This is the News in Brief from the United Nations.
UN ramps up humanitarian response to Cyclone Idai
The UN has ramped up its humanitarian response to Cyclone Idai, which has devastated large swathes of Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi, in southern Africa.
The UN and its humanitarian partners are providing emergency food, shelter, water and health care supplies and, on Wednesday, the UN’s Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) allocated US$20 million to ensure aid reaches the most affected people as soon as possible.
While the full scale of the humanitarian disaster is still unknown, at least 1,000 people are believed to have been killed, with around 400,000 displaced from their homes in Mozambique alone. These figures are expected to rise significantly as the full extent of the damage and loss of life across flooded rural areas, becomes known.
UN court increases Karadžić sentence to life imprisonment
A United Nations appeals court has increased the 40-year sentence initially imposed on former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadžić, to life imprisonment.
In 2016, Karadžić was found responsible for genocide and war crimes, including the planning of the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY).
On Wednesday, the successor to that court, the Hague Branch of the Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals, largely upheld the 2016 verdict, as well as ensuring that Mr. Karadžić will serve a life sentence.
Responding to the appeal decision, which was the last opportunity for Mr. Karadžić to overturn the initial verdict, Adama Dieng, UN Special Advisor on the Prevention of Genocide, said that it confirmed that accountability, rather than impunity, will prevail.
South-South cooperation key to fight against global warming: UN chief
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has told leading politicians, business executives and civil society of developing countries in the Global South, that cooperation is key to sustainable development, and the fight against global warming.
The UN chief was speaking at BAPA+40, a historic summit in the Argentinian capital Buenos Aires, which, as well as strengthening cooperation, aims to increase transparency and strengthen accountability in developing nations.
Maria Fernanda Espinosa, President of the General Assembly, also spoke at the event, which she described as a symbol of the determination of the Global South to advance equality for all, across the world.
Praising the evolution of South-South cooperation over recent decades, Mr. Guterres said that it can never be a replacement for the responsibilities of developed nations, and must involve young people, civil society, the private sector, academia and others to build innovative partnerships.
Conor Lennon, UN News.
