united nations

UN Rights Chief Demands Accountability for Lebanon Blasts

Those responsible for a deadly wave of explosions across Lebanon targeting paging devices used by members of the Hezbollah militant group "must be held to account," the UN rights chief said on Wednesday. The Iranian-backed group accused Israel and vowed to retaliate over the explosions that killed 12 people, including two children, and wounded up ...

Gaza Humanitarian Operations Halted, Polio Outbreak Increasing

The United Nations said Monday it had been forced to halt its humanitarian operations in Gaza due to a new Israeli evacuation order for the Deir al-Balah area, a senior UN official said. "We are not operating today. As of this morning, we're not operating in Gaza," the official said, adding that since the start of the war the UN has sometimes had ...

HRW Calls on Iraq to Exhume Mass Graves to Ensure Justice

Human Rights Watch (HRW) called on the Iraqi government to "intensify efforts" on Tuesday, to exhume victims of the successive conflicts that have plagued the country. "To advance justice and accountability for victims and their families, the Iraqi government should intensify efforts to exhume graves, identify victims, return remains to families ...

Ethiopia Landslide Death Toll Rises to 257, Could Increase to 500

The death toll from a devastating landslide in southern Ethiopia has risen to 257, the United Nations said Thursday, warning it could increase to up to 500. The disaster occurred on Monday following heavy rains in a tiny community in a mountainous area of South Ethiopia regional state. The last toll, given by the local authority on Tuesday, was ...

US Announces Sudan Ceasefire Talks

The United States announced Tuesday that it had invited Sudan's warring sides to hold ceasefire talks next month. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington had invited Sudan's regular army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to start US-mediated negotiations beginning on August 14 in Switzerland. "The United States remains ...

Houthis Reach Economic Deal With Yemeni Government

Yemen's government and the Iran-backed Houthis have agreed to halt tit-for-tat banking sanctions as they wrestle for control of the country's financial institutions, the United Nations said on Tuesday. The Houthis have been fighting a Saudi-led coalition since March 2015, months after they seized the capital Sanaa and most of Yemen's population ...

Russia Criticized at UN Security Council Over Ukraine Strikes

Russia came under fire at the UN Security Council on Tuesday for conducting "systemic attacks" on Ukraine's medical facilities after a wave of deadly strikes across the country. President Volodymyr Zelensky said 38 people across Ukraine were killed — including four children — and 190 were wounded in the wave of nearly 40 missiles that ...

Haiti: One Child Displaced Per Minute Due, Says UNICEF

Violence raging in troubled Haiti is forcibly displacing one child every minute, on average, with some 300,000 already affected, the United Nations children's agency warned on Monday. Displaced children account for more than half of the 600,000 people who have been forced to flee their homes due to violence, according to UNICEF, particularly in ...

Taliban Told to 'Include Women' in Public Life at UN Talks

Taliban authorities were told women must be included in public life, UN Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo said on Monday as she defended a decision to sideline civil society groups at official talks in Doha. Rights organizations have strongly criticized the controversial UN move to exclude the groups, including women's rights activists, ...

Houthis Arrest Aid Workers Accused of Being 'US-Israeli' Spies

Yemen's Houthis on Monday said they had arrested a "spy network" operating under the cover of humanitarian organizations, after aid workers, including 11 UN staff, were held last week. The Iran-backed group claimed the network was linked to the CIA and had been carrying out "espionage" activities in Yemen for years, initially through the United ...

Greece, Pakistan, Somalia, Among Incoming UN Security Council Members

Denmark, Greece, Pakistan, Panama and Somalia were elected by secret ballot Thursday at the United Nations General Assembly to serve on the Security Council for the 2025-2026 term. The top UN panel, charged with maintaining international peace and security, is comprised of 15 nations, including five veto-wielding permanent members: Britain, ...

Over 1 in 4 Children Under the Age of 5 Face 'Severe' Food Poverty

More than one in four children under the age of five globally live in "severe" food poverty, UNICEF has warned, meaning more than 180 million are at risk of experiencing adverse impacts on their growth and development. "Severe child food poverty describes children who are surviving on severely deprived diets so they're only consuming two or less ...