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Week in Review 18 April 2026

Middle East conflict: UN announces peace envoy, humanitarian task force This week marked three years since war erupted in Sudan -- a “grim and chastening anniversary,” to quote UN Humanitarian Affairs Coordinator chief Tom Fletcher. Addressing an international conference in Berlin to support the country, he described Sudan as “an atrocities laboratory” while UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for an end to hostilities. We continued to cover developments in the Middle East, where a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon is underway.  Our latest live page reported on the UN chief welcoming Iran’s announcement that the Strait of Hormuz was open once again. The maritime corridor is critical to global trade in fuel, fertilizer and gas and its effective closure has impacted people across the globe. The week ended with another milestone as the International Court of Justice turned 80.  At the commemoration, the Secretary-General urged countries to strengthen international law and recommit to peaceful settlement of disputes.

World failing Sudan as war enters a fourth year, UN relief chief warns Sudan remains the world’ s largest humanitarian and displacement crisis, UN agencies and partners said on Tuesday, calling for an end to the war between rival militaries on the eve of the three-year mark.  Read more Humanitarian Aid Deadly Russian strikes on Ukrainians ‘simply trying to live their lives’ must stop, says senior UN official The latest wave of Russian attacks on Ukrainian civilians in Dnipro, Kyiv and Odesa, which killed and injured scores of civilians, was roundly condemned by Matthias Schmale, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in the country. Read more Peace and Security More than 38,000 women and girls killed in Gaza war, UN gender equality agency reports The war in Gaza has inflicted a far higher toll on women and girls than in previous conflicts in the Palestinian enclave, with more than 38,000 killed by Israeli air bombardment and land military operations since Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel sparked the war in October 2023, UN Women said on Friday. Read more Women Middle East conflict chokes end of supply chain as lights go out in the Pacific For Pacific Island countries, the Middle East crisis is not a distant geopolitical event. It is already showing up in higher fuel prices, electricity uncertainty and fears that communities sitting at the far end of global supply chains could be pushed into deeper economic insecurity. Read more Economic Development Fleeing Sudan's war, refugees rebuild their lives in Uganda On the outskirts of the Ugandan town of Biale, tents are scattered along dirt roads that give way to open fields. The Kriandongo camp sits between a shattered past and a life tentatively being rebuilt. Here, the story does not end with fleeing war. Another phase begins, one where days are measured not in hours, but in the weight of loss and the effort to carry on. Read more Migrants and Refugees ‘Now is the moment to invest’: Syria needs global backing, says UN expert Syria has made “remarkable progress” on transitional justice within the past year, raising hopes for accountability and recovery after more than a decade of civil conflict. Read more Law and Crime Prevention Why the ‘beautiful game’ is joining the fight for a better world The world of football met the world of diplomacy this week as Brazilian World Cup legend Zico touched down at UN Headquarters in New York.  Read more Culture and Education Youth shape the road to 2030, call for urgent action on sustainable development As we confront increasingly complex and interconnected crises - from climate change to the AI revolution - the leadership and voices of young people have never been more vital, says the UN.  Read more SDGs Record number of Rohingya refugees died at sea in 2025: UNHCR In 2025, nearly 900 Rohingya refugees were reported missing or dead in the Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal, making it the deadliest year on record in South and Southeast Asia, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said on Friday. Read more Peace and Security The Epstein files: Rights experts demand accountability, call for probe into trafficking allegations UN independent human rights experts called on Thursday for justice and accountability for young women and girls who were trafficked systematically as part of allegations contained in the so-called Epstein files. Read more Human Rights ‘Slaughtered like goats’: Despair and abandonment in South Sudan Senior UN officials painted a sorry picture of South Sudan on Friday at the Security Council, describing political turmoil, rising violence, hunger and disease, amid budget cuts that are limiting the ability of the UN peacekeeping mission to protect civilians. Read more Peace and Security UN peacekeeping missions under strain as funding cuts and new threats grow From election support in the Central African Republic to patrols in the disputed Abyei region, UN peacekeepers are operating in increasingly volatile environments – but shrinking resources and new threats, including drone warfare, are testing their ability to keep communities safe. Read more Peace and Security New food alert platform helps humanitarians combat hunger The UN World Food Programme (WFP) released its next-generation platform on Thursday known as HungerMap Live, a digital monitoring and intelligence site that integrates food security data with predictive modelling to help fight hunger in more than 50 countries. Read more Economic Development Youth shape the road to 2030, call for urgent action on sustainable development As we confront increasingly complex and interconnected crises - from climate change to the AI revolution - the leadership and voices of young people have never been more vital, says the UN.  Read more SDGs ‘Now is the moment to invest’: Syria needs global backing, says UN expert Syria has made “remarkable progress” on transitional justice within the past year, raising hopes for accountability and recovery after more than a decade of civil conflict. Read more Law and Crime Prevention Strength in numbers: Developing countries band together as Iran war batters global economy Developing countries are banking on having a stronger voice in debt negotiations, following the launch of a new country-led borrowing initiative on Wednesday on the margins of the annual IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings. Read more Economic Development Africa: Nearly 20 million measles deaths averted since 2000 Measles vaccinations have saved nearly 20 million lives in Africa since the year 2000 and more than 500 million children were protected through routine immunisation, but the continent remains offtrack in the fight against vaccine-preventable diseases.  Read more Health Yemenis are ‘hanging by a thread’ top aid official warns Security Council Yemen must not be drawn into the escalating conflict in the Middle East, the Security Council heard on Tuesday, stressing the need for de-escalation, political progress and urgent humanitarian funding for beleaguered civilians battered by years of grinding war.  Read more Peace and Security UNESCO grants ‘enhanced protection’ to cultural heritage sites in the Middle East   Since the Middle East war started on 28 February, several sites of major cultural significance have come under attack in Israel, Iran and Lebanon. Ensuring their protection is the task of the UN agency for education, science and culture, UNESCO.  Read more Culture and Education

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