Outside UN in Geneva, empty chairs symbolise hostages taken by Hamas
Geneva, Switzerland Reuters Demonstrators set up more than 200 empty chairs and strollers outside the United Nations in Geneva on Thursday to draw attention to the plight of Israeli hostages abducted by Hamas and to call for their release. Israel says more than 1,400 people were killed and more than 220 hostage taken after Hamas […]
Russia tortured some Ukrainian victims to death, UN inquiry says
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters Russian occupiers tortured Ukrainians so brutally that some of their victims died, and forced families to listen as they raped women next door, members of a UN-mandated investigative body said on Monday, in their latest findings from the field. Erik Møse, chair of the Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, told the UN Human […]
Israel occupation makes Palestinian territories “open-air prison” – UN expert
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters A United Nations expert on Tuesday said Israel had transformed the occupied Palestinian territories into an “open-air prison” through widespread detentions of Palestinians, an assertion swiftly dismissed by Israel. Damaged streets are seen after Israeli army’s withdrawal from the Jenin camp, in Jenin, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, on 5th July,2023. PICTURE: Reuters/Yosri […]
Robots say they won’t steal jobs, rebel against humans
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters Robots presented at an AI forum said on Friday they expected to increase in number and help solve global problems, and would not steal humans’ jobs or rebel against us. But, in the world’s first human-robot press conference, they gave mixed responses on whether they should submit to stricter regulation. One of nine […]
UN recruits robots in strive to meet global development goals
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters Dozens of robots, including several humanoid ones, will take centre stage at a conference organised by the UN technology agency in Switzerland this week to showcase their potential to help it reach a series of increasingly improbable global goals. Set in 2015, the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals aim to improve human life […]
International donors pledge $US1.5 billion in Sudan aid
Geneva, Switzerland Reuters International donors made pledges on Monday of close to $US1.5 billion in aid for Sudan and the surrounding region, about half of estimated needs for a deepening humanitarian crisis that has driven some 2.2 million people from their homes. The conflict between Sudan’s army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has turned the […]
Threatened by war, Ukrainian paintings find safe haven in Switzerland
Geneva, Switzerland Reuters When Russia sent troops into Ukraine a year ago, the director of the Kyiv National Art Gallery had only one thing on his mind: the safety of the paintings. As air sirens blared, Yuri Vakulenko packed a bag and headed to the gallery, where he would spend the next 66 days living […]
Balloon tank parked outside UN to protest Ukraine, other bombings
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters A life-sized tank made out of colourful balloons was parked outside the United Nations office in Geneva, Switzerland, on Tuesday to protest the bombing and shelling of civilians in urban areas of Ukraine and elsewhere. A life-size tank, entirely made with inflatable balloons of biodegradable latex, is pictured in front of the United Nations […]
Final talks on UN biodiversity pact open in shadow of Ukraine
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters Hundreds of negotiators arrived in the Swiss city of Geneva on Monday for final UN talks on an ambitious pact that aims to halt and reverse the loss of habitats for endangered species ahead of a summit in China later this year. The in-person talks are the first time negotiators from some 164 […]
UN chief urges action on ‘killer robots’ as Geneva talks open
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on Monday for new rules covering the use of autonomous weapons as a key meeting on the issue opened in Geneva. Negotiators at the UN talks have for eight years been discussing limits on lethal autonomous weapons, or LAWS, which are fully machine-controlled and rely on new […]