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UN News - Global perspective Human stories

Global perspective Human stories

‘Nowhere is safe’: UN experts detail Ukraine war’s toll and Russia’s reach beyond its borders

‘Nowhere is safe’: UN experts detail Ukraine war’s toll and Russia’s reach beyond its borders

Summary: UN Human Rights Council-appointed experts on Monday laid out a grim picture of the human cost of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with a spotlight on civilians facing a third wartime winter as well as the intimidation of Russians who have fled abroad.

‘We are not powerless’: UN chief urges world leaders to invest in peace

‘We are not powerless’: UN chief urges world leaders to invest in peace

Summary: In a world facing rising conflicts, violence and divisions that are causing great suffering for millions of people, the UN chief on Monday called on world leaders and citizens to invest more in peace.

Why climate action now comes down to speed, finance and cooperation

Why climate action now comes down to speed, finance and cooperation

Summary: Temporarily exceeding the 1.5°C global warming goal set in Paris is widely considered inevitable. The challenge now is to keep that overshoot as small and short as possible by cutting emissions faster, unlocking finance and strengthening international cooperation.

Ebola vaccine trial begins in DR Congo

Ebola vaccine trial begins in DR Congo

Summary: An Ebola vaccine trial is underway in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), involving frontline health workers and others involved in the response.

UN panel calls for stronger safeguards as AI agents advance

UN panel calls for stronger safeguards as AI agents advance

Summary: The world's first scientific body on Artificial Intelligence called on Monday for AI safeguards to be adapted as current firewalls are “unravelling”. 

The right to development: Why equity, not charity, is a human right

The right to development: Why equity, not charity, is a human right

Summary: Compare two children born in the same year: one in a country with functioning schools, social services, fair elections and a dynamic economy and the other in a nation devastated by poverty, conflict, climate change or corruption.

The race to build a pandemic-proof world

The race to build a pandemic-proof world

Summary: Six years after COVID-19 killed millions, battered health systems, disrupted lives and brought the global economy to a virtual standstill, the world is still grappling with how we can prepare better for the next pandemic.

Why the UN General Assembly still matters

Why the UN General Assembly still matters

Summary: More than eight decades on from its founding, the UN General Assembly remains the place where the UN’s 193 Member States come together to debate the defining challenges of the day, from war and peace – to development, climate change and human rights.

UN Crime Congress: Technology is transforming crime – and the response to it

UN Crime Congress: Technology is transforming crime – and the response to it

Summary: Sitting in her Vienna office ahead of a pivotal UN gathering in Abu Dhabi, Monica Juma is focused on a simple reality: crime has evolved faster than many of the institutions designed to combat it.

‘Violence will only defer a problem’: UN Assembly President on trust, AI and lessons from the Rohingya crisis

‘Violence will only defer a problem’: UN Assembly President on trust, AI and lessons from the Rohingya crisis

Summary: Khalilur Rahman took the gavel as President of the UN General Assembly's 81st session amid what he calls a crisis of confidence in the organization he has served – in one capacity or another – for 35 years. 

Security Council LIVE: UN peacekeeping under pressure

Security Council LIVE: UN peacekeeping under pressure

Summary: UN peacekeepers have increasingly been sent into places where there is no peace to keep – under resourced, outgunned and exposed to violence they are not equipped to counter. The Security Council meets this afternoon in New York to confront that problem, with Secretary-General António Guterres briefing ambassadors on how to close the gap.

Sexual violence against civilians and POWs in Ukraine widespread and ‘abhorrent’

Sexual violence against civilians and POWs in Ukraine widespread and ‘abhorrent’

Summary: Over 1,000 cases of sexual violence against civilians and prisoners of war (POWs) in Ukraine have been documented from the start of Russia’s invasion to the end of July this year.

Less than 4 years from development goals deadline, progress shows what’s possible

Less than 4 years from development goals deadline, progress shows what’s possible

Summary: For Benin, making progress on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has meant finding new ways to finance development.

Women and girls pay high price in DR Congo Ebola outbreak

Women and girls pay high price in DR Congo Ebola outbreak

Summary: The deadly Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has taken a disproportionate toll on women and girls, many of whom are on the frontlines caring for patients as well as their own families despite the high risk of infection.

Haiti: Child malnutrition crisis worsens amid escalating violence

Haiti: Child malnutrition crisis worsens amid escalating violence

Summary: Haiti is facing a worsening child malnutrition crisis, with an estimated 253,725 children aged 6 to 59 months projected to suffer from acute malnutrition between June 2026 and May 2027, new UN-backed analysis has revealed.   

Nepal floods: ‘Apocalyptic’ destruction signals wider climate threat across Himalayas

Nepal floods: ‘Apocalyptic’ destruction signals wider climate threat across Himalayas

Summary: The catastrophic flooding that swept away entire villages in northern Nepal could occur again in the country or elsewhere in the Himalayas due to climate change.

Yemen’s humanitarian crisis growing by the hour amid spike in displacement

Yemen’s humanitarian crisis growing by the hour amid spike in displacement

Summary: People displaced by the renewed fighting in Yemen have described fleeing for their lives amid shelling and gunfire, aid agencies reported on Friday, while highlighting the dramatic increase in humanitarian needs in the country and in Djibouti, where thousands have sought shelter.

New UN system platform puts millions of data points at users’ fingertips, says Guterres

New UN system platform puts millions of data points at users’ fingertips, says Guterres

Summary: How do you make sense of a world facing interconnected crises, from poverty and hunger to climate change, if the facts are scattered across dozens of different places?

World News in Brief: Winter aid for Gaza, West Bank; Haiti food production; migrant deaths at sea; human rights funding

World News in Brief: Winter aid for Gaza, West Bank; Haiti food production; migrant deaths at sea; human rights funding

Summary: The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is seeking to raise $97.5 million to protect 540,000 children and their families in Gaza and the West Bank from harsh winter conditions in the coming months.

Gender equality woefully off track, new UN report reveals

Gender equality woefully off track, new UN report reveals

Summary: At the current rate of progress, gender equality would take 171 years to achieve, a new UN report finds as institutions built to advance gains are being defunded and demobilised.

UN fact-finding mission on Iran focuses on plight of civilians

UN fact-finding mission on Iran focuses on plight of civilians

Summary: The Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran confirmed that civilians in the country suffered serious human rights violations and “crimes against humanity committed by their government,” while finding "reasonable grounds" to believe that the United States committed “war crimes” in the context of its ongoing conflict with the Islamic Republic.

Guterres calls for action as hate speech spreads across new platforms online

Guterres calls for action as hate speech spreads across new platforms online

Summary: The UN Secretary-General has called for concerted action by governments, technology companies and civil society to stamp out hate speech, emphasizing that “its toxic message is spreading fast and striking deep”. 

Security Council LIVE: Syria’s transition in the spotlight

Security Council LIVE: Syria’s transition in the spotlight

Summary: While Syria is making progress in its political transition, the Security Council is meeting to hear briefings and discuss the situation on the ground, including recent reports of deadly armed clashes with an ISIS-affiliate terrorist group in the south and protests over rising fuel prices. 

Yemen escalation displaces more than 57,000 children: UNICEF

Yemen escalation displaces more than 57,000 children: UNICEF

Summary: Renewed fighting in Yemen is deepening an already severe humanitarian crisis in a country where more than 12 million children depend on aid, after more than a decade of conflict.

As freshwater reserves shrink, countries must prepare for a new water reality

As freshwater reserves shrink, countries must prepare for a new water reality

Summary: The world is entering a period in which abnormal water supplies are becoming the norm, with river flows, groundwater and glaciers all showing signs of sustained disruption, the UN weather agency warned on Thursday. 

Who should set the rules for AI? The UN is pushing for a safer digital future

Who should set the rules for AI? The UN is pushing for a safer digital future

Summary: Artificial intelligence (AI) is advancing rapidly, raising questions about how societies and governments can capture its benefits while managing risks that often extend beyond national borders.

World News in Brief: Shipping alert from IMO, democracy vanishing in Nicaragua, alert over political ‘denialism’

World News in Brief: Shipping alert from IMO, democracy vanishing in Nicaragua, alert over political ‘denialism’

Summary: Amid a rising number of attacks on shipping in key waterways in the Middle East linked to the US-Iran war, the head of UN maritime agency, Mr. Arsenio Dominguez, has insisted that the conflict is not a “pretext” to target “innocent seafarers”.

Repression continues in Venezuela in the face of ‘appalling’ human rights violations

Repression continues in Venezuela in the face of ‘appalling’ human rights violations

Summary: In Venezuela’s El Rodeo maximum security prison, some of those detained for political reasons are subject to forced intubation – and prolonged confinement in a sealed underground cistern. 

AI, climate and conflicts top Guterres’s agenda ahead of General Assembly

AI, climate and conflicts top Guterres’s agenda ahead of General Assembly

Summary: Ahead of the UN General Assembly’s high-level week, Secretary-General António Guterres said the world had entered “an era of deep uncertainty” and urged governments to embrace international cooperation to address global threats.

Security Council LIVE: ‘Being a woman is a crime in Afghanistan,’ civil society briefer declares

Security Council LIVE: ‘Being a woman is a crime in Afghanistan,’ civil society briefer declares

Summary: Since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021, the continuing presence of terrorist groups as well as rights violations against women and girls are a growing concern as the Security Council met Wednesday to hear latest developments, including from a civil society representative who said being born as a woman in the country “is a crime”. Follow full coverage here.