Page 5 - United Nations

UN faces funding crunch as China, US delay billions in contributions

China, now the second-largest contributor to the UN budget, has been delaying its payments, stretching from a two-month delay in 2021 to nearly 10 months at the end of 2024

Starvation as warfare: UN panel finds Israel committed genocide in Gaza

A UN panel accused Israel of genocide in Gaza, citing 60,000 Palestinian deaths and the use of starvation as warfare. Israel rejected the report as 'fake' and biased

India backs UN resolution on two-state solution for Palestine conflict

India joined 142 nations at the UNGA in backing the New York Declaration, urging a two-state solution for Palestine and an end to violence, settlements, and annexation in occupied territories

UN chief calls for stronger peace efforts amid rising global conflicts

Pursuing the cause of peace is 'the beating heart' of the Organisation, 'but today, peace is under siege,' Guterres said

Afghanistan quake destroys 5,230 homes; 362 villages still unreachable

An initial United Nations assessment of the impact of Afghanistan's recent deadly earthquake found 5,230 homes destroyed and 672 damaged in 49 villages but the UN hasn't been able to get to the vast majority of the remote villages. Shannon O'Hara, the coordination chief for the UN humanitarian office in Afghanistan, said Monday that damaged roads in the country's rugged and mountainous east where the 6.0 magnitude quake struck have made it extremely difficult to assess the impact in the 441 affected villages. A series of aftershocks ranging from 5.2 to 5.6 in magnitude added to the difficulties, she said. The earthquake struck on August 31, killing at least 2,200 people, and that figure could rise as more bodies are recovered. The United Nations estimates the quake has affected up to 500,000 people, more than half of them children and some of them Afghans forcibly returned from neighbouring Pakistan and Iran. As an example of the difficulties the UN team has faced, O'Hara said it

PM Modi to skip UNGA debate, Jaishankar set to deliver address on Sept 27

The UN has updated its speaker list for the 80th General Assembly. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will represent India, while PM Modi will not take part in the high-level debate

Ukraine war fallout, fuel prices hurting Global South: India at UNGA

India has voiced regret over the Ukraine conflict's collateral consequences, including prices of fuel, saying countries of the Global South have been left to fend for themselves, as Delhi underscored that diplomatic efforts hold the promise to end the war and bring lasting peace. India continues to remain concerned over the situation in Ukraine. We maintain that the loss of innocent lives is unacceptable, and no solution can be found on the battlefield, India's Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish, said Thursday. Addressing the UN General Assembly debate on The situation in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine', Harish said India continues to "note with regret that the collateral consequences of the conflict, including prices of fuel, is affecting the world at large and particularly the countries of the Global South, which have been left to fend for themselves. From our perspective, it is critical that their voices are heard, and their ...

'Serious attack': Israeli drone strikes near UN peacekeepers in Lebanon

Israeli drones dropped four grenades close to UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon near the border with Israel as they were working to clear roadblocks, the force said Wednesday. No one was hurt in the attack. The peacekeeping force known as UNIFIL described the Tuesday morning incident as one of the most serious attacks on UNIFIL personnel and assets since the cessation of hostilities in November that ended the 14-month Israel-Hezbollah war. The Israeli military did not immediately comment. UNIFIL said Israeli drones dropped four grenades close to the peacekeepers, who were working to clear roadblocks that hindered access to a UN position along the border line. One grenade hit within 20 metres (yards) and three others within approximately 100 metres of UN personnel and vehicles, it said, adding the drones were observed returning toward Israel. UNIFIL said the Israeli military had been informed in advance of the peacekeeping force's road clearance work in the area, southeast of the

Houthis raid UN offices in Yemen's capital, detain 11 staff members

Iran-backed Houthis on Sunday raided offices of the United Nations' food, health and children's agencies in Yemen's capital, detaining 11 UN employees, officials said. The rebels tightened security across Sanaa following the Israeli killing of their prime minister and several Cabinet members. Abeer Etefa, a spokesperson for the World Food Program, told The Associated Press that security forces raided the agencies' offices in the Houthi-controlled capital on Sunday morning. Also raided were offices of the World Health Organization and UNICEF, according to a UN official and a Houthi official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to brief the media. The UN official said armed forces raided the offices and questioned employees in the parking lot. Ammar Ammar, a spokesperson for UNICEF, said a number of the agency's staffers were detained, and UNICEF was seeking additional information from the Houthis. Both Etefa and Ammar said their agencies were conducti

Palestinian president urges US to reinstate visa ahead of UN meetings

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' office on Saturday urged the US government to reverse its unusual decision to revoke his visa, weeks before he was meant to appear at the UN's main annual meeting and an international conference about creating a Palestinian state. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio rescinded the visas of Abbas and 80 other officials ahead of next month's annual high-level meeting of the UN General Assembly, the State Department disclosed Friday. Abbas has addressed the General Assembly for many years, and generally leads the Palestinian delegation. We call upon the American administration to reverse its decision. This decision will only increase tension and escalation," Palestinian presidential spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh told The Associated Press in Ramallah on Saturday. We have been in contact since yesterday with Arab and foreign countries, especially those directly concerned with this issue. This effort will continue around the clock," he said. He urged .

US revokes visas of Palestinian president, other officials ahead of UNGA

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has revoked the visas of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and 80 other officials ahead of next month's annual high-level meeting of the UN General Assembly, where the Palestinians previously have been represented. A State Department official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss visa issues that are normally confidential, disclosed Friday that Abbas and other officials from the Palestinian Authority were among those affected. The move is the latest in a series of steps the Trump administration has taken to target Palestinians with visa restrictions and comes as the Israeli military declared Gaza's largest city a combat zone. The State Department also suspended a program that had allowed injured Palestinian children from Gaza to come to the US for medical treatment after a social media outcry by some conservatives. The department said in a statement earlier that Rubio also ordered some new visa applications from Palestinian officials, ...

Israel declares Gaza's largest city combat zone, halts humanitarian pauses

Israel's military on Friday said it was suspending mid-day pauses to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza City, calling it a a dangerous combat zone. The city was among the places that Israel paused fighting last month to allow food and aid supplies to enter from 10 am to 8 pm. The tactical pauses lasted applied to Gaza City, Deir al-Balah and Muwasi, three places where hundreds of thousands of displaced people are sheltering. The pivot comes as Israel prepares to broaden its offensive, mobilising tens of thousands of troops to seize Gaza City. Israel's military did not say whether they had notified residents or aid groups about the plans to resume daytime hostilities. Israel has said in the past that Gaza City is a Hamas stronghold, with a network of tunnels that remain in use by militants after several previous large-scale raids. The city also is home to some of the territory's critical infrastructure and health facilities. The United Nations said Thursday that the ...

Indian govt, UN WFP ink pact for fortified rice supply to crisis-hit zones

India on Monday agreed to supply fortified rice to the UN World Food Programme (WFP) to aid the food and nutritional requirements of the most vulnerable populations in crisis-hit zones globally. A letter of intent (LoI) was signed between India's Food Ministry and WFP here, underscoring the strength of global partnerships. "This LoI lays the ground to ensure a dependable supply of foodgrains for humanitarian distribution," WFP said in a statement. The initiative signifies the culmination of discussions at the February 2025 Executive Board side event in Rome, where representatives from the Indian government and WFP explored ways to collaborate. By sourcing rice from India, WFP will utilise the resources of an agricultural surplus nation to deliver life-saving aid and make tangible progress against hunger. "India is committed to the principle of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam the earth is one family and collective responsibility towards each other and their shared future. The country's ...

India, WFP to supply 200k tonnes of fortified rice for humanitarian needs

India and WFP signed a pact to supply 200,000 tonnes of fortified rice over five years from FCI warehouses to meet humanitarian food and nutrition needs globally

India's food transformation key to global hunger fight: WFP Deputy Chief

As global hunger surges amid conflict, climate shocks, and a devastating 40 per cent funding cut to the UN World Food Programme (WFP), India's remarkable transformation from a food-scarce nation to a global aid supplier has emerged as a critical lifeline, WFP Deputy Executive Director Carl Skau said on Monday. In an exclusive interview to PTI, Skau emphasised that cooperation with emerging powers like India has become essential as Western funding declines. "It's critical. For one, because of Western OECD countries pulling back on the funding. But I think also, importantly, because of the solutions that India has found for itself to deal with its food security," he said. Skau, also the Chief Operating Officer of WFP, highlighted that India's homegrown solutions are more applicable to crisis-hit regions in Africa and Asia than recent experiences from Europe or North America. The country's innovative approaches, including grain ATMs and rice fortification, are now reshaping relief ...

Funding cuts will push millions towards starvation, says UNWFP's Carl Skau

India should scale up funding to supplement the fund crunch, says Carl Skau

UN nuclear watchdog says radiation near Kursk plant at normal levels

Russia's defence ministry said at least 95 Ukrainian drones had been intercepted across more than a dozen Russian regions on August 24

UN body declares first famine in Gaza as ceasefire demands rise

More than 640,000 people in the Palestinian territory will face "catastrophic levels of food insecurity" by the end of September

Record 383 aid workers killed in global hotspots in 2024, half in Gaza: UN

A record 383 aid workers were killed in global hotspots in 2024, nearly half of them in Gaza during the war between Israel and Hamas, the UN humanitarian office said Tuesday on the annual day honouring the thousands of people who step into crises to help others. UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said the record number of killings must be a wake-up call to protect civilians caught in conflict and all those trying to help them. Attacks on this scale, with zero accountability, are a shameful indictment of international inaction and apathy, Fletcher said in a statement on World Humanitarian Day. As the humanitarian community, we demand again that those with power and influence act for humanity, protect civilians and aid workers and hold perpetrators to account. The Aid Worker Security Database, which has compiled reports since 1997, said the number of killings rose from 293 in 2023 to 383 in 2024, including over 180 in Gaza. Most of the aid workers killed were national staff servin

Islamic State-backed rebels kill nearly 52 people in eastern Congo, says UN

Attacks by an Islamic State-backed rebels killed at least 52 people between Aug. 9 and 16, the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Congo said Monday. The UN mission, known as MONUSCO, said in a statement that the attacks by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) took place in several localities of Beni and Lubero territories, in the North Kivu province. The violence was accompanied by abductions, looting, the burning of homes, vehicles, and motorcycles, as well as the destruction of property belonging to populations already facing dire humanitarian conditions, the statement read, adding that the death toll is likely to rise. Eastern Congo has suffered deadly attacks in recent years by armed groups, including the ADF and Rwanda-backed rebels. The ADF, which has ties to the Islamic State, operates along the border with Uganda and often targets civilians. The group killed nearly 40 people in the Ituri province last month, when it stormed a Catholic church during a vigil and opened fire