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January 2007

Eiffel Tower Going Dark

Mark Leon Goldberg - January 31, 2007 - 8:43pm

To draw attention to the highly anticipated report of the Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change, on-going in Paris, the French government announced that it will turn off the 336 projectors that illuminate the Eiffel Tower at night. The lights will be off for a full five minutes tomorrow evening in advance of the report's release on Friday.

For an excellent insiders' account of the Panel's race to finish the report by Friday's deadline, read this dispatch by AP science writer Seth Borenstein.

Quick Hit: Learn about Darfur

Peter Daou - January 31, 2007 - 7:34pm

BBC News has a short rundown of the history of the conflict in Darfur, Q&A: Sudan's Darfur conflict.

For in-depth coverage from the BBC, click here.

Nobel laureate leads mission to Darfur

Jessica Valenti - January 31, 2007 - 12:55pm

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Jody Williams, 1997 Nobel Peace Prize winner and anti-landmine campaigner, will lead a high-level UN team to investigate the human rights situation in Darfur.

The other mission members are United Nations Human Rights Council president and Mexican Ambassador Luis Alfonso de Alba; Mart Nutt, an Estonian Parliament Member and Member of the Council of Europe's European Commission Against Racism and Intolerance; Bertrand Ramcharan, the former Acting and Deputy UN High Commissioner for Human Rights; Patrice Tonda, Gabon's Permanent Representative to the International Organizations in Geneva; and Indonesian Ambassador Marakim Wibisono, President of the 61st session of the Commission on Human Rights. More

Also see the Associated Press.

Explain yourself Bayefsky

Mark Leon Goldberg - January 30, 2007 - 4:53pm

To mark the UN's Holocaust Memorial day, Anne Bayefsky writes in the National Review Online that "the U.N. provides sustenance for the Iranian genocidal threat, which is directed at Israel now, and America next." We then learn from Bayefsky that the UN is "driven by expansionist greed" and serves as a "mouthpiece of Iranian nihilism." Finally, she criticizes the International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohammed elBaredei for having the temerity to suggest that threatening military strikes against Iran may inspire the regime to accelerate its nuclear program. Hence, writes Bayefsky, "Genocide awaits us if we wait for the U.N."

UN marks Holocaust Day

Jessica Valenti - January 30, 2007 - 1:01pm

The United Nations marked the annual International Day of Commemoration yesterday, in remembrance of the victims of the Holocaust.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said, "The Holocaust was a unique and undeniable tragedy...The work of remembrance pays tribute to those who perished. But it also plays a vital role in our efforts to stem the tide of human cruelty. It keeps us vigilant for new outbreaks of anti-Semitism and other forms of intolerance. And it is an essential response to those misguided individuals who claim that the Holocaust never happened, or has been exaggerated." More

Where Credit is Due

Mark Leon Goldberg - January 29, 2007 - 4:08pm

Eric Shawn, the Fox News correspondent and author of (brace yourself) The U.N. Exposed: How the United Nations Sabotages America's Security and Fails the World, writes a shockingly even-handed dispatch from Kinshasa, where he traveled with the Secretary General this weekend.

From Shawn's report:

Ban says the DRC needs "peace and stability"

Peter Daou - January 29, 2007 - 12:52pm

After a two day visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the country's problems can only be solved by lasting peace and stability.

"By creating such an environment on the political, economic and social levels, the United Nations and the international community will be encouraged to continue working for prosperity and development with the Congolese government," Ban said. More

UNICEF opens first mother-and-child health centre in Indonesia

Peter Daou - January 26, 2007 - 7:43pm

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"The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has completed construction of the first of the 227 mother-and-child health centres it is building in Indonesia's tsunami-devastated Aceh province and earthquake-hit Nias Island." More

UNEP announces 10 finalists for SEED awards

Jessica Valenti - January 26, 2007 - 12:55pm

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The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) announced the 10 finalists for one of five Supporting Entrepreneurs for Environment and Development (Seed) Awards yesterday.

Achim Steiner, Executive Director of UNEP, said, "As we meet in Davos and Nairobi to discuss scaling up sustainable solutions, the Seed Initiative is again offering inspiring examples of local level entrepreneurs in all parts of the world who are setting up new partnerships and using 'global/local' networks to address sustainable development challenges with a business-case approach."

The winners of the Seed Awards will be announced in May 2007. More

UNICEF reports on Nothing But Nets

Jessica Valenti - January 25, 2007 - 9:20pm


UNICEF brings us an insider's look at the Nothing But Nets event that took place earlier this month in New York.

Nothing But Nets is a global grassroots campaign to save lives by preventing malaria--the leading killer of children in Africa. Click here to learn how you can get involved.