UNITED NATIONS, Aug 29 2024 (IPS)* – The Communist Manifesto of a bygone era, authored by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, begins with an implicit warning: “A specter is haunting Europe—the specter of Communism.”
US President Donald Trump (2017-2021) presiding over a meeting of the UN Security Council. Credit: United Nations
And today another specter is haunting– this time at the United Nations — the specter of a second Trump presidency.
(UN News)* —A new morality law enacted by the Taliban in Afghanistan, cements policies that “completely erase” women’s presence in public, the UN human rights office, OHCHR, said on Tuesday [], calling for it to be immediately revoked.
OHCHR/UNAMA | Afghan women face further restrictions under the Taliban’s new morality law. (file photo)
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The “Law on the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice” silences women’s voices and deprives them of their autonomy, “effectively attempting to render them into faceless, voiceless shadows”, said Ravina Shamdasani, OHCHR’s Chief Spokesperson.
(UN News)* — Around 20 villages in eastern Sudan have reportedly been “destroyed”, with 70 impacted overall, after floodwaters burst through a major dam, according to UN humanitarians – adding to the suffering of communities already devastated by the ongoing war between rival militaries.
The Arba’at Dam, located around 38 kilometers (24 miles) northwest of Port Sudan, collapsed on Sunday, damaging roads, electricity, and telecommunication networks, making it difficult to assess the situation, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported.
(Jerusalem) – Israeli forces have arbitrarily detained Palestinian healthcare workers in Gaza since hostilities began in October 2023, deported them to detention facilities in Israel, and allegedly tortured and ill-treated them, Human Rights Watch on 26 August 2024 said.
The detention of healthcare workers in the context of the Israeli military’s repeated attacks on hospitals in Gaza has contributed to the catastrophic degradation of the besieged territory’s healthcare system.
(UN News)* — Protecting war-weary people in Sudan from a second deadly cholera outbreak is proving a huge challenge for aid teams after more than 16 months of heavy fighting, combined with flooding and ongoing access obstacles, they reported on .
“The needs are huge in Sudan; we are talking about people dying of hunger, we have conflict, we have protection issues, we have displacements on a daily basis; the needs are just huge,” compounded by several weeks of heavy rainfall, said Kristine Hambrouck, UNHCR Representative in Sudan.
Famine ‘ongoing’
In addition to cholera, famine is still “ongoing” in Zamzam camp near El Fashertown, according to the UN World Health Organization (WHO). It said that 658 cases have been reported since the latest outbreak was declared on 12 August, with 28 deaths.
CAIRO & NAIROBI, Aug 26 2024 (IPS)* – As peace eludes war-torn Sudan, thousands of displaced people fleeing the deadly battle between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have found refuge in neighboring countries, including Egypt.
These Sudanese refugee children are among the 748,000 refugees and asylum-seekers who have sought refuge in Egypt. Credit: ECW
The Sudanese refugee population in Egypt has grown almost sevenfold in what is considered the worst displacement crisis in the world, impacting 10 million people, with at least 2 million having fled to neighboring countries, including Egypt.
22 August 2024 — On Tuesday [20 August 2024], Australia’s National Children’s Commissioner released a report, “Help way earlier!”, that finds that Australia is failing to protect children’s rights in its criminal justice system.
(UN News)* — The United Kingdom must take action to curb racist hate speech and xenophobic rhetoric, a UN human rights body said on Friday [], following recent riots that rocked the country.
The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racism (CERD) voiced concern over persistent hate crimes, hate speech and xenophobic incidents on various platforms, including by politicians and public figures.
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It was particularly concerned about recurring racist acts and violence by extremist far-right and white supremacist individuals and groups targeting ethnic and ethno-religious minorities, migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers.
()* — Years of underfunding of humanitarian aid and increasing needs have put millions of Haitians at risk of chronic vulnerability, according to a newly released UN report.
Reversing the situation will require the international community and donors to increase the funding of UN and non-governmental organization (NGO) relief operations, the UN humanitarian office, OCHA, said in its latest advocacy note.
(UN News)* —UN aid teams have warned that vital chorine supplies that are essential for purifying water are running out and deteriorating in Gaza, while humanitarians condemned new strikes on schools sheltering people displaced by the war.
There are enough chlorine reserves to last just one month, said the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, while double the amount of purifying solution needs to be used to be effective now.
HUMAN WRONGS WATCH 