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Some 14.4 million Yemenis, more than half the population, are food insecure, an increase of 12 per cent in just the last eight months, as ongoing conflict and import restrictions reduce availability and send prices soaring, the United Nations agricultural agency warned today.

The World Health Organization (WHO) today called an emergency meeting for Monday on the “dramatic” rise in Zika virus infection – strongly suspected of causing birth malformations – warning that its “explosive” spread could eventually infect up to four million people before it is brought under control.

Amid ongoing violence in the Middle East, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon reiterated today that he can understand why Palestinians are losing hope in the face of nearly 50 years of Israeli occupation, a statement that has provoked criticism that he was “giving terror a tailwind.”

The United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, Kyung-wha Kang, wrapped up a three-day visit to Eritrea today, where she urged broader support for the Government's efforts to meet basic needs and build resilience of the country's most vulnerable communities.

The first-ever United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) gathering of scientists to discuss disaster risk management kicked off today in Geneva, Switzerland, seeking to map out a scientific and technological approach to the issue while addressing the importance of partnership.

United Nations demining officials in Afghanistan today strongly condemned an attack in which unknown militants shot dead four de-miners while a fifth was reported missing in Helmand province, one of the most heavily mined in the strife-torn country.

“It’s about the toughest job any human being could be given” – that is how David Nabarro, the Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, describes the task the United Nations chief entrusted to him last month.

As the global community gathered to commemorate the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Nazi extermination camp 71 years ago, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon stressed that the most effective way to stand up for human rights, fight xenophobia and prevent new genocides is by educating new generations about the horrors of the Holocaust.

The United Nations today expressed grave concern over the impact of the ongoing hostilities in Darfur on thousands of civilians who have been forced to flee their homes amid the conflict that began two weeks ago.

With United Nations-backed political talks on Syria set to begin later this week, the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, Stephen O’Brien, today urged the entire international community to get behind the process, which seeks to ease the suffering for millions of desperate people and end “one of the most savage and brutal conflicts of the 21st century.”