What's New

The world has more tools than ever to tackle climate change, yet millions remain unable to benefit from them. As clean energy technologies advance faster than ever, the challenge facing countries at COP31 is no longer just finding solutions – but making sure everyone can afford them.

The UN’s peacekeeping chief warned on Wednesday that the withdrawal of “Blue Helmets” from Lebanon and Western Sahara risks leaving a dangerous security vacuum, while the Security Council remains divided over what, if anything, should replace them.

The UN mission in Western Sahara closed on 31 October after 35 years. In Lebanon, the peacekeeping force that has patrolled the border with Israel since 1978 is due to cease operations at the end of the year.

Many children born in Syria since the war began in 2011 have no legal identity because nationality passes only through fathers – many of whom are dead or missing – a member of the independent UN commission investigating rights violations in the country said on Wednesday.

The UN Secretary-General appealed on Wednesday for world leaders to invest in peace as violence, division and conflict exacerbate suffering worldwide.

António Guterres was speaking during the annual ceremony at the Japanese Peace Bell on the grounds of UN Headquarters in New York. 

The Secretary-General has condemned mounting civilian casualties in southern Lebanon and called on Israel to withdraw its forces from Lebanese territory, as fighting intensifies in and around Nabatieh.

Key points

Use of data-intensive technologies – in particular artificial intelligence (AI) data centres – is growing faster than electricity infrastructure can handle, the UN’s economic commission for Europe has warned, raising concerns about the future reliability and resilience of energy systems worldwide. 

Yasmin Al-Mashaan lost five brothers during more than a decade of conflict in Syria. Two were forcibly disappeared. Three were killed during peaceful demonstrations or by snipers loyal to the Bashar Al-Assad regime.

She found a picture of her brother, Uqba, among the “Caesar photos”, a cache of images smuggled out of Syria in 2013 documenting the deaths of thousands in government custody. That discovery, she said, is what pushed her to act.

Damaged roads, disrupted services and ongoing military activity continue to put civilians at risk in south Lebanon as strikes between Israeli forces and Hezbollah continue, according to the UN’s peacekeeping mission in the country (UNIFIL).

“Syria is not starting from zero; it is starting from resilience. But resilience alone is not a development strategy. A functioning agrifood economy is.” – Pirro-Tomaso Perri, Acting FAO Representative in the Syrian Arab Republic.

Six years after the devastating Beirut Port explosion, time has not erased the pain of those whose lives were irrevocably changed in a matter of seconds, nor has it diminished the urgency of securing justice. Mr. Jean Arnault, Officer-in-Charge of the Office of the United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon (UNSCOL), expresses his unwavering solidarity with all those affected and pays tribute to their relentless pursuit of truth, justice, and accountability.