Lebanon: UN Special Coordinator meets Prime Minister to discuss year's challenges, progress
Dec 30, 2014, at 09:29 pm
New York, Dec 30 (IBNS) The United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Derek Plumbly, met in Beirut on Monday with Prime Minister Tamam Salam to discuss the grave security challenges faced by the country this year, as well as progress made to promote dialogue between political parties.
South Sudan: UN boosts food assistance as 'very critical' Nile corridor reopens
Dec 30, 2014, at 09:27 pm
New York, Dec 30 (IBNS): A barge carrying a shipment of food destined for thousands of people in South Sudan has crossed over from neighbouring Sudan, reopening a long-closed river corridor along the Nile, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) announced on Monday.
Ban welcomes proposal for 'high-level dialogue' between two Koreas
Dec 30, 2014, at 07:20 pm
New York, Dec 30 (IBNS) United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed a proposal by the Government of the Republic of Korea to kick-start a high-level dialogue with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) in an effort to thaw relations between the two countries.
Death toll in Italian ferry fire touches 7
Dec 30, 2014, at 02:53 am
Corfu, Dec 29 (IBNS): The death toll in the fire incident on a Norman Atlantic ferry off Corfu has touched seven, media reports said on Monday.
AirAsia plane in bottom of sea: Indonesia search agency
Dec 29, 2014, at 08:56 pm
Surabaya, Dec 29 (IBNS) - The missing AirAsia Indonesia flight QZ8501 that went missing with 162 people on board on Sunday morning in probability has crashed and went into the bottom of the sea, said Indonesia's search-and-rescue agency team chief in a media briefing
International search drive mobilized for missing AirAsia flight
Dec 29, 2014, at 07:28 pm
Surabaya, Dec 29 (IBNS) - AirAsia Indonesia received confirmation from the National Search and Rescue Agency Republic of Indonesia (BASARNAS) that an international search and rescue mission from Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia had been mobilized in the search of flight QZ8501.
Missing AirAsia plane likely at bottom of sea bed, says expert
Dec 29, 2014, at 06:19 pm
Jakarta, Dec 29 (IBNS): The AirAsia plane that went missing with 162 passengers on board en-route to Singapore is likely at the bottom of the sea, media reports said.
Countries offers help in search for missing AirAsia aircraft
Dec 29, 2014, at 02:34 am
Jakarta, Dec 28 (IBNS) Several countries, including Australia, has offered help to Indonesia to search for the missing AirAsia flight on Sunday.
-1419775009.jpg "Search for missing plane suspended for the day")
Search for missing plane suspended for the day
Dec 29, 2014, at 12:56 am
Jakarta, Dec 28 (IBNS): Indonesian authorities have suspended for the night the operation to search for the AirAsia flight with 162 people, mostly Indonesian, on board flying to Singapore from Indonesia went missing in the air after it lost contact with air traffic control on Sunday morning, reports said.
Pakistan: Facilitator of Peshawar school attack killed
Dec 26, 2014, at 11:21 pm
Peshawar, Dec 26 (IBNS): The facilitator of the attack on the Army Public School in Pakistan's Peshawar city was killed in a raid conducted by security forces and political administration, reports said on Friday.
Kalashnikov Concern applies to register AK-47 word trademark
Dec 26, 2014, at 05:16 am
Moscow, Dec 25 (IBNS): Russian arms manufacturer Kalashnikov Concern has applied to register a word trademark for weapon AK-47 assault rifle, including for toys, according to the court materials seen by TASS news agency of the country.
Libya: UN condemns sectarian murder as 'alien' to country's tradition of tolerance
Dec 25, 2014, at 04:40 pm
New York, Dec 25 (IBNS) The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has strongly condemned the murder of an Egyptian Coptic doctor and his wife in the city of Sirte, as well as the abduction of the couple’s 18-year-old daughter, in the latest spate of sectarian violence in the North African country.
UN chief appoints Malian national as deputy envoy for South Sudan
Dec 25, 2014, at 04:38 pm
New York, Dec 25 (IBNS) United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday announced the appointment of Moustapha Soumare of Mali as his Deputy Special Representative (Political) for the UN Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS).
Somalia: UN chief hails appointment of new Prime Minister
Dec 25, 2014, at 04:36 pm
New York, Dec 25 (IBNS) United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday welcomed the Parliamentary endorsement of Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke as the new Prime Minister of the Federal Republic of Somalia in a step towards resolving the country's current political crisis.
Despite Gaza clashes, Israelis and Palestinians must maintain ceasefire, says UN official
Dec 25, 2014, at 04:31 pm
New York, Dec 25 (IBNS) The United Nations Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, James Rawley, has said he is deeply concerned by reports of exchange of fire between Palestinian militants and the Israeli Defense Forces in the southern Gaza Strip on Wednesday.
'No sign of improvement' for human rights in Belarus, warns UN expert
Dec 25, 2014, at 04:31 pm
New York, Dec 25 (IBNS): Amid the continuing application of death sentences, the harassment of human rights defenders and independent journalists, and a new censorship law clamping down on internet freedom, the Government of Belarus shows no imminent sign of bettering its human rights record, a United Nations expert has declared.
As war continues, UN agency maps extensive destruction to Syria’s cultural heritage
Dec 24, 2014, at 02:42 pm
New York, Dec 24 (IBNS) The extensive destruction and damage of Syria's historical and cultural heritage sites demands increased efforts to protect them from the violence of the country's continuing conflict, a new United Nations report based on exclusive satellite imagery has revealed.
Haiti: UN and partners welcome consensus on appointment of interim Prime Minister
Dec 24, 2014, at 02:41 pm
New York, Dec 24 (IBNS) The United Nations and its international partners on Tuesday welcomed the designation of Florence Guillaume as Haiti’s interim Prime Minister.
Laos: UN experts appeal for help to probe two-year-old disappearance of rights defender
Dec 24, 2014, at 02:40 pm
New York, Dec 24 (IBNS) International support is now needed to investigate the enforced disappearance of leading Laotian human rights defender Sombath Somphone, who was last seen in December 2012, a group of United Nations independent experts urged on Tuesday.
Tunisia's successful presidential elections 'critical step' in country's transition – Ban
Dec 24, 2014, at 02:34 pm
New York, Dec 24 (IBNS) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday commended the Tunisian people on the successful holding of the second round of presidential elections on 21 December and congratulated the winner, Beji Caid Essebsi.
As winter hits displaced Iraqis, UN appeals for boost in humanitarian funding
Dec 24, 2014, at 02:32 pm
New York, Dec 24 (IBNS) The United Nations on Tuesday called for a surge in humanitarian funding to help cover the basic needs of close to one million internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Iraq’s Kurdistan region amid plummeting temperatures and wintry conditions.
UN rights experts alarmed at resumption of death penalty by States for terrorist acts
Dec 24, 2014, at 02:31 pm
New York, Dec 24 (IBNS) As Pakistan lifted a six-year moratorium on use of the death penalty following the recent terrorist attack in Peshawar, United Nations human rights experts on Tuesday warned against rescinding such suspensions and stressed the risks of overusing capital punishment for terrorist acts.
Muslim group trapped by Central African Republic violence face dire situation, warns UN
Dec 24, 2014, at 02:30 pm
New York, Dec 24 (IBNS) The United Nations refugee agency voiced concern on Tuesday over the “deteriorating situation†facing more than 400 members of a Muslim minority group trapped by the ongoing violence fracturing the Central African Republic (CAR).
Montagnards hiding in Cambodian forests since October now safe, UN reports
Dec 24, 2014, at 02:28 pm
New York, Dec 24 (IBNS)After weeks of effort and engagement with authorities, the United Nations said on Tuesday that it has helped a group of Vietnamese Montagnards who had been hiding in the Cambodian forests since October with little protection and subsistence get to safety.
Libya: UN warns of human rights violations as factional fighting continues
Dec 24, 2014, at 02:28 pm
New York, Dec 24 (IBNS) Libyan civilians have been subject to targeted killings, forced displacement and acute humanitarian conditions amid an escalation in fighting in the North African country, a new United Nations human rights report has warned.
UN officials hail entry into force of landmark global arms trade treaty
Dec 24, 2014, at 02:27 pm
New York, Dec 24 (IBNS United Nations officials are welcoming the entry into force of the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), hailing it as a new chapter in collective efforts to bring responsibility, accountability and transparency to the global arms trade.
In Security Council, UN officials urge renewed engagement with DPR Korea on human rights
Dec 23, 2014, at 02:01 pm
New York, Dec 23 (IBNS) Despite a grim litany of human rights abuses committed against its own people and ongoing provocations to global peace and security, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) has shown signs of compliance with human rights mechanisms prompting hopes that the Asian nation may one day yield to the call for full accountability and reform, two senior United Nations officials stated on Monday.
Central African Republic: rebels clash with UN peacekeepers during weekend fighting
Dec 23, 2014, at 02:01 pm
New York, Dec 23 (IBNS) The United Nations mission in the Central African Republic has said it is concerned about fighting that took place this weekend in several locations around the country, including between anti-Balaka members and peacekeepers.
2015 will be 'tough year' for humanitarian operations, senior UN official warns
Dec 23, 2014, at 01:58 pm
New York, Dec 23 (IBNS) The outlook for global humanitarian operations is "very, very bleak," a top United Nations humanitarian official warned on Monday saying that "it's been a rapid deterioration through 2014 and sadly, as we move forward we're expecting to face a tough year in 2015."
Maldives: UN expert concerned at 'unacceptable' dismissal of Supreme Court justices
Dec 23, 2014, at 01:57 pm
New York, Dec 23 (IBNS) The removal of two Supreme Court justices in the Maldives by local authorities threatens the independence of the country’s judiciary and further compromises the rule of law, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers has warned.