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United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon travelled over the weekend to Abuja, Nigeria, where today he met state Governors who, he said, can play a “fundamental role” in shaping the future of their country by implementing the sustainable development agenda Members States will adopt in a month in New York.

The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) today condemned the use of landmines or explosive ordnance, which gravely injured this morning two of its peacekeepers.

Deeply concerned over the serious violations of the Disengagement of Forces Agreement between Israel and Syria, United Nations Secretary-General ban Ki-moon today called on all involved to exercise maximum restraint to prevent any further escalation in an already tense regional environment.

Condemning the recent prison sentencing of two prominent Azerbaijani human rights defenders, United Nations human rights experts today expressed concern about the activists’ health during their pre-trial detention and called on the Government to immediately halt any persecution against human rights advocates.

Just back from an assessment mission in southern regions of Somalia, the United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for the country has underscored that while relief supplies are reaching the areas “after years of isolation,” much work lay ahead for people to rebuild their lives in the towns of Baardheere and Diinsoor, in the Gedo and Bay regions, respectively.

The United Nations refugee agency is concerned about the increasingly precarious situation at the border between Greece and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), where force was used earlier today to prevent people from crossing.

The enormous strides already taken by Kosovo and Serbia through the European Union-facilitated dialogue demand continuing commitment from both the parties and the international community, the United Nations Security Council was told today.

A new United Nations report paints a grim picture of “systemic failure, or outright refusal” by authorities in Darfur to take human rights violations seriously and points to the failure of initiatives taken so far by the Government to combat “endemic impunity.”

While applauding the adoption of a new anti-slavery law in Mauritania that doubles, from 10 to 20 years, the maximum prison sentence for slavery crimes and creates special prosecution tribunals for slavery-like practices, a United Nations expert today cautioned that “this welcome development needs to be followed by its full implementation.”

Nearly a quarter of all health facilities in Yemen are no longer operating fully – with more expected to close down in the coming weeks – resulting in “catastrophic consequences” for patients suffering from chronic kidney failure who are dependent on life-saving support, the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned.