Smoking and drinking is on the rise among teenagers in Europe, Central Asia and Canada, and girls now match or even exceed boys when it comes to substance use, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a new report on Thursday.

A new mechanism for getting lifesaving aid into Gaza will start in the coming days, UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator Sigrid Kaag announced in a briefing to the Security Council on Wednesday.

Russia used its veto to quash a draft resolution aimed at keeping weapons out of outer space.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is offering medical care, food, shelter and psychosocial support to 33 migrants who survived a shipwreck off the coast of Djibouti on Monday, as local authorities continue search and rescue operations. 

Two UN agencies alongside the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the global vaccine alliance Gavi launched on Wednesday a campaign to scale up programmes to save lives, marking the start of World Immunisation Week, celebrated annually during the last week of April.

The UN agency that assists Palestine refugees, UNRWA, launched a $1.2 billion appeal on Wednesday to address the unprecedented humanitarian crisis in the besieged Gaza Strip and to respond to needs in the West Bank as violence there increases. 

Dangerous levels of acute hunger affected a staggering 281.6 million people last year – the fifth year in a row that food insecurity has worsened – heightening growing fears of famine and “widespread death” from Gaza to Sudan and beyond, UN agencies warned on Wednesday.

Top UN officials launched a fresh global campaign to tackle the climate emergency on Tuesday, with social media influencers, Indigenous leaders and corporate giants showing what they’ve done and what’s to come.

The head of the UN agency that assists Palestine refugees, UNRWA, on Tuesday reiterated that he welcomed the recommendations of a much-awaited report on its efforts to ensure neutrality and to respond to allegations of serious breaches when they arise. 

The UN acknowledges assurances from the South Sudanese government that the recent imposition of taxes on fuel and supply trucks does not apply to the Organization. Still, concerns remain regarding humanitarian aid efforts in the region since some of the UN’s fuel and supply trucks are being held at many depots and the border. 

Following the United Kingdom Parliament’s passage of the “Safety of Rwanda” bill, two top UN officials sounded an alarm on Tuesday about its harmful impact on global responsibility-sharing, human rights and refugee protection.

The UN verified 3,688 cases of rape and other sexual violence committed in war in 2023, a “dramatic increase” of 50 per cent over the previous year, the Security Council heard on Tuesday. 

The General Assembly on Tuesday debated veto power in the Security Council on the eve of the second anniversary of a special measure adopted to monitor its use, following on the heels of the United States vetoing Palestine’s bid last week for full UN membership.

Asia remained the world’s most disaster-affected region in 2023 due to weather, climate and water-related hazards. Storms and floods have hit the hardest, a new report published by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) on Tuesday reveals.

Book by book and page by page, Türkiye’s booklovers are bringing life back to cities ravaged by the deadly 2023 earthquakes through the power of reading, with help from cash grants from the UN International Organization for Migration (IOM). 

Disturbing reports continue to emerge about mass graves in Gaza in which Palestinian victims were reportedly found stripped naked with their hands tied, prompting renewed concerns about possible war crimes amid ongoing Israeli airstrikes, the UN human rights office, OHCHR, said on Tuesday.

Becoming a successful international fashion photographer is hard for anyone, but it’s particularly difficult if you grow up in Dominica, a small Caribbean country regularly hit by hurricanes. This hasn’t deterred Josiah Johnson, an aspiring photographer who is taking advantage of digital technology training to find new opportunities well beyond the borders of his home.

As gang violence increases in Haiti, the international community must continue to stand in solidarity with the population, the UN Special Representative for the country told the Security Council on Monday.

The UN Middle East envoy has expressed concern about increased levels of violence in the West Bank, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told journalists in New York on Monday.   

Independent UN experts have expressed concern over the role airlines and aviation authorities could have in the unlawful removal of asylum seekers from the United Kingdom to Rwanda under an agreement between the two governments and the proposed “Safety of Rwanda” bill. 

A youth activist in Haiti has described how years of gang violence, kidnappings and insecurity in the country’s capital, Port-au-Prince, has forced their “tears to run dry”.

The UN Secretary-General on Monday called for a “surge in investment” to give developing countries a chance to build better lives for their people.

An independent panel released its much-awaited report on Monday about the UN relief agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA), providing 50 recommendations and noting that Israeli authorities have yet to provide proof of their claims that UN staff are involved with terrorist organisations.

Meaningful action to prevent the use of explosive weapons in populated areas could reduce the number of child casualties in conflicts by nearly half, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Monday. 

Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday emphasised the need for a “strengthened and updated” United Nations to better reach and support people around the world.

UN chief António Guterres issued an appeal on Monday to “actively support” the UN agency for Palestinians, UNRWA, adding that he accepted the final findings of an independent probe into the organisation, launched amid serious unconfirmed allegations of UNRWA collusion with Hamas fighters and as part of efforts to assess whether the agency was doing everything within its power to ensure neutrality.

Climate change shocks caused record levels of disruption and misery for millions in Europe in 2023 with widespread flooding and severe heatwaves – a new normal which countries must adapt to as a priority, the UN weather agency said on Monday. 

Kornelia Icha has never gone hungry or got close to starvation. Very few people do in Indonesia with its fertile soil and tropical climate. But, until a recent intervention by the National Food Agency, her diet consisted mostly of rice, corn, onions and the occasional meat dish.

Vanessa Winston’s home and business in the Caribbean island of Dominica were destroyed by Hurricane Maria in 2017. Starting from scratch, the mother of four fought back and today, with UN support, she has rebuilt her life.