it following violent protest by Christian minorities of the nation.
World's 'oldest man' Masazo Nonaka dies in Japan
Jan 20, 2019, at 11:22 pm
Tokyo, Jan 20 (IBNS): Masazo Nonaka, the Japanese man who was certified by Guinness World Records in April 2018 as the world's oldest living man at 112 years and 259 days, passed away on Sunday, media reports said.
Unknown gunmen kill Thai Buddhist monks in temple located in Muslim Malays majority area
Jan 20, 2019, at 07:37 pm
Bangkok, Jan 20 (IBNS): Unknown gunmen attacked and shot dead two Buddhist monks in a Thailand temple located at Su Ngai Padi district of Narathiwat province, triggering tension in the area which has seen clashes between ethnic Malay-Muslim rebels and the Buddhist-majority Thai state over the years.
Mexico: UN chief saddened by pipeline blast in which dozens were killed
Jan 20, 2019, at 08:53 am
New York, Jan 20 (IBNS): The United Nations' Secretary-General, António Guterres, learned with sadness of the deadly explosion of an oil pipeline on Friday in Hidalgo State, Mexico, and extended the UN's assistance to the national authorities, his Spokesman said on Saturday.
Jan 20, 2019, at 08:42 am
New York, Jan 20 (IBNS): The United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR, stated on Saturday that “no effort should be spared” in saving lives at sea, following reports of two new shipwrecks on the Mediterranean Sea, in which some 170 people either died or went missing.
Jan 19, 2019, at 09:42 am
New York, Jan 19 (IBNS): Calling on the Myanmar Government to “immediately reverse its decision not to allow access to all humanitarian organizations”, the United Nations expert on human rights in the South-East Asian country said on Friday, that “it’s vital that assistance is able to reach those who have fled violence in the region”.
Thousands returning to Nigeria’s restive Borno state ‘at risk’; UN ‘gravely concerned’
Jan 19, 2019, at 09:39 am
New York, Jan 19 (IBNS): Amid reports that Cameroon is forcing several thousand Nigerians to return to Borno state in the country’s crisis-gripped north-east, the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) deplored the move, saying it has put lives “at risk”.
Libyan authorities must shoulder the burden to support country’s ‘vulnerable’ south
Jan 19, 2019, at 09:34 am
New York, Jan 19 (IBNS): Despite years of promises to address the “vulnerable heart” of Libya – the country’s south – conditions around its water and oil resource wealth have continued to deteriorate at “an alarming rate”, the United Nations envoy for the country told the Security Council.
UN agency chief calls Ethiopia’s revised refugee law ‘one of most progressive’ in Africa
Jan 19, 2019, at 09:30 am
New York, Jan 19 (IBNS): Ethiopia has revised its existing refugee law, making it easier to obtain work permits, drivers’ licenses and access primary school, a move being hailed by the head of the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR).
Jan 19, 2019, at 09:27 am
New York, Jan 19 (IBNS): Warning against the dangers of widespread fear and mistrust in our planet, the United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, told journalists on Friday he wants to reaffirm the UN as a “platform for action to repair broken trust in a broken world.”
UN rights office calls on Zimbabwe Government to end ‘crackdown’ in response to fuel protests
Jan 19, 2019, at 09:25 am
New York, Jan 19 (IBNS): In Zimbabwe, violence and the reported use of live ammunition by State security officials against protesters that has led to “a number of deaths” should be investigated thoroughly and transparently by the Government, the UN human rights office, OHCHR, said on Friday.
Two Russian fighter jets collide mid-air, one pilot rescued
Jan 18, 2019, at 05:36 pm
Moscow, Jan 18 (IBNS): Two Russian fighter jets collided mid-air in the Far East, media reports said on Friday.
Australia: Police arrest one person over Israeli student's killing
Jan 18, 2019, at 10:13 am
Melbourne, Jan 18 (IBNS): The police have arrested a man in connection with the killing of a 21-year-old Israeli student in Melbourne city of Australia.
Car bomb attack on National Police Academy in Colombia, ‘strongly condemned’ by UN
Jan 18, 2019, at 09:15 am
New York, Jan 18 (IBNS): car bomb attack at the National Police Academy in the Colombian capital Bogotá, which reportedly left at least nine dead and dozens injured, has been ‘strongly condemned’ by the United Nations.
Iraq: UN demining agency rejects desecration accusations, involving historic Mosul churches
Jan 18, 2019, at 09:03 am
New York, Jan 18 (IBNS): The United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) in Iraq issued a statement on Thursday rejecting allegations made earlier this week by a non-profit organization there, alleging that personnel had carried out explosive hazard clearance inside two historic churches in Mosul “in a barbaric and arbitrary manner.”
Jan 18, 2019, at 09:00 am
New York, Jan 18 (IBNS): The reported use of “excessive force” against demonstrators across Sudan over food and fuel shortages that has led to the deaths of at least 24 people is “deeply worrying”, the UN’s top human rights official, Michelle Bachelet, said on Thursday.
773mn unique email IDs leaked, claims researcher
Jan 17, 2019, at 05:00 pm
New York, Jan 17 (IBNS): A researcher has unveiled that 773 million unique email IDs and 21 million unique passwords have been leaked in recent times.
H-1B visa holders underpaid, vulnerable to abuse, claims a think- tank in its report
Jan 17, 2019, at 02:44 pm
Washington, Jan 17 (IBNS): A US-based think tank has claimed that H-1B workers are "frequently" placed in poor working conditions and they are "vulnerable to abuse".
Nairobi DusitD2 hotel attack death toll touches 21
Jan 17, 2019, at 01:44 pm
Nairobi, Jan 17 (IBNS): The toll in the suspected terrorist attack incident in a luxury hotel compound in Nairobi city has touched 21, media reports said on Thursday.
Iran: Women hunger strikers entitled to medical care, UN rights experts urge
Jan 17, 2019, at 12:50 pm
New York, Jan 17 (IBNS): A group of six independent United Nations rights experts called on Iran Wednesday to urgently provide Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Narges Mohammadi access to appropriate health care, and reiterated calls for their immediate release, as they continue a hunger strike in protest.
Nearly 900 reportedly killed following ‘shocking’ intercommunal attacks in DR Congo
Jan 17, 2019, at 12:48 pm
New York, Jan 17 (IBNS): The UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) said on Wednesday that at least 890 villagers were reportedly killed in the western Democratic Republic of the Congo last month, following brutal inter-communal clashes.
Mali: ‘Dire’ humanitarian situation, ‘grave’ security concerns challenge fragile peace
Jan 17, 2019, at 12:41 pm
New York, Jan 17 (IBNS): With over 800 schools forced to close due to insecurity, and 2.3 million vulnerable people in need of assistance this year, a top UN official told the Security Council on Wednesday that the humanitarian situation in Mali “remains dire”.
‘Proving our worth through action’: 5 things Guterres wants the UN to focus on in 2019
Jan 17, 2019, at 12:39 pm
New York, Jan 17 (IBNS): Despite countless “headwinds” and “ills”, the United Nations has “made a real difference” in 2018 and will need to achieve even more in 2019, as the planet faces “a world of trouble”.
Yemen: Security Council backs new mission in support of key port city truce
Jan 17, 2019, at 12:28 pm
New York, Jan 17 (IBNS): The Security Council unanimously voted on Wednesday in favour of deploying up to 75 observers to monitor a fragile ceasefire in Yemen's port city of Hudaydah which went into effect late last month; a lifeline for millions of Yemenis on the verge of starvation.