Category: World » Africa
Initiative Aims To Harness Social Media To Fight Hunger
3 Feb 13:15 | World
The World Food Programme (WFP) is launching a week-long campaign in which users of the popular online trivia game Freerice can recruit their friends to help bring food to the world’s most vulnerable populations. read more »
Concern Over Fresh Round Of Killings In South Sudan
3 Feb 12:58 | World
The United Nations human rights office has voiced concern over a cattle raid in a northern state of South Sudan earlier this week, which led to 78 deaths and numerous injuries among civilians, most of whom were women and children.read more »
Thousands Affected By Tropical Storms In Mozambique
2 Feb 11:50 | World
An estimated 117,000 people have been affected by two tropical storms in Mozambique last week, according to the United Nations humanitarian agency, adding that it is closely monitoring the situation.read more »
Food Assistance Scaled Up For 80,000 People In Sudan
1 Feb 12:13 | World
The United Nations World Food Programme says it will scale up its assistance to reach 80,000 people affected by the recent escalation of ethnic violence in South Sudan’s Jonglei state.read more »
Call For Former Haitian Leader To Face Charges For Human Rights Abuses
31 Jan 11:26 | World
The United Nations has voiced its concern at reports that former Haitian President Jean-Claude Duvalier may not face charges relating to the serious human rights violations that took place during his 15-year rule, while stressing that justice must be ensured for the victims.read more »
Air Raids On Refugee Site In South Sudan
25 Jan 12:41 | World
The United Nations refugee agency has condemned two air raids near a refugee transit centre in South Sudan, saying that 14 people went missing during the attacks and that a teenage boy was injured.read more »
Attack On African Union Peacekeepers In Darfur Condemned
24 Jan 12:19 | World
The UN Security Council has strongly condemned this weekend’s attack on a United Nations-African Union patrol in Darfur, which resulted in one death, and called on the Sudanese Government to bring the perpetrators to justice.read more »
Deadly Attacks In Nigerian City Of Kano
22 Jan 2012 | World
An estimated 150 people were reportedly killed on Friday during a series of explosions targeting police buildings and immigration centres around the Nigerian city of Kano.read more »
Call For Impunity For Criminal Acts In Darfur Camps To Stop
20 Jan 2012 | World
The chief of the joint United Nations-African Union operation in Darfur (UNAMID) has stressed his commitment to end impunity for criminal acts in displacement camps during a meeting with internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the state of North Darfur.read more »
OPEC Pumps 30.83 Million Barrels of Crude Oil Per Day in December
16 Jan 2012 | World
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' (OPEC) crude oil output averaged 30.83 million barrels per day (b/d) in December, up 230,000 b/d from estimated November output of 30.6 million b/d, a just-released Platts survey of OPEC and oil industry officials and analysts showed.read more »
'Promising Steps' On Implementation Of Darfur Peace Document
12 Jan 2012 | World
The head of the United Nations department of peacekeeping told the Security Council today that initial steps by the Sudanese Government and one of the rebel movements in Darfur to implement the peace document signed in Qatar last year have been promising, and urged the international community to support their efforts.read more »
Libya Signs Status Of Mission Agreement
11 Jan 2012 | World
The United Nations and the Libyan authorities have signed an agreement establishing the legal framework under which the UN mission set up last year to support the country’s post-conflict reconstruction efforts will operate.read more »
Call For Ethnic Reconciliation In Troubled Area Of South Sudan
10 Jan 2012 | World
Security Council members have called on warring ethnic communities in South Sudan's Jonglei state to engage in reconciliation and end the “cycle of conflict” that has claimed an unknown number of casualties in recent weeks.read more »
Measures Against Lord's Resistance Army Beefed Up
10 Jan 2012 | World
Central African countries affected by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the United Nations agreed to toughen up measures against the notorious rebel group to stop its deadly activities on the continent.read more »
Major Aid Effort Launched After Clashes In South Sudan
8 Jan 2012 | World
A massive humanitarian operation to bring succour to people affected by inter-ethnic violence in South Sudan’s state of Jonglei is under way with United Nations having carried out relief needs assessments in most of the affected areas over the past 72 hours.read more »
Deep Concern Over Continued Ethnic Violence In South Sudan
5 Jan 2012 | World
The World Food Programme (WFP) has expressed deep concern about the deadly ethnic violence in South Sudan’s Jonglei state, where thousands of people have had to flee their homes in recent days.read more »
South Sudan Flashpoint Town In Need Of Aid After Attack
4 Jan 2012 | World
The showdown between the South Sudanese military and thousands of armed tribesmen over the flashpoint town of Pibor has subsided, but the humanitarian situation in the area remains grim, according to a top United Nations official. read more »
Peacekeepers Deploy In South Sudan To Deter Ethnic Violence
30 Dec 2011 | World
The United Nations peacekeeping mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has deployed a battalion of troops in the town of Pibor in Jonglei state, which is under imminent attack by an estimated 6,000 armed men from one of two feuding communities in the area.read more »
Concern At Ethnic Tensions In South Sudan
29 Dec 2011 | World
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has expressed deep concern about continuing ethnic tensions in South Sudan’s Jonglei state, where there are reports of fresh rounds of deadly clashes and claims that thousands of armed youth are preparing to attack members of a rival community. read more »
South Sudan Urged To Act To Avoid Large Scale Violence
27 Dec 2011 | World
The United Nations has urged South Sudan to take all necessary measures to protect civilians in Jonglei state after reports identified thousands of armed youth preparing to attack a rival community.read more »
Key Organizers Of Rwandan Genocide Jailed For Life
22 Dec 2011 | World
Two key organizers of the Rwandan genocide in 1994 have been sentenced to life in prison by the United Nations tribunal dealing with war crimes in the country which resulted in the deaths of some 800,000 people in just 100 days.read more »
Deadly Clashes On Ivory Coast
19 Dec 2011 | World
Deadly clashes in the west of Cote d'Ivoire have reportedly killed at least six people.read more »
Chaos Breaks Out in Cairo's Tahir Square
18 Dec 2011 | World
Thousands of protesters clashed with Egyptian police and soldiers in Cairo's Tahir Square Sunday for the third straight day in clashes that have seen 10 people killed and scores injured.read more »
'Storm Of Hunger' Threatens Lives Of 2.5 Million In South Sudan
18 Dec 2011 | World
Damaged crops combined with conflict and insecurity are threatening to leave some 2.5 million people in South Sudan – the world’s newest country – in critical conditions unless food assistance is provided immediately, the World Food Programme (WFP) has warned.read more »
WTO Policies Harming Small Scale Farmers In Poor Countries Says Expert
16 Dec 2011 | World
The current international trade regime backed by the World Trade Organization (WTO) is harming small-scale farmers in the least developing countries (LDCs), significantly increasing their risk of food insecurity and reliance on large-scale producers, an independent United Nations human rights expert has warned.read more »
'Remarkable and Extraordinary Year' For United Nations
15 Dec 2011 | World
The United Nations has “never been so needed” to deal with the planet’s most pressing challenges, from the impact of climate change to growing demands for human rights to helping people facing humanitarian crises, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told a year-end press conference.read more »
Genocide Tribunal Reduces Jail Term For Convicted Rwandan Official
15 Dec 2011 | World
The United Nations war crimes tribunal set up after the Rwandan genocide has reduced the jail sentence of a former local official who was convicted last year of his role in a notorious massacre in which thousands of ethnic Tutsi civilians died.read more »
Somalia At 'Critical Juncture'
9 Dec 2011 | World
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has paid an unannounced visit to Mogadishu together with the President of the General Assembly, Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, to express the solidarity of the United Nations at what he called a “critical juncture” for the future of the Somali people. read more »
Scores Of Migrants Rescued At Sea Between Africa And Europe
7 Dec 2011 | World
The Moroccan navy has rescued 53 people on board a stricken vessel in the Mediterranean Sea, with four people found dead in the boat and at least one person known to have drowned.read more »
Dozens Killed In Ethnic Violence In South Sudan
7 Dec 2011 | World
The United Nations peacekeeping operation in South Sudan is probing more ethnic violence in the new country that has reportedly killed dozens of villagers and displaced many more.read more »
Arrest Warrant Sought For Sudanese Minister For Darfur Crimes
2 Dec 2011 | World
The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) today requested an arrest warrant against Sudanese Defence Minister Abdelrahim Mohamed Hussein for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Darfur.read more »
Online Game Supports Fight Against Hunger
1 Dec 2011 | Entertainment
The World Food Programme (WFP) and Japanese electronic entertainment company Konami Digital have teamed up to release an online game that can support the fight against hunger.read more »
Sanctions And Arms Embargo Against DR Congo Renewed
30 Nov 2011 | World
The Security Council has agreed to extend by another year the arms embargo and other sanctions it has imposed against armed rebel groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) for nearly a decade.read more »
Haiti Shows Signs Of Progress Nearly 2 Years After Earthquake
30 Nov 2011 | World
Almost two years after the devastating earthquake that killed over 200,000 people, Haiti is reportedly showing remarkable signs of progress, a United Nations official said. read more »
Land Degradation And Water Shortages Threaten Global Food Production
29 Nov 2011 | World
Global food production is being undermined by land degradation and shortages of farmland and water resources, making feeding the world’s rising population a daunting challenge, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said.read more »
Libya Faces Challenge Of Consolidating Security
29 Nov 2011 | World
Libya’s interim Government faces a number of challenges as it seeks to move past the recent conflict and decades of dictatorship, the most immediate of which is consolidating security, the top United Nations envoy to the country said.read more »
UN Chief Welcomes Formation Of New Interim Libya Government
24 Nov 2011 | World
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the formation of the new interim Government in Libya and congratulated Prime Minister Abdurrahim El-Keib and members of his cabinet.read more »
ICC Judges To Decide Where Qadhafi's Son Will Stand Trial
23 Nov 2011 | World
It will be up to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to decide where Saif al-Islam Qadhafi, son of the former Libyan leader, will stand trial to face charges for crimes against humanity, the court’s Prosecutor said as he arrived in Tripoli for talks with national authorities. read more »
More Than 1 Million Zimbabweans Face Food Struggle
22 Nov 2011 | World
More than one million Zimbabweans will struggle for food between now and March, according to the World Food Programme (WFP).read more »
Three Areas Of Somalia Emerge From Famine
20 Nov 2011 | World
The United Nations says three areas in Somalia which were declared to be in a state of famine earlier this year have emerged from the dire food crisis as a result of scaled-up relief delivery, but warned that the situation remains critical for millions of people in the Horn of Africa country.read more »
Arrest Of Qadhafi's Son Welcomed By President Of ICC
20 Nov 2011 | World
The president of the Assembly of State Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has welcomed the capture of one of the sons of former Libyan leader Muammar al-Qadhafi against whom the tribunal has a warrant of arrest.read more »
Genocide Tribunal Rules Former Khmer Rouge Leader Unfit To Stand Trial
18 Nov 2011 | World
The genocide tribunal in Cambodia has ruled today that a 79-year-old former senior member of the Khmer Rouge is unfit to stand trial and ordered her unconditional release.read more »
South Sudan Urged To Release All Child Soldiers
18 Nov 2011 | World
The United Nations peacekeeping operation in South Sudan has called on the country’s military to ensure that all child soldiers within its ranks are released after more than 50 teenage soldiers were let go earlier this week.read more »
Liberians Commended For Free And Fair Elections
17 Nov 2011 | World
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has congratulated the people of Liberia for exercising their right to vote in the presidential run-off election earlier this month and commended the country’s authorities for conducting free, fair and transparent elections.read more »
Urgent Action Needed To Stem Cassava Virus Threatening East Africa
16 Nov 2011 | World
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is urging swift action to tackle a cassava virus that is affecting large parts of East Africa and threatening a staple food crop for much of the region. read more »
Consensus Urged On Emissions And Funding At Climate Change Meeting
9 Nov 2011 | World
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has stressed that the forthcoming United Nations conference on climate change in Durban, South Africa, should produce agreement on limiting emissions of greenhouse gases, and launch the green climate fund for mitigation and adaptation in developing countries. read more »
Terrorist Attack In Nigeria Condemned
6 Nov 2011 | World
The UN Security Council has strongly condemned terrorist attacks in Nigeria which led to numerous deaths and injuries, and underlined the need to bring those responsible to justice. read more »
ICC Calls For Help Preventing Qadhafi's Son Escaping From Libya
3 Nov 2011 | World
The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has called on countries to “do all they can” to prevent Muammar al-Qadhafi’s son from leaving Libya amid reports that a group of mercenaries are attempting to facilitate his escape.read more »
Global Food Prices Drop To 11 Month Low In October
3 Nov 2011 | World
Food prices dropped to an 11-month low in October according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), adding that they are still higher than last year and very volatile.read more »
Libya Urged To Stem Proliferation Of Arms
1 Nov 2011 | World
The Security Council has called on interim authorities in Libya to take action to prevent the proliferation of arms, missiles and related materiel, warning of the danger they pose to the newly liberated North African country and the wider region.read more »
