African Union-UN mission calls for restraint amid tensions at Darfur camp
Sep 09, 2014, at 05:49 pm
New York, Sept 9 (IBNS) Concerned about escalating tensions, the African Union-United Nations peacekeeping mission in Sudan’s Darfur region on Monday called for restraint by all parties in and around the Kalma camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) where demonstrations have resulted in several casualties over the weekend.
No 'back to school' for millions of children affected by conflict, crisis UN
Sep 09, 2014, at 05:44 pm
New York, Sept 9 (IBNS) Almost 30 million children are out of school in emergency or conflict affected countries following the targeting of schools and the displacement of millions of children forced from their homes and studies, the United Nations Children’s Fund said on Monday.
Iraq, Syria top priorities for new UN human rights chief
Sep 09, 2014, at 05:38 pm
New York, Sept 9 (IBNS) The new United Nations human rights chief on Monday urged the international community to stop the “increasingly conjoined†conflicts in Iraq and Syria, lashing out at the armed group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) for trying to create a “house of blood.â€
Ukraine death toll of more than 3,000 'alarming': UN
Sep 09, 2014, at 05:32 pm
New York, Sept 9 (IBNS) The number of people killed in Ukraine has topped 3,000 and could be "significantly higher," a senior United Nations human rights official said on Monday, as he urgently appealed for a sustainable peace to spare the country "a winter of horrors."
Security Council told of indiscriminate, brutal killings children face in conflict
Sep 09, 2014, at 05:28 pm
New York, Sept 9 (IBNS) The multiplication of crises affecting children since the beginning of 2014 is creating unprecedented challenges that overshadow progress to date to protect them from the impact of war, a senior United Nations official told the Security Council on Monday.
New UN envoys for Syria crisis heading to Damascus
Sep 09, 2014, at 05:22 pm
New York, Sept 9 (IBNS) The United Nations said on Monday that the new envoys tasked with advancing a peaceful settlement to the ongoing conflict in Syria will travel to Damascus for consultations starting Tuesday.
Amid multiple crises, 'responsibility to protect' more urgent than ever UN officials
Sep 09, 2014, at 05:16 pm
New York, Sept 9 (IBNS) On Monday,s crises, from the horrors in Iraq and Syria to the persistent violence in South Sudan and Ukraine, demand urgent and collective action to stem atrocity crimes and protect civilians, United Nations officials said on Monday, as the General Assembly met to discuss the 'responsibility to protect' adopted nearly 10 years ago by world leaders.
On International Day, UNESCO chief says literacy not only improves lives, it saves them
Sep 09, 2014, at 05:13 pm
New York, Sept 9 (IBNS) With one in four young people – 175 million adolescents – unable to read a single sentence, International Literacy Day is an opportunity to remember one simple truth: literacy not only changes lives, it saves them, said the head of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Prince William-Kate expecting second child
Sep 09, 2014, at 02:33 am
London, Sept 8 (IBNS): Prince Williams and the Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton are expecting their second child, officials said on Monday.
Security Council condemns 'cowardly' murder of journalist in Syria, demands release of hostages
Sep 08, 2014, at 06:07 pm
New York, Sept 8 (IBNS) The United Nations Security Council on Sunday strongly condemned the "heinous and cowardly" murder of Steven Sotloff, an American and Israeli journalist, by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
UN-backed forum tackles privacy, boosting Internet access, protecting children online
Sep 06, 2014, at 03:57 pm
New York, Sept 6 (IBNS) With over 3,500 participants, many of them directly tuning in online, the Ninth Annual Meeting of the United Nations-backed Internet Governance Forum (IGF) concluded in Istanbul on Friday after tackling key issues that "may determine the evolution of the Internet."
Indian Ocean nations to carry out UN-organized tsunami readiness test
Sep 06, 2014, at 03:50 pm
New York, Sept 6 (IBNS) Ten years after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, 24 countries in the region will participate in an exercise organized by the United Nations to test their readiness to address such rare but potentially destructive events.
Ukraine: Ban calls for full implementation of announced ceasefire
Sep 06, 2014, at 03:47 pm
New York, Sept 6 (IBNS) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday welcomed the news of a ceasefire in Ukraine and called for its full implementation, adding his hope that the cessation of hostilities will further allow the United Nations and partners to deliver critical humanitarian assistance to those affected by fighting.
Iraq: UN envoy encourages all parties to proceed quickly with government formation
Sep 06, 2014, at 03:44 pm
New York, Sept 6 (IBNS) As the government formation process in Iraq nears the constitutional deadline, the top United Nations envoy to the country on Friday encouraged all political parties to proceed in a spirit of compromise and quickly finalise negotiations.
UN experts urge Bahrain to release prominent human rights defender
Sep 06, 2014, at 03:40 pm
New York, Sept 6 (IBNS) A group of independent United Nations experts on Friday urged the Government of Bahrain to release prominent human rights defender Maryam Al-Khawaja, who has been detained since 30 August on charges of assaulting a police officer.
UN releases new guidelines for child online protection
Sep 06, 2014, at 03:35 pm
New York, Sept 6 (IBNS) New York, Sept 6 (IBNS) United Nations agencies, together with partners of the Child Online Protection Initiative, on Friday released new guidelines to "provide the most accessible online tools for teens as well as to enable them to seek help and advice when they need it."
US 'concerned' over 'formation' of new Al Qaeda wing
Sep 05, 2014, at 06:04 pm
Washington, Sept 5 (IBNS): The United States has expressed concern over the reported formation of Al Qaeda's India branch and said the country is committed to dismantling the militant group anywhere that 'it poses a threat to the United States'.
Ninety-six percent of Syria’s declared chemical weapons destroyed – UN-OPCW mission chief
Sep 05, 2014, at 04:38 pm
New York, Sept 5 (IBNS) The Special Coordinator for the Joint Mission of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the United Nations (OPCW-UN) told the Security Council on Thursday that 96 percent of Syria’s declared stockpile, including the most dangerous chemicals, had been destroyed and preparation were underway to destroy the remaining 12 production facilities.
Ban stresses need for Cyprus settlement in meeting with new UN envoy
Sep 05, 2014, at 04:37 pm
New York , Sept 5 (IBNS) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday stressed the importance of reaching a lasting settlement in Cyprus as the new United Nations envoy on this issue prepares to meet with the leaders of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities on Friday.
UN agencies ramp up much-needed aid in Iraq amid 'alarming rate' of displacement
Sep 05, 2014, at 04:34 pm
New York, Sept 5 (IBNS) The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) announced on Thursday that it has resumed delivering food assistance to an area of Iraq encompassing much of the western part of the country for the first time since May, targeting 76,000 people who are part of a "massive displacement" of families fleeing fighting.
Evidence on rampant violence against children 'compels us to act' – UNICEF report
Sep 05, 2014, at 04:33 pm
New York, Sept 5 (IBNS) Violence against children is universal – so prevalent and deeply ingrained in societies it is often unseen and accepted as the norm – according to new, unprecedented data presented by the United Nations on Thursday.
Libya: UN report details serious human rights abuses in Tripoli, Benghazi
Sep 05, 2014, at 04:33 pm
New York, Sept 5 (IBNS) Citing indiscriminate violence by armed fighters in Libya and grave abuses by all sides in the conflict, a new United Nations report out on Thursday warns that serious human rights violations are taking place in the country’s two largest cities, Tripoli and Benghazi, with dire consequences for civilians and civilian infrastructure.
'Now is the time to act,' UN urges on release of first global report on suicide prevention
Sep 05, 2014, at 04:32 pm
New York, Sept 5 (IBNS) More than 800,000 people commit suicide every year – around one person every 40 seconds – according to the United Nations health agency’s first global report on suicide prevention, which was published on Thursday.
SAMOA: Small island conference leaves 'legacy with impact' – UN
Sep 05, 2014, at 04:31 pm
New York, Sept 5 (IBNS) With $1.9 billion pledged in sustainable development partnerships, the United Nations on Thursday wrapped up its small island developing States conference and kicked off a drum roll of action on climate change.
UNESCO chief condemns 'despicable murder' of US journalist in Syria
Sep 04, 2014, at 02:58 pm
New York, Sept 4 (IBNS) The head of the UN agency mandated to defend press freedom on Wednesday expressed shock at the killing of American journalist Steven Sotloff and called for the immediate release of all civilian hostages held by militant groups in Syria.
Sep 04, 2014, at 02:57 pm
New York, Sept 4 (IBNS) During its tenure as President of the United Nations Security Council, the United States will convene a summit meeting on September 25 to focus international attention to the “growing and dangerous phenomenon†of foreign terrorist fighters, according to Ambassador Samantha Power.
Erosion of Gaza's economy accelerates amid Israeli military operations, ongoing blockade – UN
Sep 04, 2014, at 02:56 pm
New York, Sept 4 (IBNS) Even before the latest crisis in the Gaza Strip, the tiny enclave's local economy was in a state of total collapse, chiefly due to the accumulated impact of a crushing seven-year blockade and two devastating Israeli military operations in November 2012 and December 2008, according to a new United Nations report out on Wednesday .
UN envoy calls for probe into massacre by armed groups at Iraqi military base
Sep 04, 2014, at 02:55 pm
New York, Sept 4 (IBNS): A senior United Nations official has called on the Iraqi authorities to conduct a public and independent investigation into the attack at Camp Speicher military base, when it was seized by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and associated armed groups in June.
In Auckland lecture, Ban lauds New Zealand's 'ingenuity and hard work' for the UN
Sep 04, 2014, at 02:53 pm
New York, Sept 4 (IBNS) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday hailed the vital contributions of New Zealand to the work of the United Nations, from peacekeeping and disarmament to gender equality and human rights, as he addressed students and faculty at the University of Auckland.
Citing women's crucial role in peacebuilding, UN officials urge concrete support on ground
Sep 04, 2014, at 02:52 pm
New York, Sept 4 (IBNS) Women are crucial partners in peacebuilding and must be guaranteed the safe political space, including a seat at the "negotiating table," to participate in all steps of post-conflict reconciliation and recovery processes, stressed high-level United Nations officials on Wednesday at a Headquarters event.