MOGADISHU / ROME, October 31 (IPS) - Food has always been political. It decides whether families thrive or fall into poverty, whether young people see a future of opportunity or despair, whether communities feel included or pushed aside. Food is also a basic human right – one recognized in international law but too often unrealized in practice. Guaranteeing that right requires viewing food not as a form of emergency relief, but as the cornerstone of sustainable social development.

BULAWAYO & BANGKOK, October 31 (IPS) - From the streets of Bangkok to power corridors in Washington, the civil society space for dissent is fast shrinking. Authoritarian regimes are silencing opposition but indirectly fueling corruption and widening inequality, according to a leading global civil society alliance.

UNITED NATIONS, October 31 (IPS) - The United States, the largest single contributor to the UN budget, is using its financial clout to threaten the United Nations by cutting off funds and withdrawing from several UN agencies. In an interview with Breitbart News U.S. Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Mike Waltz said last week “a quarter of everything the UN does, the United States pays for”.

UNITED NATIONS, October 31 (IPS) - The lingering after-effects of nuclear tests by the world’s nuclear powers have left a devastating impact on hundreds and thousands of victims world-wide.

Twenty-five years ago, the international community agreed a new approach to women’s inclusion in peace processes in what came to be known as the Women, Peace and Security Agenda (WPS), outlined in the landmark Security Council resolution 1325.

The UN is calling for restraint in Tanzania, amid deadly protests following the 29 October general election, as the country remains under curfew and faces widespread internet restrictions.

The Independent UN Fact-Finding Mission investigating alleged rights abuses in Iran says there has been a “surge in repression and extraordinary spike in executions” there since Israeli hit the country with airstrikes in June.

The UN and partners are pushing ahead with aid deliveries across Gaza despite new Israeli airstrikes and a faltering ceasefire, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said on Friday.

As the Caribbean reels from the devastating impact of Hurricane Melissa, UN humanitarian agencies are stepping up efforts to bring relief to thousands of affected people.

More details continued to emerge on Friday of atrocities committed during and after the fall of El Fasher to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia in Sudan’s Darfur region.