Acute malnutrition among children in Gaza has reached the highest levels to date as hunger continues to deepen in the enclave, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported on Thursday.

New evidence suggests mistreatment remains common in maternal and newborn care, with new research across four countries finding that 60 per cent of vaginal exams were done without consent, according to the UN World Health Organization (WHO).

Hungry civilians are reportedly eating animal feed as women and girls face a “gender emergency” in war-torn Sudan, UN officials said on Thursday.

Extreme heat is breaking records around the world, with wildfires and poor air quality compounding the crisis, according to a report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) released Thursday.

In Africa’s Sahel region, deepening violence and poverty – driven by displacement, hunger and terrorism – are stripping women and girls of their right to safety, education and a viable future.

Countries agreed Thursday to form a new climate negotiating bloc to advocate for the unique needs of nations without direct access to the sea. The decision was reached at the Third UN Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDC3), currently under way in Awaza, Turkmenistan.

The international community must provide greater support to Afghan women and girl returnees from Iran and Pakistan who face increased risk of impoverishment, early marriage and growing threats to their rights and safety.

Exhausted UN aid workers in Gaza on Thursday continued to report a lack of food across the enclave, while medical teams warned that hospitals are overwhelmed by a daily influx of injured people and close to “near-total collapse”.

ROME, August 6 (IPS) - Across continents and cultures, seeds and plants hold more than the promise of a harvest—they carry the wisdom of generations, the hopes of communities, and the keys to a more resilient future. Yet the diversity of the seeds and plants we grow, eat, and depend upon, is under growing strain.

AWAZA, Turkmenistan , August 6 (IPS) - “The term ‘negotiation’ must be understood in ethical context… When an arsonist comes and burns down my house and then asks me to negotiate so I can rebuild my house, that becomes the paradox.”