Selected summary of United Nations related news and events
Annan Hails UN Security Council Call on Iran
to Suspend Nuclear Activities
Victims of Sierra Leone War Rejoice at Taylor's Arrest
Eastern Congo Militias on Offensive Before Polls-UN
Recruiters of Child Soldiers Targeted for Prosecution
UN Torture Investigator to Visit Russia, Chechnya
Serbia Urges Patience Over Mladic
United Nations Praises India's Decision
to Provide all Women Police Unit
CNN: "The U.N. Security Council has unanimously called on Iran to suspend uranium enrichment activities within 30 days and cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog.
Wednesday's vote came after the five permanent members of the council reached an agreement on the document, a presidential statement written by the British and French ambassadors."
UPDATE: Iran Defiantly Rejects New U.N. Demands
"In a wide-ranging review of the "many formidable challenges" facing the Arab world, Secretary-General Kofi Annan today reaffirmed the United Nations commitment to help resolve issues ranging from sectarian violence in Iraq to the Israeli-Palestinian impasse to the continued killings, rape and displacement in Sudan.
"Dr. David Nabarro, chief avian flu coordinator for the United Nations, has become gun-shy about making predictions - in particular about if and when the A(H5N1) virus, now devastating bird populations around the world, will do the same to humans.
But Dr. Nabarro describes himself as "quite scared," especially since the disease has broken out of Asia and reached birds in Africa, Europe and India much faster than he expected it to. "That rampant, explosive spread," he said, "and the dramatic way it's killing poultry so rapidly suggests that we've got a very beastly virus in our midst." [Read more]
A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary
Paper Chase: "UN Legal Counsel Nicolas Michel said Thursday that the UN is ready to begin final negotiations on the establishment of an international tribunal to try suspects in the February 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri. Michel said that a mixed tribunal with both Lebanese and international support, similar to the Special Court for Sierra Leone, would produce the best outcome. He said that it is unlikely that the tribunal will be established inside Lebanon and that factors such as impartiality and safety of witnesses and judges will determine its location. Michel's comments follow a recommendation of a mixed tribunal from UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan earlier this week."
"One United Nations estimate says from 113 million to 200 million women around the world are demographically "missing." Every year, from 1.5 million to 3 million women and girls lose their lives as a result of gender-based violence or neglect.
A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary
Science Blog: "A far wider range of species, some of them rare and endangered, may be affected by highly virulent avian flu than has previously been supposed, ranging from big cats like leopards and tigers to other mammals like martens, weasels and badgers to 80 per cent of all bird species, the United Nations environmental agency warned today."