High Commissioner Volker Türk voiced his concern that Sunday’s poll which saw Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina secure a fifth term in office, was “marred by violence and repression of opposition candidates and supporters”, according to a press release from rights office OHCHR. “In the months leading up to the vote,...
“Humanity is strongest when we stand together. 2024 must be a year for rebuilding trust and restoring hope,” expressed Mr. Guterres in his New Year’s message. “Let’s resolve to make 2024 a year of building trust and hope in all that we can accomplish together,” he urged, concluding with warm...
Kamal Adwan Hospital was raided by the Israeli military over four days last week and the World Health Organization (WHO) said that many health workers were reportedly detained. “Gaza’s health system was already on its knees and the loss of another even minimally functioning hospital is a severe blow,” Tedros...
Reacting to the adoption of the outcome document, UN chief António Guterres said mention of the world’s leading contributor to climate change comes after many years in which the discussion of this issue was blocked. He stressed that the era of fossil fuels must end with justice and equity. “To...
More than 11,000 Palestinians have been killed in just one of month of conflict, they said, citing local health authorities. Children, women and the elderly account for 75 per cent of the victims, and upwards of 26,000 people have been injured. “Furthermore, according to multiple sources, the number of Palestinian...
That’s the message from the UN’s trade and development body UNCTAD, which called on Tuesday for urgent reform of the international financial system to support the world’s 46 Least Developed Countries. In line with the Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs, these most vulnerable economies urgently require foreign investment to add...
According to news reports, Pakistani security forces began detaining and deporting dozens of Afghans under the new policy this week after a Government deadline for them to leave ran out. The majority of undocumented refugees who have settled in Pakistan over decades are from neighbouring Afghanistan, and following the Taliban...
The statement came as the Israeli-imposed deadline for some 1.1 million civilians to leave the northern part of the enclave, ahead of what is expected to be a major advance into Gaza by Israeli ground forces, expired. “UNRWA shelters in Gaza and northern Gaza are no longer safe. This is...
No aid can come in from the outside for the 2.3 million residents of the sealed-off enclave, and some 220,000 displaced people are sheltering in schools run by the UN agency for Palestine refugees, UNRWA. Stocks depleting fast Humanitarians are continuing to support Gaza’s population as best they can. The...
Amid a “severe humanitarian crisis”, Afghanistan currently faces several human rights challenges, particularly for women and girls, according to the UN. Pakistan’s new plans would have “serious implications” for all who have been forced to leave the country and may face serious protection risks upon their return, the UN refugee...
“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...
Other key priorities to emerge were the state of the environment and ensuring responsible use of new technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Secretary-General António Guterres added. Against this backdrop, the UN’s visionary Our Common Agenda presents proposals and ideas that can bridge the gap, “between the world as it...