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The United Nations-backed court set up to try suspects indicted for war crimes in Sierra Leone today convicted one of five people facing contempt charges for allegedly attempting to induce witnesses to recant their testimonies, with the four others pleading not guilty.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today welcomed the agreement signed by the Sudanese Government and the rebel Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM) aimed at ending the conflict in Darfur and called on the groups that have not yet joined the peace process to do so.

United Nations officials and the Security Council today called for a halt to the fighting in the Sudanese state of Southern Kordofan amid reports of aerial bombings of civilians and mass graves, and called on Khartoum to provide unhindered access for humanitarian assessment and assistance.

By ensuring that justice is done, the International Criminal Court (ICC) not only brings hope to the victims of atrocities but can also deter the commission of future crimes, a senior United Nations official said today.

The General Assembly today admitted the Republic of South Sudan as the 193rd member of the United Nations, welcoming the newly independent country to the community of nations.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has lauded the efforts of Uganda, which has become the 20th country since 2000 to have eliminated maternal and neonatal tetanus (MNT).

The number of civilians killed in conflict in Afghanistan rose by 15 per cent in the first six months of this year, the United Nations mission in the country said today, releasing figures that showed 1,462 non-combatants died, with insurgents responsible for 80 per cent of the killings.

The United Nations today opened its first human rights office in Tunisia, with the world body’s top rights official lauding the country for inspiring the quest for political reform and human dignity across North Africa and the Middle East with its own popular uprising earlier this year.

Seven Estonian cyclists abducted in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley in March were released today, the United Nations envoy for the country said, adding that they were in good health.

The latest round of United Nations-backed informal talks between the parties to the Western Sahara dispute, Morocco and the Frente Polisario, will be held next week in New York, the world body announced today.