‘Those Are War Crimes’: United Nations Chief Condemns Trump’s Latest Iran Threats

Posted on 03/04/2026 by Boris Clair

A senior United Nations officials has warned Donald Trump that targeting key civilian infrastructure in Iran would be “war crimes”.

The US president said bridges and power plants could be destroyed unless the regime in Tehran agrees a peace deal to end the conflict.

His comments, in a post on Truth Social, came nearly five weeks after the war began with a wave of Israeli and US strikes.

Trump said: “Our Military, the greatest and most powerful (by far!) anywhere in the World, hasn’t even started destroying what’s left in Iran. Bridges next, then Electric Power Plants! New Regime leadership knows what has to be done, and has to be done, FAST!”

But speaking on Radio 4′s Today programme, Tom Fletcher, the UN’s under-secretary general for humanitarian affairs, said that would be a clear violation of international law.

He said: “This is infuriating. We’re dealing with the intended and unintended consequences of this reckless conflict, and I think what everyone is observing now is that war is not a television game show.

“Peacemaking is not a real estate deal and the world is not a casino and these actions have real consequences.”

Fletcher added: “This has been a gradual and then very sudden deterioration in the way that we talk about protection of civilians, the way that we talk about international humanitarian law.

“This stuff isn’t negotiable. You don’t hit civilian infrastructure.

“You don’t hit schools, you don’t hit energy sources, you don’t hit bridges. Those are war crimes. That is absolutely clear in international law.

“But somewhere along the way we seem to have thrown that all aside and we’ve chosen impunity, indifference, game show gambling over solidarity and humanity.”

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\"You don’t hit schools, you don’t hit energy sources, you don’t hit bridges: those are war crimes.\"

UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher criticises actions in the Iran war and says leaders have chosen ‘game show gambling’ over humanity by hitting civilian infrastructure. pic.twitter.com/boGJjSsZbp

— BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) April 3, 2026

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“You don’t hit schools, you don’t hit energy sources, you don’t hit bridges: those are war crimes.”

UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher criticises actions in the Iran war and says leaders have chosen ‘game show gambling’ over humanity by hitting civilian infrastructure. pic.twitter.com/boGJjSsZbp

— BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) April 3, 2026

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As COP29 Begins, Are We Losing Faith In The World’s Largest Climate Summit?

Posted on 11/11/2024 by Boris Clair

The United Nations’ 29th annual summit on tackling climate change has just begun in Azerbaijan’s capital of Baku – but have we lost faith in it?

The meeting, known as COP29, is intended to facilitate urgent, global cooperation on climate change, and governments are meant work together to keep environmental warming to 1.5C on pre-industrial levels.

This year, negotiators from nearly 200 countries are looking to hash out a climate finance deal in an effort to fund poorer countries who are still struggling to go green.

But, almost three decades since the climate summit began, scientists are still sounding alarm and pleading for more action from governments while previous agreements hang in the balance.

Brits do not have high expectations for COP29

According to the latest YouGov poll, just 9% of Brits are feeling optimistic, saying it’s either very likely (1%) or fairly likely (8%) that COP will result in significant action to tackle climate change.

A whopping 73% have a more pessimistic view, saying it’s either fairly (44%) or very unlikely (29%) to result in anything noteworthy.

While 53% of Brits think there’s a chance summits like COP could offer significant progress on tackling the threat to the environment, they also said there are plenty of other methods which might be more important.

For instance, 78% think the development of cleaner and more environmentally friendly technologies is one of the most important ways to tackle climate change, and 71% think encouraging companies and corporations to promote more environmentally friendly practices is key.

A further 68% believe trade deals which encourage countries to cut carbon emissions are essential, while 59% think more UN action of the environment would have a significant impact.

More than half (59%) also believe pressure from the public for governments to act is essential for the fight against climate change.

Temperatures continue to soar, despite years of warnings

There’s no doubt that some COP summits over the years have achieved significant deals between countries at their close.

The meetings have established an annual platform for climate change discussion, secured international promises to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, created the Paris agreement, pledged to move away from coal and vowed to help developing countries which are especially vulnerable to climate change.

But, as the specialists warns that 2024 is set to be the warmest year on record, it’s hard not to escape the sense of hopelessness that comes with the 29th COP talks.

Even panicked warnings from scientists that we will exceed the 1.5C limit in 2029, and harrowing words from UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres – such as “the era of global warming has ended” and “the era of global boiling has arrived” – have not triggered drastic action from the world’s governments.

That’s because the world has been too slow to reduce carbon emissions.

In fact, some scientists believe the path to limit global warming to 1.5C has already disappeared.

YouGov also found 17% of Brits think it is too late to avoid the worst effects of climate change – up six percentage points on 2019 – while 57% of those surveyed think the UK can still avoid the worst effects of climate change, but it would take drastic action.

Meanwhile, climate disasters continue to destroy communities around the world – just last month, Spain was hit with intense flooding leading to more than 200 deaths.

Emergency services remove cars in an area affected by floods in Catarroja, Spain, on Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024.

Donald Trump’s impact this year

The 2015 Paris agreement was meant to a pivotal moment as almost 200 countries signed the deal to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

But Trump pulled the US out of the agreement when his term began in 2017, even though the country is the second largest emitter in the world.

Joe Biden signed the US back up in 2021, but, now Trump has been re-elected, he is expected to pull the country out once again when his second term starts.

The Republican president-elect has also promised to increase US oil and gas production, even though it is already the largest in the world.

China is currently the world’s largest greenhouse gas polluter, but even the country’s top climate envoy Liu Zhenmin told journalists on Monday that Beijing is “concerned about the United States after the election”.

Liu said: “Everyone’s concerned about he next steps, whether after the US election, US climate policy will or won’t change. But most [COP] colleagues still feel that regardless if a country’s climate policy changes or doesn’t change, international multilateral climate cooperation should continue.”

Keir Starmer’s spokesperson would not be drawn on whether the UK was concerned over Trump’s potential changes to US climate policy on Monday, only saying they were waiting for the new administration to get into power first.

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump is reflected in the bullet proof glass as he finishes speaking at a campaign rally in Lititz, Pa., Nov. 3, 2024.

Other leaders’ absence

While around 100 world leaders have said they plan to visit COP29 within the first three days of the 11-day conference, there are concerns that too many heads of state might just skip it.

After all, Starmer is one of only two G7 leaders who will be speaking at the summit.

Outgoing US president Biden will not be present, nor will his successor Trump, although an American contingency will still attend the negotiations.

French president Emmanuel Macron will not be there due to tensions with Azerbaijan’s conflict with Armenia, while German chancellor Olaf Scholz will also miss the summit after his ruling coalition fell.

The EU delegation will be a bit thin too and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen abstained as the EU parliament is in a state of transition.

Despite being very vulnerable to the effects of climate change, Papua New Guinea will not be attending either with the country’s prime minister James Marape saying it was a “total waste of time” with “empty promises and inaction”

Narendra Modi, India’s prime minister, is also unlikely to attend, as is China’s president Xi Jinping.

COP26 president, Sir Alok Sharma, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “I think it is disappointing that we don’t have more world leaders coming to this Cop and, I mean, Keir Starmer is coming, and I think that’s great. It’s showing UK leadership.”

But, he continued: “What also matters is what all of these countries and the delegations actually announce in terms of the pledges, and also, really importantly, what progress has been made in implementing … existing climate commitments.

“Ultimately those detailed negotiations are led by ministers rather than heads of government, so those ministers are obviously coming. Some of them are already here, so we’ll have to see what progress they managed to make.”

Downing Street ‘Appalled’ By Reports Israel Fired At UN Base In Lebanon

Posted on 11/10/2024 by Boris Clair

The government is “appalled” by reports Israel deliberately hit a United Nations observation post in Lebanon, a No.10 spokesperson has said.

The United Nations interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) has claimed that Israel struck its facilities twice across 48 hours, as the conflict between the militant group of Hezbollah and Israel continues.

The peacekeeping force say fire from an Israeli tank wounded two peacekeepers and an observation tower on Thursday, while a similar attack happened on Friday.

“We were appalled to hear those reports and it is vital that peacekeepers and civilians are protected,” a Downing Street spokesperson said on the daily press briefing today.

“As you know we continue to call for an immediate ceasefire and an end to suffering and bloodshed. It is a reminder of the importance of us all renewing our diplomatic efforts to resolve this.”

A journalist then asked if prime minister Keir Starmer would support the comments from Ireland’s Taoiseach Simon Harris that Israel has broken international law.

The EU’s top diplomat Josep Borrell has also said there was “no justification” for the Israeli strikes, and called them an “inadmissible act”, while Italy’s defence ministry summoned Israel’s ambassador in protest.

The No.10 spokesperson replied: “All parties must always do everything possible to protect civilians and comply with international law. But we continue to reiterate that and call for an immediate ceasefire.”

On Friday afternoon, Starmer told broadcasters: “I’m very concerned about the situation in Lebanon, in Gaza and the escalation more generally in relation to the conflict.

“So de-escalation, we have to find a political and diplomatic route forward here, and that’s why I’m working with allies and colleagues across the globe to ensure we get de-escalation of the situation.”

But Starmer has refused to say if that would involve limiting more arm exports to Israel, having already cut back on 10% of the licences last month.

He said: “We’re working with our colleagues to de-escalate, that’s the immediate priority.”

Two other peacekeepers were also hit in a separate explosion on Friday, according to the UN. One was taken to hospital.

Unifil also said several of its blast walls in its Lebanon base fell when the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) bulldozer hit the perimeter and tanks moved towards the UN.

The peacekeepers said this was a “serious development” and “any deliberate attack on peacekeepers is a grave violation of international humanitarian law’.

Israel and the UN have locked horns repeatedly over the war in Gaza, as the organisation’s secretary-general Antonio Guterres has repeatedly condemned Israel’s actions.

Isreal banned him from the country last week, and described him as an “undesirable”.

Guterres also warned on Tuesday that Israeli attacks on Lebanon were destabilising the Middle East.

He said: “Attacks, including on civilians, are threatening the entire region.

“Large-scale Israeli strikes deep into Lebanon, including Beirut, have killed more than 2,000 people over the last year, with 1,500 of those deaths occurring in just the past two weeks.”

Rescue workers search for victims at the site of Thursday's Israeli airstrike in Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. — Rescue workers search for victims at the site of Thursday’s Israeli airstrike in Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, Oct. 11, 2024.

Russia Slapped Down At UN Meeting As Ukrainian Allies Remind Moscow It Is Not A ‘Victim’

Posted on 14/08/2024 by Boris Clair

Russia did not get the sympathy it was hoping for at an informal UN Security Council meeting on Tuesday.

Ukraine has managed to humiliate Moscow over the last nine days by breaching Russia’s southern borders, reaching into the Kursk region and taking 100 Russian troops as prisoners of war.

Kyiv says it is already occupying 1,000 sq km (386 sq miles) – that’s the same amount of Ukrainian land Russia has seized so far this year.

Despite often boasting of its military prowess and Vladimir Putin’s promise to “kick the enemy out”, Moscow is struggling to remove the Ukrainian forces.

And it’s certainly not getting any help from the West judging from what happened at the informal the UN Security Council.

Ukraine’s allies, the US, France and the UK, did not waver in their support for Kyiv during the mini stand-off, and instead chose not mention the Kursk attack at all.

Russia’s deputy UN ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy said: “We haven’t heard a word of condemnation of these actions from the Western sponsors of the Kyiv regime who continue to cover up the abhorrent crimes of their puppet.”

He claimed Ukrainians have been killing Russian civilians and questioned what Kyiv wants with the attack, adding: “I would be grateful for the explanation how intentionally targeting civilians serves the goal of disrupting attacks on Ukrainian territory, given the fact that there were no military objects or infrastructure in the area.”

Several members instead accused Russia of hypocrisy, double standards and wasting the council’s time, listing all the ways Moscow has been accused of breaking humanitarian law in Ukraine.

According to Reuters news agency, senior Slovenian diplomat Klemen Ponikvar said: “We will not recognise the aggressor as the victim.”

Military vehicles drive near the Russian-Ukrainian border in Sumy region, Ukraine, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024.

UK diplomat Kate Jones said: “We will never falter in our support for Ukraine for as long as it takes to secure just and sustainable peace based on the principles of the UN Charter and international law.”

And US diplomat Caleb Pine joined in, saying: “There is no question as to which country has committed numerous well-documented atrocities, including war crimes and crimes against humanity, on Ukraine’s sovereign territory. That country is Russia.”

The amount of land Kyiv is occupying is nothing compared to the 18% (109,000 sq km or 42,000 sq miles) of its Ukrainian territory Russia is currently claiming as its own, more than two years after its invasion of its European neighbour.

However, diplomats from Syria, Belarus and North Korea spoke out for Russia at the meeting.

Moscow has called Ukraine’s surprising offensive a “major provocation” and claims the country is just trying to strengthen its hand in any upcoming peace negotiations.

The whole operation has been shrouded in secrecy.

Kyiv has not revealed the exact purpose of this offensive, although it has said it has no plans to annex the Russian land, like Moscow has done with Ukrainian land.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy remained elusive on Monday, just saying: “Russia must be forced into peace if Putin wants to continue waging war so badly.”

Ukraine’s allies have repeatedly claimed they had no prior warning of the offensive – the West is also eager to avoid the Ukraine-Russia war pulling NATO into direct conflict.

Kyiv only confirmed that it had indeed breached Russia’s borders on Saturday, days after it first broke through.

And, according to Reuters, both Ukraine and Russia have barred journalists from the battlefield, meaning any claims made by either side cannot be independently verified.

United Nations Court: Israel Is Occupying Palestinian Territories Illegally

Posted on 20/07/2024 by Boris Clair

The United Nations’ top court on Friday said Israel is illegally occupying the Palestinian regions it has controlled since 1967 and must end its presence in them — a landmark statement that boosts momentum for a change in Israeli policy.

The court found that Israel is committing major violations of international law, including “de facto annexation” of occupied land and breaking the global prohibition against racial discrimination and apartheid. It concluded that Israel should take steps like evacuating settlers and making reparations to affected Palestinians. It also emphasised Palestinians’ right to self-determination, and said other countries are obliged to cease support for Israel’s occupation and to help end the policy “as rapidly as possible.”

The advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice covers Israeli practices in the occupied West Bank, in East Jerusalem (which Israel claims as its own territory) and in the Gaza Strip.

The opinion from the panel of 15 judges from around the world, selected by the UN General Assembly, is non-binding and has no immediate consequences.

The ICJ previously issued an opinion in 2004 saying Israel’s construction of a “separation wall” in the West Bank was illegal, yet the wall is still standing 20 years later.

Still, the assessment from the court will likely increase pressure on Israel and its allies, including the US, for progress in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Opponents of the status quo ― in which little movement is occurring toward a settlement, while America and other Western states provide Israel with military and diplomatic support regardless of its treatment of Palestinians ― now have a new basis to say these conditions are illegitimate.

Meanwhile, the ICJ has found that various ongoing Israeli practices, from demolishing Palestinian homes to imposing “a regime of comprehensive restriction” on Palestinian movement, hinder the chances of Palestinian statehood ― which could bolster the argument that the longer the current situation persists, the less likely peace becomes.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boosted that impression in a reaction to the ICJ opinion that rejected any idea of reconsidering the occupation.

“The Jewish people are not occupiers in our own land, neither in our eternal capital Jerusalem nor in the land of our ancestors in Judea and Samaria,” he argued, using a religiously tinged term for the West Bank that is popular among far-right Israelis. “No fraudulent decision from The Hague can distort this historical truth.”

Israel declined to participate in the ICJ’s proceedings around the advisory opinion, though more than 50 other nations did present their views.

“The United Nations’ top court said that other countries are obliged to cease support for Israel’s occupation.”

On Thursday, Israel’s parliament voted against the eventual establishment of a Palestinian state, backing a resolution that called the prospect “an existential danger to the State of Israel.”

Many members of Israel’s security establishment and supporters of the country abroad argue the opposite: that reaching an agreement is the only way to lower tensions and respect Israel’s stated identity as a Jewish and democratic state.

Experts in international law described Friday’s opinion as more significant and far-reaching than what they had expected from the court.

The court affirmed Palestinian rights in the regions they see as the heart of the future state that they and most countries believe is key to peace.

It also took on Israel’s claim that it no longer has international responsibilities as an “occupying power” in Gaza, despite almost fully controlling access to the territory.

The Friday opinion directly challenged that claim, arguing: “The court is of the view that Israel’s withdrawal from the Gaza Strip has not entirely released it of its obligations under the law of occupation.”

In another striking move, the court pushed back on an argument from the US that it should not consider Israel’s treatment of Palestinians for fear of jeopardising potential negotiations between the two sides, calling that idea a “matter of conjecture.”

The court did not consider Israel’s actions in its current military operation in Gaza because it crafted its opinion based on a request submitted by the UN General Assembly in December 2022, before that offensive began.

The court’s consideration of the Israeli occupation is separate from the case it is considering between South Africa and Israel, in which the former argues the latter may be committing genocide against Palestinians through its ongoing offensive in the Gaza Strip. The court has said there is a “plausible” risk of genocide, and issued three orders requiring Israel to change its conduct to do more to shield civilians. Those orders, known as provisional measures, are meant to be binding, but Israel has largely maintained the policies the court criticised, such as limits on the provision of aid to Gaza.

The Friday opinion is also distinct from the action that another body, the International Criminal Court, is considering in relation to Israel-Palestine. The ICC’s top prosecutor is seeking arrest warrants against Israel’s prime minister and defence minister and three leaders of the Palestinian militant faction Hamas for alleged war crimes during the October 7 attack and Israel’s military response in Gaza since.

Famine ‘Imminent’ In North Gaza As Palestinians Continue To Starve: IPC Report

Posted on 18/03/2024 by Boris Clair

A harrowing food insecurity report has concluded that famine is “imminent” in northern Gaza, as millions of starving Palestinians face “catastrophic” food conditions in the territory amid Israel’s continued blockade of humanitarian aid.

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report was released on Monday by the World Food Program. The IPC is an international process for estimating the scale of hunger crises, and serves as one of the international community’s primary sources for food insecurity data around the world.

According to the report, North Gaza and area governorates are projected to meet the definition of famine ― the IPC’s fifth and most severe phase of acute food insecurity ― anytime between now and May. In North Gaza, food security and malnutrition have become crises at the most dire level of the IPC’s scale.

Gaza’s southern governorates of Deir al-Balah, Khan Younis and Rafah are presently classified as IPC Phase 4 (Emergency) situations in the report. These governorates, however, face a risk of famine through July in a worst-case scenario, according to the data.

Per the ICP, Gaza’s entire population of 2.23 million people are enduring high levels of acute food insecurity. About half of those people are expected to suffer “catastrophic conditions” if Israeli forces launch their planned ground offensive into the packed southern city of Rafah.

“The upward trend in non-trauma mortality is also expected to accelerate, resulting in all famine thresholds likely to be passed imminently,” the group’s report said.

In December, the IPC warned that there needed to be an immediate reduction of hostilities and an increase in humanitarian access in order to prevent a “realistic chance” of starvation in Gaza. The agency’s analysis at the time said that Gaza’s crisis is “the highest share of people facing high levels of acute food insecurity that the IPC initiative has ever classified”.

“If no steps are taken to cease hostilities and to provide more humanitarian access, famine is imminent,” Beth Bechdol, deputy director-general of the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, said Monday. “It could already be occurring. Immediate access is needed to facilitate delivery of urgent and critical assistance at scale.”

Gaza’s current crisis stems from Israel’s ongoing military campaign launched after Hamas militants attacked that country on October 7, killing about 1,200 people and taking roughly another 250 hostage. More than five months later, the Gaza Health Ministry ― which has a record of providing casualty figures that closely reflect the UN’s own ― reports that Israeli forces have killed more than 31,000 Palestinians, wounded nearly 73,400, displaced almost the entire population and blocked civilians from accessing most aid deliveries of food, water, fuel and medicine.

The dire situation in Gaza is “simply unbearable” and “unjustifiable”, according to Hiba Tibi, country director for aid group CARE International in Gaza and the West Bank. “Our earlier fears that more would die in Gaza from hunger, dehydration and disease than from bombs, were well-founded, sadly. Starvation is cruel. It is a slow and painful death.”

“Our partners who run health centres in Northern Gaza have reported that the number of children categorized as having moderate or severe malnutrition nearly doubled in February, compared to January. Their staff report watching children get thinner and thinner as the days go by and of kids who can barely speak and walk due to starvation,” she continued. “We also hear of kids being born and dying in shelters without even being registered in the hospitals. It’s like they don’t exist.”

Boys wait while holding empty pots with other displaced Palestinians queueing for meals provided by a charity organization ahead of the fast-breaking "iftar" meal during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on March 16. — Boys wait while holding empty pots with other displaced Palestinians queueing for meals provided by a charity organization ahead of the fast-breaking “iftar” meal during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on March 16.

The UN Children’s Fund recently warned that life-threatening malnutrition was “spreading fast”, supported by the IPC’s report detailing how adults in Gaza have reduced their meals so their children can eat. The FAO said that at least 10 times in the last month, almost two-thirds of northern Gaza households went “entire days and nights” without eating.

Northern Gaza was the first target of Israel’s invasion, and has become the centre of the territory’s humanitarian crisis, with much of the region completely destroyed. A third of children under two years of age in the north are acutely malnourished, according to the FAO, and the Gaza Health Ministry said last week that 27 Palestinians, mostly children, had died of malnutrition in the north.

Monday’s report confirms what aid groups have been trying to convey to the world about the starvation crisis facing Palestinians in the territory. The international community has continued to call for a permanent cease-fire, the release of all remaining hostages, accountability for civilian casualties and the safe passage and distribution of more aid to Palestinians.

“From the destruction of farms, flour mills and food processing sites, to ongoing fighting preventing the safe movement of humanitarian actors, to the blocking of aid, the people of Gaza are being starved to death. What’s worse, they have all too often been killed in attacks when seeking out food to keep their children alive,” Tjada D’Oyen McKenna, CEO of the aid group Mercy Corps, said in a statement, stressing that the denial of humanitarian access violates international law.

“We cannot wait for an official famine declaration in Gaza to act when it is abundantly clear that people are and will continue dying from hunger and malnutrition,” she continued. “Today’s report must be a wake-up call for all parties with leverage over Israel to dramatically change course. Gazans cannot wait any longer.”

U.N. Security Council Passes Resolution On Aid For Gaza After U.S. Resistance

Posted on 22/12/2023 by Boris Clair

The United Nations Security Council on Friday passed a resolution aimed at increasing humanitarian aid for Gaza — overcoming intense resistance from the U.S. that ultimately forced diplomats from multiple countries to weaken the potential effect of the initiative.

The U.S. abstained from voting on the resolution while 13 other council members voted for it.

The resolution, proposed by the United Arab Emirates on behalf of Arab and Muslim states, focuses on helping the more than 2 million people in the territory who have been growing increasingly desperate since Israel launched a massive, U.S.-backed offensive there to strike Gaza-based militants responsible for an attack in Israel on October 7.

On Thursday, the world’s top tracker of hunger, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, said more than 90% of people in Gaza now face high levels of acute food insecurity, calling that the highest share of people facing high levels of acute food insecurity the group has ever classified for any area since it was launched in 2004.

The U.S. ― which has the power to veto Security Council resolutions ― says it believes more aid must get into Gaza faster, but President Joe Biden has been reluctant to pressure Israel, which largely controls aid flows, to take tangible steps to make that happen.

In negotiations over the just-passed resolution, American diplomats told foreign counterparts they did not want to veto it but strongly resisted language proposing limits to Israel’s military operation on humanitarian grounds and shifting oversight of aid to the U.N., a step the U.S. has supported in other war zones.

Diplomats this week told HuffPost they repeatedly assessed a U.S. veto as a near certainty. The council delayed the vote by multiple days at the U.S.’s request.

Humanitarian aid trucks enter through a crossing from Israel into the Gaza Strip on Dec. 18.

“The U.S. was at an advantage in negotiations this week because most council members believed that Washington was willing to cast another veto, despite the reputational costs,” said Richard Gowan, the U.N. director at the International Crisis Group think tank.

The U.S. was widely criticised for vetoing a Security Council vote for a humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza earlier this month; nearly all other countries on the council and the overwhelming majority of U.N. member states support that idea.

The final language ― which directs the U.N. to quickly establish a new aid coordinator position ― drew mixed reviews.

Russia and China, which also have veto power at the council, threatened on Thursday night to bar the resolution because they deemed it insufficient, a Muslim diplomat told HuffPost.

Still, some observers expressed hope the appointment of a coordinator will be a way to pressure Israel to allow in more assistance and praised the resolution’s calls for adherence to international humanitarian law.

“I understand some Arab diplomats think that the text is too weak, and it is certainly incredibly convoluted at certain points. But it also creates some opportunities for [U.N. Secretary General Antonio] Guterres to try to reinforce U.N. humanitarian operations in Gaza,” Gowan told HuffPost.

Louis Charbonneau, the U.N. director at Human Rights Watch, said the passage of the resolution should push all parties involved to change course to address the crisis.

“The U.S. needs to ensure that Israel implements it. Israel must immediately stop the atrocities ― no more collective punishment, no more starving and unlawfully bombing civilians,” Charbonneau said in a statement. “The council sent a clear message to Palestinian armed groups to end indiscriminate rocket attacks and release all civilian hostages. The Israeli military should also restore essential services for Gaza and allow humanitarian aid to reach all those in need.”

On Friday, U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas Greenfield rejected the idea that the resolution was too weak, calling it “a strong step forward.” The U.S.’s Gaza policy of largely unchecked support of Israel has complicated the position of Thomas-Greenfield and her team, U.S. officials recently told HuffPost.

“Linda Thomas-Greenfield and her team were effectively able to play the good cop with other council members, nudging them towards a deal, while everyone feared that Biden would play bad cop and insist on a veto,” Gowan said, saying the U.S. was able to “extract a lot of concessions.”

He noted that the UAE ― a close American partner ― faced particular pressure to reach a workable compromise because their term on the council will soon end. Meanwhile, “the Russians were pretty obviously looking for a way to force the U.S. into a veto.”

“The U.S. did genuinely make some concessions of its own, although mainly on points of language such as the use of the word ‘cessation,’” relating to the prospect of continued fighting, Gowan added.

Earlier in the day, a U.N. expert made a striking warning about the ramifications of Israel’s ongoing campaign, raising the specter of permanent displacement for millions of Palestinians.

“As evacuation orders and military operations continue to expand and civilians are subjected to relentless attacks on a daily basis, the only logical conclusion is that Israel’s military operation in Gaza aims to deport the majority of the civilian population en masse,” Paula Gaviria Betancur, the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons, announced. The majority of people in Gaza are themselves descendants of Palestinians who were forced out of their historic neighborhoods amid the establishment of Israel in 1948.

Closed-Door UN Meeting Stokes Fears Of Taliban Recognition

Posted on 02/05/2023 by Boris Clair

Thousands of people around the world are protesting against the ongoing closed-door United Nations meeting about the future of Afghanistan, as fears grow that the talks could lead to the Taliban being recognized as a legitimate governing group.

Diplomats from nearly 25 countries and groups — including the US, China and Russia, as well as major European aid donors and key regional neighbors like Pakistan — are attending the two-day meeting chaired by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. The Taliban were not invited to attend the meeting, and they have expressed their displeasure over the exclusion.

The attendees are set to discuss key issues affecting Afghanistan, including terrorism and women’s rights, according to the UN.

Activists against the U.N. formally recognizing the Taliban hold banners during a demonstration in front of the White House in Washington, D.C., on April 30.

After regaining power in 2021, the Taliban has cracked down on women’s access to public life, including barring them from attending universities and high schools. The group also decided last month to enforce a ban on Afghan women working for the UN, which the UN warned could force closure of their operation in Afghanistan.

However, shortly after the Taliban announced the ban, senior UN official Amina Mohammed suggested finding “baby steps” toward “recognition” of the group. Later, the UN retracted her comment and clarified that the Doha meeting is not focused on recognition.

Still, Mohammed’s comments have contributed to widespread concerns about the meeting, with critics pointing out a lack of transparency about the discussions.

Civil society groups and human rights activists highlighted their apprehensions about the possible recognition of the Taliban in an open letter to the UN shared on Sunday.

“Past experiences show that giving into the demands of such regimes by compromising on human rights will only strengthen their grip on power, and prolong the suffering of the people of Afghanistan,” the letter reads.

They also insisted that women of Afghanistan should be “meaningfully represented” in all talks regarding its future.

A member of Taliban fires in the air to disperse the Afghan women during a rally to protest against Taliban restrictions on women, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Dec. 28, 2021.

Videos have surfaced on social media showing women in Kabul protesting against the Taliban, holding up placards with slogans such as #NoToTaliban and #AfghanWomenLivesMatter. They can be heard chanting “Taliban recognition is a disgrace to the world” and “We will fight, we will die, but we will get our rights”.

“Taliban are terrorists and criminals,” Amiri, a protester in Kabul who is being identified by a pseudonym due to fear of retaliation from the group, told HuffPost. “The UN must not turn a blind eye to the plight of Afghan women and recognize a terrorist organisation that has no achievement except for oppressing women.”

“It’s funny that we have come to a point where the recognition of the Taliban is a topic of global discussion,” Amiri said. “In a fair world, Taliban should be brought to the International Criminal Court to face justice for the decades of crimes they have committed against the people of Afghanistan.”

Along with those in Kabul, hundreds of Afghan diaspora members and activists worldwide, including in Washington, DC, raised their voices in support.

During a press briefing at the State Department on Tuesday last week, department spokesperson Vedant Patel said the US has no intention of acknowledging the Taliban regime, and that the Taliban’s ongoing human rights violations, particularly against women and girls, are a major obstacle to its goal of being recognised internationally.

Zelenskyy: Russians Committing ‘Most Terrible War Crimes’ In Ukraine Since Second World War

Posted on 05/04/2022 by Boris Clair

Addressing a meeting of the United Nations Security Council remotely on Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the alleged atrocities uncovered in recent days as Russian troops moved out of areas in northern Ukraine.

“The most terrible war crimes we’ve seen since the end of World War II are being committed,” Zelenskyy told the council assembled in New York City, later arguing that “Russia wants to turn Ukraine into silent slaves.”

Zelenskyy proposed a tribunal for Russians who ordered or carried out war crimes similar to the Nuremberg trials in the years directly following the second world war.

Ukrainian authorities and journalists have seen evidence of widespread civilian casualties in Bucha, a suburban area northwest of Kyiv. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken described the casualties as evidence of “a deliberate campaign to kill, to torture, to rape” ― not “the random act of a rogue unit.”

President Joe Biden on Monday called for Russian President Vladimir Putin to be held accountable for the violence, which he described as a war crime.

Russia has repeatedly asserted that the violence was committed after its forces left the region. Blinken, however, said Tuesday that reports of atrocities committed by the Russians are “more than credible.”

“I’m addressing you on behalf of the memory of the deceased,” Zelenskyy told the U.N. council. “They died suffering.”

He alleged that Russian troops searched for and killed “anyone who served our country,” including entire families, executing many people in the street. Other people were thrown in wells, Zelenskyy claimed, and some had their limbs or tongues removed. Photographs showed that some of the dead had their hands tied behind their backs.

The world has yet to see the full extent of the brutality, Zelenskyy added.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy remotely addresses a meeting of the United Nations Security Council in New York City on April 5.

The Russians’ behavior is “no different than ISIS,” Zelenskyy said. “And here it is done by a member of the United Nations Security Council.”

The Ukrainian leader condemned the group, whose permanent members include the Russian Federation, for not doing more to end the conflict. He proposed three options: Remove Russia from the security council, reform the council, or dissolve it completely.

Citing what he called Ukraine’s “moral right” to propose reforms, Zelenskyy argued that Russia’s veto power makes the council worthless in fulfilling its main purpose of peacekeeping.

There is currently no process for removing a member of the security council.

“Accountability must be inevitable,” Zelenskyy said.

The Ukrainian delegation sent a video to be played following the president’s remarks, but technical issues prevented it from being shown immediately afterward.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield subsequently announced that the U.S. would seek to suspend Russia from the United Nations Human Rights Council, noting that Russia has used false allegations of human rights abuses on the part of Ukraine to justify its invasion.

Kenya’s United Nations Speech On Ukraine Praised For Citing Africa’s Colonial Legacy

Posted on 23/02/2022 by Boris Clair

Martin Kimani used his address at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to warn Vladimir Putin to respect Russia’s border with Ukraine and highlight the dangers of stoking the “embers of dead empires”.

His remarks came after the Russian president ordered troops into eastern Ukraine – under the fabrication of “peace keeping” – after recognising the independence of two separatist regions, a move criticised globally as a breach of international law.

Kimani said the birth of Kenya and Ukraine’s independence in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union had the “ending of empire” in common.

He said rather than engage in “bloody wars” that would be raging decades later, Africa opted to “settle for the borders that we inherited”, even if there was a “yearning for integration with peoples in neighbouring states”. Kimani added Kenya “rejects such a yearning from being pursued by force” and “we reject it again today”.

A clip of the address, which came hours after Putin had given a rambling speech re-writing the history of eastern Europe, was viewed more than 3 million times from one Twitter feed.

“Kenya and almost every African country was birthed by the ending of empire. Our borders were not of our own drawing. They were drawn in the distant colonial metropoles of London, Paris, and Lisbon with no regard for the ancient nations that they cleaved apart.

“Today, across the border of every single African country live our countrymen, with whom we share deep historical, cultural, and linguistic bonds.

“At independence, had we chosen to pursue states on the basis of ethnic, racial, or religious homogeneity, we would still be waging bloody wars these many decades later. Instead, we agreed that we would settle for the borders that we inherited, but we would still pursue continental political, economic, and legal integration. Rather than form nations that looked ever backwards into history with a dangerous nostalgia, we chose to look forward to a greatness none of our many nations and peoples had ever known.

“We chose to follow the rules of the Organisation of African Unity and the United Nations Charter, not because our borders satisfied us, but because we wanted something greater, forged in peace.

“We believe that all states formed from empires that have collapsed or retreated have many peoples in them yearning for integration with peoples in neighbouring states. This is normal and understandable. After all, who does not want to be joined to their brethren and to make common purpose with them?

“However, Kenya rejects such a yearning from being pursued by force. We must complete our recovery from the embers of dead empires in a way that does not plunge us back into new forms of domination and oppression. We rejected irredentism and expansionism on any basis, including racial, ethnic, religious, or cultural factors. We reject it again today.”

Putin also ordered the deployment of Russian forces to the Donbass region in eastern Ukraine “keep the peace” – though commentators have warned not to be fooled by the language.

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