An independent review into how the UN System operated in Myanmar in the years leading up to the mass exodus of the Rohingya following serious human rights abuses, has concluded there were “systemic and structural failures” that prevented a unified strategy from being implemented.
This Friday, we cover: Ebola in central Africa still not declared an international emergency, by the World Health Organization; looming famine in South Sudan; humanitarian concerns in Sudan; new elections at the UN’s Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC); and how 5G technology can jeopardize early warnings of natural disasters.
Record numbers in South Sudan – some seven million people – face acute food shortages, while more than 20,000 are close to famine, the World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Friday.
Following recent reports of attacks and rape by security forces and paramilitaries against the pro-democracy protesters in Sudan who have been holding a sit-in outside army headquarters in the capital, Khartoum, the United Nations Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten, expressed “grave concern” on Thursday and called for an “immediate and complete” end to the violence.
This Thursday, top stories includes: International Albinism Awareness Day; the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, appealing for regional talks on Central America forced displacement; updates on the latest attack on oil tankers in the Gulf and on recent clashes in Darfur; and a new report by UNICEF on the best and worst "family-friendly" nations.
Together with Uganda, UN humanitarian agencies are racing to contain deadly Ebola virus disease (EVD) there, after the announcement that it has claimed a second victim.
This Wednesday’s top stories are: one-in-five conflict-affected people suffer from a mental illness; the Security Council holds a special session on conflict prevention; 5-year-old Congolese boy is first to die from Ebola in Uganda; Sudanese protestors' rights baffled; the decline of foreign investment; and tackling child labour.
More than one-in-five people living in conflict-affected areas suffers from a mental illness, according to a new report based on UN figures, prompting the World Health Organization (WHO) to call for increased, sustained investment in mental health services in those zones.
This Tuesday, we cover: a new strategy for disability inclusion; continued talks on social justice at the international labour conference; an update on Yemen; a historic Security Council resolution on missing persons in conflict; and same-sex rights in Botswana.
The 15 members of the United Nations Security Council adopted on Tuesday the very first ever resolution focused on the issue of missing persons in armed conflict. The aim is to encourage countries to fulfil their obligations, take action to step up prevention, and tackle the issue earlier, so that ultimately families separated by conflict can be reunited, or at least given answers as to the fate of their loved ones.
