UN committee warns France over Kanak self-determination rights in New Caledonia
The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) has warned that France risks undermin...
Latvia, Colombia, Liberia, Congo, and Bahrain—have been elected to the United Nations Security Council in an uncontested vote.
Each will serve a two-year term starting January 1, 2026, replacing Algeria, Guyana, Sierra Leone, South Korea, and Slovenia.
Latvia joins the Council for the first time in its history. Foreign Minister Baiba Braže said the country’s past under Soviet rule gives it a unique perspective on freedom, peace, and support for Ukraine. “We know the fragility of peace,” she said after the vote on Tuesday, June 3.
Liberia returns to the Council for the first time since 1961. Deputy Foreign Minister Deweh Gray said the country will champion Africa’s common position and address global issues including conflict, inequality, and climate change.
Congo, now entering its third term, promised to bring lessons from its long-running conflicts and experience with UN peacekeeping. Foreign Minister Thérèse Wagner said the vote reflects Africa’s unity and rightful role in shaping global peace efforts.
Colombia will push for human rights and environmental protection. Ambassador Leonor Zalabata called for global unity and said Colombia will continue its work “in harmony with nature.”
Bahrain, which last served on the Council in 1998, will represent the Arab world.
The UN Security Council, made up of 15 members, holds primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security.
The U.S military said it carried out retaliatory strikes on Iran on Thursday (7 May). Meanwhile, Iran's Joint Military Command accused the U.S. of breaching the ceasefire, by striking an Iranian oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz and launching attacks on several Iranian cities.
The U.S. and Iran exchanged fire in and around the Strait of Hormuz, though both sides signalled they did not want escalation. The clashes come as Washington awaits Tehran’s response to a proposed deal to end the war while leaving key disputes, such as Iran’s nuclear programme, unresolved for now.
Singapore has isolated and is testing two of its residents who travelled aboard a cruise ship linked to a deadly hantavirus outbreak, the Communicable Diseases Agency (CDA) said on Thursday.
Efforts to end the U.S.-Iran war appeared to stall as the two sides exchanged fire in and around the Strait of Hormuz. A reported CIA assessment suggested Tehran could withstand a U.S. naval blockade for months despite mounting sanctions and renewed Gulf attacks.
Ukraine’s military said it struck a Russian Karakurt-class small missile carrier in the Caspian Sea near Russia’s Dagestan region on Thursday. The extent of the damage is still being assessed, according to Kyiv.
The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) has warned that France risks undermining the self-determination rights of the Kanak Indigenous People in New Caledonia amid proposed political and constitutional reforms.
Somalia is facing a severe malnutrition crisis and urgently needs additional humanitarian funding to prevent conditions deteriorating further, the World Food Programme has warned.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer vowed to carry on as leader on Friday (8 May) after his ruling Labour Party suffered heavy losses in local elections. Labour lost hundreds of councillors across the country, as some figures in the party said he should stand down.
Indonesian rescue teams have located two Singaporeans who went missing after Mount Dukono erupted on Friday (8 May) on the island of Halmahera, though authorities say it remains unclear whether they are alive.
Health authorities are monitoring a widening hantavirus alert after new suspected cases emerged in Spain and on a remote South Atlantic island, days after an outbreak on a cruise ship left three people dead and several others infected.
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