Europe has failed to make significant progress in reducing alcohol consumption. Top news of the day | Thursday: extreme heat, alcohol, Gaza, bird flu UN
The main news of the day in the UN and in the world: the UN proposes measures to protect the population from the effects of extreme heat, a “complete disaster” in Gaza, the level of alcohol consumption in the WHO European region, human infection with bird flu.
Extreme Heat
Billions of people are facing an “epidemic” of extreme heat and increasingly deadly heat waves with temperatures exceeding 50 degrees Celsius. This was stated by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres as he launched his new Call to Action to combat extreme heat. Extreme heat destroys economies, increases inequality, undermines the Sustainable Development Goals and kills people. The earth is becoming an increasingly hot and dangerous place to live. The Call to Action is the first of its kind to highlight the impacts of extreme heat, drawing on the experience of ten UN specialized agencies.
UN Secretary-General on the situation in Gaza
Answering questions from journalists during a briefing in New York, Secretary-General António Guterres reaffirmed his commitment to the two-state solution for Israel and Palestine, which, in accordance with UN resolutions, should bring peace to the Middle East. Guterres called the current situation in Gaza “an utter catastrophe,” which, in his opinion, arose for two reasons. “First,” he said, “we are dealing with a military campaign that is causing the highest level of death and destruction that I have seen as UN Secretary-General around the world, and secondly, this campaign is chaotic in nature.” António Guterres recalled the suffering of Palestinians and the attacks on humanitarian convoys.
Alcohol consumption in Europe
Europe has failed to make significant progress in reducing alcohol consumption. Residents of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) European Region, covering 53 countries in Europe and Central Asia, consume the highest amount of alcohol per capita in the world, according to the latest data. Only the Russian Federation, Türkiye and Ukraine have achieved significant reductions in alcohol consumption in recent years. These countries have taken drastic measures to increase excise taxes and limit the availability of alcoholic beverages. At the same time, in the EU countries there have been no significant changes in this area for more than ten years.
Bird flu
In recent months, there has been an increase in the number of cases of avian influenza among humans and the spread of the virus to new species of animals. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is calling for rapid efforts to combat the spread of the infection in the Asia-Pacific region. After a long period of minimal human infection, 13 new cases have been reported in Cambodia since the end of 2023, as well as cases in China and Vietnam. The situation is complicated by the emergence of a new variant of bird flu. New species of wild and domestic animals have begun to become infected, including marine mammals and, more recently, dairy cattle.