Global perspective Human stories

News in Brief 14 September 2022

News in Brief 14 September 2022

This is the News in Brief from the United Nations.

Syria: a return to larger-scale fighting may beckon, warn top rights experts

A violent escalation in the Syrian conflict is possible, top UN-appointed independent rights experts warned on Wednesday, as they published their latest report into the near 11-year war.

Head of the Commission of Inquiry on Syria, Paolo Pinheiro, said that “another Turkish ground operation” remains a threat in the north, amid the “continued mobilization and fighting” between Turkish and Turkish-backed forces and Kurdish-led opponents.

The flare-up has seen several deadly incidents in recent weeks, including the August shelling of a crowded market in al-Bab city; 16 civilians were killed, including five children.  

Commissioner Lynn Welchman noted that Israel, the US and Iran-backed forces had also continued to engage in operations in Syria.

The panel, which was appointed by and reports to the Human Rights Council, also noted that Russia still actively supports the Syrian Government, particularly using “airstrikes that have killed civilians and targeted food and water sources, including a well-known water station serving over 200,000 people”, it said in a statement.

Last week, fresh airstrikes caused further deaths and injuries in Idlib province, which are currently under investigation, the Commission of Inquiry said.

Palestinians continue to see opportunities disappear as settlements grow: UNCTAD

The harsh realities of daily life in the Occupied Palestinian Territories have been well documented, and the past year has provided no relief, UN economists said on Wednesday.

A new report on the situation in Gaza and the West Bank from UN trade and development body UNCTAD found that farming, industry and development all suffered in 2021.

Today, for instance, the share of agriculture in the Palestinian economy is 6.5 per cent, compared with over 12 per cent in 1994.

This is partly owing to the Israeli military operation in April 2021, which targeted and devastated farmland, crops, orchards, greenhouses and irrigation systems - and settler violence against Palestinians, that hasn’t been as bad since 2005, said UNCTAD’s Mutasim Elagraa:

“This violence includes destruction of property, physical assaults, intimidation, firing of live ammunition, the uprooting and destruction of trees, crop vandalization, and so on.”

Mr. Elagraa noted that Israeli settlements continued to expand last year, despite several UN resolutions condemning the practice, including Security Council resolution 2334 from 2016.

By November 2021, there were more than 138 settlements recognized by the Government of Israel and 150 unrecognized “outposts”, more than one third of which had been built “fully or partially” on land acknowledged by Israel to belong to Palestinians, UNCTAD said.

Ukraine’s people need continuing international solidarity: IOM chief

The people of Ukraine have shown incredible resilience since the Russian invasion more than six months ago, but they urgently need the ongoing support of the international community, the UN’s migration agency chief has insisted.

António Vitorino, Director General of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) was speaking after his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in Kyiv.

To date, many thousands of people have been killed in the conflict and more than 6.9 million people have been internally displaced, Mr. Vitorino said, adding that another seven million have fled across Ukraine’s borders.

Although international support has focused on the humanitarian emergency, the IOM chief maintained that support was also needed to sustain people’s livelihoods and to help communities reestablish themselves.

“This can be achieved by supporting small and medium-sized enterprises, rehabilitating schools and repairing institutions that are providing vital support services,” Mr. Vitorino said.

To date, the UN migration agency has helped close to 800,000 Ukrainians with relief items, cash support, and health services.

Daniel Johnson, UN News.

Download
  • Palestinian opportunities dwindle, while Israeli settlements grow: UNCTAD
  • Syria: Return to larger-scale fighting may beckon, warn rights experts
  • Ukraine’s people need continuing international solidarity: IOM chief
Audio Credit
Daniel Johnson, UN News - Geneva
Audio Duration
3'52"
Photo Credit
OCHA/Abdul Aziz Qitaz