rights Archives - Page 5 of 23

UN rights office urges Russia to cease attacks on Ukraine’s energy grid as winter sets in

·November 30, 2024·2 min read

Spokesperson Jeremy Laurence said massive missile and drone attacks on the power network this week have heightened serious concerns about the plight of civilians facing a winter of hardship and misery. Russia launched missile and long-range drone strikes on Thursday, which reportedly caused damage in at least 13 regions, in...

World News in Brief: Aid challenges in Syria, human rights in Iran, elections in South Sudan

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·November 29, 2024·3 min read

A Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) volunteer was among multiple civilians killed in the incident, OCHA said in a news release. The attack also damaged several SARC ambulances and other humanitarian objects and left two bridges impassable. “As a result, all humanitarian operations at border crossings [between Syria and Lebanon]...

Upholding human rights is key to ending AIDS by 2030

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·November 27, 2024·2 min read

Titled “Take the rights path to end AIDS,” the report outlines how stigma, discrimination, and punitive laws hinder progress in the fight against HIV. Despite significant advancements in HIV treatment and prevention, human rights violations continue to block access to essential services. In 2023, 630,000 people died from AIDS-related illnesses,...

Lebanon: UN rights chief adds voice to immediate ceasefire call

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·November 26, 2024·1 min read

The development follows dire assessments from UN aid teams about the cost of “relentless” Israeli attacks on Beirut’s southern suburbs since the weekend, resulting in extensive damage and significant casualties, and forcing more people to flee their homes. “The High Commissioner reiterates his call for an immediate ceasefire to put...

Russian strikes on Ukraine’s energy system risks nuclear disaster: rights experts

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·November 26, 2024·2 min read

Their warning comes amid growing international concern about the vulnerability of Ukraine’s nuclear facilities which rely on a stable power grid to maintain critical safety systems. “The latest large-scale Russian missile attack on Ukraine’s electricity system has led to further significant damage to electric substations that are essential to the...

Rights experts call for immediate end to post-election violence in Mozambique

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·November 16, 2024·1 min read

Weeks of violent protests have marked the outcome of the disputed 9 October presidential elections, which saw ruling party Frelimo candidate Daniel Chapo emerge the winner amid widespread allegations of fraud. Frelimo has been in power since 1975. Multiple news reports indicate that violent and repressive measures were used by...

Public execution in Afghanistan condemned as ‘clear human rights violation’

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·November 14, 2024·1 min read

The latest incident comes amid growing international concern over the use of capital punishment in the country since 2021, when the Taliban swept back into power 20 years on from the allied invasion that ended their rule, in the wake of the 11 September terrorist attacks in the United States....

UN rights chief urges Bangladesh to sustain ‘unprecedented’ momentum for change

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·October 30, 2024·3 min read

The protests, which highlighted demands for human rights, accountability and social justice, must be met with meaningful reforms, High Commissioner Volker Türk urged. “This unique, unprecedented moment in the history of Bangladesh is the result of young men and women having taken to the streets – at great personal risk...

Palestine: International law obliges Israel to end occupation, says rights panel

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·October 20, 2024·2 min read

It details the obligations for Israel, third-party States and the UN to bring to an end the unlawful occupation, according to the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel. “Israel’s internationally wrongful acts give rise to State responsibility, not only for...

Freedom of expression also under fire in Gaza war, rights expert says

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·October 20, 2024·4 min read

“Rarely have we seen – and this is what bothers me – extensive patterns of unlawful, discriminatory and disproportionate restriction by States and private actors on freedom of expression,” said Irene Khan, the UN Special Rapporteur mandated to promote and protect this right globally. Ms. Khan briefed journalists at UN...

World News in Brief: ‘Historic drought’ in southern Africa, human rights in Tunisia, accountability essential for Pakistan mineworker killings

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·October 15, 2024·2 min read

In an appeal for help, the World Food Programme, WFP, said that more than 27 million people’s lives from Lesotho to Zimbabwe have been devastated, leaving 21 million children malnourished. A record five countries have declared a national disaster because of the drought and requested international assistance: Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia,...

Lebanon crisis: UN human rights office calls for probe into Israeli strike

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·October 15, 2024·2 min read

“What we’re hearing is that amongst the 22 people who were killed were 12 women and two children,” said Jeremy Laurence, spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). “We understand it was a four-storey residential building that was struck. With these factors in mind,...