Later this week, thousands of people across Afghanistan will be marking the International Day of Peace, a commemoration that takes on particular significance in the South Asian nation that has this year witnessed some of the worst violence since the overthrow of the Taliban, including yesterday’s deadly attack on a United Nations humanitarian convoy.

Officials in Mongolia and Pacific Island States are set to receive training in information and communication technology (ICT) geared towards helping them achieve their social and economic development goals, thanks to two new agreements signed with the United Nations.

Timor-Leste has become the latest nation to join an ever-growing United Nations global advocacy and awareness-raising effort to eliminate violence against women.

Religious communities and individuals in Turkmenistan continue to face difficulties in practising their faiths, even though the Central Asian country has made clear progress since last year, an independent United Nations human rights expert said today.