United Nations | DD News

July 5, 2024 4:54 PM

World food prices hold firm in June, UN’s FAO reports

The United Nations world food price index held steady in June data showed on Friday, with increases in vegetable oil, sugar and dairy products offset by a fall in the price of cereals. The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization's price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 120.6 points in June, unchanged from May. The May figure was revised from an initial reading of 120.4. The FAO index hit a three-year low in February as food prices receded from a record pea...

July 4, 2024 5:14 PM

More than 136,000 displaced by spread of war in southeast Sudan, UN says

More than 136,000 people have fled Sudan's southeastern Sennar state since the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces began a series of attacks on towns, the United Nations said on Wednesday, the latest wave of displacement caused by Sudan's almost 15-month long war. They join nearly 10 million people driven from their homes since war broke out between the RSF and the regular army. The war has sparked accusations of "ethnic cleansing" and warnings of famine, mainly in RSF-controlled areas across the...

September 16, 2024 6:14 PM

Protecting 1.2% of Earth would prevent most extinctions, study says

Setting aside an additional 1.2% of the world's land as nature preserves would prevent the majority of predicted plant and animal extinctions and cost about $263 billion, according to a study published on Tuesday. The world is racing to meet a goal to protect 30% of the world by 2030 to protect wildlife that is being decimated by climate change, pollution and habitat destruction. Global policymakers will meet at a United Nations summit in Colombia in October to discuss plans for reaching that ...

June 19, 2024 4:46 PM

Dutchman Mark Rutte, longtime Putin critic, set to lead NATO alliance

Mark Rutte, who looks set to be NATO's next secretary-general, is a staunch ally of Ukraine and a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who honed his skills as a political dealmaker during nearly 14 years as Dutch prime minister. Rutte, 57, has been one of the driving forces behind Europe's military support for Ukraine since Russia's 2022 invasion, and says defeat on the battlefield for Moscow is vital to secure peace in Europe. His view is heavily influenced by the downing of an ...

June 7, 2024 4:56 PM

World food prices rise for third straight month in May, UN says

The United Nations World Food Price Index rose for a third consecutive month in May, as higher cereals and dairy product prices outweighed drops in prices for sugar and vegetable oils. The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization's price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 120.4 points in May, up 0.9% from its revised April level, the FAO said on Friday. The May reading was nonetheless 3.4% below the level seen a year earlier. The FAO index hit a three-year l...

June 6, 2024 12:54 PM

World hits streak of record temperatures as UN warns of ‘climate hell’

Each of the past 12 months ranked as the warmest on record in year-on-year comparisons, the EU's climate change monitoring service said on Wednesday, as U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres called for urgent action to avert "climate hell". The average global temperature for the 12-month period to the end of May was 1.63 degrees Celsius (2.9 degrees Fahrenheit) above the pre-industrial average - making it the warmest such period since record-keeping began in 1940, the Copernicus Climate Chan...

June 6, 2024 9:47 AM

At least 27 killed in Israeli strike on UN school in Gaza, local media says

Israel targeted a Gaza school on Thursday that it said contained an Hamas compound, killing fighters involved in the Oct. 7 attack that sparked the eight-month war, but Gaza media said the strike killed at least 27 people seeking shelter. Ismail Al-Thawabta, the director of the Hamas-run government media office, rejected Israel's claims that the U.N. school in Nuseirat, in central Gaza, had hidden a Hamas command post. "The occupation uses lying to the public opinion through false fabricated s...

September 16, 2024 6:44 PM

India’s dedication to committed multilateralism shines ahead of UN Summit of the Future

As anticipation builds for the upcoming UN Summit of the Future, India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ruchira Kamboj, has underscored India's unwavering commitment to multilateralism. Kamboj expressed excitement for the summit on Thursday, highlighting India's proactive stance in embracing the opportunity to repurpose the UN for collective global progress. "Excited for the upcoming UN Summit of the Future! India's dedication to committed multilateralism shines as we embrace t...

September 16, 2024 6:41 PM

Indian peacekeeper Major Radhika Sen receives UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year honor

Major Radhika Sen, an Indian peacekeeper deployed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), has been named the United Nations Military Gender Advocate of the Year for 2023. The prestigious award recognizes her outstanding service and efforts to empower local communities, especially women and girls, during her tour of duty from March 2023 to April 2024. Serving with the UN peacekeeping mission MONUSCO as the Commander of the Engagement Platoon for the Indian Rapid Deployment Battalion in ea...

April 19, 2024 12:04 PM

US stops UN from recognizing a Palestinian state through membership

The United States on Thursday effectively stopped the United Nations from recognizing a Palestinian state by casting a veto in the Security Council to deny Palestinians full membership of the world body. It vetoed a draft resolution that recommended to the 193-member U.N. General Assembly that "the State of Palestine be admitted to membership" of the U.N. Britain and Switzerland abstained, while the remaining 12 council members voted yes. "The United States continues to strongly support a tw...