Category: Human Rights

“While there may be different interpretations and proposals how, this remains our shared objective”, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov said, briefing the UN Security Council via video conference from Jerusalem.  Before updating the members on the situation on the ground, he began by detailing a developing situation that began over the weekend after Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said it had fired at two Palestinian Islamic Jihad militants who were attempting to… Read More

People’s basic human rights – their birth-right – are “under assault”, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Monday, as he launched a Call to Action aimed at boosting equality and reducing suffering everywhere. “Human rights are our ultimate tool to help societies grow in freedom,” he told Member States on the opening day of the UN Human Rights Council’s 43rd… Read More

“In central Mali, I observed an accumulation of security, judicial and administrative failures that facilitates mass violence with impunity. The Malian Armed Forces and MINUSMA (UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali) have failed to provide adequate security for the civilians of the region,” Alioune Tine, the UN Independent Expert on the human rights situation in Mali, said in a… Read More

The gap between the rich and the poor is larger than previously thought. Globally, the poorest 20 per cent of any given country needs an average of more than 11 years to earn what the richest earns in one, according to the International Labor Organization (ILO). And in lower-income countries, the situation is even worse. According to ILO, someone in… Read More

“No shelter is now safe,” Michelle Bachelet’s spokesperson, Rupert Colville, said. “As the Government offensive continues and people are forced into smaller and smaller pockets, she fears even more people will be killed.”   Since 1 January, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has confirmed 299 civilian deaths in Idlib, as the Syrian Government continues its major military offensive to retake the last opposition-held area of the country.   “Around 93 per cent… Read More

Ninety-four of the businesses are domiciled in Israel and the rest are in six other countries.  “While the release of the database will not, by itself, bring an end to the illegal settlements and their serious impact upon human rights, it does signal that sustained defiance by an occupying power will not go unanswered”, Special Rapporteur Michael Lynk said on… Read More

Michelle Bachelet was speaking during an open debate on the role of transitional justice—which includes mechanisms such as truth and reconciliation commissions—in building and sustaining peace.  “We know that lasting peace is interlinked with justice, development and respect for human rights. We know that peace does not automatically break out when weapons fall silent and atrocity crimes cease. To be… Read More

Children have “no role in conflict”, the UN chief said, as he painted a damning picture of some 250 million youth living in countries affected by fighting, where worsening hostilities incite grave violations against them to soar.  “Attacks on hospitals and schools deny children education, healthcare and lifesaving emergency assistance and force families from their homes”, Mr. Guterres detailed. And… Read More

Christian Saunders said the funds would provide essential services throughout 2020, including life-saving humanitarian assistance for 5.6 million registered Palestine refugees across the Middle East. He noted that the pledges of support UNRWA received at the General Assembly in December was “an overwhelming validation of the agency and of our mandate” and stressed the importance of donors and partners matching… Read More