UN Interviews

It’s hard to come up with new ways to describe the massive humanitarian emergency that is still unfolding in Sudan because of the war. A staggering 33 million people need help and later today, UN-backed food insecurity experts are expected to warn once again that hunger is on the rise again and famine is a real risk in 14 areas of the devastated country. Although it is extremely difficult and dang...

Eighty years after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, artist Sandy Walker believes art still has the power to transform people’s perceptions.  Speaking to UN News at United Nations Headquarters, Mr. Walker reflected on the influence of Hiroshima survivor and writer Tamiki Hara, whose final work, My Deepest Desire, inspired a series of ink drawings that now accompany a new edition of the te...

The United Nations Victims’ Rights Advocate , Najla Nassif Palma, has urged survivors of sexual exploitation and abuse by UN personnel to “come forward”, while calling for stronger action across the UN system and for Member States to put victims’ rights first. Her office works to ensure victims “have a voice, assistance and justice”. The mandate was established by Secretary-General António Guterre...

World Press Freedom Day, officially observed on Sunday, arrives this year under the theme Shaping a Future at Peace, a message that feels especially urgent as the number of journalists killed in conflict zones continues to rise. According to the UN education and culture organization, UNESCO, which monitors press freedom, 93 journalists were killed in 2025 alone – 60 of them in conflict zones....

NASA aerospace engineer Alinda Mashiku was born in New York then moved to Tanzania as a young girl, where she dreamed of becoming an astronaut – but reaching for the stars seemed almost an impossibility.  Today, as a Program Manager with the US space agency, she helps ensure that satellites avoid collisions in orbit, contributing to the safety and sustainability of pioneering space missions s...

As the United Nations marks its 80th anniversary, General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock highlights a striking gap in its leadership: the continued absence of a woman Secretary-General. For an institution founded on principles of equality, human rights, and inclusion, this omission is becoming harder to defend. Ms. Baerbock argues that the issue is not merely symbolic, but central to the UN’...

Afghanistan is seeing a sharp rise in refugees heading home, with more than 2.8 million people coming back from Iran and Pakistan in 2025 alone, according to UN estimates. That brings the total number of returnees since September 2023 to over three million. The surge has seen the population rise by more than 10 per cent, adding pressure to already limited infrastructure and fragile public services...

Tuvalu, a low-lying Pacific island nation, is on the frontline of the climate crisis, with rising sea levels threatening to submerge much of its territory by the end of the century. Many of its citizens are already planning for an uncertain future. In 2025, more than 90 per cent applied for a visa pathway offering residency in Australia.  Earlier, in 2022, the government launched a “digital n...

Unless a solution can be found immediately to allow fertilizers through the Strait of Hormuz in time for planting season, there’s going to be a “very significant and severe” food crisis which will hit the poorest countries and their citizens hardest. That’s according to Jorge Moreira da Silva, Executive Director of the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), which provides infrast...

Since the outbreak of the Middle East war on 28 February, sites of major cultural importance across Israel, Iran and Lebanon have come under threat. At the request of the Lebanese Government, the UN education and cultural agency, UNESCO, has placed 39 World Heritage sites under so-called “enhanced protection”- a special status aimed at safeguarding cultural heritage during times of conflict. To ex...

Syria has made “remarkable progress” on transitional justice in just one year, says one UN legal expert, raising hope, while also warning that powerful social stigma continues to prevent many survivors of conflict-related sexual violence from coming forward. Sofia Candeias, from the UN Team of Experts on the Rule of Law and Sexual Violence in Conflict, told UN News that new institutions and reform...

A massive wave of Israeli airstrikes struck Lebanon on Wednesday – despite the US-Iran ceasefire declared hours earlier – killing 254 people and injuring 1,165 others, according to local authorities.  Strikes hit densely populated areas, including Beirut, with no warning, leaving many still trapped under rubble.  Hospitals are overwhelmed, facing mass casualties and critical shortages of...

The ceasefire between the US and Iran has brought no respite to civilians in Lebanon, where deadly Israeli strikes intensified across the country on Wednesday, dramatically worsening the humanitarian situation.  Repeated escalations in violence over recent weeks have significantly increased humanitarian needs, raising concerns about whether aid agencies can keep up with demand. Blerta Aliko,...

For over three decades Rwanda has been recovering from the almost unimaginable horror of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. On Tuesday the UN commemorated the  systematic crimes committed there – in which more than one million people were killed – with ceremonies held at several of its offices around the world. The event was attended by survivors of the massacre, senior UN officials and rep...

More than 130,000 square kilometres of Ukrainian territory are believed to have been contaminated by landmines and unexploded ordnance since the full-scale Russian invasion of the country in 2022. As the Government, with the support of the United Nations, attempts to clear the land, fresh mines continue to be laid in the shifting frontline regions. Ahead of the International Day for Mine Awareness...

Over 20 per cent of Ukraine is contaminated by landmines, which are becoming more dangerous and more difficult to clear. Anti-personnel mines are now being deployed remotely by artillery, rockets, helicopters and drones, while some of the most sophisticated devices can launch projectiles at targets after detecting movement.  Paul Heslop, head of the UN Mine Action Service in Ukraine, is warni...

The United Nations human rights office (OHCHR) has warned of a sharp rise in the eviction of Palestinian families, particularly around Jerusalem’s Old City. According to Ajith Sunghay, OHCHR’s top official in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, evictions have intensified since the 7 October attacks of 2023, shifting from isolated incidents to more coordinated actions – some reportedly organized vi...

A UN peacekeeper has been killed, and another critically injured after a projectile hit the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) base near Adchit Al Qusayer in southern Lebanon on Sunday. The mission’s spokesperson Kandice Ardiel spoke to UN News’ Nancy Sarkis and said an investigation is underway, with no confirmed responsibility so far. The incident comes amid escalating violence along the Blue...

There is no escaping the fact that the war in the Middle East has triggered a global energy crisis. But could it also spark a water crisis? After fuel, water is emerging as a strategic and critical target. The Middle East is one of the driest regions in the world and desalination – turning seawater into drinking water – is vital for people and agriculture across Israel and the Gulf countries. Any...

Ongoing war in the Middle East, along with ongoing attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, has underscored just how vulnerable maritime routes are – and the potentially deadly consequences for those needing lifesaving assistance, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) has warned. Trade and energy markets are already feeling the strain, with potentially severe consequences - particularly for develo...

As the world marks the International Day of Happiness on 20 March, researchers warn that in an increasingly digital and uncertain world, young people’s well-being is shaped as much by social connection as by the economic headwinds they face.   Dr Robert Waldinger of Harvard University – who leads one of the longest-running studies in history focused on human well-being – emphasises...

How is the Middle East crisis affecting countries far beyond the region? In Nepal, more than 1.7 million migrant workers are employed across Gulf countries, and remittances form a vital part of the economy. Disruptions to travel, rising costs and growing insecurity are already having a major impact. UN News’s Vibhu Mishra spoke with Numan Özcan, the International Labour Organization (ILO) Country...

Afghans are being pushed from crisis to crisis as instability across the region deepens an already severe humanitarian emergency, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) has warned. In an interview with UN News, spokesperson Babar Baloch said many returning from neighbouring countries are not finding safety, but instead facing bombardment from Pakistan, displacement and growing hunger. Women and girls are a...

After three weeks of escalating violence in Lebanon, children are paying the highest price. More than 830,000 people have been displaced – including around 290,000 children – with many forced to flee their homes in panic as Israeli airstrikes continue. According to the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), many families fled with nothing - no clothes, toys or schoolbooks - spending hours trapped in traffic...

Rising Islamophobia is a serious global concern that requires a collective international response focused on education and combating misinformation about Islam, says the UN Special Envoy to Combat Islamophobia.  Speaking to UN News ahead of the International Day to counter the scourge marked on 15 March, Miguel Moratinos warned that incidents are increasing in several regions, particularly in...