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Warning that human rights defenders in crisis-torn Libya are being increasingly targeted by armed groups, the United Nations human rights chief today urged Libyan authorities to undertake prompt, thorough and impartial investigations into the incidents, to hold those found responsible to account, and to ensure an effective remedy for victims.

A new offensive launched by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) against the Iraqi city of Hit has triggered yet another wave of internal displacement in the war torn country, the UN refugee agency announced today, warning that those displaced were facing increased hardships amid advancing cold weather and overcrowded refugee camps.

Two days after donors pledged $5.4 billion in aid for Gaza reconstruction, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon visited the war-ravaged enclave, where he viewed destruction wrought by the most recent conflict that was “beyond description”, and also met with the ministers of the National Consensus Government calling on them to focus all efforts on “building one Palestine.”

During a visit to the Garamba National Park, the top UN official in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) urged national and international actors to step up efforts in preserving the natural resources and rich biodiversity of the Park located in the north-eastern part of the country.

Ambassador Martin Sajdik, President of the United Nations, Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) congratulated French economist Jean Tirole today for winning the 2014 edition of the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences, citing his contributions on global regulatory behaviour as being of “particular relevance.”

The top United Nations official in Somalia today condemned the car bombing which left an estimated 13 people dead and many more injured in Mogadishu, the capital, amid a precarious humanitarian situation in the rest of the country.

Community engagement and activism are critical in Sierra Leone’s ongoing battle against the spread of Ebola, a United Nations official declared today, adding that only with the support of the local population could the country and the wider region of West Africa defeat the economic and health crises caused by the deadly virus.

Back from her first visit to South Sudan, United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Mrs. Zainab Hawa Bangura warned today that sexual violence is a consistent characteristic of the conflict there, and is being perpetrated by all the parties.

While many African countries and communities have made great progress in peace and security, human rights, good governance and the rule of law, more remains to be done, several senior United Nations said during a high-level panel discussion assessing the continent’s development.

With some 805 million people still chronically undernourished in the world, a United Nations committee focusing on food security opened its current session in Rome today with the stated goal of adopting a set of principles for responsible investment in agriculture and food systems.