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The United Nations refugee agency warned today that 2013 is on track for some of the highest levels of forced displacement ever seen, owing to unusually large numbers of new refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs).

With the security and humanitarian situations in South Sudan deteriorating as a result of the country's political disputes, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the members of the Security Council have strongly condemned the ongoing violence, including the deadly attack on a United Nations base in Akobo yesterday, which killed some 20 civilians and two peacekeepers.

The crisis in the Central African Republic (CAR), where thousands of people have been killed and 750,000 others driven from their homes, risks deteriorating even further amid escalating Muslim-Christian clashes and the reported involvement of foreign elements, a top United Nations official warned today, calling for international efforts to help avert disaster.

An independent United Nations human rights expert today called on the Government of Belize to adopt a comprehensive programme to protect and assist victims of trafficking and to ensure that the perpetrators of this scourge are punished.

The Joint Special Representative of the United Nations and the League of Arab States for Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi today announced that more than 30 nations have been invited to attend the long-sought Syria peace conference to be held in Geneva next month.

Proceeds from the annual United Nations all-star charity football game, led by legends Ronaldo and Zinédine Zidane and which will be held next March in Switzerland, will benefit recovery efforts in the Philippines in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan, the world body has announced.

The United Nations voiced deep concern today about the intimidation and prosecution of individuals in Saudi Arabia for exercising certain fundamental freedoms, noting in particular the treatment of an activist who seemed to have been targeted for his work on civil and political rights.

Brazilian authorities need to give further priority to the poorest and most marginalized, to ensure that inequalities in the country are progressively eliminated and all receive access to sanitation and water, an independent United Nations human rights expert today urged.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has commended the people of Madagascar, the Electoral Commission and the Malagasy Government for their active contribution and participation in the holding of today's presidential and legislative elections.

Deeply concerned that electronic surveillance, interception of digital communications and collection of personal data may negatively impact human rights, the United Nations General Assembly has adopted a consensus resolution strongly backing the right to privacy, calling on all countries take measures to end activities that violate this fundamental “tenet of a democratic society.”