Week in Review

Welcome to the United Nations View in browser

UN News Global perspective Human stories

Week in Review 11 January 2025

Catch up with our top stories of the week It's official: 2024 was the hottest single year on record, pushing past the crucial Paris Agreement threshold of 1.5℃ above pre-industrial levels – even though there's still time to pull back from the brink. Los Angles became the latest victim of the extreme weather patterns that are growing in intensity and frequency, driving home the urgency of the UN's call for greater climate action. In the Middle East this week, more signs of hope that Syria may be moving from "darkness to the light", with our exclusive interview from Damascus with Najat Rochdi, and we reported live from the Security Council as Syria's ambassador gave the fullest and frankest account so far of how the transitional authorities see the way ahead. We heard pleas from UN independent rights experts for US lawmakers not to continue with a bill sanctioning the International Criminal Court, and from the human rights chief, a plea to social media companies and governments, to be aware of the consequences of curbing fact-checking of content, in the wake of Meta's decision this week to end regulation. On Sudan's spreading famine, OCHA's Edem Worsornu warned ambassadors that hunger and displacement have created "a humanitarian crisis of staggering proportions" and we featured a searing first-person account from the World Food Programme's Jonathan Dumont in Gaza, who says he's never seen such destruction and suffering in all his years in the field. "People are hungry and angry" he told us, while bodies decompose on the ground.

Confirmed: 2024 was the hottest year on record, says UN weather agency UN weather experts from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) confirmed on Friday that 2024 was the hottest year on record, at 1.55 degrees Celsius (C) above pre-industrial temperatures. Read more Climate and Environment First Person: Gaza, where starving people are trapped in a land reduced to rubble "We saw dead bodies scattered to the left and right, decomposing in the sun", recounts Jonathan Dumont, Head of Emergency Communications at the World Food Programme (WFP). A veteran of conflict zones around the world, he says that the destruction and suffering he witnessed in Gaza is on a "different scale". Read more Humanitarian Aid Syria has real opportunity to 'move from the darkness to the light' Syrians have high expectations for their country, and a strong desire for people from across the social spectrum to come together and forge a new constitution, which must begin with an inclusive "national dialogue". Read more Peace and Security It's not censorship to stop hateful online content, insists UN rights chief Social media posts inciting hate and division have "real world consequences" and there is a responsibility to regulate content, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, insisted on Friday, following Meta's decision to end its fact-checking programme in the United States. Read more Human Rights US: Rights experts urge Senate to reject bill sanctioning the International Criminal Court Three experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council on Friday urged the United States Senate to oppose a bill seeking to impose sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC), and cut funding to the UN-backed tribunal, in response to its arrest warrants against Israeli leaders.  Read more Human Rights MIDDLE EAST CRISIS: Security Council meets on Syria, plus Gaza and Lebanon updates While the war in Gaza grinds on with dozens of civilians already reportedly killed and injured so far this year - and as the fragile ceasefire in Lebanon largely holds - hopes are still high for a successful transition of power in Damascus following the overthrow of the Assad regime exactly a month ago. Syria's ambassador told the Security Council on Wednesday the "dawn of freedom has broken". App users can catch up on the live coverage here.  Read more Peace and Security US: Rights experts urge Senate to reject bill sanctioning the International Criminal Court Three experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council on Friday urged the United States Senate to oppose a bill seeking to impose sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC), and cut funding to the UN-backed tribunal, in response to its arrest warrants against Israeli leaders.  Read more Human Rights Resilience of Ukrainians remains high, as UN maps aid and reconstruction needs for 2025 Persistent Russian bombardments have failed to dampen the resilience of the Ukrainian people, according to the United Nations. Despite the lack of a clear resolution to the ongoing war, the UN is not only at the forefront of aid efforts, but also deeply involved in reconstruction and development across the country. Read more Humanitarian Aid 'Famine conditions are spreading' as Sudan's crisis worsens: Security Council Human suffering in Sudan has reached devastating levels, with over 11.5 million people internally displaced and 3.2 million seeking refuge in neighbouring countries.  Read more Peace and Security More than 5,600 killed in Haiti gang violence in 2024 At least 5,601 people were killed in gang violence in Haiti last year, the UN human rights office, OHCHR, said on Tuesday, appealing for greater efforts by the authorities and the international community to address the root causes.  Read more Human Rights Gaza war: UN World Food Programme condemns Israeli attack on aid convoy Israeli airstrikes continued across Gaza overnight into Monday, while the UN World Food Programme (WFP) reported that one of its aid convoys in the war-shattered enclave was targeted by Israeli fire on Sunday.  Read more Peace and Security Young Venezuelan refugees get a fresh start in Trinidad's schools Until recently, Venezuela child refugees and migrants in Trinidad and Tobago were barred from State-run schools. This year, a change in the law backed by the United Nations means that several dozen were able to benefit from formal education. Read more Migrants and Refugees

COPYRIGHT    |    FAQ    |    FRAUD ALERT    |    PRIVACY NOTICE    |    TERMS OF USE

Unsubscribe    |    Update preferences