CIVICUS discusses the deaths of Indigenous activists in custody in Tajikistan with Khursand Khurramov, an independent journalist and political analyst.

BRATISLAVA, September 17 (IPS) - Just under a year into a fragile ceasefire, 150,000 people in southern Lebanon continue to deal with the potentially lethal aftermath of Israeli bombing, highlighting the devastating long-term effects of conflict.

SHEFFIELD, UK / UTRECHT, The Netherlands, September 17 (IPS) - Other articles in this series on clustering conventions that are addressed by the Triple Environmental Crisis of pollution (Stanley-Jones), biodiversity (Schally) and climate change (Azores) I have touched on the idea of clustering not only conventions but the science-policy bodies established separately to serve them. We address the question of the negative consequences of maintaining status quo and identify how “consolidating knowledge” might make a difference.

NEW YORK, September 17 (IPS) - The recent IPS article, “UNGA’s High-Level Meetings: NGOs Banned Again,” served as a stark and painful reminder of a long-standing paradox: the United Nations, an organization founded on the principle of “We the Peoples,” often closes its doors to the very communities it was created to serve.

The UN has welcomed Colombia’s first convictions under its transitional justice tribunal, calling sentences handed down to former rebel commanders “a crucial milestone on the path to accountability,” in the words of human rights chief Volker Türk.

Afghanistan is confronting “a perfect storm” of overlapping crises, the UN’s outgoing envoy warned the Security Council on Wednesday, as an Afghan women’s rights advocate told the body that Taliban policies amount to “gender apartheid” which are suffocating a whole generation of girls.

Millions of people in Ukraine are facing cold and energy shortages as the country prepares for a fourth winter under fire.

As the United Nations marks 80 years of existence, it must adapt and evolve to be fit for future generations, the President of the General Assembly said on Wednesday during a briefing to journalists in New York.

The UN World Health Organization (WHO) issued a warning on Wednesday that southern and eastern European countries are losing large numbers of doctors and nurses who are leaving to work abroad.

AWAZA, Turkmenistan , September 16 (IPS) - The theater of diplomacy can be more revealing than the speeches. Under a scorching Caspian sun in Awaza, two marines lowered their flags with the precision of a ballet. The green silk of Turkmenistan, folded into a neat bundle before the UN’s blue-and-gold standard, fluttered briefly and vanished into waiting hands.