The UN Secretary-General is shocked by reports of violence and excessive use of force by Iranian authorities against protesters across the country, urging restraint and the immediate restoration of communications as unrest enters its third week.

When her family moved from Somalia to London in the 1980s, Safia Jama watched women in her community help her mother navigate a new life in the UK — booking doctor’s appointments, enrolling children in school, and learning how to access everyday services in a new country.

Sudan’s protracted conflict has spiralled into one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises, with hunger, displacement and the collapse of basic services exacting a daily toll on civilians.

The UN-mandated independent human rights fact-finding mission on Iran has urged authorities to immediately restore internet access and halt the violent crackdown of the ongoing, nationwide protest.

When it comes to protecting women and girls from gender-based violence, change happens when they are “at the heart of every decision,” according to Erin Kenny, Global Coordinator of the Spotlight Initiative a United Nations–European Union partnership aimed at tackling all forms of abuse against women and girls.

NITERÓI, Brazil, January 9 (IPS) - “We moved from a context of socio-environmental exclusion to one of environmental justice,” said Dionê Castro, coordinator of the Sustainable Oceanic Region Program which led Brazil’s largest nature-based solutions project.

BULAWAYO, January 9 (IPS) - As they ate catered meals, COP30 negotiators had no appetite for fixing broken food systems, a major source of climate pollution, experts warn.

WASHINGTON, USA, January 9 (IPS) - The Trump Administration’s sweeping executive order to withdraw the United States from dozens of United Nations bodies and international organizations, as well as a treaty ratified by the United States with the advice and consent of the US Senate, is a targeted assault on multilateralism, international law, and global institutions critical to safeguarding human rights, peace, and climate justice.

The United States’ intention to withdraw from a host of UN bodies announced this week targets programmes and initiatives focusing on a wide range of crucial areas, including the climate crisis, trade, gender and development.

The UN has raised serious concerns ahead of Uganda’s elections scheduled for 15 January, warning they will take place in an environment marked by widespread repression, intimidation and shrinking civic space.