UN human rights chief denounces grave 'assaults' on fundamental rights of Palestinian people
Jul 24, 2018, at 08:48 am
New York, July 24 (IBNS): From arbitrary detentions and deliberate deprivation, to attacks against civilians and forced displacements, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, expressed “acute concerns” on Monday over the current human rights situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
Jul 23, 2018, at 11:47 am
Male, July 23 (IBNS): Thousands of resort workers in Maldives have launched an agitation and threatened to strike work for their voting rights after the island nation's Election Commission (EC) decided to have ballot boxes in only seven resorts as against 40 in the 2013 polling.
Essential services on verge of shutdown in Gaza as emergency fuel set to run out
Jul 23, 2018, at 09:36 am
New York, July 23 (IBNS): Supplies of emergency fuel provided by the United Nations for critical facilities in Gaza are being fast depleted, a senior UN relief official there warned on Sunday.
Gunmen kill 11 taxi drivers in South Africa
Jul 22, 2018, at 08:06 pm
Johannesburg, July 22 (IBNS): At least 11 taxi drivers were shot dead by gunmen in South Africa when they were travelling from Johannesburg city to Kwa-Zulu Natal area, media reports said on Sunday.
Jul 22, 2018, at 04:23 pm
New York, July 21 (IBNS): Voicing deep concern over the latest flare-up of violence around Gaza, the United Nations chief on Saturday urged all sides to “step back from the brink of another devastating conflict”.
Colombia: New Congress marks rebel group’s transition ‘from weapons to politics’, says UN
Jul 22, 2018, at 04:07 pm
New York, July 22 (IBNS): Celebrating the holding of the first session of a new Congress in Colombia, the United Nations has said that the inclusion of former rebels in the legislative body marked their transition “from weapons to politics”.
Uzbekistan holds roundtable for betterment of child and youth rights
Jul 22, 2018, at 12:50 pm
Tashkent, July 22 (IBNS): The National Human Rights Centre of Uzbekistan, together with the committees on democratic institutions, non-state non-profit organizations and civil society institutions, as well as on the issues of science, education, culture and sports of the Legislative Chamber of Oliy Majlis, organized a roundtable discussion for protection of child rights.
E-Governance: A powerful tool to combat, mitigate and sustainably manage disaster risks
Jul 21, 2018, at 07:33 am
New York, July 21 (IBNS): E-governance plays a critical role in building inclusive, resilient societies both before and in response to disasters, according to a United Nations report issued this week.
UN agriculture agency digs in to help forests and farms build resilience to climate change
Jul 21, 2018, at 07:30 am
New York, July 21 (IBNS): Millions of small-scale farmers will be better equipped to withstand the negative impacts of climate change while at the same time improving livelihoods, thanks to a new global push by the United Nations agriculture agency announced during World Forest Week.
Refugee health services on track despite record level of displacement, says UN agency
Jul 21, 2018, at 07:27 am
New York, July 21 (IBNS):Despite record numbers of people fleeing conflict and natural disasters globally, vital health services have been largely able to cope, the United Nations refugee agency has said; although communicable diseases, anaemia and stunting remain areas of concern.
Syria: Scaled-up assistance, ‘sustained access’ needed to 140,000 made homeless, says UNHCR
Jul 21, 2018, at 07:24 am
New York, July 21 (IBNS): Following a Government-led assault on Syria’s opposition-held areas, an estimated 140,000 people in the country’s south-west remain homeless and in need of help, the United Nation Refugee Agency (UNCHR) said on Friday, calling for sustained access to displaced communities.
Jul 21, 2018, at 07:21 am
New York, July 21 (IBNS): United Nations migration agency staff in Yemen say the key port city of Hudaydah remains “a difficult environment” for the delivery of aid to thousands of people displaced by heavy fighting this week.
Close to 7,000 evacuated from Syrian towns after enduring nearly 3-year siege
Jul 20, 2018, at 09:34 am
New York, July 20 (IBNS): After close to three years of siege, 6,900 women, children and men were finally able to leave the Syrian towns of Foah and Kafraya over the past few days, following a local agreement between parties to the conflict.
Multilateral trade challenged by ‘increasingly unilateral trade measures,’ UN forum hears
Jul 20, 2018, at 09:31 am
New York, July 20 (IBNS): Despite the improved economic growth, risks to the economic outlook are rising, the United Nations economic and social affairs chief said on Thursday, warning against “increasingly unilateral trade measures” that are challenging the multilateral trading system.
UN chief welcomes new push by El Salvador’s political parties to begin fresh dialogue
Jul 20, 2018, at 09:28 am
New York, July 20 (IBNS): United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has welcomed the decision announced on Wednesday by El Salvador’s political parties to set up a new “negotiating framework”.
UNHCR welcomes deal to end latest migrant stand-off in Mediterranean Sea
Jul 20, 2018, at 09:25 am
New York, July 20 (IBNS): UN Refugee Agency chief Filippo Grandi, on Thursday gave a cautious welcome to the decision by several EU countries to take in some 450 migrants who have been stranded at sea for days, warning that a “ship-by-ship” arrangement was not sustainable.
Weather reports come to aid of Uganda’s farmers
Jul 20, 2018, at 09:23 am
New York, July 20 (IBNS): Farmers in Uganda are keeping their crop yields high, thanks to improved weather data supplied by the UN Development Programme (UNDP)-backed push to modernize climate monitoring systems.
Kazakh figure Skater Denis Ten stabbed to death
Jul 20, 2018, at 09:12 am
Astana, July 20 (IBNS): Kazakh figure skater Denis Ten died on Thursday as he was stabbed after he tried to stop two unidentified people from stealing his car’s mirrors, media reports said.
UK Police likely to have identified Skripal attackers: Reports
Jul 19, 2018, at 03:30 pm
London, July 19 (IBNS): The police is likely to have identified the suspects who were involved in the poisoning of former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia, a CNN report read.
Emergency lifted in Turkey after two years
Jul 19, 2018, at 02:20 pm
Ankara, July 19 (IBNS): The Turkish government has ended the two-year state of emergency imposed after a failed coup attempt against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in 2016, state media said on Thursday.
Israel's Parliament passes 'Jewish Nation State' bill; Netanyahu says defining moment
Jul 19, 2018, at 02:04 pm
Jerusalem, July 19 (IBNS): Amid another controversy, the Israeli Parliament (Knesset) has passed the 'Jewish Nation Bill', thus, officially making it an exclusively Jewish state.
Jul 19, 2018, at 08:54 am
New York, July 19 (IBNS): As the eight-day High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) drew to a close on Wednesday, the United Nations chief called on everyone to support the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development for “prosperity and peace on a healthy planet.”
UN-African Union partnership ‘not a choice but a necessity’, Security Council hears
Jul 19, 2018, at 08:51 am
New York, July 19 (IBNS): A stronger partnership between the United Nations and the African Union is “not a choice but a necessity” in tackling today’s complex peace and security challenges in Africa, a senior UN official said on Wednesday.
Mandela, ‘true symbol of human greatness’, celebrated on centenary of his birth
Jul 19, 2018, at 08:31 am
New York, July 19 (IBNS): Paying tribute to the first democratically-elected President of South Africa and iconic civil rights leader, the United Nations on Wednesday celebrated Nelson Mandela’s legacy for humanity and reflected on the lessons he left behind.
UN experts urge Ukraine to stop ‘systematic persecution’ of Roma minority
Jul 19, 2018, at 08:18 am
New York, July 19 (IBNS): Ukraine must take immediate action to stop what amounts to a “systematic persecution” of the country’s Roma minority, who have been targeted in a series of violent attacks allegedly perpetrated by members of extreme right-wing groups, United Nations human rights experts have said.
UN-backed treaty against illicit tobacco trade set to take effect in September
Jul 19, 2018, at 08:15 am
New York, July 19 (IBNS): A United Nations-backed treaty aimed at stopping the illicit trading of tobacco products, is set to enter into force on 25 September, marking a diplomatic breakthrough in efforts to protect public health and strike back against the criminal organizations profiting from such deals.
Thai boys, rescued after two weeks from flooded cave, discharged from hospital
Jul 18, 2018, at 05:06 pm
Thailand, July 18 (IBNS) The 12 Tahi boys and their football coach, who remained trapped inside a flooded cave for more than two weeks before being rescued in a high-risk international operation, were discharged from hospital on Wednesday, media reports said.
LGBTQ comic hero Batwoman to get telly series in USA
Jul 18, 2018, at 01:16 pm
New York, July 18 (IBNS): US network The CW will air a TV adaptation of Batwoman, a lesbian comic super hero, who hails from the fictional city of Gotham.
Jul 18, 2018, at 09:35 am
New York, July 18 (IBNS): A high-level gathering of representatives from the Somali government and the international community, including the United Nations, ended in Brussels today with renewed commitment to support the Horn of Africa country’s progress in a range of areas, such as state and peace-building efforts.
Small and sustainable: “Tiny houses†could be solution to world’s housing problems
Jul 18, 2018, at 09:33 am
New York, July 18 (IBNS): They’re small, self-sustaining – and they could revolutionize the way we think about housing around the world, as building materials become scarcer.