Middle East

• October 15, 2021

The Taliban break promises to women in Afghanistan; Mali moving toward combatant reintegration; the Kafkaesque legal work representing Gitmo detainees. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is gathered from UN press briefings, PassBlue reporting and other sources. This week, frozen assets and aid funding …

Africa, Asia, Middle East, Security Council, This Week @UN, UN Diplomats, UN Special Envoys, US-UN Relations

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What to Expect From This Year’s UN General Assembly, So Far

Stéphanie Fillion

• September 7, 2021

This year’s United Nations General Assembly could make or break the future of in-person meetings at the gathering in New York City. After a year of carefully negotiating, adapting and crafting health guidelines, UNGA organizers are hoping to avoid a repeat of last year’s first, almost entirely virtual, gathering. But the threat of the …

Africa, Asia, General Assembly, Latin America, Middle East, Secretary-General, Security Council, UNGA76, US-UN Relations

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SECURITY COUNCIL PRESIDENCY

In August, India Aims to Use Its Security Council Seat to Show Why It Should Be Permanent

Stéphanie Fillion

• August 2, 2021

The presidency of the Security Council is always a high time for a country’s diplomacy, but for India right now, it’s more than that. In August, the country is going to try to show the world why it deserves a permanent seat in the United Nations’ most important body. According to T. S. Tirumurti, …

General Assembly, Middle East, Security Council Presidency, Terrorism, UN Diplomats, UN Peacekeeping

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A Year Later, a Sex-Video Inquiry Tied to the UN Mission in Israel Remains a Mystery

Maurizio Guerrero

• June 3, 2021

Almost a year ago, the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization released a statement characterizing as “abhorrent” a video in which a man and a woman appeared to be having sex in the back seat of a four-wheel drive vehicle with UN logos on it. The video’s content, apparently shot on a major road in …

Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Middle East, Secretary-General, UN Peacekeeping

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WORLDVIEWS

Her Personal Mission: Helping to Release Yemen’s Prisoners in Its Continuing War

Laila Lutf Al-Thawr

• June 1, 2021

CAIRO — “They dug a hole in the ground, threw us in and shot at us randomly. I only survived because a body laid on top of me. Al Qaeda has my friends — please help me save them.” With those words, 13-year-old Adel barged into my office in Sana, Yemen, in 2015, and …

Gender Violence, Middle East, WORLDVIEWS

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A Now-Retired UN Force Commander From Norway Double-Billed for Expenses

Dulcie Leimbach

• April 27, 2021

Maj. Gen. Kristin Lund of Norway double-billed her government and the United Nations for moving expenses, according to a new report from The Norwegian Business Daily (Dagens Naeringsliv/DN). Lund was the first woman force commander for the UN, holding the post at its peacekeeping mission in Cyprus. That stint was followed by her heading …

Middle East, Security Council, UN Careers

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THIS WEEK @UN

Mass Rapes in Tigray; Burma Sinks Further; Climate, Climate, Climate

Ivana Ramirez

• April 23, 2021

The Joe Biden climate-fest; rape as a weapon of war in Tigray; Burma slides further downhill. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is gathered from UN press briefings, PassBlue reporting and other sources. Laura Kirkpatrick, who manages our Facebook page, created an informal poll based …

Climate and Environment, General Assembly, Middle East, Myanmar, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN, US-UN Relations

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Former UN Mediators Aim to Make Mideast Peace Work Home-Grown

Dali ten Hove

• April 21, 2021

A high-powered cast of former senior United Nations mediators from the Middle East and North Africa have founded a conflict-resolution organization, the International Center for Dialogue Initiatives, or ICDI, to mitigate the failures of foreign peace brokers and enable home-grown peacemakers to become more influential in their region, the founders say. Jamal Benomar, a …

Libya, Middle East, Syria

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WORLDVIEWS

The UN-Led Peace Process for Syria Has Failed. Women Must Be Part of the Next One.

Mouna Ghanem

• March 8, 2021

COPENHAGEN — In her book, “The Second Sex,” Simone de Beauvoir argued that one is not born but rather becomes a woman. De Beauvoir emphasized that destiny is not a cosmic force but a human choice, a result of circumstances and culture. It follows that circumstances and social determinants dictate a woman’s role in …

Gender Violence, Middle East, Security Council, US Foreign Relations, WORLDVIEWS

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US Reacts to Alarming New Information From UN Agency on Iran’s Nuclear Activities

Stephanie Liechtenstein

• February 25, 2021

VIENNA — The International Atomic Energy Agency reported in a confidential document, seen by PassBlue, that Iran has added 17.6 kilograms of uranium, enriched up to 20 percent, to its total stockpile. The enrichment process, which had been announced by Iran in January, is occurring at Iran’s underground Fordow nuclear facility. The 20 percent …

Middle East, Nuclear Disarmament

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The UN Nuclear Watchdog Reaches a Temporary Inspection Plan With Iran

Stephanie Liechtenstein

• February 21, 2021

VIENNA — Iran has told the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations nuclear watchdog, that it will significantly limit inspections of its nuclear facilities as of Feb. 23. Rafael Mariano Grossi, the director-general of the Vienna-based agency, traveled to Tehran over the weekend to meet with Iranian officials to try to preserve at …

Middle East, Nuclear Disarmament, Security Council, US Foreign Relations

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THIS WEEK @UN

The US Rejoins the Paris Agreement; Climate-Related Conflicts; Intrigue With a UN Envoy

Ivana Ramirez

• February 19, 2021

The United States jumps back into the Paris Agreement; the Security Council tackles climate-security risks (for now); a new UN envoy’s letter from the past returns to haunt him. You are reading This Week @UN, a summary of the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is gathered from the UN spokesperson’s press briefings, …

Africa, Climate and Environment, General Assembly, Middle East, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN

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SECURITY COUNCIL PRESIDENCY

Russia Brings Human Contact Back to the UN Security Council

Stéphanie Fillion

• October 4, 2020

From the very moment that the United Nations decided to work online, after the pandemic hit, Russia has been the strongest and loudest opponent of going virtual at the world body. For its Security Council presidency, in October, Russia finally got its way: the Council will be meeting once again in its chamber, sitting …

Africa, Middle East, Security Council Presidency

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As Iran Allows the UN Access to Suspected Nuclear Sites, Its Uranium Stockpile Is Growing

Stephanie Liechtenstein

• September 7, 2020

VIENNA — The International Atomic Energy Agency has just reported that Iran’s stockpile of low-enriched uranium continues to grow. The stockpile now exceeds the limit set in the 2015 nuclear deal tenfold. According to the confidential quarterly IAEA report, distributed to member states on Sept. 4 and seen by PassBlue, as of Aug. 25, …

Middle East, Nuclear Disarmament, Security Council

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THIS WEEK @UN

Beijing+25; ICC Prosecutor Sanctioned by US; Niger Leads the Security Council

Dulcie Leimbach

• September 5, 2020

The 25th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing; the United States sanctions the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court; dissecting the failed ambitions of the US effort to force the UN mission in Lebanon to be more aggressive. Greetings from This Week @UN, our summary highlighting the most important news on the …

Middle East, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN, US-UN Relations

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THIS WEEK @UN

The Surreal Saga of Gitmo; US Rejoins the Human Rights Council; the Taliban Break Promises

Anna Bianca Roach

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Middle East

The Surreal Saga of Gitmo; US Rejoins the Human Rights Council; the Taliban Break Promises

What to Expect From This Year’s UN General Assembly, So Far

In August, India Aims to Use Its Security Council Seat to Show Why It Should Be Permanent

A Year Later, a Sex-Video Inquiry Tied to the UN Mission in Israel Remains a Mystery

Her Personal Mission: Helping to Release Yemen’s Prisoners in Its Continuing War

A Now-Retired UN Force Commander From Norway Double-Billed for Expenses

Mass Rapes in Tigray; Burma Sinks Further; Climate, Climate, Climate

Former UN Mediators Aim to Make Mideast Peace Work Home-Grown

The UN-Led Peace Process for Syria Has Failed. Women Must Be Part of the Next One.

US Reacts to Alarming New Information From UN Agency on Iran’s Nuclear Activities

The UN Nuclear Watchdog Reaches a Temporary Inspection Plan With Iran

The US Rejoins the Paris Agreement; Climate-Related Conflicts; Intrigue With a UN Envoy

Russia Brings Human Contact Back to the UN Security Council

As Iran Allows the UN Access to Suspected Nuclear Sites, Its Uranium Stockpile Is Growing

Beijing+25; ICC Prosecutor Sanctioned by US; Niger Leads the Security Council

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Moves at UN Signal That the Search for a New Tech Envoy May Be Underway

Afghan Students Reach Kyrgyzstan After a Risky Journey

Critics Wonder If a New $10 Million UN-Philippines Human-Rights Project Will Work

Dahlias for Your Darling, and a Lavender Latte While You Wait

UN-Scripted, Passblue's UN podcast series

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