Arbitrary arrest, infringement on basic freedoms and other violations against more than 260 Members of Parliament will be examined when the Human Rights Committee of the Inter-parliamentary Union (IPU) meets in Geneva this week.

The UN Secretary-General is determined to make 2014 a year of progress for people and the planet.

In his first press conference for the New Year, Ban Ki-moon says the next 12 months need to be a period of intensified diplomacy, advances against poverty and action on climate change.

An alliance that brings together the United Nations, governments, civil society and the private sector, wants to see more global action to improve the lives of mountain communities and protect mountain environments.

As South Sudan peace talks stall in Addis Ababa, a senior UN official is calling for the fighting to stop so that people in the world’s newest nation can begin rebuilding their lives.