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News in Brief 20 June 2022

News in Brief 20 June 2022

This is the News in Brief, from the United Nations.

UN food agency announces further ration cuts for refugees – WFP

The UN World Food Programme, WFP, said on Monday that it will have no choice but to make further food ration cuts soon for refugees.

The cause of the imminent cuts is multiplying humanitarian needs around the world and insufficient funding.

These have already forced the agency to make significant reductions in daily meals for vulnerable people in the Sahel and elsewhere. 

That decision was “heart-breaking”, said WFP Executive Director David Beasley.

Today, ration cuts of up to 50 per cent affect three in four refugees supported by WFP in East Africa.

Refugees in Ethiopia, Kenya, South Sudan and Uganda are the most affected.

And despite record hunger levels that haven’t been seen in a decade, WFP has had to reduce rations “significantly” in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger.

Ben Stiller’s solidarity call on World Refugee Day

To help mark World Refugee Day this year, Hollywood star Ben Stiller issued a call on Monday for urgent global support - and funding for every one of the 100 million people who’ve been forced to flee climate shocks and war.

Mr. Stiller, who’s a Goodwill Ambassador for the UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR, has been visiting the mainly women and children who’ve been uprooted from their homes by the Ukraine war and offered shelter in Poland.

Here he is now:

“I’m meeting people who’ve been impacted by the war and hearing how it’s changed their lives. War and violence are devastating people all over the world. Nobody chooses to flee their home. Seeking safety is a right and it needs to be upheld for every person.”

UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi warned that forced displacement continues to outpace solutions “for those on the run”, although some countries had taken the lead in helping them.

This includes Cote d’Ivoire, where more than 310,000 Ivorian refugees – or 96 per cent of those displaced – have returned home voluntarily in the last decade, after fleeing conflict.

For refugees who have chosen to remain where they are in host countries in the West Africa region, Mr. Grandi congratulated governments that had encouraged their integration by offering them help to establish themselves.

Mali: Latest attack against UN peacekeepers leaves Guinean 'blue helmet' dead

The Secretary-General has condemned an attack on UN peacekeepers in northern Mali that has claimed the life of a blue helmet.

The Guinean peacekeeper was killed by an improvised explosive device, which detonated during a mine detection operation on Sunday in the city of Kidal.

The fallen soldier served with the UN Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA).

In his message of condolence to the peacekeeper’s family, António Guterres also recalled that under international law, attacks targeting UN peacekeepers may constitute war crimes.

The Secretary-General also called on the Malian authorities to “spare no effort” in identifying the perpetrators so that they can swiftly be brought to justice.

And Mr. Guterres reaffirmed the solidarity of the United Nations with the people and authorities of Mali in their pursuit of peace and security,” his message concluded.

Daniel Johnson, UN News.

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  • Ben Stiller’s message of solidarity on World Refugee Day: UNHCR
  • WFP announces further ration cuts for food insecure communities
  • Mali: Attack against UN peacekeepers claims life of one ‘blue helmet’
Audio Credit
Daniel Johnson, UN News - Geneva
Audio
2'52"
Photo Credit
WFP/Marco Frattini