United Nations

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Sea Levels Rising Faster Than Expected

(Newser) - Top climate scientists say sea levels are rising faster than expected, the Times of London reports. The world's oceans will rise about 3 feet by the end of the century, double the amount predicted in a 2007 estimate by the UN. The new figure, blamed on melting ice sheets, could...

Clinton Seeks World Meeting on Afghanistan

High-level conference would develop 'common way forward'

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton has proposed a high-level international conference on Afghanistan sponsored by the United Nations and attended by a wide range of countries including Pakistan and NATO allies. The secretary of State presented the proposal at a NATO meeting in Brussels, where she said the session could be held March...

Health Activists Jab Vatican in Needle Exchange Battle

Officials call UN needle swap program 'anti-life'

(Newser) - World health activists are blasting the Vatican for battling a UN statement that would support measures to protect the health of drug users, such as needle exchange programs, reports the Guardian. Vatican officials say the global push for such "harm reduction" policies leads to "liberalization of drug use,...

UN Acquits Serb Leader
 UN Acquits Serb Leader 
Feb 26, 2009 11:46 AM CST

UN Acquits Serb Leader

Five others convicted of roles in Kosovo violence

(Newser) - A UN tribunal acquitted former Serbian president Milan Milutinovic today of war crimes during the late-1990s conflict in Kosovo, the BBC reports. Milutinovic, the titular leader of Serbia in 1997-2002, did not have direct control of the Yugoslav army during the campaign of violence committed against Kosovar Albanians, the tribunal...

Tehran Has Enough Fuel for Nuclear Bomb

Iran has more uranium than thought, says UN agency

(Newser) - Here's news that won't cheer Washington as it figures out how to deal with Iran: A UN agency says the nation now has enough uranium to build a nuclear bomb. In order to do so, Tehran would have to refine it further and kick out inspectors. But it reached this...

Scandal! Heartbreak! Clooney Visits Darfur

(Newser) - George Clooney figures prominently in New York Times op-ed columnist Nicholas D. Kristof's latest report from Africa, which Kristof describes as "yet another hand-wringing column about Darfur." He offers to swap dirt on the Hollywood heartthrob for readers' interest—then offers a chilling tale of a "petty...

Taliban Declares Ceasefire in Pakistan Valley

Militants begin peace talks with government, warn of retaliation

(Newser) - The Taliban declared a 10-day ceasefire in a Pakistani valley and freed a Chinese hostage today after it began peace talks with the government, but an abducted American remains missing. The militants called the move a goodwill gesture, as its sympathizers and government officials discuss introducing elements of Islamic law...

World Court Issues Warrant for Sudan President

Bashir may be tried for genocide, war crimes

(Newser) - The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Sudan's president, a move that Arab and African nations warn could sink peace negotiations in Darfur. Omar al-Bashir is the first state leader that the 7-year-old court has tried to arrest, the New York Times reports. Prosecutors hope to try...

UN: Hamas Seized Food, Blankets

Hamas claims aid was going to opponents

(Newser) - Hamas police in Gaza seized thousands of blankets and food parcels meant for needy residents, the AP reports, threatening to fracture relations between the international agency that cares for most of Gaza's residents and the territory's militant rulers. A UN spokesman called the incident "absolutely unacceptable."

UN Official Kidnapped in Pakistan

No leads yet in refugee worker's abduction

(Newser) - An American working with a UN refugee agency in southwestern Pakistan was kidnapped today by gunmen who killed his driver, reports the Times of London. The attack occurred as the official from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, which aids Afghan refugees in the city of Quetta, headed to...

Zimbabwe Cholera Outbreak Now Infects 60K

(Newser) - Zimbabwe’s cholera epidemic has now infected more than 60,000 people, a number the World Health Organization had previously pegged as the “worst case scenario,” the BBC reports. More than 3,000 have died from the disease since its August outbreak, and with Zimbabwe’s water, sanitation,...

UN Asks Davos for $613M in Gaza Aid

Funds would provide immediate aid, more money needed for long-term

(Newser) - The UN asked attendees at the Davos economic forum for $613 million to address “massive and multi-faceted” needs resulting from recent violence in Gaza, the BBC reports. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon says the funds will provide medical care and clean water for 6-9 months. As fresh violence heightened the need...

Afghan Elections Delayed; Opponents Call Move Illegal

Karzai opponents call delay illegal, vow to stop recognizing his authority

(Newser) - Afghanistan’s May presidential election will be delayed until August, officials said today, in a decision that appears to contradict the country's constitution. The Afghan election commission said it needed more time to register candidates, set up voting machinery, and ensure security, the New York Times reports, but that didn’...

Iran Nears Nuke Breakthrough
 Iran Nears Nuke Breakthrough 
Jan 28, 2009 2:46 AM CST

Iran Nears Nuke Breakthrough

Iran could have nuclear weapon by 2010

(Newser) - Iran may be mere months away from amassing enough low-enriched uranium to begin the next step in developing nuclear weapons, reports the Daily Telegraph. If the regime overcomes certain technical hurdles and further enriches its uranium to weapons grade, it could potentially develop a nuclear warhead by next year, reports...

Israel Probes Phosphorus Use in Gaza
Israel Probes Phosphorus
Use in Gaza
Jan 21, 2009 10:17 AM CST

Israel Probes Phosphorus Use in Gaza

Admits deadly shells may have hit civilian areas, violating law

(Newser) - Under pressure from the international community, Israel has admitted its troops might have inappropriately used white phosphorus in attacks on Gaza, and has launched an investigation. International law only permits the caustic chemical for creating smokescreens in troop areas, which wouldn’t explain hits on United Nations facilities in Gaza,...

Mugabe Acknowledges Cholera Epidemic

(Newser) - Robert Mugabe has backtracked on his denial of the Zimbabwean cholera crisis, AFP reports. “He is acknowledging there is a problem,” said a UNICEF official who met with him today. “He recognizes there is a problem with the water and the sewer systems.” The admission comes...

Israel Shells UN Headquarters
 Israel Shells UN Headquarters 
Jan 15, 2009 6:51 AM CST

Israel Shells UN Headquarters

Offensive escalates even as ceasefire hopes rise

(Newser) - Israeli shells set fire to the UN’s relief agency headquarters and a hospital today, as Israeli tanks pushed deep into Gaza City, the BBC reports. Some 700 people were inside the compound, along with large amounts of fuel and aid supplies; at least three UN employees were injured. Secretary-General...

Olmert: I Made Condi Abstain on Gaza Vote

Israel PM claims he 'embarrassed' Rice in urgent call to Bush

(Newser) - Israel’s prime minister says an urgent call to President Bush last week resulted in Condoleezza Rice changing her vote on a UN Gaza resolution, the New York Times reports, with Ehud Olmert adding that the secretary of State “was left pretty embarrassed.” Rice helped draft the measure...

Mugabe Liable for Cholera Deaths: Report

(Newser) - Pressure from nonprofits and watchdogs is mounting on the UN to intercede in Zimbabwe’s humanitarian crisis, GlobalPost reports. Physicians for Human Rights asserts that Robert Mugabe intentionally dismantled the country’s health and sanitation infrastructure, and is directly responsible for the cholera outbreak that has claimed 1,800 lives....

UN Calls for Gaza War Crimes Probe
UN Calls for Gaza War Crimes Probe
Jan 10, 2009 2:34 AM CST

UN Calls for Gaza War Crimes Probe

Rights official accuses Israel of ignoring international law

(Newser) - The UN's top human rights official has called for an investigation into possible war crimes committed by the Israeli military in Gaza, the Guardian reports. She singled out an incident this week where up to 30 Palestinian civilians were killed in a home shelled by Israeli forces and the surviving...

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