An Islamist militant has plead guilty to war crimes for ordering the destruction of Timbuktu's religious and cultural monuments, a spokesperson for the International Criminal Court (ICC) has confirmed. Mali's intellectual and spiritual capital is inscribed on the UN World Heritage Site. Fourteen mausoleums of the site were destroyed by armed groups in 2012. Ahmad [...]

An attack on a wedding party in Turkey that killed at least 50 people and wounded dozens of others has been condemned by the United Nations chief. Ban Ki-moon released a statement on Sunday calling for the perpetrators of this act to be identified and brought to justice. Jocelyne Sambira reports. A suicide bomber reportedly carried [...]

Making the global tax system fairer and closing loopholes would be a huge benefit to women. That's the view of Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of Oxfam International, a confederation dedicated to fighting poverty worldwide. Speaking at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Spring Meetings, she said that it was vital to address the [...]

Although debt levels in East African countries have risen over the past five years, they remain manageable, according to a recent UN report. However, governments are being reminded that they will have to rely more on their own funds and less on foreign aid if they want to achieve the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). [...]

UN holds memorial on anniversary of Iraq hotel bombing A memorial service was held at UN headquarters on Friday in honour of its fallen staff on the 13th anniversary of the Canal Hotel bombing in Iraq's capital Bagdhad. On 19 August 2003, the top UN envoy in the country, Sergio Vieira de Mello died along [...]

Listen to a bulletin of news and features from United Nations Radio, with Dianne Penn and Jocelyne Sambira. Today's programme celebrates World Humanitarian Day. The UN humanitarian chief underlines the importance of allowing aid workers access to people affected by conflict and other crises; and a plea from a Syrian refugee mother: Put yourself in [...]

Ten years after a cargo ship dumped 500 tonnes of toxic waste around the city of Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, residents "remain in the dark" over its effects on their health, according to a group of independent human rights experts. The vessel, Probo Koala, belonged to an Anglo-Dutch oil trading company called Trafigura which had earlier [...]

A Syrian mother uprooted by war has a simple request for world leaders: Put yourselves in my place. Hala Kamil and her four children are at the United Nations this Friday, World Humanitarian Day. The day honours the aid workers who support the millions of people worldwide who require humanitarian assistance to survive. Dianne Penn [...]

Russia agrees to UN-backed 48-hour humanitarian pause in Aleppo Russia has agreed to support a UN proposal for a 48-hour humanitarian pause in the Syrian city of Aleppo, according to a statement released by its Ministry of Defense. Staffan de Mistura, the special envoy for Syria, welcomed the news and confirmed that a humanitarian team [...]

A "piano prodigy" from Jordan will use his musical talents to advocate for some of the world's most marginalized children, particularly those caught in conflict, violence and poverty. Zade Dirani was this week appointed Regional Ambassador for the Middle East and North Africa by the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF). The pianist and composer said he [...]