Tag Archives: United Nations
UN chemical report inconclusive in assigning blame
A United Nations report’s authors did not assign blame for the attack on the outskirts of Damascus, the details it documented included the large size and particular shape of the munitions and the precise direction from which two of them had been fired. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/17/world/europe/syria-united-nations.html?hpw The main point of the report was to establish whether chemical […]
Putin tries to warn americans of war pretext pitfalls
The potential strike by the United States against Syria, despite strong opposition from many countries and major political and religious leaders, including the pope, will result in more innocent victims and escalation, potentially spreading the conflict far beyond Syria’s borders. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/12/opinion/putin-plea-for-caution-from-russia-on-syria.html?pagewanted=all A strike would increase violence and unleash a new wave of terrorism. It could […]
UN tries to forestall US aggression in Syria
Ban Ki-moon, the secretary general of the United Nations, cut short a European trip and rushed home on Thursday to prepare for a weekend briefing by his team of chemical weapons inspectors on the ground in Syria. He implored President Obama to refrain from a threatened military strike and to allow the procedures enshrined in […]
Peacekeepers replaced with The United Nations force in Africa
The United Nations has threatened to forcibly disarm rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo, an early test of the robust new mandate for the multinational peacekeeping contingent that includes going on the offensive there.In an uncharacteristically stern warning on Tuesday, the United Nations ordered individuals near the eastern city of Goma to turn in […]
UN: In Syria crimes against humanity are the rule
The conflict in Syria has caused the world’s worst refugee crisis for 20 years, with an average of 6,000 people fleeing every day in 2013. 5,000 people are being killed each month. 6.8 million Syrians needed urgent help. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23332527 Nearly 1.8 million refugees registered with the UN had fled Syria since the beginning of the […]
Russia, UN to copy NSA surveillance techniques
Two members of Russia’s Parliament have cited Mr. Snowden’s leaks about N.S.A. spying as arguments to compel global Internet companies like Google and Microsoft to comply more closely with Russian rules on personal data storage. These rules, rights groups say, would open a back door for Russian law enforcement into services like Gmail. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/15/business/global/nsa-leaks-stir-plans-in-russia-to-control-net.html?pagewanted=all “We […]
UN expert calls for killer robot ban
A United Nations expert called Thursday for a global moratorium on the testing, production and use of armed robots that can select and kill targets without human command. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/31/world/europe/united-nations-armed-robots.html?ref=world “War without reflection is mechanical slaughter. A decision to allow machines to be deployed to kill human beings worldwide, whatever weapons they use, deserves a collective […]
UN, “Let them eat bugs”
The report by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization says that eating insects could help boost nutrition. Wasps, beetles and other insects are currently “underutilised” as food for people. “Insects are everywhere and they reproduce quickly, and they have high growth and feed conversion rates and a low environmental footprint,” The authors point out that […]
UN whistleblower goes undefended
An American whose protracted legal battle with the United Nations ended a nearly 30-year career there, cited an American law that requires such withholding if the secretary of state determines that the United Nations is failing to protect whistle-blowers from retaliation. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/09/world/aggrieved-un-whistle-blower-seeks-withholding-of-us-funds.html?ref=world It has cast an unflattering light on UN internal protections, put in place […]
Dirty Babylon 