UNited Nations

1. ‘Defining moment’ in Afghanistan requires leaders to work together, top UN official tells Security Council

   With the COVID-19 pandemic as a backdrop, political parties in Afghanistan are being urged to prioritize national interests and come together for peace talks with the Taliban, the UN Deputy Special Representative for the country told a videoconference meeting with Security Council members on Tuesday.

2. Economic sanctions should be lifted to prevent hunger crises in countries hit by COVID-19 – UN rights expert

   As the world exhibits new bonds of solidarity in response to the coronavirus pandemic, it is a matter of “humanitarian and practical urgency to lift unilateral economic sanctions immediately,” to prevent hunger crises in pandemic-hit countries, a UN human rights expert, said on Tuesday.  

3. UN appeals to all Somalis to ‘come together’ in fight against COVID-19 pandemic 

   Like most countries in the world, Somalia is facing the unparalleled challenge of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, the United Nations system in the country noted on Tuesday, calling on its citizens to “unite” in stemming the spread.

4. UN launches COVID-19 plan that could ‘defeat the virus and build a better world’

   The UN chief launched on Tuesday a new plan to counter the potentially devastating socio-economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, calling on everyone to “act together to lessen the blow to people”.

5. Coronavirus poses latest threat to battered health system in DR Congo

   The looming threat of the new coronavirus disease COVID-19 is just the latest challenge to the beleaguered health care system in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which is struggling with deadly measles and cholera epidemics that have killed thousands of children over the past year, the UN children’s fund (UNICEF) said on Tuesday.

6. FROM THE FIELD: Humanitarians on the frontline in COVID-19 fight

   Humanitarian workers in developing countries are on the front lines and taking “urgent action” in the fight against the spread of the deadly new coronavirus, COVID-19, according to the United Nations.

7. First Person: Humankind’s ‘modern mentality to tame’ the environment: A volcanologist’s view

   The 17 goals agreed by the global community to reduce poverty and create a sustainable planet are the responsibility of all people, wherever they are in the world, according to the United Nations. The Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs represent a boundary-pushing blueprint for the future of the Earth and it’s anticipated they will be realized by 2030. UN News joined the International Labour Organization on a visit to Hawaii where many people are already living or studying aspects of the goals in their everyday work.

8. ‘Immediate nationwide ceasefire’ needed for all-out effort to counter COVID-19 in Syria

   Syria is at “high risk” of being unable to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, the UN Special Envoy for the country said on Monday, reiterating calls for a “complete, immediate nationwide ceasefire” to enable an all-out-effort to counter the march of the new coronavirus.

9. Coronavirus necessitates global increase in protective equipment, medical supplies: UN health chief

   The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) is calling for stepped-up production of medical equipment and supplies as health facilities and health workers in many countries struggle with increasing and urgent demands brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

10. Release inmates in Yemen to avert nationwide coronavirus outbreak, experts urge

    An international panel of human rights experts called today for the immediate release of political prisoners and detainees in war-ravaged Yemen to help avert a nationwide outbreak of COVID-19.