Al Shabbab terrorists continue to undermine security across Somalia as the government tries to build up its institutions and make the country more economically self-sufficient.
That’s according to the head of the UN Assistance Mission there (UNSOM), Michael Keating, who spelled out that “a multi-dimensional effort to build an accountable, affordable State” is well underway.
Peacekeepers need better training, more technology and greater freedom to respond to the threat posed by “criminal” groups who are responsible for an uptick in fatalities in recent years.
Armed groups fighting in the north of the Central African Republic (CAR) have been given 48 hours to withdraw in order to allow villagers displaced by violence to return home.
The UN wants to clear a 50-kilometer perimeter around the town of Paoua, where thousands are currently seeking shelter.
Some 60,000 people — mostly women — left everything behind in nearby villages, to escape fighting between three armed groups last month, and around 40,000 residents of Paoua, took them in.
Now the food and water is running out.
Around 120 critically-ill children trapped in the besieged enclave of Eastern Ghouta, in Syria, are in urgent need of evacuation, according to the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
UNICEF Representative in the country, Fran Equiza, said in an interview with UN News on Wednesday, that humanitarian access continues to be limited, with at least 12 per cent of children under-5 acutely malnourished.
Ancient rock shelters that are home to some of the oldest cave paintings in Africa, have “enormous” potential to help bring thousands more tourists to Somalia and ‘Somaliland’.
That’s according to the top envoy who heads the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM), Michael Keating.
Standing inside the extraordinary cave formations of Laas Gaal, on the outskirts of Hargeisa, he pointed to some of the cave art — dating back thousands of years — describing it as a valuable “resource for the whole world”.
What’s believed to be the largest outbreak ever of the deadly bacterial disease Listeriosis — or Listeria — has left more than 60 people dead across South Africa, with nearly 750 confirmed cases.
That’s according to the World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday, which praised the response of the South African Government so far.
WHO Country Representative, Dr. Rufaro Chatora, commended the “openness” of the Government, which has shared detailed information on the outbreak in accordance with International Health Regulations.
Social media companies, in particular Facebook, need to do more to "help explain the dangers" of embarking on migrant journeys in search of a better life.
That’s according to Leonard Doyle, Director of the Media and Communication Division for the UN migration agency, IOM.
He was speaking following reports that close to 200 migrants or refugees are feared dead at sea already this year, along the perilous central Mediterranean migration route.
