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Gaza: Aid worker killings prompt temporary halt to UN operations after dark

UN humanitarians in Gaza have suspended operations at night for at least 48 hours in response to the killing of seven aid workers from the NGO World Central Kitchen on Tuesday. 

The move will allow for further evaluation of the security issues that impact both personnel on the ground and the people they are trying to serve, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said on Wednesday during the noon briefing for reporters in New York.

UN calls for restraint following Iran consulate attack in Syria

A senior UN official on Tuesday urged the Security Council to work to avert further escalation in the Middle East following the deadly airstrike on the Iranian consulate in Syria’s capital, Damascus. 

Briefing ambassadors a day after the attack, Assistant-Secretary-General Khaled Khiari stressed the need for restraint.  

“We appeal to the Council today, as we do every month, to continue to actively engage all concerned parties to prevent further escalation and the worsening of tensions that undermine regional peace and security,” he said. 

We must push for lasting peace in Gaza, UN chief insists, as starvation threat nears

With “starvation bearing down” on Gaza, UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday repeated his call for a sustainable end to the conflict and the release of all remaining hostages – amid “unprecedented and ongoing devastation” in the occupied enclave.

“The need is urgent,” Mr. Guterres said in Amman, alongside Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safady, as he pledged to keep pushing “for the removal of all obstacles to life-saving aid, for more access and more entry points” into Gaza.

General Assembly adopts landmark resolution on artificial intelligence

The UN General Assembly on Thursday adopted a landmark resolution 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.

UN-Habitat and the Republic of Korea extends support to public institutions in Zahle

The Government of the Republic of Korea in Lebanon and the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) have signed an agreement to provide emergency support to the Zahle Civil Defense Centre. The event was held at the Civil Defense in Zahle in the presence of the Korean Ambassador to Lebanon, Mr. Il Park, and Head of UN-Habitat Lebanon Country Programme, Ms. Taina Christiansen.