News headlines
Women and Girls’ Death Toll in Armed Conflict Doubles since 2021
- Inter Press Service
NEW YORK, October 30 (IPS) - More than 37,000 civilians were killed in conflict last year. Women and girls accounted for one in four of these deaths – double their proportion in 2021 – according to the 2026 UN Secretary-General’s report on Women, Peace, and Security, released today.
Why Dowry Still Dictating Women’s Fate?
- Inter Press Service
DHAKA, Bangladesh, October 29 (IPS) - Dowry is still persisting in society in one form or another. This deeply entrenched social practice continues deepen household poverty and cause violence against women. The question is no longer whether Bangladesh has a law against dowry. It does. The more uncomfortable question is why the law has failed to make dowry socially unacceptable and practically difficult to demand. The Dowry Prohibition Act 2018 makes the demand for dowry a criminal offence. Direct or indirect demands can result in one to five years’ imprisonment, a fine of up to Tk 50,000, or both. Giving, taking or assisting in the giving or taking of dowry is also punishable. The law even makes dowry-related agreements void. Yet, the existence of legislation has not eliminated the practice. Instead, dowry has increasingly adapted itself to modern economic and social realities.
COP17 Celebrates Indigenous Leaders Amid Demand for Greater Inclusion in Biodiversity Decisions
- Inter Press Service
YEREVAN, Armenia, October 29 (IPS) - At the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) COP17, the presence of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) is impossible to miss. Indigenous representatives speak at side events, participate in contact groups, advise negotiators and engage across multiple forums shaping the future of global biodiversity policy.
USA: ‘Rights Can Be Hollowed out One Procedure at a Time until They Survive in Name Only’
- Inter Press Service
CIVICUS discusses voter suppression ahead of the USA’s 2026 midterm elections with Aklima Khondoker, an Atlanta-based civil and voting rights attorney, civil society organisation executive and founder and principal of Atabey Strategies, a consultancy firm that advises civil society organisations on democracy and electoral participation.
Myanmar’s illicit economy fuels escalating violence, with civilians bearing the brunt
- UN News
Myanmar’s human rights situation is “catastrophic”, the UN independent expert on the country warned at a press briefing Thursday, as the war spirals with no end in sight.
AI is changing the way we think. The question is whether we’ll notice in time
- UN News
Artificial intelligence promises to make life easier. With a few keystrokes, it can write emails, summarize reports, generate ideas and answer complex questions in seconds. For many people, it feels like a technological leap on par with the arrival of the internet itself.
World News in Brief: 5 children killed in Sudan, Haiti hunger emergency, Yemen war update
- UN News
At least five children were killed and two others injured in a drone attack on a market in Nyala, in Sudan’s South Darfur state, on Monday, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Thursday.
Russia drone strike on Ukrainian railway station kills 13
- UN News
The UN’s top humanitarian official in Ukraine on Thursday condemned a Russian drone attack on the city of Dnipro that killed at least 13 civilians and injured 10 others at its main railway station.
Nature is making a comeback – now restoration funding must quadruple
- UN News
From salmon spawning grounds in Canada to coral reefs in Indonesia, ecosystems around the world are being restored at an unprecedented rate.
Security Council LIVE: Can new technology keep the world’s sea lanes safe?
- UN News
Cheap drones, autonomous vessels and cyberattacks are changing the threats to the world’s shipping lanes – and the tools to counter them. At an open debate on Thursday, the Security Council is weighing how emerging technologies could both endanger and protect seafarers, global trade and food and energy supplies.
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