With negotiations on curbing global warming and the future of fossil fuels generating the most buzz as the latest UN climate conference heads towards the finish line – COP28 is scheduled to wrap up next Tuesday – young people and children grabbed the spotlight today. In the lead-up to the...
The situation is unfolding as “lives are hanging by a thread”, including those of babies in incubators at hospitals that depend on fuel for electricity, Andrea De Domenico, Head of OCHA’s office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, told journalists in New York on Monday. “Humanitarian ceasefire, fuel supplies – all of these should be happening...
“The choice is clear,” said Tor Wennesland, the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process (UNSCO). “Either continue along the downward spiral of violence and provocations leading to a political vacuum or turn towards constructive dialogue linked to concrete actions that can create hope and a political horizon.” ‘Alarming...
In a heartfelt appeal based on his years of visiting the devastated area, as Secretary-General and previously as head of the UN refugee agency UNHCR, Antonio Guterres said that what had been a “centre of solidarity is now an epicentre of suffering.” ‘Nightmare on top of nightmare’ “People are facing nightmare...
The annual commemoration celebrates the UN General Assembly’s adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on 10 December 1948. “Human rights are the foundation for human dignity, and the cornerstone of peaceful, inclusive, fair, equal and prosperous societies,” said Mr. Guterres. “They are a unifying force and a rallying...
“The world has promised to end AIDS by 2030”, said Secretary-General António Guterres in his official message, but “we are off track.” “Today, we risk millions more new infections and millions more deaths”, he added, calling on governments everywhere to make the “Equalize” slogan a reality. He said the “proven practical...
“The present climate of irresponsible business practices provides profit for companies but does little for people”, members of the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights said in a statement marking the conclusion of their first visit to the country. “A sustainable and stable peace calls for accountability, transparency,...