Massive attacks across Ukraine leave people dead and destroyed. Top stories of the day | Tuesday: Middle East, Ukraine, Belarus, cancer UN
The main news of the day in the UN and in the world: the UN called for $426 million to provide aid to Lebanon, Russian forces systematically torture Ukrainian prisoners of war, the visit of the head of the IAEA to Belarus, Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Escalation in the Middle East
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said today he was deeply concerned about the escalation of the conflict in Lebanon and the wider Middle East. He called for an immediate ceasefire. UN humanitarian agencies have called on the international community to provide $426 million for Lebanon to support the one million people forced to flee their homes by Israeli shelling. The UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) has warned that the escalation of fighting in the Middle East could leave the entire region in the grip of a humanitarian catastrophe.
Torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war
At least 589 civilians were killed and 2,685 injured across Ukraine between 1 June and 31 August 2024, a 45 per cent increase over the previous three months, according to a new report from the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR). The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in the country (HRMMU) also documented the deaths of 10 Ukrainian prisoners of war as a result of torture, poor conditions of detention or inadequate medical care. The report contains findings that Russian authorities are subjecting prisoners to widespread and systematic torture.
IAEA Chief in Belarus
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi arrived in Belarus on Tuesday for high-level meetings and a visit to the Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant. The head of the IAEA and a team of agency experts are to assess the situation at the NPP almost four years after it was connected to the grid, as well as progress in implementing the IAEA operational safety recommendations presented following the agency’s previous visit in 2021.
Breast Cancer
Breast Cancer Awareness Month began around the world on October 1. This is the most common type of cancer on the planet: according to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 2.3 million new cases are registered annually. In terms of the number of deaths among women, this type of cancer ranks second after cardiovascular diseases. Of all the regions of the planet, the incidence of breast cancer is highest in the United States and Western Europe.