News headlines in January 2026

UNITED NATIONS, January 23 (IPS) - At least 21 United Nations personnel — 12 peacekeeping personnel and nine civilians — were killed in deliberate attacks in 2025, according to the United Nations Staff Union Standing Committee on the Security and Independence of the International Civil Service.

UNITED NATIONS, January 23 (IPS) - The two current ongoing conflicts, which have claimed the lives of hundreds and thousands of people, are between nuclear and non-nuclear states: Russia vs Ukraine and Israel vs Palestine, while some of the potential nuclear vs non-nuclear conflicts include China vs Taiwan, North Korea vs South Korea and US vs Iran (Venezuela, Mexico, Colombia, Cuba and Denmark).

NAIROBI & SRINAGAR, India, January 22 (IPS) - The world is pouring trillions of dollars each year into activities that destroy nature while investing only a fraction of that amount in protecting and restoring the ecosystems on which economies depend, according to a new United Nations report released on today  (January 22).

UNITED NATIONS, January 22 (IPS) - In 2025, global ocean temperatures rose to some of the highest levels ever recorded, signaling a continued accumulation of heat within the Earth’s climate system and raising deep concern among climate scientists. The economic toll of ocean-related impacts—including collapsing fisheries, widespread coral reef degradation, and mounting damage to coastal infrastructure—is now estimated to be nearly double the global cost of carbon emissions, placing immense strain on economies and endangering millions of lives.

WASHINGTON DC, January 22 (IPS) - Nepal has a unique opportunity for transformation. The recent youth-led protests underscored aspirations for greater transparency, governance and a more equal distribution of economic opportunities and resources. This yearning resonated in Nepal and beyond.

From humanitarian crises and youth unemployment to climate resilience and development financing, many of today’s global challenges pass through a single United Nations body that is quietly turning 80 this year.

A rising trend towards government-enforced internet shutdowns – with at least 300 incidents in more than 54 countries over the last two years – is prompting renewed warnings from the UN about the threat these digital blackouts pose to freedom of expression, access to information and human rights.

United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed urged countries to protect the UN Charter in a powerful speech to the Danish Parliament on Thursday, urging countries to “stand up for a rules-based order” – or pay the price.

A tense standoff between the Syrian Government and Kurdish-led forces in the country’s northeast risks igniting wider instability just as Syria struggles to emerge from years of conflict and authoritarian rule, senior UN officials told the Security Council on Thursday.

Russian forces launched a fresh wave of strikes across Ukraine this week which have left hundreds of thousands of families without electricity and heating amid freezing temperatures.