News from the United Nations

• Explainer: 5 common myths about child marriage February 22, 2025
  Every day, almost one in five young women are married off while still children, according to the UN reproductive and sexual health agency, UNFPA, which is urging countries to say “I don’t” to child marriage, an illegal practice that is almost universally condemned and yet remains widespread globally.
• UN in Ukraine prepares for the worst, hopes for the best February 22, 2025
  As the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine reaches its third year, a flurry of diplomatic activity has led to a growing expectation of a ceasefire, although the situation remains extremely fluid. Despite the uncertainty, the UN is planning how to best support the country when the fighting finally stops.
• Full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine has sown ‘psychological terror’, warns top aid coordinator February 21, 2025
  In the nearly three years since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the country’s people have endured continuous attacks, “psychological terror…displacement and hardship”, top UN aid coordinator Matthias Schmale said on Friday.
• Urgent appeal launched as DR Congo crisis fuels mass displacement to Burundi February 21, 2025
  The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, has launched a $40.4 million appeal to address the deepening humanitarian crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and its impact on neighbouring countries, particularly Burundi, where thousands are arriving daily in desperate conditions. 
• DR Congo crisis: Occupation blocks UN mission from protecting civilians February 21, 2025
  The continued occupation of North Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) by the M23 armed group has “severely constrained” the UN stabilisation force’s ability to protect civilians and carry out lifesaving operations, the mission chief Bintou Keita told reporters on Friday.
• Nearly 148,000 in Gaza receive cash aid February 21, 2025
  Aid operations in the Gaza Strip continue to reach people from north to south with critical assistance, including cash, the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, said on Friday. 
• Security Council urges Rwanda to stop supporting M23 in eastern DR Congo February 21, 2025
  The UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution on Friday that strongly condemned the ongoing offensive by M23 rebels in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
• Colombia: Fleeing the thunder of violence in Catatumbo February 21, 2025
  Around 80,000 people in northeastern Colombia are suffering the devastating consequences of an armed conflict that escalated on 15 January of this year. Caught in the crossfire between armed groups, thousands have been forced to flee with nothing but the clothes on their backs while others remain trapped in their homes.
• Central African Republic faces ongoing challenges ahead of elections February 20, 2025
  The recent attack on a UN patrol in the Central African Republic (CAR) which resulted in the death of a Tunisian peacekeeper, underlines the constant dangers facing peacekeepers from armed groups there, the head of the UN mission (MINUSCA) told the Security Council on Thursday.
• From suits to social justice: World’s top human rights forum turns stage over February 20, 2025
  The iconic multi-hue ceilinged UN Human Rights Council chamber in Geneva got a generational make-over when it turned the venue over to young artists and changemakers in a lively celebration of social justice.