UN-Nairobi/A. Hadji Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks to the media in Nairobi. Top news of the day | Monday: Sudan, hantavirus, Kenya, Mongolia UN
The main news of the day in the UN and in the world: drone strikes in Sudan, nine cases of hantavirus infection, the UN Secretary General in Nairobi, a roadmap to strengthen cooperation between Mongolia and the Office of Human Rights.
Drone attacks in Sudan
Drone strikes were responsible for more than 80 percent of civilian deaths in Sudan in the first four months of 2026. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said Monday, warning that the increased use of drones could make the conflict even deadlier. Drone strikes in Sudan killed at least 880 civilians between January and April, according to the UN Human Rights Office. Most civilian deaths associated with drone attacks were reported in the Kordofan region.
Hantavirus Outbreak
The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday that there are now nine known cases of hantavirus infection, seven of which have been laboratory confirmed, including the most recent case in France. Three deaths were recorded among the sick. The WHO said that all passengers remaining on board the cruise ship where an outbreak of infection was detected will leave the ship off the coast of Tenerife by the end of the day. They are transported from the Canary Islands on special flights. According to the organization, more than 30 crew members will remain on the ship. They will continue on to Rotterdam.
UN Chief in Nairobi
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday attended the opening of new office buildings at the UN complex in Nairobi, as well as the groundbreaking ceremony for the conference center. In his speech, he called these projects a symbol of a “new stage” of the UN presence in Africa and confirmation of the continent’s growing role in world politics. According to the Secretary-General, in two years, world leaders will gather at this site to discuss key international issues. The new conference complex will include an amphitheater and premises with a total capacity of up to nine thousand people.
UN-Mongolian cooperation
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk arrived yesterday on a two-day visit to the capital of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar. On Sunday, the UN’s chief human rights defender and Foreign Minister Batmunkhin Battsetseg signed a roadmap to strengthen cooperation between Mongolia and the UN human rights office. Summing up the trip at a press conference in Ulaanbaatar on Monday, Turk said that the road map provides for the establishment of a UN Regional Center for Human Rights Training and Research in the Mongolian capital.