News headlines in December 2024, page 3

Companies and governments need to take more responsibility for keeping individuals safe from the potential misuse of artificial intelligence tools, according to AI expert Ivana Bartoletti.

Fresh details of the Israeli airstrike on Sana’a airport, which occurred as Tedros Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) was preparing to fly out of the country, have been provided by Julien Harneis, the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Yemen.

In a message commemorating Friday’s International Day of Epidemic Preparedness, UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged all nations to invest in resilience and equity to make a healthier and safer world for all.

Health challenges in northwest Syria have escalated due to harsh winter conditions, exacerbating the vulnerability of displaced populations, the UN World Health Organization (WHO)-led Health Cluster reported on Friday.

Newborns and infants in Gaza have reportedly died of hypothermia, deaths described by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) as preventable. The news comes amid continued Israeli bombardments and an expected further drop in temperatures.

The impact of armed conflicts on children around the world reached devastating and likely record levels in 2024, according to an assessment by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

Offering Haiti’s young people alternatives to gang life and strengthening local institutions are key for the Caribbean nation to “reclaim its position as a symbol of hope,” according to a senior UN official in the country.

Civilian casualties and injuries continue to be reported across Gaza due to the ongoing hostilities, with most families unable to afford basic food as the humanitarian situation deteriorates, a UN spokesperson reported on Thursday. In Lebanon, the UN peacekeeping mission in the south of the country urged both Israel and Lebanon to prevent any actions that could threaten the fragile ceasefire.

On the sombre twentieth anniversary of the Indian Ocean tsunami, a disaster that claimed over 230,000 lives across 14 nations, UN officials on Thursday called for a renewed global commitment to safeguard future generations from similar catastrophes.

The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), said in a social media post on Thursday that it had received credible reports that dozens of civilians, including women and children, were killed in airstrikes by Pakistan’s military forces in Paktika province, on 24 December.