UN News Centre
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Syria: UN urges Russia and Turkey to secure ‘fresh ceasefire’ as risk of military escalation grows
2020-02-28With the Security Council meeting in emergency session on Syria following the death on the battlefield of dozens of Turkish troops, the UN strongly urged Russia and Turkey on Friday “to build on previous agreements to secure a fresh ceasefire” across the war-torn northwest.
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US Israel-Palestinian peace plan a ‘mockery’, upends long-standing consensus – International Conference hears
2020-02-28The United States’ announcement of a new vision for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, touted as the “Deal of the Century”, is a “mockery”, the Prime Minister of Malaysia told an international conference in Kuala Lumpur on Friday.
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Coronavirus COVID-19 risk increased to ‘very high’ but containment still possible
2020-02-28Countries must act quickly and robustly to contain the coronavirus COVID-19 epidemic, the World Health Organization said on Friday, as it raised the global risk assessment of the infection to “very high”.
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‘Mayhem’ in Syria’s Idlib amid ongoing violence, as Guterres urges immediate ceasefire
2020-02-28Rapidly escalating conflict in northwest Syria has created healthcare “mayhem”, amid reports of displaced people moving closer to the Turkish border in search of shelter, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday, as the UN Secretary-General appealed for all warring parties to "step back from the edge of further escalation."
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Connecticut prison warning: Prolonged solitary confinement may ‘amount to torture’, UN expert warns
2020-02-28The “excessive use” of solitary confinement by the prison service in the US state of Connecticut, prompted an independent UN human rights expert to voice alarm on Friday.
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Make this the century of women’s equality: UN chief
2020-02-28The 21st century must be the century of women’s equality, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Thursday, in a call to transform the world by ensuring equal participation for all.
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Myanmar: ‘Multidimensional and long-standing’ root causes behind rights minority abuses, says Bachelet
2020-02-27The Human Rights Council on Thursday held an interactive dialogue with UN rights chief, Michelle Bachelet, on the root causes of violations and abuses suffered by the Rohingya mainly-Muslim minority and other minorities in Myanmar. She said the Government now has a historic opportunity to counteract systematic violations, "by bringing its people together, as one".
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Cross-border aid delivery in northwest Syria ‘absolutely essential’, Security Council hears
2020-02-27Cross-border humanitarian deliveries from Turkey last month reached more people in northwest Syria than at any time since operations began more than five years ago, the UN’s Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator told the Security Council on Thursday.
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No country should make ‘fatal’ mistake of ignoring COVID-19: Tedros
2020-02-27All countries should do more to prevent the spread of COVID-19 coronavirus and none should make the “fatal” mistake of assuming that it won’t be affected, UN health agency chief, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said on Thursday.
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Smoking and drinking link to recreational drug use by young people: UN-backed report
2020-02-27The use of alcohol and tobacco by young people and children is closely linked to the use of illicit drugs, a UN-backed narcotics control body warned on Thursday.