News headlines
UN watchdog warns Ukraine war remains world’s biggest threat to nuclear safety
- UN News

The war in Ukraine remains the world’s biggest threat to nuclear safety as a fifth year of combat looms, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog warned on Friday, citing continued risks to power supplies at nuclear sites vulnerable to fighting nearby.
Reaching a child in Darfur is ‘hard-won and fragile’, says UNICEF
- UN News

Reaching a single child in Sudan’s Darfur region can take days of negotiations, security clearances and travel across sandy roads that cut through shifting frontlines, UNICEF warned Friday – as children live “on the brink” of survival.
‘Unfathomable But Avoidable’ Suffering in Gaza Hospitals, Says Volunteer Nurse
- Inter Press Service

BRATISLAVA, January 29 (IPS) - “I’d never encountered anything like it before. I had no idea that there could be a place that needed humanitarian aid and that a government entity wouldn’t allow physicians or health workers into [that place],” says Jane.*
Melting Reserves of Power: Mongolia’s Glaciers and the Future of Energy and Food Security
- Inter Press Service

BANGKOK, Thailand, January 29 (IPS) - The International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation in 2025 was a timely reminder that the stability of Mongolia’s economy rests on fragile mountain systems that are melting faster than ever recorded. The loss reverberates across the country’s energy and agricultural systems, two development pillars that draw from the same finite resource: water.
UN chief ‘deeply concerned’ by escalation of violence in South Sudan
- UN News

The world's youngest country, South Sudan, is facing continued instability and violence as military escalation looms, following reports earlier this week that a senior army commander had called on troops to inflict indiscriminate violence against civilians in Jonglei state.
Violence roiling Nigeria extends beyond religious lines, amid a deepening humanitarian crisis
- UN News

When the United States ordered airstrikes on Christmas Day against Islamist militants in northern Nigeria, officials in Washington said the action was aimed at protecting Christians facing threats of violence.
World News in Brief: IOM warning for Sudan returnees, Nipah virus alert for India, food security in Afghanistan
- UN News

In Sudan, where the devastating conflict between the Sudanese army and rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces is nearing the end of its third year, more than three million people have returned to their areas of origin, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) announced on Thursday.
Choose peace over chaos, Guterres urges as he sets out final-year priorities
- UN News

With global tensions rising and “reckless actions” triggering dangerous consequences, UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Thursday called for renewed efforts on peace, justice and sustainable development as he outlined his priorities for 2026 – the final year of his tenure.
Gambia’s Supreme Court to Decide on FGM Ban
- Inter Press Service

Gambia’s Supreme Court is considering whether a law protecting women and girls from female genital mutilation (FGM) is constitutional. The practice, common in Gambia, often involves forcibly restraining girls while parts of their genitals are cut, sometimes with the wound sewn shut.
Talent Wasted: Afghanistan’s Educated Women Adapt Under Taliban Restrictions
- Inter Press Service

KABUL, January 28 (IPS) - Young women in Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, are trying their hands at unfamiliar tasks in embroidery, tailoring and designing beads in market stalls. Many should instead have been sitting at desks writing computer software or reporting news, the fields they trained for.

