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International Criminal Court condemns US sanctions move

International Criminal Court The International Criminal Court Headquarters in The Hague, Netherlands.
INTERNATIONAL, 7 February 2025 Law and Crime Prevention - The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday condemned an executive order signed by United States President Donald Trump imposing punitive sanctions, countering that the order sought to “harm its independent and impartial judicial work.”
The court was established by the Rome Statute, negotiated within the UN – but it is a fully independent court set up to try the gravest crimes, including crimes against humanity. Read our explainer here.

Thursday’s executive order said the US government would “impose tangible and significant consequences” on ICC officials who work on investigations that threaten national security of the US and allies – including Israel.

Arrest warrants

The directive follows the decision by ICC judges to issue arrest warrants in November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant, which accuses them of alleged war crimes in relation to the conduct of the war with Hamas on Gaza.

The ICC also issued a warrant for a former Hamas commander, Mohammed Deif.

Neither the US nor Israel recognise the ICC’s jurisdiction; there are 125 states parties to the Rome Statute, which came into effect in 2002.

The US executive order says that the ICC actions against Israel and preliminary investigations against the US “set a dangerous precedent, directly endangering current and former” personnel.

The order details possible sanctions including the blocking of property and assets of ICC officials and barring them and their families from entering the US.

A bid to impose sanctions on the ICC by the US Congress in January prior to the change in administration, failed to garner enough support in the Senate.

ICC ‘stands firmly by its personnel’

“The ICC condemns the issuance by the US of an Executive Order seeking to impose sanctions on its officials and harm its independent and impartial judicial work,” said the court in a press release.

“The Court stands firmly by its personnel and pledges to continue providing justice and hope to millions of innocent victims of atrocities across the world, in all Situations before it.”

The court also called on all parties to the ICC together with civil society and other nations to “stand united for justice and fundamental human rights.”

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Palestinians’ rights matter, says UNRWA chief

© UNRWA Children in Gaza display the Palestinian flag following the ceasefire.
INTERNATIONAL, 7 February 2025 Humanitarian Aid - The head of UN Palestine refugee agency UNRWA underscored its commitment to assist a population whose rights “continue to be violated”.
In a social media post on Friday, Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said that “people in Gaza have undergone systematic dehumanization” since the war there began.

He emphasized that “Palestinians do matter, including those in Gaza. Their rights, lives and futures matter,” noting that “human rights cannot be applied selectively.”

His comments come in the wake of United States President Donald Trump’s proposal made earlier this week that the US should seize control of Gaza and permanently displace the entire Palestinian population – a move which the UN Secretary-General said would be an act of “ethnic cleansing.”

Two-State solution

In his statement, Mr. Lazzarini quoted UN chief António Guterres who has stressed that “peace requires ending the occupation, and the establishment of an independent Palestinian State, with Gaza as an integral part; a viable and sovereign Palestinian State side-by-side with Israel”. 

The UNRWA chief said his agency’s teams “are committed to continue providing critical assistance to Palestine refugees who need us most until empowered Palestinian institutions become a lasting and viable alternative.”

UNRWA continues to face huge challenges in carrying out its work.  Last month, two Israeli laws came into effect which ban UNRWA operations within its borders and forbid Israeli authorities from having any contact with the agency.

UNRWA was ordered to vacate its premises in East Jerusalem in the occupied West Bank, and visas for international staff were not renewed.  

Teams are still providing aid to communities in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, as well as in Gaza, where a ceasefire continues to hold following 15 months of war.

Significant increase in child fatalities in the West Bank

Meanwhile, nearly half of all Palestinian child fatalities in the West Bank over the past two decades occurred within the last two years, UN aid coordination office OCHA said in a humanitarian update published on Thursday.

Since January 2023, 224 children (218 boys and six girls) have been killed by Israeli forces or settlers, representing nearly half of the 468 child fatalities the agency has documented since the beginning of 2005.

They include 11 children killed since January of this year, all by Israeli forces, including six killed in airstrikes, and 10 killed in the northern governorates of the West Bank. 

“This is generally consistent with trends observed over the past two years,” OCHA said.

Unnecessary use of force

The agency noted that in 2023 and 2024, 64 per cent of Palestinian child fatalities in the West Bank were in the northern governorates. Most, 82 per cent, were shot by live ammunition, and 18 per cent were killed by airstrikes. 

Furthermore, more than 2,500 Palestinian children were injured during the same period, 28 per cent of them by live ammunition. 

So far this year, 89 Palestinian children were reported injured by Israeli forces or settlers, 48 per cent by live ammunition. 

“The significant number of children killed and injured with live ammunition fired by Israeli forces or in airstrikes raises concerns over unnecessary and excessive uses of force against children by Israeli forces during operations in the West Bank,” said OCHA.

More to follow… 

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US aid funding cuts put HIV prevention at risk, warns UNAIDS

© UNICEF Ethiopia/Bethelhem Ass HIV programmes, including in Ethiopia, are being impacted by US funding cuts.
INTERNATIONAL, 7 February 2025 Humanitarian Aid - The US pause in foreign assistance funding has created “confusion” in the vital work of community HIV prevention, despite a waiver issued for HIV/AIDS programmes, the UN agency to combat the still deadly disease said on Friday.

The waiver allows the continuation or resumption of “life-saving humanitarian assistance” including HIV treatment.

That means 20 million people living with HIV and whose medication is funded by the US can continue to receive treatment. “That’s 20 million out of the 30 million people living with HIV in the world,” said Christine Stegling, Deputy Executive Director of UNAIDS, at scheduled press briefing in Geneva.

Although it is expected that governments around the world will respond to the US announcement by supporting existing medication plans, “what we're really concerned about is that…governments will focus right now on keeping people on treatment rather than preventing new infections” she explained.

The HIV global response is heavily dependent on funds from the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR); it finances 70 per cent of the overall AIDS response.

Since its creation in 2003, PEPFAR has saved more than 26 million lives by investing in critical HIV prevention, treatment, care and support programmes in 55 countries, according to UNAIDS.

Nevertheless, “there is a lot of confusion on the ground especially at the community level on how the waiver will be implemented”, Ms. Stegling reported, pointing to disruption of treatment services.

Transport services and community health workers are also still impacted by the US funding pause, according to UNAIDS.

Drop-in centres at risk

The agency – which works with 70 countries - highlighted that the pause in US assistance to community programmes would lead to the closure of many drop-in health centres and the termination of outreach workers’ contracts, effectively depriving vulnerable groups of support.

The biggest interruption will be to community health services which have been crucial in the success of the fight against HIV, according to UNAIDS.

In Ethiopia, 5,000 public health worker contracts depend on US assistance. “All of these, in all regions of Ethiopia, have been terminated, as well as 10,000 data clerks, very important in Ethiopia”, added Ms. Stegling.

Critical services cut

Thousands of individuals - women, young girls, and priority populations at higher risk of sexually transmitted infections - will no longer be able to access critical services, such as condom distribution, HIV testing, antiretroviral treatment, pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV prevention, screenings for tuberculosis or support to address gender-based violence.

UNAIDS is most concerned about the long-term impact of the US funding freeze on prevention of new HIV infections as most services community-based, while national governments tend to focus on keeping people on treatment, rather than preventing new infections.

Fear over spike in AIDS deaths

If PEPFAR is not re-authorized between 2025 and 2029 and other resources are not found for the HIV response, “there would be a 400 per cent increase in AIDS death”, UNAIDS said. “That’s 6.3 million people, 6.3 million AIDS related deaths that will occur in the future”, Ms. Stegling told journalists.

UNAIDS says it will continue efforts to ensure that during the 90-day pause, all people affected by HIV continue to access life-saving services. 

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DR Congo: Rights chief warns crisis could worsen, without international action

United Nations Children gather in Goma, in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.
INTERNATIONAL, 7 February 2025 Peace and Security - UN human rights chief Volker Türk on Friday expressed profound concerns at the ongoing violent escalation in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) caused by the ongoing Rwanda-backed M23 offensive. “If nothing is done, the worst may be yet to come, for the people of the eastern DRC, but also beyond the country’s borders,” he told a Special Session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

Since 26 January, nearly 3,000 people have been killed and 2,880 injured in attacks by the M23 and their allies “with heavy weapons used in populated areas, and intense fighting against the armed forces of the DRC and their allies”, the High Commissioner said, as UN Member States weighed setting up a fact-finding mission to investigate extreme rights violations still being committed in the DRC provinces of North Kivu and South Kivu.

Hostilities have continued unabated in this mineral-rich region that has been unstable for decades amid a proliferation of armed groups, forcing hundreds of thousands to flee their homes. Fighting escalated in late January when majority-Tutsi M23 fighters seized control of parts of North Kivu, including areas near Goma, and advanced towards South Kivu and the eastern DRC’s second city of Bukavu.

A draft resolution circulated before the Special Session – the 37th since the Council was created in 2006 - also condemned Rwanda’s military support of the M23 armed group and called for both Rwanda and M23 to halt their advance and to allow lifesaving humanitarian access immediately.

Hospitals targeted

Addressing the emergency session, Mr. Türk noted that two hospitals in Goma had been bombed on 27 January, killing and injuring multiple patients, including women and children.

In a mass prison break at Muzenze Prison in Goma on the same day, at least 165 female inmates were reportedly raped and most were later killed in a fire under suspicious circumstances, he said, citing the authorities.

“I am horrified by the spread of sexual violence, which has been an appalling feature of this conflict for a long time. This is likely to worsen in the current circumstances,” the UN rights chief continued, adding that UN staff were now verifying multiple allegations of rape, gang rape and sexual slavery in eastern DRC’s conflict zones.

MONUSCO role

Echoing those concerns, Bintou Keita, Special Representative of the Secretary-General in the DRC and chief of UN peacekeeping mission (MONUSCO) told the Council that dead bodies still lie in the streets of Goma, which M23 fighters now control. The situation is “catastrophic”, she continued.

“While I am speaking, youth are being subjected to forced recruitments and human rights defenders, civil society actors and journalists have also become a major population at risk. MONUSCO continues to receive requests for individual protection from them as well as from judicial authorities under threat and at risk of reprisals from M23 in areas under its control.”

She issued a stark warning on the health risks linked to ongoing fighting, “especially the resurgence of cholera and the high risk of mpox, the sudden interruption of children's schooling, and the rise of conflict-related sexual violence and gender-based violence”.

According to latest reports, medical personnel face electricity cuts and lack fuel for their generators for basic services, including morgues, Ms. Keita continued. “I again call on international community to advocate for humanitarian assistance to reach Goma immediately.”

Countries respond

In response to the ongoing crisis, DRC’s Minister of Communications and Media, Patrick Muyaya Katembwe, spoke out against the continued logistical, military and financial support of countries including Rwanda “to armed groups operating on our territory”.

The minister maintained that Rwanda's support for the M23 had fuelled the violence in eastern DRC “for more than 30 years, exacerbating the war for reasons linked to the exploitation of the strategic mining resources of the Democratic Republic of Congo”.

Dismissing that claim, Ambassador James Ngango of Rwanda to the UN in Geneva, insisted that a large-scale attack against Rwanda was “imminent”.

He accused the “Kinshasa-backed coalition” of stockpiling a large number of weapons and military equipment near Rwanda’s border, mostly in or around Goma airport.

“These weapons include rockets, kamikaze drones, heavy artillery guns capable of shooting precisely within the Rwandan territory. The weapons were not turned at the theatre of operations against the M23, rather they were pointed directly at Rwanda,” he said.

‘We are all implicated’

Highlighting the need for international efforts to end the long-running conflict, Mr. Türk called for greater understanding of the political and economic background.

“The population in the eastern DRC is suffering terribly, while many of the products we consume or use, such as mobile phones, are created using minerals from the east of the country. We are all implicated.”

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Syria: Assad’s armed forces must face accountability, says rights probe

© UNOCHA/MohanadZayat More than two million displaced Syrians continue to live in temporary shelters.
INTERNATIONAL, 6 February 2025 Human Rights - Widespread pillaging and the destruction of property in Syria by all parties to the conflict have largely gone unpunished and likely amount to war crimes, top independent rights investigators reporting to the Human Rights Council maintained on Thursday.
The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria’s latest report follows the lightning operation led by mainly Hayat-Tahrir al-Sham fighters that toppled President Bashar al-Assad last December, ending the 13-year war that decimated the country and destabilised the entire region.

The violence is believed to have killed hundreds of thousands of Syrians and uprooted 15 million, the report’s authors said.

They noted that various armed groups – including former government troops and opposition fighters – carried out widescale damage to and pillaged Syrian property, particularly in areas that changed hands repeatedly during the fighting.

The Assad regime’s security forces targeted those perceived as political opponents, including demonstrators, activists, deserters and defectors, their families and communities, the report’s authors continued.

Persistent and repeated crimes

Vast areas of land where refugees and internally displaced people had relocated to were also pillaged and ransacked to the point of rendering entire neighbourhoods uninhabitable.

Forces stole household items, furniture and valuables, which they would sometimes sell at markets including some created specifically for this purpose.

They also dismantled roofs, doors, windows, iron rods, electrical wires and plumbing fixtures.

‘Systematic pillage’

“Systematic pillage was coordinated by members of the former Syrian army, such as the Fourth Division, and affiliated security forces and militias, who concluded business agreements with private contractors or merchants interested in acquiring looted items, including raw materials,” the Commissioners explained.

The wrongdoings could “amount to war crimes” if “carried out for private or personal gain”, they added.

Near-total impunity

To date, accountability for these crimes has not happened and the overwhelming majority of perpetrators have escaped any accountability. “The impunity for the war crime of pillage has been near total in Syria” except for a few convictions in areas held by the Turkey-backed Syrian National Army (SNA).

“The only known convictions that relate to pillage or property offenses concern female former members of ISIL [or Da’esh, the terrorist group]”, the report said, adding that none of the forces perpetrating pillage on a massive scale had been prosecuted.

Accountability and reform

Among their recommendations, the Commissioners urged renewed efforts to protect housing, land and property rights as paramount to the country’s efforts to rebuild after a decade of crippling conflict.

If the violations remain unaddressed, grievances and social tensions will be exacerbated, fuelling cycles of violence and displacement, the commission warned.

The investigators write that following the fall of the regime, on 8 December, the “devastating patterns” of pillage “must not be repeated”.

The report urges all military commanders and newly empowered leaders to prevent and punish any instances where property is stolen that was left behind by those newly displaced.

Independent experts

The Commissioners representing the top rights panel are appointed and mandated by the Geneva-based Human Rights Council. They are not UN staff, do not draw a salary, and serve in their individual capacity, independent of the UN Secretariat.

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Toxic air threatens children’s lives across East Asia and the Pacific, UNICEF warns

© UNICEF/Vlad Sokhin A kindergarten teacher helps a child with a face mask before outdoor activities in Nalaikh, Mongolia.
INTERNATIONAL, By Vibhu Mishra 6 February 2025 Health - More than 100 children under the age of five die every day in East Asia and the Pacific due to air pollution, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned in a new analysis released on Thursday, calling for urgent action to tackle the crisis.
The analysis underscores the devastating impact of toxic air on young lives, with air pollution now linked to nearly one in four deaths of under fives in the region.

Exposure begins in the womb, increasing risks of premature birth and low birth weight, and continues throughout childhood, impairing lung development, reducing cognitive function, and contributing to chronic diseases such as asthma and cardiovascular conditions.

“Every breath matters but for too many children every breath can bring harm,” said June Kunugi, UNICEF Regional Director for East Asia and the Pacific.

“The air they breathe, at a time when their bodies and minds are still developing, too often contains unhealthy levels of pollution that can comprise their growth, harm their lungs, and impair their cognitive development.”

Every child at risk

The report reveals that all 500 million children in the region live in countries with unhealthy air.

Over 325 million children are exposed to annual fine particulate matter (PM2.5) levels exceeding World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines by five times or more, while 373 million live in areas with dangerous levels of nitrogen dioxide, a gas emitted by vehicles and industrial processes.

Nearly half of PM2.5 pollution in the worst-affected countries comes from the burning of fossil fuels, biomass, and agricultural waste – also major contributors to climate change.

As extreme weather events worsen due to climate change, air pollution is expected to become an even greater threat, UNICEF warned.

Impacts beyond health

The impacts of the air pollution crisis go beyond health.

High pollution levels force school closures, disrupt learning, and increase medical expenses, straining already overwhelmed healthcare systems.

The World Bank estimates that in 2019, the economic cost of air pollution from PM2.5 in East Asia and the Pacific amounted to $2.5 trillion, or 9.3 percent of the region’s gross domestic product (GDP).

Students at a primary school in Bangkok wear masks during their morning lineup as air pollution levels soar.
© UNICEF/Patipat Janthong
Students at a primary school in Bangkok wear masks during their morning lineup as air pollution levels soar.

Urgent call for action

In response to the “silent killer,” UNICEF called on governments, businesses, healthcare professionals, parents, and educators to take immediate steps to reduce air pollution and protect children’s health.

Governments must enforce stronger environmental policies, transition to clean energy sources, and implement air quality standards aligned with WHO guidelines, alongside, businesses should adopt cleaner technologies, reduce emissions, and ensure their practices prioritize child safety.

Parents and educators also have a crucial role in raising awareness, advocating for cleaner environments, and empowering young people to take action, UNICEF highlighted.

Solutions exist

Furthermore, UNICEF is collaborating with governments, businesses, and communities on multiple initiatives to reduce children’s exposure to air pollution.

These include pushing for stronger environmental regulations, improving air quality monitoring by installing affordable sensors and implementing programmes to reduce household air pollution, such as cleaner cooking stoves and better ventilation.

The agency is also working to strengthen healthcare systems to better diagnose and treat pollution-related illnesses and is supporting young people to become clean air advocates, raising awareness, and pushing for stronger policies.

“Addressing air pollution will lead to enormous improvements in children’s health, education, and well-being, with ripple effects across entire societies and economies,” Ms. Kunugi underscored.

“Solutions exist, and our collective future depends on implementing them.”

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Guterres appeals for mediation to end crisis in eastern DR Congo

© WHO/Guerchom Ndebo Women sell food at a camp for displaced people north of Goma in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. (file)
INTERNATIONAL, 6 February 2025 Peace and Security - Now is the time to end the crisis in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the UN Secretary-General said on Thursday in a briefing to journalists in New York.
António Guterres made the “special appeal for peace” ahead of two major meetings to address the Rwandan-backed M23 rebel group’s brutal offensive across the region.

“We are at a pivotal moment and it is time to rally together for peace,” he said, speaking from the Security Council stakeout position.

“We need the active and constructive role of all players -- namely neighbouring countries, subregional organizations, the African Union and the United Nations.”

Thousands killed and displaced

Eastern DRC is rich in minerals and other natural resources and has been plagued by conflict for decades.  More than 100 armed groups reportedly operate in the area.

Fighting between the M23 and Congolese government forces escalated in January, with the rebels capturing the regional capital, Goma, before heading south towards the key city of Bukavu, capital of South Kivu province.

Thousands of people have been killed, including women and children, and hundreds of thousands have been forced from their homes. 

“We also see the continued threat by other armed groups, either Congolese or foreign,” said Mr. Guterres. “All of this is having an enormous human toll.” 

Countless violations and abuses

He highlighted the countless reports of human rights abuses, including sexual and gender-based violence, forced recruitment, and the disruption of lifesaving aid. 

The humanitarian situation in and around Goma is perilous, he said.

Hundreds of thousands are now on the move, with many of the previous sites hosting displaced people north of the city now looted, destroyed or abandoned. 

Furthermore, healthcare facilities are overwhelmed, and other basic services – including schools, water, electricity, phone lines and the internet – are severely limited. 

Potential wider threat

“Meanwhile, the conflict continues to rage in South Kivu and risks engulfing the entire region,” he warned.

The Secretary-General paid tribute to all those who have lost their lives, including peacekeepers with the UN Mission in the country, MONUSCO, and regional forces. 

He also expressed solidarity with the Congolese people “who find themselves yet again the victims of a seemingly endless cycle of violence.”

Learn about the UN’s work in the DRC here.

‘Silence the guns’

On Friday, leaders from the East African Community and the Southern African bloc SADC will take part in a Summit in Tanzania to address the crisis.

Mr. Guterres said the situation will also be “front and centre” at a Summit-level meeting of the African Union Peace and Security Council in Addis Ababa next week, which he will attend.

“As the Summit in Tanzania gets underway, and as I prepare to leave for Addis Ababa, my message is clear,” he told journalists.

“Silence the guns. Stop the escalation. Respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Uphold international human rights law and international humanitarian law.”

‘It is time for peace’

The UN chief affirmed that there is no military solution to the crisis. 

He said it is time for all signatories to the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the DRC and the region to honour their commitments. 

The 2013 document, signed by 11 countries, aimed to end the recurring cycles of conflict and violence in eastern DRC.

“It is time for mediation. It is time to end this crisis. It is time for peace. The stakes are too high,” he said. 

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It’s official: January was the warmest on record

© Unsplash/Craig Manners January 2025 was the warmest since records began, at 1.75°C above the pre-industrial level.
INTERNATIONAL, 6 February 2025 Climate and Environment - The world has just experienced the hottest January ever recorded, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Thursday, citing data crunched by UN partner the Copernicus Climate Service

Last month was 1.75 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial level and 0.79°C above the 1991-2020 average, despite expectations that the La Nina weather phenomenon might bring cooler temperatures.

In 2015, the international community agreed to try to limit average global temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

Surprise data

The January data was “surprising” even to climate change experts at Copernicus, the European climate change service, which noted that it was the 18th month in the last 19 where the global-average surface air temperature was more than 1.5°C above the pre-industrial level.

“January 2025 is another surprising month, continuing the record temperatures observed throughout the last two years, despite the development of La Niña conditions in the tropical Pacific and their temporary cooling effect on global temperatures,” said Samantha Burgess, Copernicus Strategic Lead for Climate.

For many in the northern hemisphere January 2025 will be remembered by “wetter-than-average conditions” over western Europe, as well as parts of Italy, Scandinavia and the Baltic countries, Copernicus said, highlighting “heavy precipitation” and flooding in some regions.

Regional variations

On the other hand, drier than average conditions were recorded in the northern UK and Ireland, eastern Spain and north of the Black Sea.

Beyond Europe, it was wetter than average in Alaska, Canada, central and eastern Russia, eastern Australia, southeastern Africa, and southern Brazil, with regions experiencing floods and associated damage.

But drier-than-average conditions took hold in southwestern United States and northern Mexico, northern Africa, the Middle East, across Central Asia and in eastern China as well as in much of southern Africa, southern South America and Australia.

Global temperature rise is primarily attributed to humans burning fossil fuels which have led to record concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Other factors are also key, including deforestation. 

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Gaza: 10,000 aid trucks reached enclave since ceasefire began

UN News A massive UN-led aid surge is underway to people in Gaza.
INTERNATIONAL, 6 February 2025 Humanitarian Aid - The humanitarian community’s plan to flood Gaza with lifesaving aid passed an important milestone on Thursday with the news that more than 10,000 relief lorries have entered the enclave since the ceasefire began on 19 January.
Announcing the development, the UN’s top aid official, Tom Fletcher, said that the trucks contained lifesaving food, medicine, and tents – all desperately needed by Gazans after more than 15 months of constant Israeli bombardment.

The UN emergency relief chief’s comments came as he prepared to join an aid convoy crossing into northern Gaza.

In recent days, he has held “practical discussions” with the Israeli authorities in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem “to keep lifesaving UN aid moving into Gaza at scale”. This includes COGAT - the Israeli body responsible for approving requests to deliver aid into Gaza and the West Bank – and the Israel Foreign Ministry.

Clearing rubble to live

According to the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, more than half a million people have returned to north Gaza since the ceasefire began. Needs for food, water, sanitation, healthcare and tents are enormous, with some returning to former homes with shovels to clear the rubble, according to the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF.

In an update, the UN World Health Organization (WHO), said that it had received 63 trucks of medical supplies from aid partners to replenish its three warehouses in Gaza.

In addition, more than 100 sick and injured patients have also been evacuated to Egypt for urgent medical treatment since the temporary ceasefire came into effect, while OCHA noted that primary and secondary health services are being provided throughout the Strip.

Five ambulances entered Gaza to strengthen emergency response capacity on Tuesday, OCHA said in an update.

Food production boosted

The UN aid coordination agency noted that across Gaza, 22 bakeries supported by the World Food Programme (WFP) are now operational.

The WFP has also provided nutrient supplements to more than 80,000 children and pregnant or breastfeeding women across Gaza, since the ceasefire took effect and UNICEF has continued distributing nutrition support for infants.

“Humanitarian partners have screened more than 30,000 children under the age of five for malnutrition since the ceasefire took effect. Of those screened, 1,150 cases of acute malnutrition have been identified, including 230 cases of severe acute malnutrition,” OCHA said.

In addition, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) distributed nearly 100 metric tons of animal feed to support herders in Deir al Balah and Khan Younis, benefiting hundreds of people working in the agricultural sector.

To sustain learning activities across the Strip, education partners have established three new temporary learning spaces yesterday in Gaza, Rafah and Khan Younis governorates, to 200 school-aged children.

Ceasefire push 

The aid build-up came as the Secretary-General on Wednesday pushed for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and the release of all remaining hostages in the enclave, while strongly rejecting the suggestion that Gazans should be resettled outside their homeland.

“In the search for solutions, we must not make the problem worse. It is vital to stay true to the bedrock of international law. It is essential to avoid any form of ethnic cleansing," Guterres told  the UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, which met to set out its programme of work for the year. “We must reaffirm the two-State solution,” he said.

Underlining the Secretary-General’s comments, the UN High Commissioner for human rights, Volker Türk, said that “any deportation or forced transfer of persons without legal basis is strictly forbidden”.

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Reusable rockets, air taxis and ‘autonomous autos’ are the future: WIPO

© Unsplash/Timo Wielink An autonomous vehicle on the streets of San Francisco.
INTERNATIONAL, 6 February 2025 Economic Development - Air taxis, “autonomous autos” and reusable rockets are just some of the future transport solutions that inventors all over the world are striving to make a reality, while patents for combustion engines are “flatlining”, the UN intellectual property agency (WIPO) said on Thursday.
Latest information gleaned from patent filings featuring in WIPO’s Technology Trends report on the Future of Transportation, offers a tempting glimpse of a not-so distant and enticing future where there’s less traffic pollution, fewer snarl-ups and air travel to the other side of the world – made possible in just a few hours.

“Analysis of patents shows that inventors are working hard to ensure that how we get around tomorrow is cleaner and better than today,” maintained WIPO, which said that patent filings for future transportation solutions have grown by 700 per cent over the last two decades, from 15,000 inventions in 2003 to 120,000 in 2023.

“Autonomous ships and smart ports are revolutionizing transportation at sea; electric vehicles, high-speed trains and smart traffic management systems are driving change on land,” WIPO insisted.

“Vertical take-off and landing aircraft are offering new ways to travel by air, while reusable rockets and satellite technology are pushing what is possible beyond the earth’s atmosphere.”

Driving this trend is the recognition that transportation accounts for more than one-third of CO2 emissions globally, which has encouraged the development of sustainable technologies that reduce the environmental impact of transportation.

These include the adoption of electrified propulsion, the shift to renewable energy sources and the promotion of public and shared transport options.

Digitalization is also revolutionizing the transportation sector, WIPO insists, pointing to the rise of autonomous driving, “which is projected to generate from $300 billion to $400 billion in revenue by 2035”.

Patently true

According to the Geneva-based UN agency, intellectual property supports this kind of groundbreaking innovation – such as wireless charging for electric vehicles - by encouraging investment in research and development.

Competition is fierce as firms jostle for access to rare earth minerals, while AI is also taking centre stage, WIPO says.

“The report also shows flatlining growth in patenting activity for legacy products like the internal combustion engine and other fossil fuel-based systems” such as catalytic converters, the UN agency noted.

Its data indicated that more than 1.1 million inventions have reshaped transportation since 2000, introducing the prospect of sustainable alternatives to fossil fuel-based systems such as renewable energy cells, air taxis and self-piloting cargo ships.

In the driver’s seat of this travel transformation are China, Japan, the US, South Korea and Germany, which represent the world’s top inventors. Land transportation patents dominate global filings, at 3.5 times more than for air, sea and space combined. The US, meanwhile, has filed the most international patents.

The largest area of growth in patenting is related to sustainable propulsion – such as batteries for electric vehicles or hydrogen fuel cells – which represent efforts to ensure that people and goods are moved around in a “cleaner, more climate-friendly fashion”.

Experts with an eye on imaginative transport solutions for the future say that AI is also poised to play a key role. They point to the rise of autonomous driving, although infrastructure has not adapted swiftly enough for such vehicles to take over, the WIPO report notes.

Drone dilemma

The scarcity of minerals, meanwhile, will determine whether the world can massively adopt electric cars – vehicles that report co-author Christopher Harrison says may not be miracle solutions for private owners.

“Having these rare and limited raw earth minerals in an electric vehicle for personal use that’s been utilized only a few per cent of the day is not an effective use of those tools,” he told journalists.

In the air sector, drones will continue their sky-high ascension.

“I would not like to look up at a sky full of drones delivering pizzas or a pair of gloves to my house and causing visual and noise pollution,” said Robert Garbett, the founder of Drone Major Group, cited in the WIPO report.

“If a delivery is to a remote location that is really hard to get to, people will be more likely to accept it as a beneficial solution,” he added, citing emergency medicine as an example.

According to WIPO, transport patent growth in China has been strong given its recent dominance of the electric vehicle market. But other countries have also contributed with strong patent filings activity including Sweden, Italy, India and Canada.

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