New York, Aug 5 (Just Earth News): Expressing deep concern about the critical health condition of a prisoner on hunger strike for three months, a group of United Nations independent human rights experts on Thursday called on the Government of China to stop all forms of ill-treatment and urgently provide him with specialized medical care, based on his full and informed consent.
Aid agencies ready to help ease suffering in 'iconic' Aleppo, once truce is secured – UN envoy
New York, Aug 5 (Just Earth News): As fighting in and around battle-scarred Aleppo intensifies, along with diplomatic efforts to secure a truce, United Nations agencies and their partners are “ready, willing and able†to rush aid to the desperate people trapped there, a senior UN envoy said on Thursday, stressing that a humanitarian pause is critical, both to allow relief workers to enter the area, and for civilians to leave voluntary.
UN agency welcomes ‘landmark step’ by North and Central American countries to protect refugees
New York, Aug 5 (Just Earth News): The United Nations refugee agency on Thursday welcomed a joint commitment by nine North and Central American countries acknowledging the need for stronger protection of asylum-seekers, refugees and internally displaced people in the region, where crime and gang violence have driven thousands of people from their homes.
Global food prices down slightly in July – UN agency
New York, Aug 4 (Just Earth News): The international prices for major food commodities saw a modest decline in July, following five consecutive months of increases, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
South Sudan's government forces committed widespread violations in July fighting – UN
New York, Aug 4 (Just Earth News): Preliminary United Nations investigations into the recent fighting in South Sudan reveal Government security forces carried out killings and rapes, and looted and destroyed properties, the UN human rights chief said on Thursday, calling on the Security Council to take stronger action.
Syria: Militant attack kills 8
Damascus, Aug 4 (IBNS): Rocket shells fired terrorists of “Jaish al-Islam†in Syria's Damascus area has killed one people killed, media reports said.
Knife attack: 1 killed in London
London, Aug 4 (IBNS): In a knife attack in London, a woman was stabbed to death and five other were injured on Wednesday,the police said.
In South Sudan, UN humanitarian chief calls for end to attacks against civilians, aid workers
New York, Aug 4 (Just Earth News): United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen O’Brien concluded on Wednesday his three-day mission to crisis-torn South Sudan, voicing serious concern at the humanitarian situation in the country and in particular the violence against civilians, as well as attacks against aid workers, which is hampering efforts to respond to the needs of the people affected by the fighting.
UNESCO explores ways to apply World Heritage Convention to ‘wonders’ of open ocean
New York, Aug 4 (Just Earth News): A United Nations-backed report launched on Wednesday explores the different ways the international treaty governing the inscription of world heritage sites may one day apply to sunken coral islands, floating rainforests, or giant undersea volcanoes, none of which can be considered for listing because they are in the seas outside of any national jurisdiction.
UN ‘deeply troubled’ by latest DPRK missile launch
New York, Aug 4 (Just Earth News): The United Nations is "deeply troubled" by the recent missile launches of the Democratic Republic of Korea (DPRK), a UN spokesperson said on Wednesday after one of the rockets, reportedly landed in or near Japanese waters for the first time.
Ban congratulates Kazakhstan on its signing of the Paris Agreement on climate change
New York, Aug 4 (Just Earth News): In a meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, Erlan Idrissov, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon congratulated the country on its recent election as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, as well on its signing of the Paris Agreement under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
UN agency launches smartphone app in drought-hit Malawi to fundraise for school meals
New York, Aug 4 (Just Earth News): The United Nations food relief agency on Wednesday started a fundraising campaign, using a smartphone application, to provide school meals in a southern district of Malawi, where El Niño-induced drought has reduced crop yields.
E-government a powerful tool to implement global sustainability goals, UN survey finds
New York, Aug 4 (Just Earth News): A new United Nations report has found that e-government is an effective tool for facilitating integrated policies and public service by promoting accountable and transparent institutions, such as through open data and participatory decision-making, and therefore it has the potential to help support the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Syria: ISIL’s genocide of Yazidis ‘ongoing,’ UN inquiry warns
New York, Aug 3 (Just Earth News): A United Nations-mandated inquiry on human rights in Syria on Wednesday called for an end to the genocide and other crimes committed by Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/Da’esh) against the Yazidis, recommending that the UN Security Council refer the situation to the International Criminal Court (ICC) or an ad hoc tribunal.
UN warns of escalating tension in eastern Ukraine as casualties hit highest since last August
New York, Aug 3 (Just Earth News): Civilian causalities in eastern Ukraine spiked in June and July, prompting the United Nations human rights chief to call on the parties to the conflict to make protection of civilians a priority and take urgent steps to de-escalate the increasingly tense situation at the contact line.