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Arriving in the Syrian capital of Damascus, the United Nations top relief official today called on the parties in the Middle Eastern country’s ongoing conflict to respect international humanitarian law and its provisions.

The United Nations campaign highlighting the work of the world’s humanitarian workers has reached 100 million people through social media so far, the world body announced today, describing it as its “first milestone” that gets it closer to the one billion mark, which it aims to reach by World Humanitarian Day on 19 August.

As hundreds of people continue to flee Syria on a daily basis, the United Nations today announced it is scaling up its capacity to register Syrian refugees in order to facilitate and speed up their access to basic help and services.

Spoilers hampering Somalia’s transition to democracy will face stringent action from the Security Council if they continue their obstruction, the United Nations top political official for Somalia declared today, while also confirming that the selection of Somalia’s new Parliament was on track and would usher in a new era of peace, stability and democracy for the East African country.

The military commander of the United Nations-African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur, known by the acronym UNAMID, today stressed the importance of ensuring the safety of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Sudanese state of North Darfur, after recent violence in the area resulted in the deaths of four people and injured six others.

The United Nations food relief agency is supporting the Government of the Philippines to help the hundreds of thousands of people who have been affected by heavy rains over the past week.

Strongly condemning the killings of a Government information official and a journalist in Somalia in separate incidents, the top United Nations political envoy for the East African nation today called for the end of the “culture of impunity” that threatens the country’s free press as it struggles to emerge from two decades of lawlessness.

Violence and the indiscriminate use of heavy weapons by the Government as well as targeted attacks by the opposition are increasing in Syria, the head of the United Nations observer force said today, adding that this is taking a heavy toll on innocent civilians.

The empowerment of young women is key for advancing development around the world, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today, adding that it is a priority for the United Nations to encourage their active participation in society.

The United Nations envoy on sport for peace today lauded the London 2012 Olympic Games for their remarkable displays of athletic achievement, as well as for paving the road for future successes in promoting social change in a range of areas, from gender equality to peace building.