Viewpoint by Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S. Davies* NEW YORK (IDN) — As the war in Ukraine has dragged on for nine months and a cold winter is setting in, people all over the world are calling for a Christmas truce, harkening back to the inspirational Christmas Truce of 1914. In the midst of […]
Bahrain Dialogue Forum Urges Action for Peaceful Coexistence
By Katsuhiro Asagiri Manama (IDN) — “Our world today is facing unprecedented challenges where conflicts are multiplying, and people whose identities are defined by religion, culture, or ethnicity continue to be besieged by hatred. Social and cultural divides are deepening; tribalism, ethnic violence, Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, xenophobia, hate speech and ultra-nationalism are in full swing.” said […]
An Attack on Journalists is an Attack on Democracy, Emphasises a UN Conference
A Special Report by Aurora Weiss VIENNA (IDN) — United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), and the Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs (BMEIA) joined in early November to mark the 10th anniversary of the UN Plan of Action on […]
Drone Warfare: The Battlefield of the Future
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — The deployment of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)—more commonly known as drones—largely by US and Russian military forces has highlighted a weapon that is being increasingly deployed in war zones in the Middle East, Asia, Africa and most recently Ukraine.
A UN Security Council Committee Meets in India to Commit to Fight Digital Terror
By Aar Jay NEW YORK | NEW DELHI (IDN) — In a two-day meeting of the UN Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee in India, member states have decided to counter the use of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes. The non-binding document, known as The Delhi Declaration, was adopted in the Indian capital on October […]
US-Saudi Alliance in Jeopardy Threatening Multi-Billion Dollar Arms Sales
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — The longstanding US-Saudi alliance—political, economic and military—which dates back to 1931, is in deep trouble. US President Joe Biden has warned Saudi Arabia that it would face “consequences” after OPEC Plus, the oil cartel led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, announced plans for a cut in oil production—an […]
Landlocked Lesotho Votes A Revolution for Prosperity
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — A recently organized party led by a millionaire diamond magnate looks set to win Lesotho’s parliamentary election, having secured enough for a simple majority, according to preliminary results from the election commission. By Sunday afternoon, results from the October 7 vote were in for 49 […]
UN Expert Calls for Unconditional Support to Victims of Fukushima Disaster
By Jaya Ramachandran GENEVA (IDN) — The Japanese government should give unqualified, human rights and needs-based support to the more than 30,000 people still displaced 11 years after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster. That approach must also apply to reconstruction in affected areas, said Cecilia Jiménez-Damary, UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally […]
Warmongering Biggest Threat to Achieving SDGs
By Kalinga Seneviratne SYDNEY (IDN) — Welcome to our 13th issue of Sustainable Development Observer, which focuses on warmongering and sustainable development goals, prompted by an event I covered for IDN-InDepthNews from Kazakhstan—the 7th Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions—a gathering of over 300 religious leaders representing the Islamic, Christian, Buddhist, Hindu and […]
Genocide Suspect Rebuffs International Court Trying Hate Speech Crimes
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — A Rwandan businessman and alleged genocidaire failed to appear in court, where he is being tried on charges of masterminding and financing the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Felicien Kabuga, 87, is accused of aiding and abetting hit squads who slaughtered ethnic Tutsis and with using a […]