Page 20 - United Nations

Lebanon: Traumatised by war, children facing physical and emotional scars

Curled up in his father's lap, clinging to his chest, Hussein Mikdad cried his heart out. The 4-year-old kicked his doctor with his intact foot and pushed him away with the arm that was not in a cast. My Dad! My Dad!" Hussein said. "Make him leave me alone! With eyes tearing up in relief and pain, the father reassured his son and pulled him closer. Hussein and his father, Hassan, are the only survivors of their family after an Israeli airstrike last month on their Beirut neighbourhood. The strike killed 18 people, including his mother, three siblings and six relatives. Can he now shower? the father asked the doctor. Ten days after surgery, doctors examining Hussein's wounds said the boy is healing properly. He has rods in his fractured right thigh and stitches that assembled his torn tendons back in place on the right arm. The pain has subsided, and Hussein should be able to walk again in two months albeit with a lingering limp. A prognosis for Hussein's invisible wounds is much .

UN climate talks to focus on money to help poor nations cut pollution

A complex international two-week-long game of climate change poker is convening. The stakes? Just the fate of an ever-warming world. Curbing and coping with climate change's worsening heat, floods, droughts and storms will cost trillions of dollars and poor nations just don't have it, numerous reports and experts calculate. As United Nations climate negotiations started Monday in Baku, Azerbaijan, the chief issue is who must ante up to help poor nations and especially how much. The numbers are enormous. The floor in negotiations is the $100 billion a year that poor nations based on a categorization made in the 1990s now get as part of a 2009 agreement that was barely met. Several experts and poorer nations say the need is $1 trillion a year or more. It's a game with high stakes, said Climate Analytics CEO Bill Hare, a physicist. Right now the fate of the planet depends very much on what we're able to pull off in the next five or 10 years. But this year's talks, known as COP29, wo

'Super year for elections' turns tumultuous for those currently in power

2024 saw a string of elections globally, with incumbents struggling, historic shifts in Africa and Europe, and firsts for women in leadership, writes Archis Mohan

No reason to scale back our domestic targets, says CEEW's Arunabha Ghosh

Expectations from this year's COP are clear on issues, whether we have a ministerial presence or not, Arunabha Ghosh, CEO of Council for Energy Environment and Water, said in his interview

India slams Pakistan's rhetoric on Kashmir in strong UN Right of Reply

In a strong retort, India slammed Pakistan for peddling falsehood after it referred to Jammu and Kashmir during a debate on peacekeeping operations in the UN. India chooses its right to reply in response to the comments made by Pakistan that has yet again made an attempt to divert this august body from its agenda, Member of the Rajya Sabha and National Spokesperson of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Sudhanshu Trivedi said. His remarks came during a debate on peacekeeping operations at the Special Political and Decolonization (Fourth Committee) of the UN General Assembly here Friday. Trivedi asserted that the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir was, is and will remain an integral part of India. The people of Jammu and Kashmir have recently exercised their democratic and electoral rights and elected a new government. Pakistan must desist from such rhetoric and falsehood because it will not alter the facts, Trivedi said. He added that out of respect for the august members of the UN for

Climate finance adaptation grew by 32% in 2022, but large gap remains: UN

International public finance to help developing countries adapt to climate change increased from USD 22 billion in 2021 to USD 28 billion in 2022, but there remains a huge gap between what is needed and what is being delivered, according to a new UN report. At the UN climate conference in Glasgow in 2021, developed nations were urged to at least double their adaptation funding for developing countries from about USD 19 billion in 2019 by 2025. The UN climate summit in Dubai in December 2023 repeated this call, asking developed countries to report progress in 2024. The "Adaptation Gap Report 2024: Come Hell and High Water" from the United Nations Environment Programme on Thursday said even achieving the Glasgow Climate Pact goal would only reduce the adaptation finance gap, estimated at USD 187-359 billion per year, by around 5 per cent. Earlier in the day, European climate change agency Copernicus said it is almost certain that 2024 will be the warmest year on record and the first .

Cairn Oil & Gas India's first firm to join UN's methane cut initiative

The Oil & Gas Methane Partnership (OGMP) 2.0 supports 30% reduction in methane emissions by 2030

Cairn becomes India's 1st oil & gas company to join UNEP's OGMP 2.0

Cairn Oil & Gas, part of Vedanta Group, has signed a memorandum of understanding with United Nations Environment Programme's flagship methane reporting and mitigation initiative - Oil & Gas Methane Partnership (OGMP) 2.0, making it the first oil and gas producer in India to commit to effective reduction of methane emissions. OGMP 2.0 established a comprehensive framework that includes best practices for emissions management and a robust reporting system. It emphasises accurate measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV) of methane emissions to drive reductions effectively. "Under this MoU, Cairn will establish a 5-year methane reduction target and transparently report its progress to OGMP. This would enable Cairn to analyse its emission profiles and utilise the data to mitigate emissions cost-effectively. With this partnership, Cairn reaffirms its commitment to accelerate its efforts towards becoming Net Zero Carbon by 2030," the company said in a statement. OGMP 2.0 covers

COP16: Funding for nature conservation stalls, eyes on pvt investment

At the COP16 negotiations in Cali, Colombia, countries failed to figure out how they would mobilise $200 billion annually in conservation funding by 2030

Iran's help transformed Houthis into potent military force: UN experts

Yemen's Houthi rebels have been transformed from a local armed group with limited capabilities to a powerful military organisation with support from Iran, Iraqi armed groups, Lebanon's Hezbollah militants and others, UN experts said in a new report. The Iranian-backed Houthis have exploited the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and worked to enhance their status in Iran's self-described Axis of Resistance to gain popularity in the region and beyond, the experts monitoring sanctions against the Houthis said in the 537-page report to the UN Security Council. To support Iranian-backed Hamas militants, whose surprise attacks in southern Israel on Oct 7, 2023, sparked the war in Gaza, the Houthis have been attacking vessels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, disrupting global shipping in a key geopolitical area. Despite Houthi claims that they would target ships linked to Israel, the panel said its investigations revealed the rebels have been targeting vessels indiscriminately. Its analysis of

UN Biodiversity Conference ends in limbo as countries spar over funding

The main focus of COP16 was to advance a landmark biodiversity pact adopted in Montreal two years ago

Apocalyptic situation unfolding in North Gaza amid ongoing attacks: UN

Amid the ongoing crisis in the Middle East, the United Nations on Friday said that the "situation unfolding in North Gaza is apocalyptic" and said that the area continues to reel under the continuous attacks and is being denied basic aid and life-saving supplies.Sharing a post on X, the UN wrote, "The situation unfolding in North Gaza is apocalyptic.""UN & civil society leaders urge Israel to cease its assault on Gaza and on the humanitarians trying to help. They reiterate their call to everyone fighting to protect civilians," the post added.UN's Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) further urged parties engaged in conflict in Gaza to protect civilians and called on Israel to stop its attack on Gaza and on the humanitarians trying to help the residents of Gaza.Created by the United Nations General Assembly in 1991, the IASC is the longest-standing and highest-level humanitarian coordination forum of the United Nations system.In a statement, the IASC said, "We the leaders of 15

UN report warns of famine, aggravated by conflicts, climate shocks

Severe food crises threaten hundreds of thousands of people in vulnerable areas, including the Palestinian territories, Sudan, South Sudan, Haiti, and Mali, where populations face or near famine, says a report by the United Nations' food agencies released on Thursday. Conflicts, economic instability, and climate shocks -- combined with reduced funding for emergency food and agriculture assistance -- are driving alarming levels of acute food insecurity, the report warned. Immediate, scaled-up intervention is needed to prevent further deterioration in these already vulnerable regions, it added. The UN Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Food Programme said acute food insecurity is projected to worsen across 16 hunger hotspots during the next six months in 14 countries and two regions. Sudan, South Sudan, Haiti, Mali and the Palestinian territories remain at the highest concern level, the report said. Chad, Lebanon, Myanmar, Mozambique, Nigeria, the Syrian Arab Republic a

Banning UNRWA will lead to more suffering for Palestinians: Agency's chief

The head of the UN agency caring for Palestinian refugees said Wednesday that newly passed Israeli laws effectively banning its activities in Israel will leave a vacuum that will cost more lives and create further instability in Gaza and the West Bank. Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner-general of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or UNRWA, told The Associated Press in an exclusive interview the first since the laws were passed that the legislation is "ultimately against the Palestinians themselves, effectively denying them a functioning provider of lifesaving services, education and health care. UNRWA has been the main agency procuring and distributing aid in the Gaza Strip, where almost the entire population of around 2.3 million Palestinians relies on the agency for survival amid Israel's nearly 13-month-old war with the militant Hamas group. Tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians are sheltering in UNRWA-run schools. Other aid groups say the agency's strong, ..

India stands ready to do more for Palestinian people: India's PR to UN

Harish detailed that India's current development assistance for Palestine amounts to $120 million, which includes a cumulative contribution of $37 million to the UNWRA for Palestine Refugees

UN calls for thorough investigation into killings during Bangladesh unrest

A top United Nations human rights official called Wednesday for a thorough investigation of all killings and other rights violations during the violent unrest leading up to and after the fall of Bangladesh's former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The UN's High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk concluded a two-day visit to Bangladesh on Wednesday, as an interim government headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus is navigating through challenges to establish order in the country. Hasina ended her 15-year rule when she fled the country to India on August 5 after a student-led demonstration morphed into an anti-government protest movement in July. Hundreds of students, security officials and others were killed during the protests, and after Hasina's fall hundreds more, including Hasina's supporters, were killed in revenge attacks or in mob violence across the South Asian nation. Turk has already sent a fact-finding mission to look into the killings after the Yunus-led government ..

Afghan women banned from hearing other women's voices in new Taliban rule

Taliban's latest decree further limits women's freedom by barring them from reciting prayers aloud, even in the presence of other women

UN envoy warns of Myanmar's escalating crisis and rampant criminal networks

The UN special envoy for Myanmar warned that the Southeast Asian nation is in crisis, with conflict escalating, criminal networks out of control and human suffering at unprecedented levels. Julie Bishop told the U.N. General Assembly's human rights committee on Tuesday in her first report since being appointed by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres last April that Myanmar actors must move beyond the current zero-sum mentality. The army in Myanmar ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021 and suppressed widespread nonviolent protests that sought a return to democratic rule, leading to increasing violence and a humanitarian crisis. In the past year, three powerful ethnic armed militias have gained territory, keeping the government's ruling military increasingly on the back foot in fighting that has forced hundreds of thousands of civilians to flee their homes. According to the U.N., 3 million people are displaced across Myanmar and some 18.6 million need ...

Israel must step in if it bans the UN agency that is lifeline for Gaza: UN

The United Nations stressed Tuesday that if Israel puts in place new laws cutting ties with the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, the Israeli government will have to meet their needs under international law. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a letter obtained by The Associated Press that there is no other alternative to the agency, known as UNRWA. It has been a lifeline during the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, and the Israeli legislation will have devastating consequences for Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, he said. The UN agencies for children, health and migration also stressed that UNRWA is the backbone of the world body's operations in Gaza, where people have relied on its emergency food aid and health centers during the more than yearlong war, which has killed tens of thousands and left much of the enclave in ruins. The United Nations is heartened by statements of support for UNRWA from all quarters and countries, U.N. spokesman Stephane .

Delays in India's carbon trading scheme raise concerns amid UN warning

Delays in setting up a carbon market in India have become a pressing concern now, especially after a UN body warned this week of the perils of going slow on emission reductions