Page 8 - United Nations

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

Global plastic treaty talks collapse as hardline stances stall progress

During the most recent set of talks, the US aligned itself with this second group, saying it opposed any restrictions on business and commerce

UN chief warns Israel, Russia over alleged sexual violence by armed forces

In his annual report to the UN Security Council, Guterres warned that Israel and Russia could be listed next year for alleged patterns of rape and sexual violence in conflict zones

Pilot union objects to the government's call for a global code of conduct

A booming aviation market is seen as key to supporting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's aviation goals, but India is short of experienced pilots

Australia to recognise Palestinian state; joins France, Britain, Canada

Australia will recognise a Palestinian state, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Monday, joining the leaders of France, Britain and Canada in signalling they would do so. His remarks followed weeks of urging from within his Cabinet and from many in Australia to recognise a Palestinian state and amid growing criticism from officials in his government over suffering in Gaza, which Albanese on Monday referred to as a humanitarian catastrophe. Australia's government has also criticised plans announced in recent days by Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu for a sweeping new military offensive in Gaza. Albanese told reporters after a Cabinet meeting Monday that Australia's decision to recognise a Palestinian state will be formalised at the United Nations General Assembly in September. The acknowledgement was predicated on commitments Australia has received from the Palestinian Authority, Albanese said. Those commitments included no role for Hamas in a Palestinian government, ...

Israel plans to destroy Hamas and take over all of Gaza, says Netanyahu

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that to destroy Hamas Israel intends to take full control of the Gaza Strip and eventually transfer its administration to friendly Arab forces, as the Security Cabinet discussed a widening of its 22-month offensive. Asked in an interview with Fox News if Israel would take control of all of Gaza, Netanyahu replied: We intend to, in order to assure our security, remove Hamas there, enable the population to be free of Gaza. The Security Cabinet would still need to approve such a decision. We don't want to keep it. We want to have a security perimeter, Netanyahu said in the interview. We want to hand it over to Arab forces that will govern it properly without threatening us and giving Gazans a good life. An Israeli official had earlier said the Security Cabinet would hold a lengthy debate and approve an expanded military plan to conquer all or parts of Gaza not yet under Israeli control. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity ...

Statehood for Palestine? The legal test, the war, and the global shift

Global calls for Palestinian statehood rise, but legal, political, and diplomatic roadblocks remain complex and contested

IS, al-Qaeda threat intense in Africa, with growing risks in Syria: UN

The threat from Islamic State and al-Qaeda extremists and their affiliates is most intense in parts of Africa, and risks are growing in Syria, which both groups view as a strategic base for external operations, UN experts said in a new report. Their report to the UN Security Council circulated Wednesday said West Africa's al-Qaeda-linked Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal-Muslimin group, known as JNIM, and East Africa's al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab have continued to increase the territory under their control. The experts monitoring sanctions against the two groups said the organisation's pivot towards parts of Africa continued" partly because of Islamic State losses in the Middle East due to counterterrorism pressures. There are also increasing concerns about foreign terrorist fighters returning to Central Asia and Afghanistan, aiming to undermine regional security, they said. The Islamic State also continues to represent the most significant threat to Europe and the Americas, the experts said

In a first, UNSC report names TRF as group behind Pahalgam terror attack

UNSC report links TRF to Lashkar-e-Taiba, endorses India's counter-terror efforts despite Pakistan's opposition

India reiterates support at UN for two-state solution to Israel conflict

India told a high-level UN conference that global efforts must now focus on achieving a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict through "purposeful dialogue and diplomacy". It also said that one should not be content with paper solutions but strive to achieve practical ones. India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish said on Tuesday that deliberations during the preparation for the UN High-Level International Conference on The Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution' confirm that the international community continues to believe there is no substitute for a two-state solution. He said the conference offers an opportunity to reflect on the path traversed so far in the journey towards achieving peace through a two-state solution. Our efforts must now focus on how to bring about a two-state solution through purposeful dialogue and diplomacy, and bringing the parties to the conflict to

What to expect at UN meeting on Israel-Palestinian two-state solution?

The UN General Assembly is bringing high-level officials together this week to promote a two-state solution to the decades-old Israel-Palestinian conflict that would place their peoples side by side, living in peace in independent nations. Israel and its close ally the United States are boycotting the two-day meeting, which starts Monday and will be co-chaired by the foreign ministers of France and Saudi Arabia. Israel's right-wing government opposes a two-state solution, and the United States has called the meeting counterproductive to its efforts to end the war in Gaza. France and Saudi Arabia want the meeting to put a spotlight on the two-state solution, which they view as the only viable road map to peace, and to start addressing the steps to get there. The meeting was postponed from late June and downgraded from a four-day meeting of world leaders amid surging tensions in the Middle East, including Israel's 12-day war against Iran and the war in Gaza. It was absolutely necessa