UN Top Stories

Following a request from the Chilean Government for assistance in the wake of Saturday’s devastating earthquake, the United Nations and Member States are assisting the South American nation to assess the damage wrought and help people in need.

Stepped-up cooperation from Iran is crucial to ensure that the United Nations International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) can verify that all nuclear material in the country is for peaceful purposes, the head of the watchdog said today.

While there have been advances over the past 15 years to advance gender equality and the empowerment of women, there is still a clear need to move from commitment to action in several key areas, the Deputy Secretary-General said today at the start of a two-week United Nations meeting on women.

The top United Nations envoy to Somalia today praised the "strong" and "united" leadership of the strife-torn country’s Government during its first year in power, in a message appealing to outside forces to end their destabilizing interference in the Horn of Africa nation.

The top United Nations humanitarian official today voiced concern over the ongoing blockade of the Gaza Strip, restrictions on the building of Palestinian homes in the West Bank and the long-running captivity of an Israeli soldier, at the beginning of a five-day trip to the region.

Two independent United Nations experts today urged the leaders and Government of Uganda to prevent an anti-homosexuality bill currently before Parliament from becoming law, stressing that it would be in breach of fundamental freedoms and human rights.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is supporting a new anti-child marriage movement in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal, where nearly half of all girls become child brides and one-third become teenage mothers even though the legal marriage age is 18.

The head of the United Nations-backed panel tasked with preparing regular scientific reports on the impact of climate change has announced the establishment of an independent review body to ensure that its procedures for producing assessments are closely followed, amid growing attacks from global warming sceptics.

The Prime Minister of Turkey is set to receive an inaugural award honouring the late Lebanese leader Rafiq Hariri who was killed in a massive car bomb attack five years ago, the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) announced today.

The top United Nations human rights official said today that the economic and financial crises have exposed existing violations and increased the number of victims of abuse and hardship.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is meeting with key members of the creative community in Los Angeles to mobilize support for the goals and mission of the United Nations, including its efforts to deal with climate change, global hunger and the financial crisis.

A top United Nations official has called on the Prime Minister of Canada, as host of this June’s summit of the Group of Eight (G8) leaders, to ensure that the group delivers on its commitment to universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support.

The United Nations today denounced organized crime as a threat to international peace and security, with Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon calling on Member States to confront the scourge with the same unity and determination they have shown in fighting pandemics or terrorism.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today voiced his concerns over the situation in Gaza and recent developments on the ground to Israeli Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Ehud Barak, as the two met at United Nations Headquarters.

A senior United Nations human rights official today called on international troops fighting militants in Afghanistan to follow directives designed to guard against civilian deaths, drawing particular attention to the plight of children caught up in the conflict.

The United Nations remains strongly committed to doing everything possible to help the people of Haiti but is realistic about what it can accomplish before the rainy season begins in earnest on 1 May, said a senior official with the world body.

The window of opportunity to preserve the Earth’s natural capital is diminishing rapidly, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stated today, highlighting the need for improved international governance to close the gap between aspirations for environmental sustainability and real-life achievements.

Slavery is an abhorrent practice that still needs to be eradicated in many parts of the world, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stressed, noting that one way to pursue this goal is by remembering the past and using its lessons to ensure that such crimes never occur again.

Governments need to give greater attention to fighting drug abuse, particularly the so-called "date-rape drugs" whose use is on the rise, warned the independent United Nations body tasked with monitoring the production and consumption of narcotics worldwide.

With often preventable, non-communicable diseases such as heart attacks, strokes, diabetes, cancer and chronic respiratory illness accounting for 60 per cent of all global deaths, experts from around the world gathered at a United Nations forum today to draw up plans to reverse the trend.