Topic: United Nations

Why You May Soon Be Eating More Insects

AP

The United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization wants to be clear about its report today. "We are not saying that people should be eating bugs." Just that global changes may necessitate it.

By Philip Bump

May 3, 2013

Chart of the Day

2012 Was a Cold Year in a Spectacularly Hot Decade

For twenty-seven years, the world's average temperature has been hotter than the average during the second half of the 20th century. Last year, it was the ninth-warmest in recorded history — but still cold for the past ten.

Comments | 998 Views

By Adam Clark Estes

Mar 4, 2013

US Ambassador Politely Asks UN Colleagues to Stop Showing Up Drunk to Meetings

The United Nations is a pretty fun place. The headquarters hosts all kinds of cultural events. Everyone's open-minded about the dress code. Delegates can even show up hammered to budget negotiations. Or at least they used to be able to.

Comments | 191,109 Views

By Dashiell Bennett

Feb 14, 2013

Nuclear Negotiations with Iran Fail... Again

Leading negotiators for the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog agency left Tehran this morning after another round of talks with Iranian nuclear inspections accomplished absolutely nothing.

Comments | 172 Views

By Adam Clark Estes

Jan 23, 2013

North Korea's Plan to Target the U.S. in a Nuclear Test Sounds Horrifying

Late Wednesday night, North Korea's National Defense Commission announced that it planned several more rocket launches as well as a nuclear test. It also threatened a "full-fledged confrontation" with the United States.

Comments | 12,697 Views

By Adam Clark Estes

Dec 5, 2012

North Korea's Very Unpopular Rocket Is Almost Ready for Lift Off

Scattered reports from South Korea say that its neighbors north of the 38th parallel have finished assembling a long-range rocket and are enthusiastically prepping the launch pad.

Comments | 2,242 Views

By Dashiell Bennett

Nov 28, 2012

Palestine Suddenly Getting Votes at the United Nations

It may or may not win tomorrow's vote to achieve "non-member observer state" status at the United Nations, but several European powers are changing their opinion on Palestine.

Comments | 2,315 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Nov 27, 2012

Five Best Green Stories

How Canada Stifles Scientists; China's Reckless Fracking

InsideClimate News on fleeing climate experts up North, The Guardian on British vegetable shortages, The New York Times on cities, Scentific American on a coming Dust Bowl, and Mother Jones on Chinese fracking.

Comments | 1,284 Views

By John Hudson

Oct 29, 2012

Syrian 'Ceasefire' Collapses into Chaos

Neither side took the United Nations-backed ceasefire in Syria very seriously and on Monday, the tenuous four-day truce collapsed into all-out fighting.

Comments | 517 Views

By Dashiell Bennett

Oct 1, 2012

Ahmadinejad's Cameraman Defected During His U.N. Visit

A Iranian cameraman who came to New York as part of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit to the United Nations last week is reportedly seeking asylum in the United States.

Comments | 5,979 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 25, 2012

Did Someone Give Obama a Black Eye?

The four times President Obama has gone on TV in the last six days, as he did this morning when he spoke to the United Nations General Assembly, cameras showed what looks like he has a black eye.

Comments | 11,104 Views

By John Hudson

Sep 25, 2012

Video: Obama Stands Up for Free Speech at the UN

In address to the UN General Assembly, President Obama will defend the First Amendment values of the United States in wake of the riotous uptick of anti-American protests caused by the anti-Islam video Innocence of Muslims.

Comments | 1,724 Views

By Adam Clark Estes

Sep 24, 2012

Ahmadinejad Was Kidding When He Threatened Salman Rushdie, Right?

Mahmoud Ahmadenijad had more than one sinister moments when he sat down with reporters at the Warwick Hotel on Monday.

Comments | 2,304 Views

By John Hudson

Aug 29, 2012

Assad Says Syria 'Is Much Better' Now

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad sounded totally detached from reality Wednesday, telling an interviewer that "the situation is much better" in Syria following 18 months of violence and an estimated death toll of 22,000.

Comments | 1,724 Views

By John Hudson

Aug 23, 2012

Ban Ki-moon Will Visit Iran

If you'd like to vacation in Iran, you're never going to find a safer time to travel there then next week.

Comments

By John Hudson

Aug 22, 2012

The Syrian Conflict Has a Contagion Problem

At a news conference in Moscow Tuesday, Syria's Deputy Prime Minister Qadri Jamil warned the U.S. against foreign military intervention, saying such efforts would lead to "a confrontation wider than Syria's borders."

Comments | 1,379 Views

By Connor Simpson

Aug 19, 2012

Watch Beyonce's New Video for World Humanitarian Day

Beyoncé could do no wrong in our eyes before this morning, but she's now releasing a video for her song 'I Was Here' to support the U.N.'s World Humanitarian Day.

Comments | 1,035 Views

By Adam Martin

Aug 17, 2012

Syria Gets a New Peace Broker, Lakhdar Brahimi

After Kofi Annan quit the job in frustration, the United Nations announced Friday it had officially named veteran negotiator and former Algerian foreign minister Lakhdar Brahimi as its new envoy to Syria, a move that sounds like it took some work.

Comments | 203 Views

By Adam Martin

Aug 15, 2012

U.N.: War Crimes on Both Sides in Syria, But Assad's Are Worse

Allegations of war crimes have been lurking in the background as the Syrian conflict has continued to rage on, but on Wednesday a United Nations expert panel concluded that both sides had perpetrated them—but the Syrian government's were more serious.

Comments | 648 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Jul 19, 2012

Russia and China Still Blocking Syria from U.N. Sanctions

At this point, it's not really clear that U.N. sanctions against Bashar al-Assad's regime would do anything to quell the violence in Syria, but we'll never find out since Russia and China vetoed the latest Security Council resolution today, the third time they've done so in the 16-month conflict.

Comments | 780 Views

By Connor Simpson

Jun 30, 2012

Hillary Clinton Sees No Place for Assad in Syria's Future

The biggest question surrounding Kofi Annan's new plan for a unified government in Syria that he debuted on Saturday is whether Bashar al-Assad will be included. Hillary Clinton, for one, doesn't think so.

Comments | 826 Views

By Connor Simpson

May 27, 2012

Houla Killings Could Be Syrian Tipping Point

The massacre in Houla is starting to seem like it could be the final straw in Syria, as international pressures are mounting and everyone seems to be running out of patience with Bashar al-Assad's regime.

Comments | 1,755 Views

By Dashiell Bennett

May 18, 2012

The U.N. Thinks Al-Qaeda Is In Syria

The Secretary General of the United Nations says he believes al-Qaeda is responsible for two massive bombs that killed 55 people in Damascus last week.

Comments | 569 Views

By Adam Martin

May 15, 2012

Syrian Activist: Troops Attacked a Funeral

Shadowy, Al-Qaeda-style terrorist groups aren't the only ones ignoring the nominal Syrian cease-fire, at least according to activists there, who said government forces opened fire on a funeral procession right in front of U.N. observers, killing at least 20 people.

Comments | 89 Views

By John Hudson

Apr 27, 2012

It Took a Lot to Admit the Syrian Ceasefire Failed

Finally, after weeks of delays, the U.S. and the United Nations have admitted that the U.N.-sponsored ceasefire in Syria has failed.

Comments | 235 Views

By John Hudson

Apr 18, 2012

A Ceasefire in Syria That No One Believes but Everyone Still Believes In

The ceasefire in Syria is now a fiction, as the regime's military forces continue to pound opposition, but the U.N. and Western nations don't want to admit as much because the talks it's supposed to engender are still seen as the least worst option.

Comments | 345 Views

By Dino Grandoni

Apr 17, 2012

Five Best Green Stories

We're Getting Better at Predicting Disasters; Going Vegan

Scientific American on predicting tornadoes and hurricanes, Time on climate change and natural disasters, The New York Times on a Hawaiian nature preserve, Tara Parker-Pope on going vegan, and Mother Jones on the BP oil still out there

Comments | 1,434 Views

By John Hudson

Apr 16, 2012

The UN Is Observing a War Zone, Not a Ceasefire in Syria

The UN observer mission in Syria began its work in the country Monday, but according to accounts on the ground, the envoy i looking at a war zone, not a ceasefire.

Comments | 690 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Apr 11, 2012

Syria 'Promises' to Stop Fighting (Again)

Syria has "promised" the United Nations that it will stop fighting tomorrow, and we'd believe them if, oh yeah, they weren't Syria. 

Comments | 345 Views

By John Hudson

Apr 9, 2012

Syria Is Making a Joke Out of the U.N.

With one day left until the United Nations' special envoy Kofi Annan's cease-fire plan comes into effect, Syrian security forces are waging an unyielding campaign of violence against rebel forces across the country.

Comments | 1,218 Views

By Dashiell Bennett

Mar 27, 2012

Syria Says It's Ready to End Fighting, but When?

The U.N. says Syria has agreed to Kofi Annan's plan to end the violent crackdown in its country, at the same as reports that government troops have entered Lebanon to attack rebel fighters.

Comments | 65 Views

By Adam Clark Estes

Mar 21, 2012

Accident or Assault? Syrian Shells Hit Lebanon

Lebanese farmers were likely confused Wednesday evening when they noticed that Syrian heavy artillery guns were firing shells onto their land.

Comments | 425 Views

By Seth Abramovitch

Mar 10, 2012

Al-Assad Rejects Kofi Annan's Pleas For Peace

Talks between the former U.N. secretary general and the president of Syria have so far proved fruitless, while an Arab League summit on the matter elicits a war of words between Russia and Saudi Arabia.

Comments | 1,111 Views

By Adam Clark Estes

Mar 1, 2012

Finally, China and Russia Are Condemning Syria

The entire United Nations Security Council is doing something about the increasingly horrific situation in Syria.

Comments | 2,135 Views

By Dashiell Bennett

Mar 1, 2012

Weather Gives Syrians a Reprieve, Britain Closes Its Damascus Embassy

The British foreign secretary announced today that the UK has closed its embassy in Syria and has sent home its entire diplomatic staff.

Comments | 975 Views

By Dashiell Bennett

Feb 29, 2012

U.N. Tries Humanitarian Angle on Syria, Ground Offensive Underway in Homs

The United Nations is working on a new Security Council resolution designed to win support from China and Russia by focusing on the humanitarian crisis in Syria.

Comments | 994 Views

By Seth Abramovitch

Feb 4, 2012

Russia and China Veto U.N. Resolution on Syria

Coming on the deadliest single day of the Syrian uprisings, Russia and China vote against a U.N. Security Council resolution that sought to put an end to Bashar al-Assad's brutal crackdowns. 

Comments | 2,280 Views

By Seth Abramovitch

Feb 4, 2012

Obama Condemns al-Assad's 'Disdain for Human Life and Dignity'

President Obama issues a strong condemnation of Bashar al-Assad, after Syrian forces launch "an unprecedented attack" on his own people. At least 260 are dead.

Comments | 569 Views

By Adam Martin

Jan 27, 2012

U.N. Stopping Short of Sanctions in Syria

The United Nations wants to try to stop the escalating violence in Syria after an Arab League monitoring mission couldn't do it, but the global organization (which includes some Syrian allies) doesn't appear to be planning any sanctions.

Comments | 345 Views

By Dino Grandoni

Jan 27, 2012

U.N. Pouches Are a Pretty Good Way to Mail Cocaine

In a rather ingenious method of international drug smuggling, two diplomatic bags were shipped from Mexico to the U.N. headquarters in New York containing about 35 pounds of cocaine.

Comments | 4,068 Views

By Dashiell Bennett

Dec 7, 2011

Watch Hillary Clinton's Speech Declaring 'Gay Rights Are Human Rights'

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton took a bold step for U.S. foreign policy (and common decency) by declaring in front of the United Nations yesterday that it is a "violation of human rights" to commit violence or discrimination against people because of their sexual orientation. 

Comments | 29,485 Views

By Dino Grandoni

Nov 21, 2011

Chemical Weapons Found in Libya May Have Come from Iran

The U.S. suspect that an illegal cache of "hundreds of special artillery shells for chemical weapons" found in Libya were supplied to Muammar Qaddafi, according to a report from The Washington Post.

Comments | 462 Views

By Dino Grandoni

Nov 1, 2011

Israel Responds to the UNESCO Vote with More Settlements

Yesterday, the U.S. responded to the United Nations vote admitting Palestine to UNESCO by curbing funding for the organization--and today, Israel is issuing its own rejoinder.

Comments | 1,412 Views

By Dino Grandoni

Oct 31, 2011

The U.S. Cut Off Funding to UNESCO Because of Palestinian Vote

Palestine won a victory in its climb to full UN membership today when it was admitted as a full member to UNESCO, the organization's cultural body, in "a highly divisive move" opposed by the United States, Germany, and other nations, the AP is reporting.

Comments | 1,752 Views

By Erik Hayden

Oct 31, 2011

Humanity Greets the Symbolic 7th Billion Person

Last night, humanity greeted--by some calculations--its 7 billionth inhabitant, and one of the babies that the United Nations chose to represent the milestone was in Manila, Philippines.

Comments | 6,913 Views

By Uri Friedman

Oct 5, 2011

After Vetoes of Syrian Resolution, Diplomatic Theatrics at the U.N.

Russia and China are spinning why they won't condemn the Syrian regime

Comments | 862 Views

By John Hudson

Sep 27, 2011

By Uri Friedman

Sep 26, 2011

Turkish Melee: The U.N. Brawl You May Have Missed

A fight between U.N. and Turkish security officials left one guard hospitalized

Comments | 2,581 Views

By Ted Mann

Sep 25, 2011

Abbas Calls for Peace, But Old Obstacles Remain

The president calls for a 'Palestinian Spring' and Israel wants new talks without preconditions

Comments | 300 Views

By Adam Martin

Sep 23, 2011

Palestinians Elated as Abbas Submits U.N. Statehood Request

Going against U.S. pressure, President Mahmoud Abbas delivered the request to Ban Ki-moon

Comments | 626 Views

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