Andrea Tenenti, spokesperson for the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), told reporters in Geneva that ground clashes inside Lebanon – some of them very close to UNIFIL positions – have become “more violent”.

Fighting is becoming more violent and destructive either side of the UN-patrolled Blue Line separating Lebanon and Israel, UN peacekeepers said on Tuesday. Meanwhile, conditions continue to worsen in Gaza, particularly in the north at stricken Kamal Adwan Hospital. Stay tuned for live updates from UN headquarters and the field. UN News app users can follow here.

The high-level diplomatic push for climate action shifted southward on Tuesday as G20 leaders meeting in Rio sent a clear signal to negotiating teams at stalled UN climate talks in Baku on the need to rapidly and substantially ‘scale up climate finance from billions to trillions from all sources.’

BAKU, Nov 18 (IPS) - Communities living in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) pay the price of climate change in lives, livelihoods, and stunted sustainable development.

Nov 18 (IPS) - Content warning: this interview contains details some readers may find distressing.

CIVICUS discusses Sudan's civil war and its impact on women with Sulaima Elkhalifa, a Sudanese human rights defender and expert on gender-based violence.

INNSBRUCK, Austria, Nov 18 (IPS) - From the cost-of-living crisis to the impacts of war, cuts to social protection and even climate change, families worldwide are facing a combination of pressures that test their capacity to cope and care for children.

BAKU, Nov 18 (IPS) - "This Finance COP has to deliver. I think this is a crucial moment for the COP process," said Shantal Munro-Knight, Barbados Minister in the Prime Minister's Office.

UNITED NATIONS, Nov 18 (IPS) - A new report from Human Rights Watch (HRW) postulates that Israeli military practices in the Gaza Strip constitutes as war crimes. Released on November 14, the new report details the scale of destruction in the Gaza Strip over a 13-month period, during which time the Israeli Defense Forces' (IDF) undertook a campaign to enact "deliberate, controlled demolitions of homes and civilian infrastructure" that were conducted to drive millions of Gazans out of their homes and inflict as much damage as possible.

WASHINGTON, Nov 18 (IPS) - It is a hectic week for UN environmental conservation talks with simultaneous meetings occurring around the world: Climate change negotiations are entering their second week in Baku, Azerbaijan and the G20 takes place in Rio de Janeiro November 18-19—so, it's understandable other important issues could get lost in the mix.

NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 18 (IPS) - The 29th United Nations Conference of the Parties (COP29) currently underway in Baku, Azerbaijan, is a key global milestone for agreeing on a new compromise to reduce emissions and to provide to the Global South the much-needed finance to address the devastating consequences of the climate crisis.