Independent Online News
With over 18,000 near-Earth objects (NEOs) lurking beyond the stratosphere, 2,000 of which are classified as potentially hazardous, the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) is using Friday’s International Asteroid Day to raise awareness across the planet.
NEOs are asteroids or comets that come relatively close to the Sun, to about 50 million kilometres from Earth’s orbit.
Immediate action needs to be taken by the international community to address conditions in Haiti, otherwise “it’s hard to imagine a decent future” for the Caribbean nation, said the head of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on Thursday.
Briefing correspondents at UN Headquarters in New York just a few days after visiting Haiti along with the head of the World Food Programme (WFP), Catherine Russell said “the current situation of insecurity is unacceptable.
The Secretary-General condemned on Wednesday Israel’s recent advancement of plans for over 5,500 housing units in settlements in the occupied West Bank. He also denounced the retroactive regularization of three outposts adjacent to the settlement of Eli.
A strongly worded statement by the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General reiterates that settlements are a flagrant violation of international law and relevant UN resolutions.
For “countless civilians” caught in current conflicts around the world, taking responsibility for protecting them to prevent atrocities is more critical than ever, a senior UN official told the General Assembly on Monday.
“The lives of millions depend on that responsibility being given meaning,” Special Adviser on responsibility to protect (R2P) issues George Okoth-Obbo said, introducing the Secretary-General’s latest report and speaking on his behalf.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the war “has weakened the international collective security system we have all pledged to uphold”, the top UN political affairs official told the Security Council on Friday, briefing ambassdors on the current situation on the ground.