“We call upon the international community to urgently support refugees and their hosts,” said Filippo Grandi, UN High Commissioner for Refugees. “International support is crucial to sustain this welcome and to enable us to respond to immediate needs and to also build upon the resilience of this population.” Following the...
The UN Secretary-General condemned “in the strongest terms” the attack by Hamas against Israeli towns, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said on Saturday. “The attacks have so far claimed numerous Israeli civilian lives and injured many hundreds,” Mr. Dujarric said. “The Secretary-General is appalled by reports that civilians have been attacked...
Montserrat Xilotl, a Regional Technical Advisor in Climate Change Adaptation for the UN Development Programme (UNDP), explains why. Montserrat Xilotl, Regional Technical Advisor in Climate Change Adaptation for the UN Development Programme (UNDP). “Forests are nature’s water filters and storage systems. When rain falls, the trees, and vegetation capture and...
“I condemn today’s attack by Israeli settlers against Palestinians and their property in the town of Huwwara in occupied West Bank,” the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland, said in a statement. Huwara is located on the main road connecting the northern city of...
“It is important that we understand the issues of concern to Member States not only at the global level, but also regionally, noting the differences in priority and emphasis,” said Joachim Harris, Chief of the Digital and Promotion team in the UN’s Department of Global Communications. His team data crunched...
“I think what is absolutely clear is that the women of Iran have been a source of inspiration for the world. We’ve seen their courage and determination in the face of reprisals, intimidation, violence and detention,” Spokesperson Liz Throssell told journalists in Geneva. “This courage, this determination, have been remarkable....
“The images arriving from the locality, home to just above 300 people, are absolutely horrifying,” UN Humanitarian Coordinator Denise Brown said in a statement issued shortly after the attack. Speaking on behalf of the UN and the humanitarian community, she expressed condolences to the bereaved families. “Our thoughts are also...
An estimated 13.4 million babies were born early in 2020, with nearly one million dying from preterm complications, UN agencies and partners said in a new report on Thursday. The data is equivalent to around 1 in 10 babies born early, before 37 weeks of pregnancy worldwide. Health experts blame...
“We call on world leaders to launch negotiations of a new legally binding instrument to set clear prohibitions and restrictions on autonomous weapon systems and to conclude such negotiations by 2026,” UN Secretary-General António Guterres and ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric said on Thursday. “In the current security landscape, setting clear...
“The past six months have caused untold suffering in Sudan” and forced more than 5.4 million people from their homes, said Clementine Nkweta-Salami, Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan. Speaking to journalists in Geneva, the UN official noted that approximately 30,000 a day...
“We are concerned by reported instances of election-related violence, use of language that could amount to hate speech, and attacks on journalists in Liberia ahead of the general election on 10 October,” said UN Human Rights Office Spokesperson in the country, Seif Magango. Violent clashes Violent clashes between supporters of...
Over five million Haitians, including a record three million children, need humanitarian support in 2023. Nearly five million are acutely hungry, UNICEF said, adding the dire situation is “terrorizing children and families and destroying livelihoods amid unprecedented hunger, malnutrition and a resurgent cholera epidemic.” Haiti was among the top...