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Thursday, September 10, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
Despite Treaty, Conventional Arms Fuel Ongoing Conflicts
Despite last year’s Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), the proliferation of conventional weapons, both legally and illegally, continues to help fuel military conflicts in several countries in the Middle East and Africa, including Syria, Iraq, Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen.
Europe Squabbles While Refugees Die
As tens of thousands of refugees continue to flee conflict-ridden countries, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and Syria, Western European governments and international humanitarian organisations are struggling to cope with a snowballing humanitarian crisis threatening to explode.
Emerging Industrial Power Rises From Aid Beneficiary to Donor Nation
Back in 1996, when South Korea voluntarily quit the 132-member Group of 77 (G77) – described as the largest single coalition of developing nations -- it joined the 34-member Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), long known as the “rich man’s club” based in Paris.
U.N. Military Sanctions on Syria May Face Veto by Arms Supplier
The staggering statistics emerging from the ongoing five-year-old military conflict in Syria – including over 220,000 killed, more than one million injured and about 7.6 million displaced – are prompting calls for a United Nations arms embargo on the beleaguered regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
Security Council, in Historic First, Discusses Gay, Lesbian Rights
The U.N. Security Council (UNSC), whose primary mandate is the maintenance of international peace and security, has occasionally digressed to discuss global issues such as climate change and HIV/AIDS.
U.S. Provides Cover for Use of Banned Weapons in Yemen
The United States is providing a thinly-veiled cover virtually legitimising the use of cluster bombs – banned by an international convention – by Saudi Arabia and its allies in their heavy fighting against Houthi rebels in Yemen.
U.N. Remains Helpless Watching Rising Deaths of Children in War Zones
The rising death toll of civilians, specifically women and children, in ongoing military conflicts is generating strong messages of condemnation from international institutions and human rights organisations – with the United Nations remaining helpless as killings keep multiplying.
U.N. Marks Humanitarian Day Battling Its Worst Refugee Crisis
The United Nations is commemorating World Humanitarian Day with “inspiring” human interest stories of survival – even as the world body describes the current refugee crisis as the worst for almost a quarter of a century.
World’s Nuclear Facilities Vulnerable to Cyber-Attacks
As hackers continue to rampage through closely-guarded information systems and databases with monotonous regularity, there is a tempting new target for cyber-attacks: the world’s nuclear facilities.
U.N. Chief, Seeking Accountability, Shatters Myth of Lifetime Jobs
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stopped short of telling one his high-ranking Special Representatives: “You’re fired.”
Tiny Island Nation Pleads for Global Moratorium on New Coal Mines
The tiny island of Kiribati in the Central Pacific, with a population of about 103,000, has long been identified as one of the U.N. member states threatened with physical extinction due to sea-level rise triggered largely by climate change.
U.N. to Unleash “Power of Education” to Fight Intolerance, Racism
The United Nations is planning to launch a global campaign against the spread of intolerance, extremism, racism and xenophobia -- largely by harnessing the talents of the younger generation.
Head of State Who Keeps U.N. Guessing in Annual Ritual
As part of a politically-amusing annual ritual, the guessing game is on at the United Nations: will he, or will he not, address the General Assembly, along with more than 150 heads of state who are due in New York next month?
No More Hiroshimas, No More Nagasakis, Vows U.N. Chief
Speaking at a commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Japan, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, a vociferous advocate of nuclear disarmament, echoed the rallying cry worldwide: “No more Hiroshimas, No more Nagasakis.”
U.N. Taps Private Sector to Fund Development, Advocate Social Causes
When the United Nations seeks outside financial assistance either for development needs or to advocate social causes, it invariably turns to the private sector these days.
Pakistan One of the World’s First Safe Havens for Refugees
The United Nations has declared that 2015 is already “the deadliest year” for millions of migrants and asylum seekers fleeing war and persecution in their countries.
U.N. Targets Trillions of Dollars to Implement Sustainable Development Agenda
After more than two years of intense negotiations, the U.N.’s 193 member states have unanimously agreed on a new Sustainable Development Agenda (SDA) with 17 goals -- including the elimination of extreme poverty and hunger -- to be reached by 2030.
U.N.’s Post-2015 Development Agenda Under Fire
The U.N.’s highly ambitious post-2015 development agenda, which is expected to be finalised shortly, has come fire even before it could get off the ground.
UAE Described as Pioneer in the Field of Renewable Energy
When the government of Kenya hosted a U.N. Conference on New and Renewable Sources of Energy in Nairobi back in 1981, one of the conclusions at that meeting was a proposal for the creation of an international agency dedicated to renewable energy.
U.N. Leads Youth Battling Intolerance, Racism and Extremism
When the 21-year-old Crown Prince of Jordan, Al Hussein bin Abdullah II, presided over a Security Council meeting last April, he was described as the youngest ever to chair one of the U.N.’s most powerful political bodies armed with powers to wage wars and declare peace.
Mideast Arms Build-up Negative Fallout from Iran Nuclear Deal
The nuclear agreement concluded last week between Iran and six big powers, the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany, is threatening to trigger a new Middle East military build-up – not with nuclear weapons but with conventional arms, including fighter planes, combat helicopters, warships, missiles, battle tanks and heavy artillery.« Previous Page — Next Page »
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