WHO assembly opens under shadow of Ebola, hantavirus and funding cuts

18/05/2026 0

From Ebola outbreaks in Central Africa to the complex evacuation of passengers aboard a hantavirus-stricken cruise ship, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) opened its annual assembly on Monday as countries grapple with disease outbreaks, deep funding cuts and growing geopolitical tension.

Palestine: Killings, destruction and settler encroachment continues

18/05/2026 0

The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has reduced the scale of violence in the Gaza Strip but killings and destruction continue, while forced displacement in the occupied West Bank has reached a rate “unseen in decades”, a senior official with the UN human rights office, OHCHR, said on Monday in Geneva.

Ebola outbreak follows hunger and displacement crisis in DR Congo

18/05/2026 0

A day after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the new Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo an international emergency, top global disease transmission experts stressed that the chances of another global pandemic similar to the 2019 coronavirus emergency are increasing all the time.

1.1 billion people live in slums. Can they be housed in dignity?

17/05/2026 0

Ministers, mayors, international organisations, urban planners and experts are in Baku, Azerbaijan, to tackle one of the world’s fastest-growing challenges: the global housing crisis, which, according to the United Nations, affects nearly 2.8 billion people worldwide.

Sudan hunger crisis deepens as UN warns millions face acute food shortages

16/05/2026 0

Nearly 20 million people across Sudan are facing acute hunger and more than 800,000 children risk severe malnutrition this year, UN agencies warned on Friday, as civil war, mass displacement and collapsing food and health systems deepen one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises and push parts of the country closer to famine.