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Some 10,000 people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have been forced to flee to Uganda after the latest wave of fighting between Congolese Government forces and the rebel group M23, the United Nations refugee agency said today.

The United Nations refugee agency today deplored the loss of life in the recent boat tragedy off the western coast of Myanmar, and stressed the need for urgent action to avert such incidents.

The United Nations today launched an emergency response programme to support farmers in northern Benin who lost crops, livestock and fishing grounds when the region was hit by floods in August.

“We are here for you,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told people of the Sahel today, kicking off a visit to the region with international development leaders to listen to local priorities and to link political, security, development and humanitarian efforts there.

From helping developing countries provide cancer treatment to verifying the non-diversion of nuclear material for military purposes, the United Nations atomic watchdog agency continues to pursue its goal of promoting safe, secure and peaceful nuclear technologies.

The United Nations special envoy for Africa’s Great Lakes region today joined other senior diplomatic officials in welcoming the announcement by the M23 rebel group that it is ending its bloody insurgency against the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which for nearly two years has exacerbated humanitarian strife in the country’s restive east.

International efforts to bring about a peaceful solution to the crisis in Syria continue apace, with two United Nations officials reporting today on their work towards convening a political conference that brings all sides in the conflict to the negotiating table, and overseeing the destruction of the country's chemical weapons stockpiles.

A United Nations envoy today commended the parties to the Kachin peace talks, calling their meeting this week “a significant move forward” in Myanmar’s national reconciliation process.

A senior United Nations political official will begin a two-day mission to the Maldives on Wednesday to meet with key actors and government officials prior to the presidential election scheduled for 9 November.

Renowned United States actor, filmmaker and United Nations Goodwill Ambassador for Global Justice Nicolas Cage today called for greater efforts to assist human trafficking victims, stressing the international community cannot “stand quietly on the sidelines” while this scourge persists across the globe.