Marking the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT) on Tuesday, leaders from across the UN system called for a world where all people can live free from violence and discrimination.

The news that more than 100,000 people in Mexico are now officially registered as “disappeared” is a tragedy, UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet said on Tuesday, in a call for action to tackle the country’s longstanding problem.

The UN migration agency, IOM, is running migrant centres across six provinces in Turkey as part of its refugee response, which provide migrants, refugees, and host community members, with education, social services, law, vocational guidance, and community support. One of those who has benefited from the centres is Leyla Al Darazi, originally from Lebanon, who although born male, has identified as female since a young age. To coincide with the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, marked on 17 May, Leyla told her story to Begum Basaran, a communications assistant with IOM Turkey. 

Investigators probing allegations of war crimes in the Ukraine conflict must work closely together and in compliance with international standards of forensic best practice, the UN expert on extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary executions said on Monday. 

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday expressed concern over the current COVID-19 outbreak in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), where no public vaccination programme has been put in place, reiterating its commitment to support the country response to the pandemic.

Risk of monkeypox transmission in the United Kingdom is minimal following a confirmed case of the rare and sometimes fatal animal-bourne disease, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday. 

Almost one billion people with disabilities and older persons are being denied access to assistive technology, according to a UN report published on Monday, calling on governments and industry to fund and prioritize access.

The United Nations in Somalia welcomed the conclusion of the country’s presidential election held on Sunday, praising the “positive” nature of the electoral process and peaceful transfer of power.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Sunday appealed for greater harmony one day after 10 people were killed, and three wounded, in a racist attack at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York.

A group of former combatants with the FARC rebel group in Colombia have been reflecting on five years of peace and community building in a locality called Tierra Grata, which translates as “pleasant land”

Investigations must be held into the actions of the Israeli security forces, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said on Saturday, calling for accountability and an end to impunity.

A human trafficking expert at the United Nations has told UN News how she was instrumental in saving over 1000 trafficking victims, mainly in eastern Europe and Central Asia. Reda Sirgediene works for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) as the Regional Adviser on Human Trafficking and Migrant Smuggling for Central Asia after serving for more than 20 years in the Lithuanian police force.

Governments, cities, companies, and communities around the world are taking action to address a significant and growing threat to wildlife, including many species of migratory birds - light pollution.

Humanitarians continue to call for scaling up assistance in the Horn of Africa, where the worst drought in 40 years is affecting some 15 million people across Kenya, Ethiopia, and Somalia. 

Ensuring everyone has access to a healthy diet is among the goals of a UN-backed initiative launched on Friday in line with efforts to transform food systems globally. 

A new UN-led push to prevent an arms race in outer space has received wide-ranging support and participation from civil society and Member States – including all five permanent members of the Security Council - at talks in Geneva.

Amid new claims by Moscow of a covert biological weapons programme in Ukraine, the Director of Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) affirmed on Friday that the UN is not aware of any such programme and has neither the mandate nor the technical operational capacity to investigate it - a message first delivered to the Security Council on 11 and 18 March, by High Representative Izumi Nakamitsu. 

The top UN official in the Middle East has urged Israel to halt all settlement activity following the latest approval given to new construction in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, announced on Thursday. 

UN-appointed independent human rights experts called on Thursday for Singapore to immediately impose a moratorium on the death penalty, saying the continued use of capital punishment for drug-related crimes runs contrary to international law.

Humanity is “at a crossroads” when it comes to managing drought and accelerating ways of slowing it down must happen “urgently, using every tool we can”, said the head of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) on Thursday, calling for a global commitment to support drought preparedness and resilience.

The United Nations continues to explore all options to reach civilians affected by Russia’s brutal assault on Ukraine, deputy humanitarian affairs chief Joyce Msuya said in an update to the Security Council on Thursday.

On the very first International Day of Plant Health, marked on Thursday, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has called for more investment in innovation to boost food security, especially for the billions worldwide living close to the bread line.

The UN Human Rights Council met in special session on Thursday in Geneva, prompted by increasing concern over atrocities committed against civilians, linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday that it is committed to helping the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), respond to COVID-19, after its first declared infection was reported in the media there.

Donors on Wednesday pledged $33 million towards a UN-coordinated plan to prevent an ageing oil tanker moored off the west Coast of Yemen from sparking a potential ecological and humanitarian disaster. 

Amidst rising tensions, a months-long political stalemate and increasing speculation about yet another conflict in Europe, the international community must stand firm behind a peaceful, unified Bosnia and Herzegovina, the country’s UN envoy told the Security Council on Wednesday.

An estimated 4.8 million jobs have been lost in Ukraine since Russia’s 24 February invasion, according to a brief published on Wednesday by the UN’s labour agency.

An investigation must be held into the killing of well-known Al Jazeera correspondent Shireen Abu Akleh, senior officials from across the United Nations said on Wednesday. 

The world is facing “multiple and interlinked global crises,” the UN chief told journalists in Austria on Wednesday during a joint press conference with Chancellor Karl Nehammer and Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg.

The latest deadly prison violence in Ecuador has again highlighted the urgent need for a comprehensive reform of the country’s criminal justice system, the UN human rights office, OHCHR, said on Tuesday. 

On the second day of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ visit to Chisinau, he drew attention to a migration crisis without refugee camps, as 95 per cent of Ukrainians are living with Moldovan families.

As Syria begins 12 years of conflict amidst soaring humanitarian needs, UN agency heads launched during a European Union conference on Tuesday, a joint appeal for $10.5 billion.

Responses to terrorism must be anchored in the rule of law, human rights, and gender equality to ensure their effectiveness, Secretary-General António Guterres told a UN-backed counter-terrorism meeting that opened in Málaga, Spain, on Tuesday. 

Almost 76 days since Russia invaded Ukraine, countless civilians remain caught up in the horror and destruction of war, UN rights investigators said on Tuesday. 

Alcohol is increasingly being marketed across borders, with young people and heavy drinkers particularly targeted, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a new report on Tuesday that calls for more effective regulation.