End secret detention of rights defender, independent experts urge Pakistani authorities
Sep 05, 2020, at 09:58 pm
New York: Independent UN rights experts have called on the Government of Pakistan to end the secret detention of a human rights defender, who has not been heard from in more than nine months.
Mystery surrounds Algeria article branded ‘complete fabrication’ by UN rights office
Sep 05, 2020, at 09:57 pm
New York: The UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) is dismissing as a “complete fabrication” an Algerian news report claiming that a UN tribunal has rejected a complaint by a group of political activists.e on Tuesday, the Algérie Presse Service (APS) listed the reasons why “the Geneva Office of the United Nations Dispute Tribunal” had turned away the complaint in just 24 hours.
25 years after Beijing’s Women Conference, significance ‘undimmed’
Sep 05, 2020, at 09:37 pm
New York: Exactly 25 years after the historic world conference in Beijing on the advancement and equality of women, the head of the UN gender empowerment agency declared on Friday that “its significance is undimmed”.
UN agency for Palestinian refugees launches $95 million appeal to keep COVID at bay
Sep 05, 2020, at 09:33 pm
New York: The COVID-19 pandemic has sparked a health and socio-economic emergency across the occupied Palestinian territory, the UN agency for the region warned on Friday, noting a swell of coronavirus cases in recent weeks.
Bangladesh: Six AC machines explode in mosque, 50 worshippers hurt
Sep 05, 2020, at 03:13 pm
Dhaka: At least 50 people were hurt as six air conditioners at a mosque in Narayanganj’s Fatullah region in Bangladesh exploded on Friday, media reports said.
Canada's 2nd province, Newfoundland & Labrador launches COVID-19 Alert App
Sep 05, 2020, at 05:31 am
Newfoundland & Labrador/IBNS: The provincial government of Newfoundland and Labrador (NL), the second Canadian province, signed up for the COVID-19 Alert App, details of which were unveiled Sep 3 by the federal government's exposure notification system, media reports said.
Pakistan: Fahmida Riaz's daughter turns down presidential award
Sep 05, 2020, at 03:56 am
Islamabad: Protesting against the kidnapping and torture of journalists and writers in the country, poet Fahmida Riaz's daughter has declined the presidential award announced by the Pakistani government for her late mother.
Pakistan must end enforced disappearance of human rights defender: UN Experts
Sep 05, 2020, at 03:10 am
Geneva/IBNS: UN human rights experts on Friday called on the Pakistani authorities to end the secret detention of human rights defender Idris Khattak, who has not been heard from in more than nine months.
Twitter places public warning on 2 of Trump's tweets about Mail-In Voting - Statement
Sep 04, 2020, at 10:50 pm
Washington/Sputnik: Twitter has placed a warning on two of President Donald Trump's tweets that potentially encourage US citizens to vote twice in the November election, the company said in a statement on Thursday.
Cambodian PM allocates 150 mln USD for road construction in tourist town despite COVID-19 threat
Sep 04, 2020, at 10:45 pm
Phnom Penh/Xinhua: Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen on Friday decided to allocate 150 million U.S. dollars from national reserve funds to construct roads in the tourist town of Siem Reap province.
Ten outstanding Bangladeshi students to receive online training offered by Huawei
Sep 04, 2020, at 10:35 pm
Dhaka/Xinhua: Huawei, the world's leading ICT solutions provider will offer an online training program to 10 outstanding ICT talents from five renowned universities of Bangladesh.
Afghanistan: Near-record violence risks derailing imminent talks between Government and Taliban
Sep 04, 2020, at 09:54 pm
New York: The UN’s top official in Afghanistan has warned that with the formal launch of direct peace negotiations imminent, near-record violence in the country is creating an atmosphere of mistrust that risks derailing long-sought talks between the Government and the Taliban.
Alleged poisoning of Russian opposition leader a ‘grave concern’, says chemical weapons watchdog
Sep 04, 2020, at 04:17 pm
New York: The allegation that Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was poisoned by a Cold War-era nerve agent is “a matter of grave concern”, the head of the UN-backed Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said on Thursday.
Women are key to response and recovery out of the COVID era: Deputy UN chief
Sep 04, 2020, at 04:13 pm
New York: Young women are fighting interconnected battles for “environmental, economic and racial justice”, the deputy UN chief said in a discussion on Thursday.
Beat back ‘catastrophic effects’ of COVID-19 on refugee education, urges UNHCR
Sep 04, 2020, at 04:03 pm
New York: While children in every country have struggled with the impact of COVID-19 on their education, refugee children have been particularly disadvantaged, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) has said, amid fears many may not be able to resume their studies due to school closures, high fees or lack of access to technology to learn remotely.
World’s richest nations must protect child well-being in COVID-19 fallout: UNICEF
Sep 04, 2020, at 03:57 pm
New York: Children in the world’s richest countries are grappling with mental health concerns, obesity and poor social and academic skills, according to a new study published on Thursday by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
UN dismayed over US sanctions on top International Criminal Court officials
Sep 04, 2020, at 03:52 pm
New York: The UN Secretary-General on Wednesday noted “with concern” the imposition by the United States of sanctions against the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and another senior official, in the latest of a series of unilateral policy moves against the body.
Security Council support ‘in action’ for Libya, crucial for its future, declares UN mission chief
Sep 04, 2020, at 03:44 pm
New York: The top UN official in Libya urged the Security Council on Wednesday to press for an immediate de-escalation of tensions and a return to negotiations, following the call from rival political leaders for a ceasefire on 21 August.
COVID-19: ‘Game-changer for international peace and security’ – UN chief
Sep 04, 2020, at 03:41 pm
New York: The world has “entered a volatile and unstable new phase” in terms of the impact of COVID-19 on peace and security, the UN chief told a virtual meeting with world leaders on Wednesday.
Women bear the brunt, as COVID erodes progress on eradicating extreme poverty
Sep 04, 2020, at 03:35 pm
New York: The coronavirus pandemic and its fallout will likely push 47 million more women into poverty, reversing decades of progress to eradicate extreme poverty, new data released on Wednesday by the UN has revealed.
Afghanistan: Unknown gunmen kill religious scholar in Paktia
Sep 04, 2020, at 02:42 pm
Kabul: Unknown gunmen killed religious scholar and Quran memorizer Mawlawi Mohajer in Afghanistan's Paktia province on Thursday, media reports said on Friday.
Canadian Health experts advise citizens to get flu shot to avoid toll on healthcare system
Sep 04, 2020, at 04:53 am
Ottawa/IBNS: Canada's health experts are advising Canadians to get the flu shot to avoid an influx of people becoming ill as influenza and the novel coronavirus circulate at the same time, media reports said.
Mike Pompeo voices concern over Chinese actions in Tibet
Sep 04, 2020, at 01:59 am
Washington: Days after Chinese President Xi Jinping called to promote “sinicisation” of Tibetan Buddhism, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo slammed Beijing for its suggestion.
Joe Biden condemns Beijing's treatment towards Uyghur Muslims
Sep 04, 2020, at 01:05 am
Washington: Putting pressure on China, U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden condemned Beijing's treatment of its Uyghur Muslim minority.
Facebook removes several Pakistani accounts over 'coordinated inauthentic behaviour'
Sep 04, 2020, at 12:58 am
San Francisco: Social media giant Facebook on Thursday said it has removed 453 Facebook accounts, 103 Pages, 78 Groups and 107 Instagram accounts operated from Pakistan for 'coordinated inauthentic behavior'.
Pakistan Christian man accused of blasphemy arrested
Sep 04, 2020, at 12:38 am
Islamabad: Pakistan continues to persecute its religious minorities with a Christian man arrested in the northwestern city of Nowshera under the country’s notorious blasphemy laws being the latest victim, media reports said.
China cries foul over India's second digital strike on Beijing post-Ladakh faceoff
Sep 03, 2020, at 10:29 pm
Beijing/IBNS: China has cried foul over the Indian government's banning of 118 mobile apps including the very popular PUBG following the fresh attempt by the neighbour to change the status-quo along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), media reports said.
CPEC: Maryam Nawaz asks Asim Bajwa to face allegations
Sep 03, 2020, at 06:02 pm
Islamabad: Reflecting the internal conflict within the political paradigm of Pakistan, PML-N vice-president Maryam Nawaz has asked China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Chairman and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Information retired Lt Gen Asim Saleem Bajwa to face the allegations against him.
Sep 03, 2020, at 05:15 am
Ottawa/IBNS: Dr. David Williams, Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health has been widely criticized for six straight months over his lack of leadership and lack of clear communication as Ontarians crave for new leadership during the province's entering a critical new stage of the COVID-19 pandemic, media reports said.
Tibet govt-in exile slams Chinese president Xi Jinping's call to ‘sinicize’ Tibetan Buddhism
Sep 03, 2020, at 03:59 am
Beijing: Tibet’s India-based exile government has slammed Chinese President Xi Jinping's call to "sinicize" the Tibetan people's Buddhist religion.