Africa's achievements, challenges in peace, development focus of UN meeting
Oct 02, 2014, at 03:02 pm
New York, Oct 2 (IBNS) While there has been great social and economic progress across Africa, its economies have not kept pace with legitimate demands, including providing jobs to young people, said United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson at a high-level meeting of regional partners held on Wednesday at Headquarters.
Iraq: UN reports at least 1,119 killed in September; actual figure likely higher
Oct 02, 2014, at 03:01 pm
New York, Oct 2 (IBNS) At least 1,119 Iraqis – most of them civilians – were killed in August, the United Nations in the country on Wednesday reported, but cautioned that the figure does not include people killed in the ongoing operation in Anbar, or those who died from the heat or hunger after being forced to flee violence in their cities.
In Geneva, UN chief stresses central role of human rights in global humanitarian efforts
Oct 02, 2014, at 02:59 pm
New York, Oct 2 (IBNS) Amid mounting crises, a warming planet and the spread of contagious diseases, the world is being consumed by "many troubles," United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Wednesday as he pressed the international community to engage in "unprecedented cooperation" as it faces a slew of global predicaments.
With its mandate completed, OPCW-UN mission draws down in Syria
Oct 02, 2014, at 02:58 pm
New York, Oct 2 (IBNS) The joint United Nations mission to oversee the destruction of Syria’s stockpiles and production facilities has completed its mission and been shut down.
On International Day, UN encourages full participation of older persons in society
Oct 02, 2014, at 02:57 pm
New York, Oct 2 (IBNS) The United Nations on Wednesday encouraged Governments and people throughout the world to ensure that older persons are able to fully participate in society and that their rights and dignity are protected.
As global crises multiply, UN official urges rethink for overstretched humanitarian system
Oct 01, 2014, at 03:45 pm
New York, Oct 1(IBNS) The global humanitarian system has become dangerously overburdened as it faces a widening front of crises and conflicts, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees warned on Tuesday, as he urged a rethink of how the international community will confront the growing challenges of the 21st century.
New development agenda must be people-centred, reality-based, Bhutan tells UN
Oct 01, 2014, at 03:44 pm
New York, Oct 1 (IBNS) With the international community heading into a "momentous" year, in which a sustainable development framework will be crafted, the Minister of Human and Cultural Affairs of Bhutan told the United Nations on Tuesday that the new agenda will be truly transformative only if it is grounded in the real needs of countries and promotes meaningful change.
At UN meeting, tolerance and education highlighted as critical allies against terrorism
Oct 01, 2014, at 03:43 pm
New York, Oct 1 (IBNS) The international community must act swiftly and concretely to confront the root causes of violent extremism, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Tuesday, underlining the need to address terrorism through more comprehensive and holistic efforts.
Increased pension coverage key to future global development agenda, says UN agency
Oct 01, 2014, at 03:43 pm
New York, Oct 1 (IBNS) In order to promote economic recovery and prevent pensionable citizens from relapsing into poverty, social protections must be placed at the forefront of the future development agenda currently being elaborated by Member States, says the United Nations labour agency.
In West Africa, UN launches strengthened response as Ebola shatters lives, orphans children
Oct 01, 2014, at 03:42 pm
New York, Oct 1 (IBNS) Amid a climbing death toll and widespread panic, the Ebola outbreak continues to ravage West Africa leaving thousands of orphaned children in its wake, an official for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned on Tuesday, as a fortified UN mission arrived in the region to confront and contain the growing crisis.
Equality must be driving force of new development agenda, Belarussian minister tells UN
Oct 01, 2014, at 03:41 pm
New York, Oct 1 (IBNS) As the international community lays the foundation for a sustainable development agenda that will follow the Millennium Development Goals in 2016, the Foreign Minister of Belarus on Tuesday urged the United Nations General Assembly to make globalization more even and equitable than it has been up to now.
At General Assembly, Eritrea criticizes 'dominant powers' for impeding vital overhaul of UN
Oct 01, 2014, at 03:41 pm
New York, Oct 1 (IBNS) From the General Assembly podium on Tuesday, Eritrea called for a fundamental overhaul of the United Nation, charging that it has failed in its prime goals of securing world peace and ending poverty due to cynical determination of the dominant Powers to maintain control.
Oman Minister, in Assembly address, urges 'unified position' on Mid-east crises
Oct 01, 2014, at 03:40 pm
New York, Oct 1 (IBNS) New and old crises in the Middle East are being exacerbated by the lack of international consensus on the paths to assist the concerned parties in resolving them, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Oman told the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, urging a "unified position" to tackle the region’s main challenges, particularly the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
UN official urges sustained pressure on parties to Syria conflict to ensure aid access
Oct 01, 2014, at 03:39 pm
New York, Oct 1 (IBNS) With winter fast approaching and the conflict in Syria showing no signs of abating, the United Nations humanitarian chief on Tuesday called for sustained pressure on the parties to ensure access to those in need of assistance as well as financial support to maintain vital aid operations.
In speech to UN Assembly, Yemen’s Minister highlights political transition, urges ongoing support
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:57 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) With Yemen pressing ahead after coming through a complex, United Nations-assisted transition, the country’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Jamal Abdullah Al-Sallal, told the General Assembly on Monday that continued international support would be needed, including a “strong call†from the UN Security Council against those seeking to undermine the political process.
Uruguay urges rooting new sustainable development agenda in human rights
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:51 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) The basis of a new sustainable development agenda must be poverty eradication, rooted in a strong foundation of human rights and recognition of rights, Uruguay’s Foreign Minister on Monday told the United Nations General Assembly, calling for a greater focus on equality.
Colombian bill on military criminal justice 'major setback' for human rights, say experts
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:48 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS): A group of independent United Nations human rights experts are calling on the Government and the Congress of Colombia to reconsider the possible adoption of a bill that aims to restructure and expand the scope of the jurisdiction of military courts.
New Zealand, in UN address, voices support for small island developing nations
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:46 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) Not enough attention is focused on the challenges of small island developing nations, the Foreign Minister of New Zealand on Monday told the annual United Nations General Assembly calling for greater efforts to share experiences and skills with the so-called SIDS regions.
Eritrea: UN expert to investigate pervasive rights abuses as part of 'historic' inquiry
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:44 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) Amid forced conscription, extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances, the human rights situation in Eritrea continues to remain “dire,†a United Nations independent expert warned, adding that a new Commission of Inquiry would help “pave the way†to accountability.
UN expert urges European nations to rethink policies as migration-related deaths rise
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:41 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) In attempting to seal their borders, European nations are facing an “impossible†task, the United Nations independent expert on the human rights of migrants said on Monday, as he encouraged the European Union (EU) to identify new legal channels of migration in an effort to save lives.
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:38 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) From the podium of the General Assembly on Monday Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned the world of the grave threat he said it faced from militant Islam’s desire to dominate the planet, be they Sunni extremists or Iran, defended Israel’s Gaza campaign as moral, and dubbed the United Nations Human Rights Council the “terrorist rights council.â€
Kyrgyz official warns UN Assembly of international dangers from unstable Afghanistan
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:19 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) Afghanistan poses the most serious external challenge to Central Asia, Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Erlan Abdyldaev told the United Nations General Assembly, calling for a more proactive international contribution to strengthen regional law enforcement and to promote regional cooperation.
At UN Assembly, Philippines decries expansionist territorial claims in region
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:15 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) The Philippines took the General Assembly podium on Monday to accuse another Member State of embarking on expansionist territorial claims that violate its rights, and called on the United Nations to take speedy action to protect UN peacekeeping forces after Filipino troops were seized in the Golan Heights.
Perpetrators of extra-judicial killings in Mexico must be brought to justice – UN expert
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:15 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) The Government of Mexico must "fully investigate, prosecute, and punish" all cases of extra-legal, arbitrary and summary executions, a United Nations independent human rights expert stressed on Monday, as he welcomed the country’s recent arrest of eight military personnel suspected in the extra-judicial killings of 22 unarmed criminals.
European leaders tell UN 'collective sense of purpose' needed to maintain peace, security
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:13 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) Addressing the General Assembly this afternoon, Liechtenstein’s Foreign Minister, Aurelia Frick, said acts of aggression perpetrated against Ukraine and the illegal annexation of parts of its territory underline the need to enforce international law.
Libya: UN envoy hails start of political dialogue aimed at resolving ongoing crisis
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:10 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) The top United Nations envoy to Libya called on Monday a historic day as the political dialogue aimed at resolving the crisis in the country got under way in the town of Ghadames.
UN refugee chief warns against overlooking humanitarian crises in Africa
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:08 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) The United Nations refugee chief on Monday warned the international community about the risks of overlooking the humanitarian crises in Africa, calling for a renewed commitment to preventing conflict and ending protracted displacement.
Adverse conditions stop poorer countries reaching development goals, Laos tells UN
Sep 30, 2014, at 05:06 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) Armed conflicts, political unrests, pandemics, and environmental degradation have impeded efforts by the world’s least developed countries (LDCs) to reach the anti-poverty Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Laotian Deputy Prime Minister Thongloun Sisovlith told the United Nations General Assembly on Monday.
Holy See calls at General Assembly for 'renewed' UN to use 'licit force' against terror
Sep 30, 2014, at 04:54 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) In the face of terrorist attacks on Christians and other minorities in the Middle East, and other lethal crises, Pope Francis' representative at the General Assembly’s high-level annual meeting on Monday called for a reinvigorated United Nations capable of deploying the necessary multilateral force to defeat the scourge.
World needs 'paradigm shift' towards sustainable agriculture, UN agency urges
Sep 30, 2014, at 04:49 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS) In order to move towards more sustainable agriculture, a broader approach is needed to overhaul the world’s food system, the head of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said on Monday, as he pressed for a global reduction in the quantity of chemicals and water in contemporary agriculture.