A new report from the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) has laid bare the devastating environmental and economic consequences of the unlawful discharge of untreated wastewater from Israeli settlements into Palestinian lands in the occupied West Bank.
Two elderly Palestinian farmers observing their land in Beit Ummar, West Bank. Photo by Sherbel Dissi/ NRC
In both sites researched for the report, wastewater, including human sewage and animal waste, flowing from illegal Israeli settlements for long distances has damaged crops and knocked agricultural Palestinian lands out of use.
Geneva/Berlin, 26 March 2024 (IOM)* –-As the International Organization for Migration’s (IOM) Missing Migrants Project marks its ten-year milestone, a new report reveals alarming trends in migrant deaths and disappearances over the past decade.
The identities of those who have lost their lives largely remain unknown. Photo: Eva Sibanda/IOM Djibouti 2023
More than one-third of deceased migrants whose country of origin could be identified come from countries in conflict or with large refugee populations, highlighting the dangers faced by those attempting to flee conflict zones without safe pathways.
(UN News)* —Conflict in Yemen entered its 10th year on Monday [], as UN humanitarians issued a warning that over half the country’s populations are in desperate need of aid.
14 March 2024 (UNICEF)* — Most people know that you can’t survive without water. But the truth is slightly more nuanced. You need more than just water – you need SAFE water.
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UNICEF/UN0211984/Noorani
You also need safe toilets to keep the environment clean, and as well as soap and water to stop the spread of disease.
Find out more about why safe water, sanitation and hygiene are so important:
(UN News)* — Israeli authorities informed the United Nations on Sunday [] that it will no longer approve the passage of any UN agency for Palestine refugees, UNRWA, food convoys into northern Gaza.
“As of today, UNRWA, the main lifeline for Palestine refugees, is denied from providing lifesaving assistance to northern Gaza,” UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini wrote in a social media post on X.
He called the decision “outrageous”, saying it was made to intentionally obstruct lifesaving aid deliveries during a man-made famine in the northern part of the Gaza Strip.
On March 21, the 193-member UN General Assembly adopted a landmark resolution—the first ever — on the promotion of “safe, secure and trustworthy” artificial intelligence (AI) systems that will also benefit “sustainable development for all”. Adopting a United States-led draft resolution, without a vote, the Assembly also highlighted the respect, protection and promotion of human rights in the design, development, deployment and the use of AI. The text was “co-sponsored” or backed by more than 120 other Member States
Credit: UN Photo/Loey Felipe
UNITED NATIONS, Mar 25 2024 (IPS)* – Speaking at the third Summit for Democracy in South Korea last week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned that a malicious “flood” of disinformation is threatening the world’s democracies—triggered in part by the rise of artificial intelligence (AI).
(UN News)* —Amid reports of ongoing bombardment across Gaza on Friday [], UN humanitarians highlighted “shocking levels of disease and hunger” after visiting an overwhelmed hospital in the north of the enclave.
The UN’s top aid official in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Jamie McGoldrick, reached Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahia on Thursday, where children with the most severe and life-threatening hunger are being treated at a new World Health Organization (WHO)-supported specialised feeding facility.
New estimates show a loss of 507,000 jobs to date, shedding light on how the disruptions to economic life have led to unprecedented losses in employment and livelihoods across the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
BEIRUT (ILO)* –Some 507,000 jobs have been lost across the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) as of the end of January 2024 due to the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip, according to new estimates issued by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS).
MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay, Mar 19 2024 (IPS)* –– This year more than half the world’s population has the chance to go to the polls. That might make it look like the most democratic year ever, but the reality is more troubling.
Too many of those elections won’t give people a real say and won’t offer any opportunity for change.
Credit: Luis Acosta/AFP via Getty Images
2024’s bumper election year comes as a record number of countries are sliding towards authoritarianism, and global advances in democratisation achieved over more than three decades have been all but wiped out.
Geneva/Cox’s Bazar, 14 March 20214 (IOM)* -– The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is appealing for USD 119 million to support nearly a million Rohingya refugees in the world’s largest refugee settlement in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, and the vulnerable community generously hosting them.
Nearly a million Rohingya refugees have sought temporary refuge in Cox’s Bazar. Women and children account for over 75 per cent of the refugee population. Photo: IOM Bangladesh
HUMAN WRONGS WATCH 