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Global perspective Human stories

‘Judges should be superhuman’: The invisible burden behind the bench

‘Judges should be superhuman’: The invisible burden behind the bench

Summary: When conflict erupts, disasters strike or political crises unfold, courts are among the few institutions expected to keep functioning – ensuring the essential rule of law is maintained.

International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan dismissed

International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan dismissed

Summary: Member States of the International Criminal Court dismissed its Prosecutor Karim Khan following disciplinary proceedings related to widely reported sexual misconduct allegations at an emergency session at UN Headquarters in New York on Friday.

Security Council debrief: Race for critical minerals intensifies amidst warnings of conflict

Security Council debrief: Race for critical minerals intensifies amidst warnings of conflict

Summary: The world needs more critical minerals than ever before for electric vehicles, wind turbines, solar panels, batteries and smartphones.

‘Women do not stop giving birth in an emergency’ – one month after Venezuela quakes

‘Women do not stop giving birth in an emergency’ – one month after Venezuela quakes

Summary: One month after twin earthquakes rocked Venezuela, thousands of women and girls continue to face difficulty in accessing essential healthcare and protection services, a senior official with the UN reproductive and sexual health agency UNFPA said on Friday.

After an Ebola centre was attacked, peacekeepers moved in next door

After an Ebola centre was attacked, peacekeepers moved in next door

Summary: A new mobile UN peacekeeping base in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has allowed local authorities to continue responding to the fast-moving Ebola outbreak there after violence disrupted the work of medics at a treatment centre set up to contain the spread.

Middle East: UN warns against wider escalation after Houthi attacks in the Red Sea

Middle East: UN warns against wider escalation after Houthi attacks in the Red Sea

Summary: As fighting intensifies in the Middle East, the United Nations on Friday warned against further escalation in the US-Iran war and the risks to global shipping amid the fight over control of the Strait of Hormuz. 

Wildfires surge across Europe as Spain and France battle major blazes

Wildfires surge across Europe as Spain and France battle major blazes

Summary: The amount of land burned by wildfires across Europe has increased by 57 per cent in four years, according to new data from the World Health Organization (WHO) in Europe.

In El Obeid, Sudanese women face drones by day, rape by night, to reach water

In El Obeid, Sudanese women face drones by day, rape by night, to reach water

Summary: In El Obeid, women and girls now face an impossible choice over something as basic as a bucket of water: risk a drone strike by collecting it in daylight, or risk rape by waiting until dark. 

Syria ‘not alone’ in locating missing persons, tackling displacement

Syria ‘not alone’ in locating missing persons, tackling displacement

Summary: Syria is not alone in tackling challenges, including the hundreds of thousands who remain missing during past tumultuous decades, the head of a UN institution said on Thursday as António Guterres departs on his first visit to the country in his current capacity as Secretary-General.

Iran urged to stop protest-related executions

Iran urged to stop protest-related executions

Summary: Independent UN human rights investigators on Thursday called for Iran to immediately halt the execution of 10 men who took part in a protest in the central city of Isfahan earlier this year, warning that some of their relatives have already been called for final visits.

World News in Brief: New ECOSOC chief, Secretary-General candidates’ debate, torture in Mali, drowning prevention

World News in Brief: New ECOSOC chief, Secretary-General candidates’ debate, torture in Mali, drowning prevention

Summary: Amar Bendjama, Permanent Representative of Algeria to the UN, was elected on Thursday to serve as the next president of the UN’s Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).

Gaza’s food gains could unravel without sustained aid, UN warns

Gaza’s food gains could unravel without sustained aid, UN warns

Summary: Food security and child nutrition have improved across the Gaza Strip largely due to a scale-up in humanitarian assistance and commercial traffic, but progress remains fragile and could quickly reverse without sustained access, funding and recovery support.

Satellites can now spot methane leaks in real time – but most go unfixed

Satellites can now spot methane leaks in real time – but most go unfixed

Summary: Satellites can now spot major methane leaks from space within days. Yet only 13 per cent of those alerts lead to any response from the governments or companies responsible.

Security Council LIVE: How to turn preventive diplomacy rhetoric into action

Security Council LIVE: How to turn preventive diplomacy rhetoric into action

Summary: In the Security Council debate on Thursday on how best to settle disputes between States peacefully, ambassadors provided examples of success and challenges ahead under such themes as effective early warning and how to move from rhetorical support for preventive diplomacy to ensuring more consistent use of its Chapter VI powers under the UN Charter.

Stranded seafarers remain trapped as Hormuz shipping stalls

Stranded seafarers remain trapped as Hormuz shipping stalls

Summary: As the Iran-US war continues, the key question remains unanswered about how shipping through the Strait of Hormuz will be managed in future – although the UN has reiterated that charging tolls for safe passage runs contrary to international law.

Thousands prevented from returning home to southern Lebanon

Thousands prevented from returning home to southern Lebanon

Summary: As months of conflict continue to devastate communities across Lebanon, families are being left without shelter, healthcare and other essential services.

World News in Brief: Aid for Ukraine, drone attacks in Sudan, DR Congo deaths, neurological disorders in the Americas

World News in Brief: Aid for Ukraine, drone attacks in Sudan, DR Congo deaths, neurological disorders in the Americas

Summary: UN partners launched the Winter Response Plan to help 2.1 million people in Ukraine survive another cold season as the country grapples with the on-going Russian invasion.

Nicaragua continues to weaken political freedoms, UN warns

Nicaragua continues to weaken political freedoms, UN warns

Summary: The UN human rights chief Volker Türk on Wednesday condemned new threats from Nicaragua’s co-president Daniel Ortega to hinder civil rights and prevent dissenting individuals and groups from participating in elections.

Deadly Afghanistan floods kill at least 26 as aid agencies race to reach survivors

Deadly Afghanistan floods kill at least 26 as aid agencies race to reach survivors

Summary: Flash floods have killed at least 26 people across eastern Afghanistan, including 23 in the mountainous province of Nuristan, where homes, markets and roads were swept away and search teams continued looking for people reported missing.

Security Council LIVE: Can critical minerals fuel peace and prosperity instead of conflict?

Security Council LIVE: Can critical minerals fuel peace and prosperity instead of conflict?

Summary: The Security Council met Wednesday in New York to debate critical minerals — the lithium, cobalt and copper powering the clean energy transition. Demand is set to triple by 2030. The question: will this mineral wealth build peace and prosperity, or fund conflict and corruption? Follow live updates throughout the day below and go here for full coverage from across the UN.

From lithium to nickel: How the UN is helping countries make the most of critical minerals

From lithium to nickel: How the UN is helping countries make the most of critical minerals

Summary: The world's shift to clean energy is driving huge demand for critical minerals such as lithium, nickel, cobalt and copper. 

Critical minerals: The hidden resources powering the clean energy future

Critical minerals: The hidden resources powering the clean energy future

Summary: Why are critical minerals suddenly at the centre of global politics?

‘Business as usual is a business of death’: UN adopts road safety pledge over US objection

‘Business as usual is a business of death’: UN adopts road safety pledge over US objection

Summary: The UN General Assembly closed its first ever High-level Meeting on road safety on Tuesday by adopting a sweeping new declaration aimed at halving road deaths by 2030 – over the sole objection of the United States.

World News in Brief: Sexual violence in DR Congo, deaths in Ukraine and Russia, crime in Southeast Asia

World News in Brief: Sexual violence in DR Congo, deaths in Ukraine and Russia, crime in Southeast Asia

Summary: Independent UN human rights experts on Tuesday condemned the M23 armed group’s “reign of terror” over territory it controls in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), calling for an end to the Rwanda-backed group’s sexual torture and violence against civilians.

Israeli attacks on Gaza intensify amid surge of West Bank settler violence

Israeli attacks on Gaza intensify amid surge of West Bank settler violence

Summary: Amid intensified deadly Israeli attacks in Gaza, the UN chief and top officials condemned the killings while a surge violence rocked the West Bank and aid agencies scrambled to help Palestinians.

Guterres calls for stepping up diplomatic efforts to end US-Iran conflict

Guterres calls for stepping up diplomatic efforts to end US-Iran conflict

Summary: The United Nations again called for restraint as war ramps up in the Middle East, underscoring the need for dialogue and an end to attacks on “vital infrastructure” across the region.

Global hunger declines again but progress remains uneven across regions

Global hunger declines again but progress remains uneven across regions

Summary: Global hunger declined for a third consecutive year in 2025 showing that progress is possible, but gains remain fragile and far too slow to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by the 2030 deadline.

UN refugee agency reports 144 migrants dead or missing off Mauritanian coast

UN refugee agency reports 144 migrants dead or missing off Mauritanian coast

Summary: The UN’s refugee agency (UNHCR) reports that 144 migrants attempting to reach Europe are dead or missing due to a series of “tragic maritime incidents” off the coast of Mauritania last week.

Security Council LIVE: Spotlight on Syria as Guterres heads to Damascus

Security Council LIVE: Spotlight on Syria as Guterres heads to Damascus

Summary: The Security Council discussed the situation on the ground in Syria amid reports of an Israeli attack in occupied territory and of a multi-national oil pipeline to counter the closure of the critical Strait of Hormuz – still the focus of the ongoing US-Iran war. The meeting follows UN independent investigators’ findings that security conditions remain fragile in the south as António Guterres heads to Damascus for his first visit to the country as Secretary-General.

DR Congo: Ebola outbreak still expanding, WHO sees signs of stabilization

DR Congo: Ebola outbreak still expanding, WHO sees signs of stabilization

Summary: In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), UN health teams and partners are still racing to contain the rapidly expanding Ebola outbreak, despite ongoing insecurity in eastern areas where the virus has taken hold. As of 19 July, the DRC Government has recorded 2,423 confirmed cases, including 967 deaths and 469 recoveries.