The on-going violence in Syria is impacting access to health care facilities in the country according to the World Health Organization (WHO). It estimates that 38 hospitals and 149 clinics have been damaged or destroyed. WHO's Director of Emergency Management Richard Brennan says the agency is using mobile clinics to address the problem. "Right [...]
The United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) has expressed concern about a possible change in the processing of refugees and asylum seekers arriving in Australia by boat. This follows the passing by the Australian parliament of a law under which refugees and asylum seekers would be processed in offshore camps in the Pacific region. Adrian Edwards [...]
A deadly attack in north-western Pakistan on Thursday, which reportedly left more than 20 people dead, has been strongly condemned by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. According to reports, armed men ambushed three buses near the city of Gilgit, forced passengers off the vehicles and then shot 22 Shia Muslims. Pakistani Taliban militants are reported to [...]
The tragedy of the bombing of the UN compound in Baghdad, Iraq, nearly a decade ago has been transformed into a celebration of those who dedicate their lives to serving humanity. Since 2008, the United Nations has commemorated 19 August as World Humanitarian Day to remember the contributions of aid workers and others who [...]
A new envoy of the United Nations and the Arab League has been appointed to try to help end the violence in Syria. A spokesperson for United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced on Friday that veteran Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi has been given the assignment. Mr. Ban has made the appointment along with Secretary-General Nabil [...]
There has been a further sharp increase in the number of Syrian refugees fleeing to Turkey, according to the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR). The fighting between government forces and opposition fighters continues in the Middle Eastern country. UNHCR spokesperson, Adrian Edwards, says over a two-day period this week over 3,000 people crossed into [...]
Twenty-two United Nations staff members who died in a bomb attack at the Canal Hotel in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, nine years ago were remembered in New York on Friday. United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson laid a wreath at a Public Lobby of the General Assembly in honour of the staff members who died [...]
Leaders and people involved in conflict in northern Mali are being urged by the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) to ensure children are not used in the conflict. The agency is sounding the alarm about the recruitment of children for military purposes in the country. UNICEF spokesperson Marixie Mercado says there are credible reports that armed [...]
Education is at the heart of development, according to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon who this week concluded a two-day mission to Timor-Leste. Mr. Ban unveiled 'Education First,' his new global initiative which aims to improve the quality of education and to put all children in school. Expert concerned about ongoing human rights violations in [...]
Health emergencies in Africa are the focus for the World Health Organization (WHO), as the United Nations observes World Humanitarian Day on August 19th. WHO's Director of Emergency Management Richard Brennan says the agency has a regional strategy across nine African countries. He identifies North Kivu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as one [...]
Over the past year, 12 people have been killed while working for the World Food Programme (WFP) to feed people around the world. According to WFP Spokesperson Elisabeth Byrs, these staff members, partners or contractors were working in Somalia, Sudan, Haiti, South Sudan and Côte d'Ivoire when they lost their lives. Most recently, she [...]
Many women in Mali know all about the benefits of the shea tree. They've been gathering its fruit for years to produce soaps and various products to sell. Now, production hovers at 80,000 tons per year – but it has the potential to reach 250,000 tons and improve lives. Senegalese women rewrite their future thanks [...]
In 2003 twenty-two UN staff members tragically lost their lives in the bombing of the Canal Hotel in Baghdad, Iraq. To honour the memory of the staff and all humanitarian workers who have made the ultimate sacrifice for peace, the General Assembly proclaimed 19 August in 2008 as World Humanitarian Day. Kristen Mildren works in [...]
