News headlines in May 2024, page 5

UN agencies on Tuesday reiterated their call for an urgent ceasefire and humanitarian access in Gaza following Israeli air strikes on Sunday that hit a camp for displaced Palestinians in Rafah, killing 45 people, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health.

International financing is the fuel for sustainable development, but small island States are “running on empty” - drowning in debt and rising sea levels due to climate change and through no fault of their own.

The United Nations continues to assist authorities in Papua New Guinea (PNG) with search and rescue efforts four days after the massive landslide in Enga province, where some 2,000 people are feared dead and accessing survivors remains a challenge.

The communities of thousands of tiny Pacific islands are the frontline gamechangers tackling the climate crisis, and a hub based in Micronesia now hosts more than a dozen UN agencies that together are helping address some of their most pressing needs as they battle existential threats like rising sea levels.

Amid further reported bombardment of Gaza overnight into Tuesday, UN and partner organizations have expressed deep concern over the “inhuman” detention of suspected Palestinian fighters in the enclave by Israeli authorities, alleging treatment so poor that some had to have limbs amputated “due to prolonged shackling”.

ANTIGUA, May 27 (IPS) - The once-in-a-decade SIDS Conference opened in Antigua and Barbuda today, with a clear message: the world already knows the challenges that SIDS face—now it’s time for action.“This year has been the hottest in history in practically every corner of the globe, foretelling severe impacts on our ecosystems and starkly underscoring the urgency of our predicament. We are gathered here not merely to reiterate our challenges, but to demand and enact solutions,” declared Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Brown at the opening of the Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States on May 27.

NORMANDY, France, May 27 (IPS) - On a clear, chilly evening, the words of African American poet Maya Angelou filled the air in the centre of Rouen, as a vivid light show played across the façade of the French town’s imposing cathedral, and as a bright full moon rose in the sky.

NAIROBI, May 27 (IPS) - Carbon trading has gained growing popularity on the African continent and is considered by many governments as a viable way to achieve their climate targets while building communities. IPS takes a look at what's behind the carbon market.

NEW YORK, May 27 (IPS) - A widely respected humanitarian law expert who has resisted using the term "genocide" for Israel's killing of tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza—a word used "sparingly" in the international human rights movement, he noted—said he has concluded a genocide is indeed taking place, evidenced particularly by Israel's blocking of humanitarian aid.

BLANTYRE, Malawi, May 27 (IPS) - Malawi is increasingly pitching carbon trading as a source of revenue it needs to bolster the economy, which is suffering from foreign exchange shortages caused by a large trade imbalance and being buffeted by several shocks, including the climate crisis.