March 18, 2024 No comments
Iran: Repression continues two years after nationwide protests
INTERNATIONAL, 18 March 2024, Human Rights - Iranian security forces shot hundreds of people who took part in widespread protests sparked by the death of Jina Mahsa Amini while she was in the custody of the country’s so-called morality police, top independent human rights investigators said on Monday. Addressing the Human Rights Council in Geneva, the International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran – a group of Council-appointed independent experts - said that Ms. Amini’s death in September 2022 was “unlawful and caused by physical violence” for which the State is responsible. Chairperson Sara Hossain told the forum’s 47 Member States that after Ms. Amini’s death, young women and schoolchildren “were at the forefront” of nationwide protests: “The entire State apparatus was mobilized with security forces using firearms including AK-47s and Uzis as...
Read moreMarch 18, 2024 No comments
Explainer: What is famine and how is it declared?
INTERNATIONAL, 18 March 2024, Health - Amid growing global concerns over alarming hunger spikes in conflict-affected communities and talk of intensifying levels of food insecurity possibly leading to famine, we looked into how – and when – a famine is classified. With the release of the latest food security report from the Integrated Phase Classification (IPC) on war-ravaged Gaza since December, World Food Programme (WFP) chief economist Arif Husain walked UN News through the process. When is famine declared? Famine is essentially a technical term, referring to a population that faces widespread malnutrition and hunger-related deaths due to a lack of access to food. “We say there is a famine when three conditions come together in a specific geographic area, whether a town, village, city, even a country,” Mr. Husain explained. At least 20...
Read moreMarch 18, 2024 No comments
Guterres urges disarmament now as nuclear risk reaches ‘highest point in decades’
INTERNATIONAL, 18 March 2024, Peace and Security - Almost 80 years after the incineration of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, nuclear weapons still represent a clear and present danger to global peace and security, UN Secretary-General António Guterres told the Security Council on Monday. Calling for disarmament now, he urged States with nuclear arsenals to lead the way across six areas for action that include dialogue and accountability. “Nuclear weapons are the most destructive weapons ever invented, capable of eliminating all life on earth. Today, these weapons are growing in power, range and stealth. An accidental launch is one mistake, one miscalculation, one rash act away,” he warned. Doomsday Clock ticking loudly The meeting on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation was convened by Japan, Security Council president for March...
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Imminent famine in northern Gaza is ‘entirely man-made disaster’: Guterres
INTERNATIONAL, 18 March 2024, Peace and Security - Amid reports that the Israeli military stormed Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City on Monday in search of Hamas fighters, UN humanitarians warned that new food insecurity data indicates that famine could happen “anytime”. “Famine is projected to occur anytime between now and May 2024 in the northern governorates,” the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said, upon publication of a new Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report on Gaza. ‘Act now to prevent the unthinkable’ “Palestinians in Gaza are enduring horrifying levels of hunger and suffering”, said the UN Secretary General António Guterres outside the Security Council in New York. “This is the highest number of people facing catastrophic hunger ever recorded by the Integrated Food Security Classification system –anywhere, anytime”, he added. “This is an entirely manmade disaster—and the report...
Read moreMarch 17, 2024 No comments
UN chief condemns attack on peacekeepers in DR Congo
INTERNATIONAL, 17 March 2024, Peace and Security - The UN chief on Saturday condemned an attack which saw eight peacekeepers from the UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or DRC, wounded during clashes between the powerful M23 rebel movement and Government troops. The incident occurred in the vicinity of Sake, just 20 kilometers from Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu. The wounded peacekeepers, who were part of Operation Springbok initiated last November to safeguard civilians in the region, sustained their injuries amidst the ongoing fighting, where UN troops have been assisting Government forces in order to protect vulnerable civilians. In a strongly-worded statement issued by his Spokesperson, UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the attack, emphasizing that it could amount to a war crime under international law. Expressing...
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