Our top stories for Friday include: Pope Francis receives the UN chief in Rome, Lesotho famine threat, concern for jailed Iranian protestors, and strengthened global action to prevent corruption.
In the midst of “turbulent and trying times”, all the world’s people must stand together in peace and harmony, the UN Secretary-General said on Friday. António Guterres was speaking following an audience with Pope Francis at the Vatican, who he thanked for his strong support for the global Organization.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has seen an increase in the number of reported cases of the deadly haemorrhagic virus Ebola linked to ongoing violence by armed groups targeting remote communities, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday.
When warring parties in Yemen met in a renovated castle outside the Swedish capital last December for UN-brokered talks, they showed that perhaps there could be a way out of brutal conflict and the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, the UN Special Envoy for the country said this week.
After decades of sectarian strife and conflict, “a renewed sense of patriotism has taken hold”, the head of the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) told the Security Council on Tuesday.
Security in Mali has become critical, with unprecedented incidents of communal violence and increasingly more deadly terror attacks, reported a UN human rights expert on Monday, following a 10-day visit to the country.
Nearly half a million children in eastern Ukraine continue to face “grave risks” to their physical health and psychological well-being, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Monday.
A recap of Friday’s stories in brief: attacks on communities in an Ebola outbreak hotspot in eastern DRC sparks a humanitarian crisis; Guterres expresses concerns at continued protester deaths in Iraq; UN-appointed panel raises concerns about violence against indigenous rights defenders in Colombia; 5 things you need to know about COP25; UN rights chief urges dialogue to ease Ecuador unrest.
