THIS WEEK: Trump slaps arms embargo on Juba, urges UN to do the same Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | On Feb.02, the Trump administration announced an arms embargo on South Sudan urging other countries and agencies to only follow suit but also cut off support to other countries involved …
Read More »UN chief urges dialogue in talks with N. Korea ceremonial leader
United Nations, United States | AFP | UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged North Korea’s ceremonial head of state Kim Yong Nam to engage in dialogue on ending the nuclear crisis during a brief exchange in South Korea, a UN spokesman said Friday. Kim and Guterres attended a dinner ahead of the …
Read More »UN hopes for Libya elections ‘by end of 2018’
Tripoli, Libya | AFP | UN envoy Ghassan Salame said Wednesday he hoped for elections in Libya by the end of 2018 but that conditions in the strife-torn country were not yet ready for polling. “There are several conditions. For the time being, we have only achieved one: the start of …
Read More »UN in $17-mln appeal for children’s health in post-IS Iraq
Baghdad, Iraq | AFP | The United Nations launched an appeal Wednesday for $17 million to rebuild essential health facilities for children in Iraq after a devastating three-year battle to expel the Islamic State group. The UN children’s fund, UNICEF, said next week’s reconstruction conference for Iraq to be staged …
Read More »WHO chief defends short-lived Mugabe ambassador appointment
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | The World Health Organization’s chief lamented Wednesday the “emotional” response to his short-lived appointment last year of Robert Mugabe as the WHO’s goodwill ambassador, insisting the decision had been “in good faith”. “There was no judgement problem,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters in Geneva, acknowledging …
Read More »UN urges fair trial for anti-Kabila army rebel
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | The UN mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Monusco) on Wednesday urged a fair trial for an army officer who deserted and is accused of rebellion. “We are calling for the holding of a fair trial for Mr (John) Tshibangu,” Monusco spokeswoman Florence …
Read More »UN chief takes aim at Burundi leader’s bid to extend rule
United Nations, United States | AFP | UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is sharply criticizing a bid by Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza to make changes to the constitution that could see him hold onto power for another decade or more, according to a report obtained by AFP on Tuesday. Guterres said …
Read More »UN says probing suspected chemical weapons use in Syria
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | United Nations war crimes investigators on Tuesday said they were investigating fresh reports that chemical weapons were being used in rebel-held zones in war-ravaged Syria. The UN Commission of Inquiry on the human rights situation in Syria voiced alarm that it had received “multiple reports …
Read More »UN urges Uganda to probe refugee trafficking, corruption
Kampala, Uganda | AFP | Uganda must investigate allegations of “human trafficking” and corruption in refugee camps, the UN’s top official in the country told AFP on Monday. Rosa Malango, UN Resident Coordinator in Uganda, said she had written to the government last month over allegations ranging from “corruption to …
Read More »Rohingya abuses could spark regional conflict: UN rights chief
Jakarta, Indonesia | AFP | The UN human rights chief warned Monday that possible acts of “genocide and ethnic cleansing” against Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslim minority could fuel a religious-based conflict that spreads beyond the country’s borders. “Myanmar faces a very serious crisis –- with a potentially severe impact on the …
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