Tag: Asia News

At 10:45 PM local time on 27 May, the DPRK, also known as North Korea, conducted what it described as “the launch of reconnaissance satellite Malligyong-1-1 aboard the new-type satellite carrier rocket” from the Sohae Satellite Launching Station. According to the DPRK, the launch failed “due to the air blast of the new-type satellite carrier rocket during the first-stage flight”.… Read More

The experts highlighted recent incidents targeting the Persian language news service Iran International, its journalists and staff, and its owner Volant Media UK Limited. Death threats and intimidation against the staff escalated into the violent stabbing of journalist Pouria Zeraati outside his home in London on 29 March. Since 2017, Iran International has faced ongoing threats and harassment from Iranian… Read More

Six bodies have been recovered so far and the number is expected to increase, the UN Country Team (UNCT) said on Tuesday.  The total affected population, including those in need of possible evacuation and relocation, has been estimated at 7,849 people, or 1,427 households, with most under the age of 16. A total of 150 structures are estimated to have… Read More

At least 16 people are reported to have been killed as the region was hit by Cyclone Remal on Sunday evening, local time, bringing gales of over 110 kilometres per hour (about 70 miles per hour), torrential rain and storm surges that inundated low-lying areas. Classified as a “severe” cyclonic storm, Remal is the first one to occur in the… Read More

“They do not want to leave their ancestral places, even if they go under,” said Jaap van Hierden. © RCO Micronesia Jaap van Hierden, UN Resident Coordinator in Micronesia. Appointed by the Secretary-General as the first UN Resident Coordinator for the North Pacific, he oversees ongoing development efforts across a remote region with thousands of small islands comprising of small populations… Read More

In a media interview, Mr. Aktoprak said that the community in Yambali village, situated at the foot of a mountain in the remote Enga Province, is buried under between six to eight metres of soil. 150 houses are believed to be buried, said the senior UN official, around 90 more than previously reported. Some 670 people are believed to be… Read More

Fierce battles have intensified between the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army, an ethnic armed group, displacing tens of thousands of people in Buthidaung and Maungdaw townships in recent days. An estimated 45,000 Rohingya have reportedly fled to an area on the Naf River near the border with Bangladesh, seeking protection. Over one million Rohingya are already in the country,… Read More

The UN World Food Programme (WFP) said that as erratic weather on the back of the worsening climate crisis “becomes the norm”, things will only get worse. This month’s unusually high rainfall followed a dry winter, rendering the ground too hard to absorb water, leading to massive flooding. Unseasonably warm temperatures further complicated the situation by melting mountain snow, causing… Read More

UNAIDS, the main advocate for coordinated global action on the HIV/AIDS pandemic, and the UN Development Progarmme (UNDP) offices in India have been important partners in this effort.  On this International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT), celebrated annually on 17 May, we reflect on the journey of some members of this community in India and shed light on… Read More

The call accompanies the launch of a key report by OHCHR, highlighting also the need for the Government to acknowledge the involvement of State security forces and to issue a public apology. From the 1970s to 2009, Sri Lanka witnessed widespread enforced disappearances, predominantly carried out by the national army and associated paramilitary groups.   The Liberation Tigers of Tamil… Read More