The storm departed the country in the early hours, travelling west over the South China Sea
weather3 hours ago
Unable to find a way out of the mess in Syria, in terms of insufficient funds and the lack of political will from world leaders, the world body’s subsidiary organisations have said in a joint statement that catastrophe looms large if nothing is done to stall the decaying state of affairs. The heads of five major UN agencies — the WHO, Unicef, Ocha, WFP and UNHCR — in a rare joint appeal to the international community have called for making efforts to, what they said, ending ‘cruelty and carnage’ in the war-torn country.
The fact that they went out of their jurisdictional ambits to invoke an issue in a pure political language, in an endeavour to address world conscience, speaks of the urgency at hand. In no simple words, they said that they are asking for more than monetary assistance, and were categorical in saying that until and unless world leaders used their personal influence and intervened in a passionate manner, the crisis will keep on multiplying manifold. The UN says at least 70,000 people have been killed and more than a million displaced since the conflict began two years ago. But that does not take into account a million or two more people who are internally displaced, and living a miserable life under the shadows and disease and destruction. The agencies rightly criticised what they described as “an insufficient sense of urgency among the governments and parties that could put a stop to the carnage in Syria.” This is so because the aid groups’ earlier warnings and appeals fell on deaf ears and hundreds and thousands more were forced in recent weeks to flee to Jordan and safe havens in Turkey and Lebanon.
The new SOS from the world body underlines the irresistible phenomenon that providing food, shelter and other basic amenities is becoming a tough task, and input from the donors hasn’t been enough. The horrifying scenario is that of aid agencies walking away because of insecurity and funding difficulties, and a nation in civil-strife left on its own to deal with upheavals. This shouldn’t be allowed to happen. It’s high time the UN and the world governments responded in cash and kind to the urgency, and a civilisation saved from annihilation.
The storm departed the country in the early hours, travelling west over the South China Sea
weather3 hours ago
Skies are forecast to be partly cloudy in general and cloudy at times
weather4 hours ago
Reflecting on his milestone, K.P. Mohammed is grateful for the opportunities the country has provided
uae5 hours ago
Will this asteroid pose any threat to our home planet? Here's what experts say
space5 hours ago
It will require participants to download an app and register before completing 50 challenges throughout the month of November
uae5 hours ago
Indian residents in the UAE share their tips for an eco-friendly celebration
lifestyle5 hours ago
Add a dash of sweet to your festivities with our round-up of homemade desserts
food6 hours ago
Fireworks, food, family and fun are on the menu
lifestyle6 hours ago