Page 71 - United Nations

UN blacklists LeT deputy chief Abdul Rehman Makki as 'global terrorist'

Pakistan-based deputy chief of terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba Abdul Rehman Makki has been blacklisted as a global terrorist by the United Nations. The UN Security Council's Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee added Makki Monday to its list of individuals and entities subject to the assets freeze, travel ban, and arms embargo. In June last year, China had put a hold, at the last moment, on a joint proposal by India and the US to list Makki under the 1267 Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council. Makki is a US-designated terrorist and brother-in-law of Lashkar-e-Taiba head and 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed.

UN experts concerned over rise in abductions, conversions of girls in Pak

A group of top UN human rights experts has expressed alarm at the reported rise in abductions, forced marriages and conversions of underage girls and young women from religious minorities in Pak

United Nation's nuclear watchdog IAEA to increase presence in Ukraine

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has said that it would step up its presence in Ukraine to help prevent a nuclear accident during the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict

Antonio Guterres urges member states to uphold UN values, rule of law

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on all member states to uphold the vision and the values of the UN Charter and the rule of law in particular

2022 confirmed as one of warmest years on record, fueled by GHGs: WMO

The past 8 years were the warmest on record globally, fueled by ever-rising greenhouse gas concentrations and accumulated heat, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

UAE names oil company chief Sultan al-Jaber to lead UN COP28 climate talks

The United Arab Emirates on Thursday named a veteran technocrat who both leads Abu Dhabi's state-run oil company and oversees its renewable energy efforts to be the president of the upcoming United Nations climate negotiations in Dubai, highlighting the balancing act ahead for this crude-producing nation. Authorities nominated Sultan al-Jaber, a trusted confidant of UAE leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who serves as CEO of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. That firm pumps some 4 million barrels of crude a day and hopes to expand to 5 million daily. Those revenues fuel the ambitions of this federation of seven sheikhdoms on the Arabian Peninsula as well as the production of more of the heat-trapping carbon dioxide that the UN negotiations hope to limit. But al-Jaber also once led a once-ambitious project to have a USD 22 billion "carbon-neutral city on Abu Dhabi's outskirts an effort later pared back after the global financial crisis that struck the Emirates hard beginning

Success in Colombian peace process depends on efforts to curb violence: UN

Lasting success of the Colombian peace agreement, which we all wish to see, is contingent on the ability of the Colombian authorities to address the persistent violence that poses its greatest threat

UN chief shocked by deaths in Peru protests, calls for investigation

The Secretary-General underscores that demonstrations must be carried out in a peaceful manner, respecting life and public and private property, Dujarric told a daily press briefing

Ex-UN chief Ban Ki-moon urges for solidarity to tackle global challenges

All countries need to work together to address pressing global challenges and attain the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said here.

1 child or youth died every 4.4 sec in 2021: UN report on child mortality

More than 5.0 mn children under age 5, including 2.3 mn newborns, along with 2.1 mn children and youth aged 5 to 24 yrs -- 43% of whom are adolescents -- died in 2021

South Asians 15 times more likely die from climate change impact: Guterres

'South Asia is one of the world's global climate crisis hotspots -- in which people are 15 times more likely to die from climate impacts than elsewhere'

Ozone layer slowly healing, hole to mend by 2066: United Nations report

Earth's protective ozone layer is slowly but noticeably healing at a pace that would fully mend the hole over Antarctica in about 43 years, a new United Nations report says. A once-every-four-years scientific assessment found recovery in progress, more than 35 years after every nation in the world agreed to stop producing chemicals that chomp on the layer of ozone in Earth's atmosphere that shields the planet from harmful radiation linked to skin cancer, cataracts and crop damage. In the upper stratosphere and in the ozone hole we see things getting better," said Paul Newman, co-chair of the scientific assessment. The progress is slow, according to the report presented Monday at the American Meteorological Society convention in Denver. The global average amount of ozone 18 miles (30 kilometers) high in the atmosphere won't be back to 1980 pre-thinning levels until about 2040, the report said. And it won't be back to normal in the Arctic until 2045. Antarctica, where it's so thin ..

Israel revokes Palestinian FM's travel permit over push for ICJ opinion

Israel on Sunday revoked the Palestinian foreign minister's VIP travel permit, part of a series of punitive steps against the Palestinians that Israel's new hard-line government announced days ago. Riad Malki said in a statement that he was returning from the Brazilian president's inauguration when he was informed that Israel rescinded his VIP travel permit, which allows top Palestinian officials to travel more easily in and out of the occupied West Bank than ordinary Palestinians. It was not clear whether the permits of other officials had been revoked as well. Israel's government on Friday approved the steps to penalize the Palestinians in retaliation for them pushing the U.N.'s highest judicial body to give its opinion on the Israeli occupation. Rulings by the International Court of Justice are not binding, but they can be influential on world opinion. The decision highlights the tough line the current government is already taking toward the Palestinians just days into its tenure

PM Sharif leaves for Geneva to attend Pak-UN conference to raise $16 bn

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday left for Geneva to co-host a key conference in Geneva Monday along with the UN Secretary-General to raise more than USD 16 billion for a resilient recovery of his country from last year's climate-induced catastrophic floods. More than 33 million were displaced and over 1,700 were killed in the devastating floods that hit the country last summer due to unprecedented monsoon rains. According to an official statement, the Prime Minister was accompanied by a high-level delegation, comprising Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Climatic Change Minister Sherry Rehman and Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb. Before embarking on the visit, Sharif in a series of tweets said that he would present the case of flood victims before the world. We will place comprehensive post-disaster framework plan for recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction with resilience before development partners and friendly countrie

UN asks Taliban to lift bans on female education, work for aid agencies

Top UN diplomat in Afghanistan met Taliban-appointed education minister Mohammad Nadeem in Kabul on Saturday and called for the urgent lifting of the bans on female education and work for aid agencies."Afghanistan is entering a new period of crisis. Taliban bans on female education & work for aid agencies will harm all Afghans. UN envoy Potzel Markus called for the urgent lifting of the bans in a meeting today with de facto authorities' Minister Higher Education, Moh. Nadeem," United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan said in a tweet.The Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021 and imposed policies severely restricting basic rights--particularly those of women and girls, according to Human Rights Watch.Last month, the Taliban imposed a restriction on female higher education and a ban on women from working in humanitarian nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Human rights experts and members of the international community described these measures as a major blow to ...

Air India peeing case LIVE: Court sends accused to 14-day judicial custody

A selected group of cities and harbors have been asked to send test samples of infected travelers for genome sequencing at the National Institute for Viral Disease Control and Prevention

Global food prices in 2022 hit record high amid drought, war: FAO

Global prices for food commodities like grain and vegetable oils were the highest on record last year even after falling for nine months in a row, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization said, as Russia's war in Ukraine, drought and other factors drove up inflation and worsened hunger worldwide. The FAO Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in the international prices of commonly traded food commodities, dipped by 1.9% in December from a month earlier, the Rome-based organization said Friday. For the whole year, it averaged 143.7 points, more than 14% above the 2021 average, which also saw large increases. The December decline was led by a drop in the price of vegetable oils amid shrinking import demand, expectations of increased soy oil production in South America and lower crude oil prices. Grain and meat were also down, while dairy and sugar rose slightly. Calmer food commodity prices are welcome after two very volatile years, FAO chief economist Maximo Torero said in

Costly meals: World food index ends year where it began after dramatic run

During the year, the index hit the highest since records started in 1990

India to deploy single largest platoon of women peacekeepers in Abyei

This is India's largest single unit of women peacekeepers in a UN Mission since it deployed the first-ever all-women's contingent in Liberia in 2007

UN calls for de-escalation following Israeli minister's Al-Aqsa visit

A senior UN official called for de-escalation of tensions following Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir's visit to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem.