UN

27 June 2007 -- Japanese media say North Korea will allow United Nations inspectors to visit the main reactor at the center of its nuclear weapons program.

Olli Heinonen, the International Atomic Energy Agency's chief inspector, told Kyodo news Wednesday his team will visit the Yongbyon nuclear facility Thursday.

Heinonen's team arrived in Pyongyang Tuesday for a five-day visit - the first since the U.N. watchdog was expelled in 2002.

The team is trying to negotiate the closing of the Yongbyon nuclear reactor and its nuclear materials reprocessing plant.    » read more »

25 June 2007 -- The following statement was issued today by the Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon:

The Secretary-General is deeply saddened by, and condemns in the strongest possible terms, the terrorist attack on a United Nations patrol in south Lebanon yesterday that killed six and injured two other United Nations peacekeepers belonging to the Spanish contingent. He calls for a full investigation into this very disturbing incident and hopes that the Government of Lebanon will succeed in its efforts to bring to justice those responsible.    » read more »

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s message for the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, to be observed on 26 June:

The International Day in Support of Victims of Torture is an occasion to highlight the unambiguous and absolute prohibition on torture and all forms of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. It is also an opportunity to express solidarity with the suffering of torture victims and their families, and to reaffirm the need for a global commitment to rehabilitate all victims of all such abuse.    » read more »

20 June 2007 -- In marking this year's observance of World Refugee Day, the U.N. refugee agency is warning more countries are closing their doors to refugees because of growing intolerance and a fear of terrorism. The agency says genuine asylum seekers are being turned away and refused a safe haven at a time when an increasing number of people are fleeing violence, persecution and oppression.    » read more »

Supportive States Should Invest Further to Strengthen Council

(Geneva, June 19, 2007) – The United Nations Human Rights Council ended its disappointing first year by agreeing on a package of procedural measures that lay a foundation for its future work, but fall short of providing it a firm footing, Human Rights Watch said today.    » read more »

19 June 2007 -- On the eve of World Refugee Day (June 20), the U.N. refugee agency says the number of refugees in the world is increasing dramatically, largely due to the crisis in Iraq. A new report shows the percentage of refugees rose last year by 14 percent, to almost 10 million, the highest level since 2002. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from Geneva.    » read more »

19 June 2007 -- The U.N. Human Rights Council has overcome last minute objections by China and set new rules for investigating some of the world's worst human rights offenders. The compromises agreed on do not totally satisfy all council members, but they allow the body to end its first year of existence with a mandate to continue its work as the U.N.'s principle guardian of human rights.    » read more »

17 June 2007 -- The World Food Program says the tiny South African country of Lesotho needs urgent international assistance to prevent a major food crisis this year. A report by WFP and the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization finds cereal prices in Lesotho have skyrocketed after this year's main cereal harvest was ravaged by one of the worst droughts in 30 years. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from Geneva.    » read more »

17 June 2007 -- A U.N. Security Council delegation visiting Sudan says the Khartoum government has agreed to the deployment of a United Nations and African Union peacekeeping force in Darfur.

South African ambassador Dumisani Kumalo made the announcement Sunday following hours of talks with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir in Khartoum.

He says Mr. Bashir has agreed to allow the speedy deployment of around 20,000 U.N. and African Union peacekeepers.    » read more »

15 June 2007 -- The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Marie Okabe, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

Good afternoon. I’m sorry I’m late. I was waiting for a statement.

**Guest at Noon

We have today a guest from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), Saahir Lone, Senior Liaison Officer of the UNRWA Office in New York. He will be updating you on the situation in Gaza and UNRWA’s emergency assistance there.

**Secretary-General’s Statement on Middle East    » read more »

Anniversary Of 1967 Arab-Israeli War

5 June 2007 -- The following statement was issued today by the Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon:

On this day, the Secretary-General remembers the men, women and children who have been killed or had their lives shattered by the tragedies of conflict in the Middle East, particularly the Palestinians, who continue to live under an occupation that has lasted 40 years.    » read more »

05 June 2007 -- Two United Nations agencies responsible for food security warned in a report issued on Tuesday that more than four million Zimbabweans - about one in three people in the Southern African country - will need food assistance by early 2008.

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization and World Food Program said in a joint report that 2.1 million could face shortages in the next few months.    » read more »

05 June 2007 -- A new United Nations report says melting glaciers and ice sheets caused by global warming could disrupt drinking and agricultural water supplies for up to 40 percent of the world's population.

The report released Monday said the depletion of ice caps could also contribute to global warming because the ice sheets reflect the sun's heat away from the Earth's surface.

It also warns that such low-lying countries as Bangladesh and Indonesia could face severe flooding by melting glaciers and rising sea levels.    » read more »

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s message for World Environment Day, to be observed on 5 June:

Greenhouse gas emissions from human activities are causing our world to get warmer. Concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are higher than at any time for the past 600,000 years, and the rate of increase is accelerating.    » read more »

29 May, 2007 -- The following statement was issued today by the Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon:    » read more »