As the first  woman to command a UN peacekeeping operation, and until very recently the Organization’s highest-ranking female commander, Major General Kristin Lund knows better than most, the importance of engaging women in the field.

Maj. Gen. Lund, now stepping down from the field, spoke to Stéphanie Coutrix about what it means to hang up her uniform, and what plans she has on the horizon.

• UN food agency reaches besieged Yemenis
• Children killed and injured in ongoing Libya fighting
• Turkish assault on northern Syria has ‘significant humanitarian impact’

The growth of anti-Semitism worldwide is a sign that other forms of hatred and xenophobia are becoming more destructive and widespread, the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Ahmed Shaheed, warned on Friday.

Speaking to Conor Lennon from UN News, Mr. Shaheed began by confirming that the global rise in anti-Semitic violence is significant and worrying.

Providing academic enrichment programmes, as well as health and wellness services which empower students and address community needs, is the goal of a New York City school that is working to break the cycle of poverty.

Alexandra Teitel brought students from the Gregory “Jocko” Jackson School of Sports, Arts and Technology in Brooklyn to UN Headquarters on Thursday for an event commemorating the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.