Dec 05, 2020, at 03:54 pm
New York: The UN Secretary-General António Guterres welcomed the continuing ceasefire in and around Nagorno-Karabakh on Friday, underlining that the Organization stands ready to provide humanitarian support to meet the needs of all civilians impacted by conflict.
COVID-19: Right decisions now will secure a life of dignity for all
Dec 05, 2020, at 03:45 pm
New York: Critical decisions made now to address the COVID-19 pandemic will lead to a life of dignity for all people, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed said on Friday, addressing the second and final day of the General Assembly’s special session devoted to the crisis.
Belarus: End ongoing human rights violations, UN rights chief urges
Dec 05, 2020, at 03:37 pm
New York: The human rights situation in Belarus continues to deteriorate, particularly with respect to peaceful assembly, the UN rights chief said on Friday, urging the government to put an end to ongoing violations and “take steps towards a genuine, respectful and inclusive national dialogue”.
UN working at ‘full speed’ to prepare for humanitarian mission to Ethiopia’s Tigray
Dec 05, 2020, at 03:31 pm
New York: The UN’s humanitarian coordination office, said on Friday that it was doing its utmost to secure aid access to Ethiopia’s Tigray region, after a deal was struck to reach displaced civilians, following weeks of fighting between federal and regional forces.
Vanuatu graduates from list of least developed countries
Dec 05, 2020, at 03:07 pm
New York: The Pacific island nation of Vanuatu has graduated from the official list of Least Developed Countries (LDC), becoming the sixth country to achieve the milestone since the development categorization was created in 1971.
Yemen: Unchecked violations ‘may amount to war crimes’, Security Council hears
Dec 04, 2020, at 10:36 pm
New York: UN experts called on the Security Council on Thursday, along with the international community at large, to put an end to the “surreal and absurd dimension” of human rights violations engulfing war-torn Yemen, where abuses continue unchecked.
UN experts call for clemency for Lisa Montgomery, as US reschedules planned execution
Dec 04, 2020, at 10:31 pm
New York: UN independent human rights experts expressed serious concern on Thursday, after the United States Government rescheduled the execution of Lisa Montgomery for 12 January, just days before new President Joe Biden, an opponent of the death penalty, is due to be sworn in.
Amid ‘unprecedented’ needs, UNICEF asks for $6.4 billion to help 190 million children
Dec 04, 2020, at 09:21 pm
New York: The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on Thursday, launched a $6.4 billion emergency funding appeal to reach more than 190 million children affected by humanitarian crises amidst the coronavirus pandemic.
Recognize and protect rights of persons with disabilities, UN chief urges, marking International Day
Dec 04, 2020, at 09:13 pm
New York: The United Nations is commemorating the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, on Thursday, calling for greater inclusion for persons with disabilities, and recognizing and protecting their human rights.
Canada targeting January for start of COVID-19 vaccine delivery: Distribution Czar
Dec 04, 2020, at 03:37 pm
Toronto/Sputnik/UNI: The Canadian government is targeting January as the starting point for COVID-19 vaccine delivery throughout the country, Canada’s Vaccine Distribution Czar Maj. Gen. Dany Fortin said during a press conference.
Multinationals in US lobby against Xinjiang forced labour bill: Report
Dec 04, 2020, at 03:25 am
New York: Major multinational companies and business groups are lobbying Congress to weaken a bill that would ban imported goods made with forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region, media reports said on Thursday.
UN says Kazakhstan illegally 'targeted' defender of Xinjiang indigenous groups
Dec 02, 2020, at 04:49 pm
New York: The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has recently said the Kazakh government violated international human rights law last year by detaining activist Serikzhan Bilash.
UN humanitarian office puts Yemen war dead at 233,000, mostly from ‘indirect causes’
Dec 02, 2020, at 04:01 pm
New York: Almost a quarter of a million people have died in Yemen’s war, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on its website on Tuesday, confirming the huge toll from a conflict that has ravaged Yemen’s economy and created the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
Global agreement on migration 'taking root' despite pandemic challenge: Guterres
Dec 02, 2020, at 03:53 pm
New York: The Global Compact for Migration, adopted by countries in 2018 as a comprehensive framework for cooperation on international migration, is “taking root in promising ways”, the UN Secretary General said on Tuesday.
COVID-19 can spark new generation of social protection measures: UN chief
Dec 02, 2020, at 03:28 pm
New York: While COVID-19 has wiped out important development gains in mere months, with extreme poverty rising for the first time in decades, the pandemic could spark the transformations needed to achieve stronger social protection systems, the UN Secretary-General said on Tuesday.
UNHCR asks Ethiopia for urgent access to 96,000 Eritreans cut off without food
Dec 02, 2020, at 05:56 am
New York: The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, appealed to Ethiopia on Tuesday for urgent access to 96,000 Eritrean refugees in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, saying the month-long conflict in Tigray had left them without vital supplies.
UN appeals for $35 billion to help world’s ‘most vulnerable and fragile’ in 2021
Dec 02, 2020, at 05:21 am
New York: A record 235 million people will need humanitarian assistance and protection next year, a near- 40 per cent increase on 2020 which is “almost entirely from COVID-19”, the UN’s emergency relief chief said on Tuesday.
COVID-19 worsening gender-based violence, trafficking risk, for women and girls
Dec 02, 2020, at 05:08 am
New York: With the COVID-19 pandemic heightening the dangers of gender-based violence and human trafficking, action on these two fronts is needed now more than ever, the head of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said on Monday.
UN human rights office worried by killings in Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua
Dec 02, 2020, at 04:33 am
New York: Violence is escalating in the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua, where meaningful and inclusive dialogue is urgently needed to address longstanding economic, social and political grievances, the UN human rights office said on Monday.
The pandemic is fuelling slavery and sexual exploitation, UN experts warn
Dec 01, 2020, at 09:52 pm
New York: The COVID-19 pandemic has played into the hands of slavers and traffickers and requires stronger government measures to prevent exploitation of vulnerable people, more than 50 independent UN human rights experts said in a statement on Monday.
Consign chemical weapons to history, UN chief urges, honouring victims
Dec 01, 2020, at 09:44 pm
New York: The United Nations Secretary-General has called for “renewed determination” to eliminate chemical weapons from the world.
Australia demands Chinese govt's apology for posting 'images' on social media, Beijing refuses
Dec 01, 2020, at 05:10 pm
Sydney: Australia has demanded China to apologise for allegedly posting a fake picture on a government Twitter account that depicted an Australian soldier murdering an Afghan child.
Moderna submits coronavirus vaccine data to obtain emergency use authorization
Dec 01, 2020, at 03:01 pm
Washington/Sputnik: The pharmaceutical company Moderna said that it has submitted the results of its corona vaccine trials to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in order to obtain emergency use authorization for the vaccine.
Drone strike kills one of Iran’s IRGC commanders in western Iraq
Dec 01, 2020, at 02:52 pm
Tehran/Sputnik: A drone strike killed one of the commanders of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Muslim Shahdan, in Iraq’s Al Anbar Province bordering Syria, Al Arabiya reported on Monday, citing Iraqi sources.
UK’s Boris Johnson hopes regulator will approve COVID-19 vaccines before Christmas
Dec 01, 2020, at 02:48 pm
London/Sputnik: UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday he hoped that two promising coronavirus vaccine candidates would be approved shortly.
Anti-IS coalition deputy commander says fractioned terror group ‘down but not out’
Dec 01, 2020, at 02:45 pm
Washington/Sputnik: The Islamic State terror group has been significantly weakened but remains a threat, Operation Inherent Resolve Deputy Commander, Maj Gen Kevin Copsey, said on Monday.
France plans to build bigger, costlier aircraft carrier
Dec 01, 2020, at 02:39 pm
Paris/Sputnik: France’s plans for a next-generation aircraft carrier, PANG, to replace the obsolete Charles de Gaulle are beginning to take shape, media reported Monday.
First of four UN humanitarian airlifts for Ethiopia refugees lands in Khartoum
Nov 30, 2020, at 02:06 am
New York: An airplane loaded with humanitarian supplies for people fleeing violence in Ethiopia’s Tigray region has arrived in the Sudanese capital Khartoum, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said on Friday, in an appeal for international assistance to cope with the growing numbers seeking shelter in Sudan.
At least 40 people detained during protests in Minsk: Belarusian Rights Group
Nov 30, 2020, at 01:30 am
Minsk/Sputnik: Belarusian police have detained at least 40 people attending the Sunday anti-government rallies in the capital city of Minsk and its suburbs, the Viasna human rights center said in a news release.
UN Committee urges end to impunity for enforced disappearances in Iraq
Nov 30, 2020, at 12:34 am
New York: A pattern of enforced disappearance – and impunity for such acts - persists in Iraq, according to a report published on Friday by the UN Committee charged with monitoring how well the country upholds its international obligations in dealing with the issue.