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Warning that “dark clouds of mass atrocities” are looming over the Central African Republic (CAR), Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today called for solidarity and concerted action by the United Nations and regional organizations to help the people of the strife-torn nation.

United Nations officials have marked World Radio Day by calling for harnessing the enduring power of this vital medium to promote gender equality and women's empowerment and to amplify the voice of women over the air waves.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the head of the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) strongly condemned an attack near the airport in Mogadishu that resulted in a number of deaths and injuries, as well as damage to a UN vehicle.

The United Nations has allocated an additional $10 million from its emergency humanitarian fund to support the most critical relief operations in Central African Republic (CAR), where hundreds of thousands have been uprooted by violence across the country.

The Security Council today renewed until the end of the year the United Nations mission helping Burundi recover from decades of ethnic war, despite the Central African country's request to end it earlier, as it moves towards crucial elections amid political violence and intra-party tensions.

The United Nations/Arab League Joint Special Representative for Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, said officials from Russia and the United States today promised to keep working with the UN to unblock stalled Syrian peace talks, as food and medical supplies continue to reach people in long-besieged Homs.

Some 90 per cent of the 11th century archaeological site of Gao Saneye in northern Mali was pillaged by Islamic extremists during their seizure of the region in 2012, traditional musical instruments and costumes were destroyed, and a World Heritage site mosque needs urgent repairs, United Nations cultural officials reported today.

Welcoming the start of the latest round of talks between South Sudan's sparring factions aimed at resolving the crisis in the country, the Security Council today stressed that the dialogue will only succeed if “fully inclusive”, and called for all detained and formerly detained political leaders to be allowed to take part in the process.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the start yesterday of the South Sudan political talks between the Government and the opposition, and stressed the need for the parties to adhere to the ceasefire signed last month.

More than 20 vital United Nations construction projects for schools and housing in Gaza are stalled, and social and economic conditions are worsening due to the closure of crossings with Israel as clashes have increased, the top UN envoy for the Middle East warned today.