Tag Archives: UN

In her village in Egypt’s Nile Delta, 35-year-old Shaimaa Saleh has spent sleepless nights worrying how to raise almost $1,000 to save her unfinished three-storey home. Like hundreds of thousands of others, and many dependents, she faces a deadline at the end of October by which residents of buildings without …

Lebanon and Israel have agreed to a framework for U.S.-mediated talks aimed at ending a long-running dispute along the border between the two nations that have fought several conflicts. Still in a formal state of war, Lebanon and Israel have contested their land and maritime borders for decades, namely over …

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday accused Lebanon’s Hezbollah of storing weapons near a gas company in a residential Beirut neighborhood, but the Iran-backed movement denied it. Speaking in a video to the United Nations General Assembly, pre-recorded due to the coronavirus pandemic, Netanyahu warned the depot in the …

“Today, the Central Asian states face an important strategic task. This is to ensure deep integration of our region into the global economic, transport and transit corridors,” Shavkat Mirziyoyev said. According to the President of Uzbekistan, the countries of the region have managed to create an atmosphere of good neighborliness, …

The United States on Thursday blacklisted several Iranian officials and entities over alleged gross violations of human rights, including slapping sanctions on a judge it said was involved in the case of an Iranian wrestler sentenced to death. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a statement said the United States …

A group of Saudi dissidents, most of them in exile, on Wednesday announced the formation of a party to push for political reform in Saudi Arabia in defiance of de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman who has moved to crush any dissent. The world’s top oil exporter and …

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA, is experiencing a financial crisis that could force it to halt some services to an already impoverished population of more than 5 million people, the head of the agency said on Wednesday. Philippe Lazzarini also warned in an interview with The Associated …

The European Union’s chief executive said on Wednesday there was no place in the bloc for so-called “LGBT-free zones”, a pointed criticism of Poland’s nationalist government pushing to curb the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. “LGBTQI-free zones are humanity free zones. And they have no place in …

Dozens of Western countries voiced concern on Tuesday at Saudi Arabia’s continued detention of women activists and called for those behind the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi to be brought to justice. At least a dozen prominent women’s rights activists were arrested in Saudi Arabia in 2018 as it lifted …

The Houthi administration in Yemen has suspended all United Nations and humanitarian flights to the capital Sanaa as its Saudi-led coalition foe blocks commercial vessels in the Red Sea port of Hodeidah. The Iran-aligned Houthis took over Sanaa and most cities in 2014 after ousting the Saudi-backed government of Abd-Rabbu …

Saudi King Salman told President Vladimir Putin of Russia of his keenness to strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries, with special emphasis on their partnership within the OPEC+ alliance of oil producing countries. In a phone call between the new mega-development of NEOM and Moscow, the two leaders also …

Gunfire broke out on Tuesday in a town south of Beirut, where clashes last week killed two people and raised the risk of sectarian strife in Lebanon, the state news agency NNA said. NNA said an army patrol had deployed to the Khaldeh area to calm the situation, but gave …

Iran’s central bank said on Saturday it was taking legal steps to counter a lawsuit filed in a U.S. court by creditors seeking to seize $1.7 billion of its assets held by Deutsche Boerse’s (DB1Gn.DE) Clearstream unit. The German stock exchange operator said earlier the creditors had filed the suit …

President Tayyip Erdogan spoke with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg about developments in the eastern Mediterranean and told him Turkey will continue to protect its rights and interests everywhere, Erdogan’s office said on Friday. Earlier, the EU’s top diplomat said the European Union is preparing sanctions against Turkey that could be …

The president of the U.N. Security Council, Indonesia, said on Tuesday it was “not in the position to take further action” on a U.S. bid to trigger a return of all U.N. sanctions on Iran because there is no consensus in the 15-member body. Thirteen council members expressed their opposition …

The six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has welcomed a ceasefire announcement in Libya, the UAE news agency WAM reported on Saturday. GCC Secretary General Nayef Falah Mubarak al-Hajraf called on all parties “to adhere to (this) constructive step, to urgently engage in political dialogue, and to work through mediation of …

The United States called on Saturday for a transparent and credible investigation into the massive port blast in Beirut that killed 172 people and said Lebanon could never go back to the days “in which anything goes” at its ports and borders. The Aug. 4 blast, which the authorities say …

The U.S. government supports Lebanese demonstrators’ right to peaceful protest and urges all involved to refrain from violence, the U.S. Embassy in Beirut said on Saturday. The embassy also said in a tweet that the Lebanese people “deserved leaders who listen to them and change course to respond to popular …

The United States on Tuesday condemned all foreign military involvement in Libya, including the use of mercenaries and private military contractors, and said Libyans themselves must rebuild a unified country. U.S. President Donald Trump had spoken with several world leaders about Libya in past weeks, and it was clear there …

Fifteen years after a truck bomb killed Lebanon’s former Sunni leader Rafik al-Hariri in Beirut, triggering regional upheaval, a U.N.-backed court trying four suspects from Shi’ite Hezbollah delivers a verdict on Friday that could shake the country again. The defendants, members of the powerful Iran-backed group, have been tried in …

Saudi Arabia has presented a framework to expedite a stalled November deal in Yemen’s south designed to end a standoff between nominal allies under a Saudi-led coalition, Saudi state news agency SPA said on Wednesday. Riyadh is seeking to unite separatist and government forces in Yemen’s south to concentrate their …

Locust swarms have swept over farms in central, southern and eastern parts of Yemen, ravaging crops and stoking fears of food insecurity. Residents and farmers in the provinces of Marib, Hadramout, Mahra and Abyan said that billions of locusts had invaded farms, cities and villages, devouring important seasonal crops such …

Yemen’s Saudi-Led coalition said on Monday it intercepted and destroyed four missiles and six explosive drones launched overnight by Houthi forces towards the kingdom. Cross-border attacks by the Iran-aligned Houthi movement have escalated since late May when a truce prompted by the novel coronavirus expired. In late June, missiles reached …

An investigator for the U.N. Human Rights Council urged member states on Thursday to pressure Saudi Arabia to free women activists before a G20 nations summit which Riyadh will be hosting in November. At least a dozen prominent women’s rights activists were arrested in Saudi Arabia in 2018 as it …

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced on Wednesday that U.S. and partner forces seized a boat in June carrying Iranian weapons to Houthi rebels in Yemen as he renewed his call for the U.N. Security Council to extend an arms embargo on Iran. “The Security Council must extend the …

Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan will agree a deal to fill the giant Blue Nile dam in two to three weeks, following mediation by the African Union to broker a deal to end a decade-long dispute over water supplies. Tortuous negotiations over the years have left the two nations and their …

The U.N. human rights office on Friday regretted the impact that U.S. sanctions authorised by President Donald Trump may have on trials and investigations under way at the International Criminal Court (ICC), saying its independence must be protected. Trump on Thursday authorized U.S. economic and travel sanctions against employees of …

Israel must face consequences if it annexes land in the occupied West Bank, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said on Tuesday, pointing to possible European sanctions. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pledged to extend sovereignty to Jewish settlements and the Jordan Valley in the West Bank, territory Israel took …

Thousands of Israelis demonstrated on Saturday against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to extend sovereignty over parts of the occupied West Bank, de-facto annexation of land that the Palestinians seek for a state. Protesting in face masks and keeping their distance from each other under new coronavirus restrictions, the demonstrators …

The U.N. refugee agency said on Tuesday its work in Yemen was near a “potential breaking point” as coronavirus spreads in the war-damaged country, with rising numbers of families resorting to begging, child labour and marrying of children. Around 80 percent of Yemen’s malnourished population relies on humanitarian assistance, making …

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani threatened a “crushing response” on Wednesday if the United States goes ahead with plans to extend an embargo on Iranian trade of conventional arms, which the United Nations is set to lift later this year. Under Iran’s deal with world powers to accept limits to its …

Iran dismissed as “illegitimate” efforts by the United States to extend the U.N. Security Council arms embargo on Tehran, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Monday. “Iran is not seeking to exit the 2015 nuclear deal with six powers … America’s move is illegitimate and our reaction will be …

The Global Compact Network of Lebanon (GCNL) launched a new campaign “الليرة بتشبع” in collaboration with the World Food Programme (WFP) Wednesday to support a two-month crowd-funding campaign. The campaign led by the private sector in Lebanon is in support of the National Poverty Targeting Program (NPTP). The NPTP is …

The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthi group in Yemen carried out several air strikes on Monday on the capital Sanaa, witnesses said. A number of sensitive sites including the presidential palace compound, a military school and an air base close to Sanaa airport were hit, and loud explosions were heard …

Istanbul prosecutor’s office said on Wednesday it had prepared an indictment against 20 suspects over the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, including the former deputy head of Saudi Arabia’s general intelligence and a former royal adviser. Khashoggi’s killing in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018 caused a …

Dubai – “Refugee and other vulnerable children have the human right to a good education”, said Rudayna Abdo the founder of Thaki a social impact non-profit association. Abdo and her dedicated team are calling on companies in the UAE to donate their used laptops for reuse “It makes a huge difference to …

Israel’s prime minister on Sunday hailed what he called efforts by friendly states to stop the International Criminal Court opening an investigation into alleged war crimes against Palestinians. The court’s chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said in December there was enough evidence for an investigation into thousands of killings – but …

The Saudi-led coalition intervened in Aden on Sunday in support of the Yemeni government after southern separatists effectively took over the port city, fracturing the alliance that had been battling the Iran-aligned Houthi movement. The infighting, which broke out on Aug. 8 to control the port city which serves as …

Turkey will send an observation team to China’s Xinjiang region, the Turkish foreign minister said on Tuesday after discussing the situation of Uighur Turks with his Chinese counterpart. China has faced growing international opprobrium for setting up what it calls vocation training centers to combat extremism in Xinjiang, home to …

Saudi Arabia on Thursday defended signing a letter along with 36 other countries in support of China’s policies in its western region of Xinjiang, where the United Nations says at least 1 million ethnic Uighurs and other Muslims have been detained. China has been widely condemned for setting up detention …

A new team established by the global chemical weapons watchdog to attribute blame for the use of banned munitions in Syria will investigate nine alleged attacks during the country’s civil war, including in the town of Douma, sources briefed on the matter told Reuters. The Organisation for the Prohibition of …

Dr. Anwar bin Mohammed Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, yesterday met with Jan Kubis, UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, at the ministry’s headquarters in Abu Dhabi. During the meeting, the two sides reviewed a number of issues of mutual concern. Dr. Gargash and the UN official also discussed …

His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, has received the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who is currently visiting the UAE for the Abu Dhabi Climate Meeting that kicked-off on Sunday. More than 1,000 world-renowned political …

In implementation to the directives of H.H. Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women’s Union (GWU), President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, and Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation (FDF), the Council organises a humanitarian initiative to collect toys for Yemeni children. Reem Abdullah …