UN News Centre

A “heinous” attack against a camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Yola, north-eastern Nigeria, where some 32,000 people have found refuge, was strongly condemned today by an independent United Nations human rights expert.

Urging governments and partners to join forces for universal literacy as a key component of &#8220the future we want,&#8221 the United Nations is emphasizing that literacy is essential to reach the newly-proposed Sustainable Development Goal on promoting inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning for all.

Denouncing the systematic cultural cleansing afflicting societies in Syria and Iraq as &#8220crimes against all of humanity,&#8221 United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson and the Director-General of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Irina Bokova, met in Paris today to discuss the destruction of cultural heritage and possible measures to counter the rise of violent extremism.

The United Nations special envoy on the Middle East today expressed deep sadness that Reham Dawabsha has succumb to the wounds she received in a terrorist attack in a West Bank village in late July that also killed her husband and infant son, calling the tragedy &#8220a shocking example of the destructive nature of extremism.&#8221

While the world&#39s forests continue to shrink as populations increase and woodlands are converted to agriculture and other uses, over the past 25 years, the rate of net global deforestation has slowed down by more than 50 per cent, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said in a report published today.

As the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) continues to face challenges in funding its emergency response in Syria, the agency&#39s Executive Director Ertharin Cousin has thanked U2 lead singer and ONE co-founder Bono, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and Ireland&#39s Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney for their efforts to give voice and support to the world&#39s hungry poor.

Supporting the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will be a key focus for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in years to come, Director General Yukiya Amano told a meeting of the Agency&#39s Board of Governors in Vienna today, where he also provided an update on the application of nuclear safeguards in Iran, Democratic Republic of Korea and Syria.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appealed to European leaders &#8220to be the voice of those in need of protection&#8221 and to quickly find a joint approach to the refugee and migration crisis that shares responsibilities equitably, as Germany and Austria continue to welcome thousands of people fleeing their war-torn homelands.

On the International Day of Charity, marked annually on 5 September, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is calling on people everywhere to volunteer and act charitably in the face of human suffering.

As Austria and Germany begin receiving thousands of refugees and migrants who crossed the border last night from Hungary, the United Nations refugee agency hailed the decision as &#8220political leadership based on humanitarian values,&#8221 while also applauding Austrian and German civil society groups gearing up to assist people as they enter their countries.

Richard Curtis is known around the world as the film-maker behind international hits such as Four Weddings and a Funeral, Mr. Bean, Love Actually, and Bridget Jones’s Diary, as well as for his involvement with the charity Comic Relief.

However, over the past year, the British filmmaker and founder of Project Everyone has been working closely with the United Nations to help give prominence to something completely different – the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), 17 targets aimed at achieving three main objectives in the next 15 years: end extreme poverty, fight inequality and injustice, and tackle climate change.

The United Nations envoy facilitating efforts to restore peace in Libya said today that real progress was being made as the participants wrapped-up the latest round of the political dialogue process, which has been taking place in Geneva.

Wrapping up a four-day mission to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Kyung-wha Kang, called strongly today for creative ways to reignite donor engagement and ensure that one of the world’s most protracted crises does not “fall off the humanitarian radar.”

“Tangible” results have been achieved for a political deal in Libya, but concrete solutions to the conflict will only be reached when all parties agree on a final draft, the United Nations envoy facilitating efforts to restore peace in the North African country said today.

Following the first executions in Chad since 2003, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) today deeply regretted the resumption of the death penalty in that country and called for an official moratorium on its use.

The top UN official in Somalia, Nicholas Kay, has strongly condemned today’s attack by Al Shabaab militants on an African Union Mission (AMISOM) base at Janaale, Lower Shabelle Region manned by troops from the Ugandan contingent.

A new report published by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development on assistance to the Palestinian people warns that the Gaza Strip could become “uninhabitable” by 2020 if current economic trends persist.

Even as aid agencies continue to reach those impacted by the Syria conflict, the needs of the 7.6 million people displaced by the war and the 4 million others who have sought refuge in neighbouring countries are “greater than ever,” and the world’s worst humanitarian crisis looks set to deteriorate even further unless a political solution is found, the United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator said today.

Parliaments have a critical role in translating the new sustainable development agenda – which world leaders will adopt later this month at the United Nations – into real improvements for the lives of the world’s people, says the head of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).

The United Nations General Assembly today approved a resolution sending the draft ‘2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development’ to Member States for adoption later this month, bringing the international community “to the cusp of decisions that can help realize the… dream of a world of peace and dignity for all,” according to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.