United Nations

Khalilur Rahman took the gavel as President of the UN General Assembly's 81st session amid what he calls a crisis of confidence in the organization he has served – in one capacity or another – for 35 years. 

UN peacekeepers have increasingly been sent into places where there is no peace to keep – under resourced, outgunned and exposed to violence they are not equipped to counter. The Security Council meets this afternoon in New York to confront that problem, with Secretary-General António Guterres briefing ambassadors on how to close the gap.

Over 1,000 cases of sexual violence against civilians and prisoners of war (POWs) in Ukraine have been documented from the start of Russia’s invasion to the end of July this year.

For Benin, making progress on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has meant finding new ways to finance development.

The deadly Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has taken a disproportionate toll on women and girls, many of whom are on the frontlines caring for patients as well as their own families despite the high risk of infection.

Haiti is facing a worsening child malnutrition crisis, with an estimated 253,725 children aged 6 to 59 months projected to suffer from acute malnutrition between June 2026 and May 2027, new UN-backed analysis has revealed.   

The catastrophic flooding that swept away entire villages in northern Nepal could occur again in the country or elsewhere in the Himalayas due to climate change.

People displaced by the renewed fighting in Yemen have described fleeing for their lives amid shelling and gunfire, aid agencies reported on Friday, while highlighting the dramatic increase in humanitarian needs in the country and in Djibouti, where thousands have sought shelter.

Independent human rights investigators voiced deep concern over growing risks to both civilians and South Sudan’s political transition following their latest fact-finding mission to the world’s youngest nation – their 14th in a decade. 

When the creek beside Taudibura Garo's school in Papua New Guinea floods, the water doesn't stop at the gate. It rises through the pit toilets – making the school unsafe – sending the 16-year-old and her classmates home without being able to finish.

Nepal’s call for financial compensation following recent deadly floods underlines the need to help countries that contribute the least to climate change – but are increasingly grappling with its most lethal consequences, the top UN official in the country said on Wednesday.

Since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, the plight of Afghans has only deteriorated, with millions impoverished while authorities violate basic human rights daily. 

The UN Security Council has welcomed a breakthrough agreement between Libya's rival political blocs, calling it "an important step" towards the country's first national elections in over a decade – while pressing all sides to move quickly from paper to practice.

The UN Secretary-General appealed on Wednesday for world leaders to invest in peace as violence, division and conflict exacerbate suffering worldwide. 

While September traditionally marks the start of the school year across the northern hemisphere, a staggering 93 million children are not in class at all amid an unprecedented number of attacks on learning, education experts warned on Wednesday.

The global shipping industry is facing a "genuinely unprecedented" convergence of maritime crises, with vessels and seafarers increasingly used as “leverage” in conflicts that have nothing to do with them.

The Secretary-General has condemned mounting civilian casualties in southern Lebanon and called on Israel to withdraw its forces from Lebanese territory, as fighting intensifies in and around Nabatieh.

Use of data-intensive technologies – in particular artificial intelligence (AI) data centres – is growing faster than electricity infrastructure can handle, the UN’s economic commission for Europe has warned, raising concerns about the future reliability and resilience of energy systems worldwide. 

As Ebola sweeps across the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), ensuring families meet their basic food needs is crucial to halt the spread of the deadly disease.

The UN General Assembly gavelled open its 81st session on Tuesday at UN Headquarters as the incoming president pledged to restore public trust in the institution during a time of war, humanitarian crises and intensifying climate change.