News from the United Nations

• 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.
• 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 and advance of M23 rebels in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
• 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. 
• 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.
• UN chief condemns ‘abhorrent and appalling’ treatment of hostages’ remains by Hamas February 20, 2025
  The UN Secretary-General on Thursday condemned the “parading” of coffins earlier in the day containing the bodies of dead Israeli hostages by their Hamas captors, describing the manner of the handover in Gaza as abhorrent.
• UNDP calls for long-term investment to support recovery in Syria February 20, 2025
  Accelerating economic recovery is critical to reverse Syria’s decline and restore stability, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) said in a report published on Thursday. 
• Post-war order facing ‘greatest test since its creation’: UN relief chief February 20, 2025
  The international system set up among the ashes of the Second World War which established the United Nations and other multilateral institutions is now facing the “greatest test since its creation,” the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator said on Thursday.