UN - Top Stories

1. General Assembly approves $5.4 billion UN peacekeeping budget for 2025-2026

   The General Assembly on Monday approved a $5.38 billion budget for UN peacekeeping operations for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, down slightly from the previous year, as delegates wrapped up weeks of negotiations amid warnings about persistent funding challenges.

2. Gaza: Families deprived of the means for survival, humanitarians warn

   The United Nations on Tuesday reported that humanitarian operations in Gaza are facing escalating strain, as ongoing fuel shortages, access restrictions and military activity continue to undermine aid delivery and essential services. 

3. Sudan: UN warns of soaring displacement and looming floods

   UN humanitarians on Tuesday sounded the alarm over worsening humanitarian conditions in Sudan, as escalating violence continues to displace civilians and the rising risk of severe flooding during the current rainy season. 

4. Iran crisis: UN stays and delivers

   A clearer picture of needs across Iran is beginning to emerge after the conflict this month with Israel, which left hundreds dead, several hospitals hit and a spike in Afghan refugees returning home, the UN’s top official in Tehran said on Tuesday.

5. Children’s lives ‘turned upside down’ by wars across Middle East, North Africa, warns UNICEF

   Conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa in the last two years reportedly killed, maimed, or displaced over 12 million children across the region, according to the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).