UN News stories

345 stories found over the past 45 days
UN Special Envoy Angelina Jolie appeals for more aid to help Syrian refugees

19 June 2013 – Urging the international community to scale up aid to Syrian refugees, Oscar-winning actress Angelina Jolie, Special Envoy for the United Nations refugee agency, today said that the two-year conflict in Syria had sparked “the worst humanitarian crisis of the 21st century.”

Writings from Israel, Nepal and Myanmar included in UNESCO world register

19 June 2013 – Documentation on Holocaust victims, a collection of Buddhist scriptures written on stones from Myanmar, two rare manuscripts from Nepal and diaries belonging to Ernesto Che Guevara, are among 54 new additions to the UN educational and cultural agency’s Memory of the World Register.

UN, Lancet journal to hold meeting on AIDS response and global health

19 June 2013 – Heads of State, policymakers, scientists, advocates and private sector leaders will come together for the first time this month to explore how the AIDS response can be used to shape the future of global health in a United Nations-led meeting in Lilongwe, Malawi.

Ceasefire accord ‘significant’ step towards stability in Mali, says UN’s Sahel envoy

19 June 2013 – The United Nations Special Envoy for the Sahel today welcomed the signing of the ceasefire accord between the Government of Mali and Tuareg rebels, and called on the parties to remain committed to peace for the sake of the country and the region.

More must be done to prepare pacific small islands for droughts, UN official warns

19 June 2013 – With thousands of people in the Marshall Islands without access to safe drinking water, the head of the United Nations office for disaster risk reduction today warned that Pacific small islands are threatened by drought and need to incorporate mitigation measures into their national planning and risk assessments.

At start of visit to China, UN chief highlights partnership for peace, stability

19 June 2013 – Meeting with Chinese leaders in Beijing today, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon discussed a range topics central to the agenda of the United Nations regarding peace and security, human rights and development, as well as the situation in Syria and the Korean peninsula.

War drives number of forcibly displaced worldwide to 18-year high, says UN report

19 June 2013 – A United Nations report released today says that more people are refugees or internally displaced than at any time since 1994, with the crisis in Syria having emerged as a major new factor in global displacement.

UN officials voice outrage at deadly attack on world body’s compound in Somali capital

19 June 2013 – Top United Nations officials have voiced their outrage at today’s deadly attack on the world body’s compound in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, while reiterating that it will not deter the Organization from helping the country as it proceeds on the path to stability and development.

Failure to address discrimination could undermine reforms in Myanmar – UN official

19 June 2013 – The United Nations human rights chief today urged Myanmar’s Government to tackle continuing discrimination against ethnic minorities, warning that failure to act could undermine the reform process in the country.

As Syria crisis roils Middle East, Ban says Israeli-Palestinian peace remains urgent priority

18 June 2013 – With spiralling violence in Syria stoking tension in the Middle East, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today said “we must not lose sight of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” whose resolution was no less urgent.