News headlines in February 2026, page 17

South Africa has moved to withdraw its peacekeepers deployed at the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) after nearly three decades of service.

As the brutal Sudan war shows no signs of ending, UN human rights chief Volker Türk on Monday called on the international community to intervene immediately to stop more mass killings and other flagrant war crimes against civilians.

The UN human rights chief on Monday called for the immediate release of Hong Kong media magnate Jimmy Lai after a Chinese court handed him a 20-year prison sentence under the city’s national security legislation, warning the verdict violates international human rights law.

Fifty-three migrants including two babies are dead or missing after a large rubber dinghy capsized off the coast of Libya, the UN migration agency said on Monday.

Far from global newsrooms and editorial boardrooms, a radically different model of journalism has been taking shape for over two decades in rural India.

The UN Secretary-General has strongly condemned the surge in violence across South Sudan, warning that civilians and aid workers are paying a devastating price as humanitarian operations are increasingly targeted.

While new digital technologies are transforming how the Holocaust is remembered and taught, experts warn that sustainability, ethics and collaboration are now as important as creativity to keep a global memory alive of Nazi Germany’s genocide that killed six million Jewish people and millions of others during the Second World War.

URBANA, Illinois, US, February 6 (IPS) - South Africa, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe are currently experiencing severe flooding. According to the World Health Organization, 1.3 million people have been affected. In addition, hundreds of people have died , infrastructure has been destroyed, access to health services has been disrupted, and the risks of water- and mosquito-borne diseases are rising.

UNITED NATIONS, February 6 (IPS) - On February 3, the World Health Organization (WHO) launched its 2026 global appeal to help millions of people living in protracted conflicts and humanitarian crises access lifesaving healthcare. Following a trend of sharply declining international funding, the agency warns that it is becoming increasingly difficult to respond to emerging health threats, including pandemics and drug-resistant infections.

GENEVA, February 6 (IPS) - The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk has launched a USD 400 million funding appeal for 2026 to address global human rights needs, warning that with mounting crises, the world cannot afford a human rights system in crisis.