May 02, 2024 No comments
Gaza’s new terror: Booby-trapped cans of food for the unwary
INTERNATIONAL, 2 May 2024, Peace and Security - Almost seven months into the devastating war in the enclave, Gazans face a new threat: booby-trapped food. “A 14-year-old boy was seriously injured and sustained limb amputations after opening a booby-trapped can of food found while looking for his belongings in his house that had been shelled by Israeli forces in Khan Younis,” the UN aid coordination office (OCHA) said, citing the Strip’s authorities. The young victim who reportedly sustained life-changing injuries on Monday is just one of “many people recently injured” from supplies rigged with hidden explosive charges, OCHA said in its latest update on the emergency. UN mine action experts have estimated that some 7,500 tonnes of unexploded ordnance could be “scattered” throughout Gaza which could take up to 14...
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May 01, 2024 No comments
Gazans on tenterhooks awaiting news of ceasefire call
INTERNATIONAL, 1 May 2024, Peace and Security - Amid growing international calls for restraint from Israel in Gaza and reports on Wednesday of further deadly strikes overnight, UN humanitarians underscored the ongoing devastating impact of the war and the need to ensure reliable aid supply lines to people in desperate need in the enclave. “One-third of all the families who live here have children under five, so many babies, so many kids,” said Matthew Hollingworth, UN World Food Programme (WFP) Palestine Country Director, speaking from a school in Deir Al Balah, run by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA. “What they need is school, though what they need is more clean water, what they need is more stability. They need a normal life,” the...
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May 01, 2024 No comments
World News in Brief: UN supporting Kenya flood victims, dozens more migrant deaths at sea, disinformation in Myanmar
INTERNATIONAL, 1 May 2024, Humanitarian Aid - The UN and humanitarian partners have provided emergency support for over 124,000 people in Kenya, where heavy rains continue to cause chaos, said the UN Spokesperson on Wednesday. Stéphane Dujarric told correspondents in New York that agencies were supporting the Government-led response to the heavy rains which have left more than 170 deaths since the middle of March, according to news reports. The UN and partners on the ground have been providing water, sanitation and hygiene supplies, together with food, health and psychosocial support. Supporting Government response “Our partners are also supporting rescue operations and setting up camps to host men, women and children displaced by the floods”, said Mr. Dujarric. “According to national authorities, the floods have impacted more than...
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May 01, 2024 No comments
Europe: Report highlights direct link between pandemic and childhood obesity
INTERNATIONAL, 1 May 2024, Health - The COVID-19 pandemic has led to increased obesity in school-aged children in Europe, the World Health Organization (WHO) office for the region said in a new report issued on Wednesday, sounding the alarm for action. Results from 17 countries showed that boys and girls aged seven to nine spent more time looking at screens and less time playing outside, mirroring an increase in overweight children in this same age range. More than 50,000 children were surveyed from 2021-23, following the start of the worldwide shutdowns in March 2020. A nuanced picture “The picture that this report paints is nuanced – in some countries there were positive changes, such as more families eating together, but there were also some concerning findings, including an...
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May 01, 2024 No comments
Palestine: General Assembly discusses failed UN membership bid
INTERNATIONAL, 1 May 2024, UN Affairs - Palestine’s recent attempt to become a full member of the United Nations was the focus of discussion in the General Assembly on Wednesday. A 2022 initiative, resolution76/262, calls for the UN’s most representative body to meet within 10 days if the veto is used in the Security Council by one of its permanent members - China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States – who are granted this special voting power. During a Council meeting on 18 April, the US vetoed a draft resolution that recommended that the General Assembly should hold a vote to allow Palestine full UN membership. Palestine is a ‘Permanent Observer State” at the UN, meaning that it can participate in all UN proceedings, except...
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