According to the UN’s peacekeeping force in Mali, jihadist strikes at a known hotspot in eastern-central Mali have claimed scores of deaths. “The security situation in the tri-border area between Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso has worsened significantly in recent weeks, notably in the communities of Tessit, Talataye, Ansongo, and the Menaka region,” the MINUSMA … Read more
Concerns about human rights violations by Mali’s military in its fight against jihadists have prompted the UN Secretary-General to call on the West African country’s “bilateral partners” to follow their international duties. In a confidential report acquired by AFP on Thursday, Antonio Guterres warned the UN Security Council that Mali’s counter-terrorism measures had “disastrous effects … Read more
NEW DELHI: Russia’s foreign minister will visit India for a two-day visit beginning Thursday, officials said, likely to press New Delhi to resist Western pressure to condemn the Ukraine invasion. India has abstained from UN resolutions censuring Russia and continues to buy Russian oil and other goods. US President Joe Biden last week described India as “somewhat shaky” … Read more
On his first visit to the country since Russia’s invasion prompted fears of a nuclear disaster, UN atomic watchdog director Rafael Grossi visited a nuclear power facility in southern Ukraine on Wednesday. He has warned repeatedly about the perils of the battle, which is the first in a country with a large nuclear arsenal. On … Read more
GENEVA: Nearly 3.9 million people have fled Ukraine since Russia’s invasion a month ago, UN figures showed Monday, with the flow continuing to slow. The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said 3,862,797 Ukrainians had fled the country — an increase of 41,748 from Sunday’s figures. Around 90 percent of them are women and children, it added. … Read more
BEIJING: On Friday, the Russia-Ukraine confrontation raged on as important parties attempted to broker a peaceful resolution. The latest developments in the scenario are as follows: On Thursday, UN member states passed a resolution on Ukraine’s humanitarian situation. The resolution gained 140 yes votes and five no votes, with 38 countries voting no. The text strongly … Read more
A month after Russia’s surprise incursion, Ukraine’s president called for global street protests and a gathering of US-led allies in Brussels on Thursday to drastically increase weaponry supply. While Kyiv and Western intelligence agencies report combat victories over the Russians, the UN said that more than half of all children in Ukraine had been displaced … Read more
A senior Pakistani diplomat on Tuesday called for “full compliance” of the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty between India and Pakistan, a country which figures among top ten water scarce countries in the world. “Pakistan’s water-scarcity is owed to Pakistan’s status as a lower-riparian state with unpredictable flow of waters in our eastern rivers,” Ambassador Munir … Read more
ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Thursday said Pakistan would continue cooperation with the United Nations Human Rights machinery for the promotion and protection of all human rights and realisation of the sustainable development agenda. In a meeting with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet, the foreign minister underscored Pakistan’s … Read more
Pakistan has called for an equitable and balanced approach towards issues of arms control and disarmament, based on the principle of equal security for all states, said Radio Pakistan. Read more: Nuclear sabre-rattling: When Pakistan, India almost headed towards war Addressing the High-Level Segment of the Conference on Disarmament held in Geneva in virtual format, … Read more
GENEVA – Severe drought risks pushing nearly half of Somali children under five into acute malnutrition this year, with hundreds of thousands needing life-saving treatment, the UN warned last week, calling for urgent action. “Malnutrition has reached crisis levels,” said Victor Chinyama, head of communications for the UN children’s agency Unicef’s Somalia operations. “The time … Read more
GENEVA – The raging Ukraine conflict will certainly dominate the UN Human Rights Council session beginning next week, with Russia’s top diplomat among those set to address the increasingly polarised assembly in person. Hours into a full-fledged Russian invasion of its neighbour early Thursday, Moscow confirmed that Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was still planning to … Read more
UNITED NATIONS, United States, Feb 23, 2022 (AFP) – A United Nations meeting on Ukraine Wednesday heard that a full-scale Russian invasion of the country would have a devastating global impact that would likely spark a new “refugee crisis.” The United States said a war could displace up to five million people while Ukraine’s foreign minister … Read more
SEOUL: The world should provide millions of doses of Covid-19 vaccines to North Korea, where “draconian” anti-pandemic measures are worsening an already-severe food crisis, a UN human rights expert said Wednesday. The impoverished nation has been behind a rigid self-imposed coronavirus blockade since early 2020 to protect itself from the pandemic, with the economy suffering … Read more
GENEVA – UN Security Council members China and Russia, as well as Serbia have continued supplying Myanmar’s junta with weapons used to attack civilians since last year’s coup, a UN rights expert said Tuesday. United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights situation in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, urged the Security Council to convene an emergency session … Read more
Pakistan has urged the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) to concentrate on combating the rising phenomenon of Islamophobia, which now forms part of far-right and neo-fascist parties’ manifestos. “We are witnessing the global resurgence in intolerance, discrimination, racism, negative stereotyping, and violence against persons, on the basis of religion or belief,” Ambassador Aamir Khan, … Read more
TUNIS, Feb 8, 2022 (AFP) – Tunisian President Kais Saied faced growing pressure on Tuesday from judges, the UN and world powers after he scrapped a key judicial watchdog, triggering renewed accusations he is moving towards authoritarian rule. Saied dissolved the Supreme Judicial Council on Sunday, months after sacking the government and seizing wide-reaching powers in … Read more
BASRA, Iraq – Each working morning, oil engineer Safa al-Saeedi dons a safety helmet and heads into a gas complex for another day challenging conservative prejudices by being a professional woman in Iraq. “Society does not accept that a girl can live outside the family home,” said 29-year-old Saeedi, who works in Iraq’s southern oil … Read more
United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres underscores the need for respecting human rights in his interactions with world leaders, including the rights of the Kashmiri people, a UN spokesperson said Wednesday. “The Secretary-General has always expressed, both publicly and privately, the need for all human rights to be fully respected and for the authorities to … Read more
KARACHI: The Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (Unisame) has urged the Ministry of Commerce to assist in adopting khashkhash as food and food ingredient, a statement said on Monday. The Unisame asked the Ministry of Commerce to urge the United Nations (UN) to revisit the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs 1961, and remove the … Read more
Pakistan has strongly called for unfreezing Afghanistan’s financial reserves to revive its war-battered economy and to save the lives of millions of suffering Afghans. Speaking at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Munir Akram, said there is no legal justification for depriving Afghan people of their national assets. Read … Read more
MAPUTO – Tropical storm Ana has killed at least 34 people in Madagascar and two people in Mozambique in recent days while knocking out power in Malawi, authorities in the three countries said Tuesday. The storm which formed over the east coast of Africa’s largest island Madagascar has brought heavy rains causing flooding and mudslides … Read more
LIMA – A team of UN experts on environmental disasters arrived in Peru on Monday to assist the cleanup of the oil spill that occurred near capital Lima on Jan. 15 at a refinery operated by Spanish energy company Repsol. “The team of United Nations specialists is already in Lima to evaluate and propose immediate … Read more
GENEVA – Five candidates are battling to take over the United Nations’ International Labour Organization, winding up two days of hearings on Friday that set out contrasting visions for the ILO’s future. Founded in 1919 the ILO is the oldest specialised UN agency, with 187 member states, which are, uniquely in the UN system, represented by governments, … Read more
KARACHI: Pakistan’s economy brushed aside the negative impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, as it registered a robust growth of 4.5 per cent in 2021, a latest UN report revealed. At the same time, the global body advised the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to assess the magnitude and timing of the monetary policy to support … Read more
MADRID – Debate over the environmental impact of Spain’s huge factory farming sector is heating up in the country, Europe’s biggest meat consumer, and splitting its ruling coalition. In an interview published in British daily The Guardian, Consumer Affairs Minister Alberto Garzon lashed out against Spain’s “so-called mega-farms”, calling them unsustainable. “They find a village … Read more
MEXICO CITY: Economic growth in Latin America and the Caribbean will slow sharply this year amid uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic, low investment and inflationary pressures, a UN body said Wednesday. The region’s gross domestic product (GDP) will grow by 2.1 per cent in 2022, compared with 6.2 per cent in 2021, the UN Economic … Read more
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday welcomed the United Nations (UN) initiative of launching a $5 billion funding appeal for Afghanistan to shore up collapsing basic services there. The prime minister took to his official Twitter handle and said, “We welcome this UN initiative which has followed Pak-initiated special OIC FMs meeting’s pledged support.” We … Read more
