United Nations

One United Nations peacekeeper was injured on Friday after heavy machine gunfire from Israel Defense Forces (IDF) positions south of the Blue Line, following a nearby grenade explosion, impacted close to a UN patrol in southern Lebanon.

The UN has urged Sudan’s warring parties to pursue compromise and an immediate ceasefire, even as drone attacks, displacement and the killing of peacekeepers underscore the growing risks to civilians and humanitarians.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres “unequivocally condemns” the deadly terrorist attack on a mosque in Homs, Syria during Friday prayers, his spokesperson said in a statement 

The war in Sudan has been tearing the country apart for almost 1,000 days, putting the country’s health system under intolerable pressure. The World Health Organization (WHO) is reporting widespread disease outbreaks, severe shortages, malnutrition and rising deaths.

Nearly a month after Cyclone Ditwah tore across Sri Lanka, more than a million people – including over half a million children – remain in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, as floods, landslides and renewed rainfall continue to compound one of the country’s worst disasters in decades.

Better access to education, the protection of the environment and good governance are some of the areas in which the United Nations helps countries improve.  

With rising effects of climate change across the globe, the world has started recognising that climate change is not just an ecological collapse, but also a human rights crisis.

A paediatrician by training, Felipe Paullier has long been an advocate for youth. Formerly Director of the Uruguayan Government's Youth Institute, a role which involved several joint actions with various UN agencies, he was appointed to run the UN Youth Office in 2023, the youngest senior appointment in United Nations history.

Since the 19th century, industrialisation has had a transformative effect on the world, both positive and negative. It has created jobs and lifted millions out of poverty. But it has also had devastating consequences; destroying ecosystems, polluting the air, and driving the climate crisis that threatens to make large parts of the planet uninhabitable. 

 Although “significant restrictions and impediments” continue to hamper humanitarian operations in Gaza, teams are still responding to the population’s needs, the UN aid coordination office OCHA said on Wednesday. 

From wood-based panels used in construction, to charcoal for cooking food, forest products are valued and traded all around the world.

With Central Africans set to vote in presidential, legislative, regional and long-delayed municipal elections this weekend, the United Nations has appealed for calm and restraint, warning that the credibility of the process will be critical to consolidating peace after years of conflict and instability.

The UN has long been at the forefront of efforts to involve young people in decision-making, and the last decade has seen significant progress, thanks to the adoption of a Security Council resolution on youth, peace and security which led to widespread changes in the ways that the voices of young people are not just heard, but also incorporated in peace plans and policies.

Tensions between the United States and Venezuela have sharply escalated amid increased US military operations in the Southern Caribbean, prompting accusations of sovereignty violations, concerns over civilian harm and growing calls at the UN Security Council for restraint and de-escalation.

A new wave of overnight strikes and front-line hostilities in Ukraine have caused further civilian casualties and damage to critical energy infrastructure, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Tuesday.

The UN and partners continue to provide assistance to people in Gaza, where recent winter storms have worsened conditions for thousands across the enclave. 

As Myanmar approaches elections scheduled for 28 December, the UN’s top human rights official has said that civilians are being coerced from all sides – forced by the military to vote and threatened by armed opposition groups to boycott – in a climate of fear, violence and mass repression.

At a meeting to discuss nuclear non-proliferation on Tuesday, the Security Council’s stance on Iran’s nuclear activities remained divided on the issue, split between those who support the reinstatement of sanctions, and the members who believe the sanctions should be permanently lifted, whilst questioning the legality of the meeting itself.

An estimated 500,000 people have been forced from their homes since fighting erupted in South Kivu province, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), at the beginning of December. 

The Security Council convened earlier today for a packed agenda, adopting a resolution extending the authorisation of the African Union support mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) and hearing a briefing on Iran and the implementation of resolution 2231, which endorsed the 2015 nuclear deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Members are set to reconvene at 3 pm for an emergency meeting requested by Venezuela, amid heightened tensions between Caracas and Washington. Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Khaled Khiari is expected to brief ambassadors. Follow live below and UN News app users can click here.