Peace and Security

Children stand outside the tent where they live in a remote desert camp in southern rural Homs, Syria.
© UNICEF/Abdulaziz Aldroubi

Pioneering report continues to help children survive conflict

26 August 2021
Global

The UN has verified 266,000 cases of grave violations against children in more than 30 conflict situations across Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America over the past 16 years, two top UN officials said on Thursday – marking 25 years since the Organization released a groundbreaking report on the issue.

A father and his daughter in a camp for displaced people, two of 18 million people in Afghanistan who are in need of humanitarian aid, .
© UNICEF Afghanistan

UN migration agency launches $24 million appeal for Afghanistan

26 August 2021
Asia Pacific

In response to the growing humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) on Thursday launched a $24 million urgent appeal to assist hundreds of thousands of people displaced within the country over the past two months.

Grain is loaded for distribution at a World Food Programme warehouse in Kabul in May 2021.
© WFP/Arete/Andrew Quilty

Amidst turmoil, displacement and plunging economy, Afghanistan’s future ‘very difficult…to see’

25 August 2021
Asia Pacific

A crisis of incredible proportions is unfolding in Afghanistan as conflict, combined with drought and COVID-19, is pushing Afghans into a humanitarian catastrophe, the UN food relief agency said on Wednesday.

Voters in Iraq go to the polls on 10 October 2021.
© UNICEF/Wathiq Khuzaie

Iraq: Clock ticks on all-important elections, commitment to credibility needed

25 August 2021
Middle East

With just 46 days until Iraq goes to the polls, the UN Assistance Mission for the country (UNAMI) is stepping up its communications to inform voters about their conduct, Special Representative Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert told the Security Council on Wednesday, stressing that it is up to the political parties themselves to refrain from attempts to distort the results.
 

Destroyed buildings in eastern Aleppo city, Syria, where chemical weapons were allegedly used. (file photo)
OCHA/Halldorsson

Increased Syria violence prompts largest civilian displacements in a year, as gridlock stymies political talks

24 August 2021
Middle East

Progress towards resolving Syria’s decade-long conflict has reached an impasse, the chief United Nations mediator told the Security Council on Tuesday, as an uptick in fighting throughout the country led to some of the largest civilian displacements in a year.

An Afghan girl was injured when a school in Kabul’s district 13 came under attack.
© UNICEF Afghanistan

‘Lifesaving’ protection for children in conflict must be central to pandemic recovery: UN official

23 August 2021
Global

Protection for children caught up in war must be at the heart of the international agenda, including COVID-19 response, a senior UN official said on Monday. 

Civilians pass a burning automobile following a suicide car bombing.in Mosul, Iraq,
© UNHCR/Ivor Prickett

UN to survivors, victims of terrorism: ‘You are not alone’

20 August 2021
Global

Survivors of terrorism joined UN officials in hosting a virtual high-level event marking the fourth annual International Day of Remembrance of and Tribute to Victims of Terrorism on Friday, emphasizing the need for connection, solidarity and continued vigilance against the ever-shifting terrorist threat.

 

More than 400 families have taken shelter in a school in southern Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan.
© UNICEF Afghanistan

‘No way out’ for imperilled Afghans, broader international response needed

20 August 2021
Asia Pacific

Despite a prevailing “sense of fear” among vulnerable citizens, UN humanitarian agencies and their partners reiterated their commitment to the people of Afghanistan on Friday, informing that they are still accessing those in need throughout the country. 

Internally displaced families living at a hosting site in Ouahigouya, Burkina Faso.
© UNHCR/Moussa Bougma

Burkina Faso: UN chief condemns deadly attack on northern town, 80 reported dead

20 August 2021
Africa

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has strongly condemned an armed attack on a convoy near the town of Arbinda, in the north of Burkina Faso, on Wednesday, which has reportedly led to the death of some 80 people. 

A herder leads his livestock away from fighting between Iraqi forces and ISIL in southern Mosul, Iraq. (file)
© FAO/Cengiz Yar

Islamic State threat moves online, expands across Africa: Senior counter-terrorism expert 

19 August 2021

Two decades after the 11 September terrorist attacks in New York, terror networks Al-Qaida and Islamic State – also known as Da’esh – continue to pose a grave threat to peace and security, adapting to new technologies and moving into some of the world’s most fragile regions, the top UN counter-terrorism official told the Security Council on Thursday.