The ceasefire agreement in Lebanon represents “the first ray of hope for peace” in the regional war “amidst the darkness of the last few months”, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Wednesday in Lisbon.

The message, from second graders and octogenarians to imams, rabbis, young changemakers and the King of Spain, was clear: “we need peace and mutual understanding now more than ever before”, according to more than 1,800 participants at the UN Alliance of Civilizations 10th Global Forum, which concluded on Wednesday.

Ongoing hostilities across Syria are intensifying an already dire humanitarian crisis, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has warned, amid reports of a deadly airstrike at the Ad Dabousiyah border crossing with Türkiye.

The latest report from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reveals significant gaps in Afghanistan's ability to address substance use disorders, highlighting urgent issues with access, resources, and infrastructure.

In an age when social media dominates global information sharing, an alarming two-thirds of digital content creators are publishing unverified information to millions of followers, a landmark survey by UN educational and cultural agency UNESCO revealed on Wednesday.

The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has filed an application for an arrest warrant against Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, Commander-in-Chief of Myanmar’s armed forces and Acting President, alleging his involvement in crimes against humanity targeting the Rohingya population.

Recent days have seen alarming signs of further escalation in the war in Ukraine, a senior UN official warned the Security Council on Wednesday, appealing for greater efforts to bring an end to Russia’s full-scale invasion of the country.

As the Lebanon ceasefire deal entered into force early Wednesday based on the full implementation of Security Council resolution 1701 – facilitated by UN peacekeepers UNIFIL and bolstered by an international monitoring committee - UN humanitarians committed to supporting communities uprooted by the war that have already started returning home.

MADRID, Nov 26 (IPS) - In most Western European countries you can purchase –or rent- a 60 square-metres flat that is equipped with two toilets, one for her and one for him. Larger apartments may feature even more.

For those who can afford it, such facilities are taken for granted. Yet, nearly half the global population—over 3.5 billion people—live without access to safely managed sanitation, including 419 million forced to practice open defecation.

BRATISLAVA, Nov 26 (IPS) - Ahead of World Aids Day 2024, UNAIDS released its report 'Take the rights path to end AIDS,' in which it stressed the world could meet the agreed goal of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030—but only if leaders protect the human rights of everyone living with and at risk of HIV.Gaps in realising human rights could stop AIDS being ended as a public health threat by 2030, UNAIDS has warned in a report to mark World AIDS Day.