Category: Europe

The finding is the result of a survey conducted by the UNICEF Refugee Response Office in Poland, which also revealed that 53 per cent had considered getting, or had already accessed, mental health support since arriving in the country.  ‘Not a surprise’  “The psychosocial toll of the war in Ukraine is immense so the results of this survey are not… Read More

IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said on Friday in a statement, that a location near the town of Enerhodar, home of most of the plant’s staff, reportedly came under artillery fire earlier in the day, “in the latest incident indicating an increasingly tense military situation in the area.”  Speculation of military activity  The ZNPP, Europe’s largest nuclear power plant,… Read More

Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths said that it was “imperative that we explore all options to reach civilians”, stressing that all parties to the fighting must allow and facilitate the “rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief”. “I urge the parties to strengthen facilitation efforts so we can reach all civilians in need”, he said. Cut off from food, water, care… Read More

That was the message conveyed by the UN Humanitarian Affairs chief, Martin Griffiths, to a meeting held on Thursday in Istanbul, to discuss the future of the Initiative, with senior official from the signatories to the deal, Russia, and Ukraine, together with the UN and Türkiye, which also mediated the agreement. Vital for global food security In a note issued… Read More

The WHO European Regional Obesity Report 2022, was launched by the spouses of 16 European leaders and Heads of State, in the Croatian capital. Childhood obesity data for WHO’s European Region, paints an alarming picture. Challenging environment “Our children are increasingly growing up in environments that make it very difficult for them to eat well and be active. This is a root cause of the obesity epidemic,” said… Read More

Alice Edwards, who is officially known as the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, said she was “distressed by the deteriorating state of Mr. Navalny’s health and the apparent lack of satisfactory diagnosis and medical treatment”. ‘A form of torture’ In a statement also backed by six of her fellow Human Rights Council-appointed experts, she… Read More

According to news reports, Russian airstrikes targeted the capital Kyiv for the third time in four days, following on from what Russian authorities said was an assassination attempt by drone strike, on President Vladimir Putin, earlier on Wednesday. Ukrainian authorities, who deny any involvement in the drone incident in Moscow, said Thursday morning’s large-scale attack on Kyiv was repulsed by… Read More

Dozens of civilians across the country were killed and injured, and homes and other vital infrastructure, destroyed.  More than 20 people were killed in the small central city of Uman alone, when their apartment building collapsed after it was hit, according to international media reports.  ‘Inexcusable’ attacks  “It is just inexcusable that in places like Uman, far from the frontline,… Read More

UN Special Representative and head of the UN Interim Administration Mission, Caroline Ziadeh, told ambassadors that the most recent Secretary-General’s report on developments in Kosovo, which declared independence in 2008 but is not recognized by Serbia, “included serious challenges as well as an important collective effort to bring Belgrade-Pristina relations nearer to stability and normalisation.” She acknowledged recent tensions, “even… Read More

Looking back on two of the most difficult periods since the plant opened in 1977, Chernobyl employees shared their personal stories with UN News on the International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day. Ground zero Evgeny Yashin was a 40-year-old chemist at the Chernobyl plant when the nuclear power reactor accident unfolded in April 1986, resulting in massive evacuations, the deaths of… Read More