The Conference on Disarmament this morning adopted its annual report to the General Assembly and closed its 2008 substantive session after hearing statements from Finland, Pakistan, Viet Nam, France speaking on behalf of the European Union, Switzerland, Colombia speaking on behalf of the Group of…

Elena Ponomareva-Piquier, Chief of the Press and External Relations Section of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired the briefing which was also attended by Spokespersons of the World Health Organization, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the Office…

The Conference on Disarmament this morning adopted its annual report to the General Assembly and closed the work of its 2008 substantive session, which officially ends this Friday, 12 September. In concluding remarks at its final meeting, Ambassador German Mundarain Hernandez of Venezuela,…

Concludes Interactive Dialogue on Children and Armed Conflict The Human Rights Council this afternoon heard presentations by the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people and the Special Rapporteur on the adverse effects of the illicit…

The Human Rights Council this morning opened its ninth regular session by hearing the new High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, in her first public address say that her priority would not be the ranking of various human rights, but rather their implementation on the ground in a way that…

The Human Rights Council this afternoon held a drawing of lots to determine the order of review of States to be considered at the fourth, fifth and sixth sessions of the Universal Periodic Review Working Groups and to select the troikas for the third, fourth and fifth Universal Periodic Review…

The Group of Governmental Experts of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW) continued its efforts last week to "negotiate a proposal to address urgently the humanitarian impact of cluster munitions, while striking a balance between military and humanitarian considerations", a mandate…

Elena Ponomareva-Piquier, Chief of the Press and External Relations Section of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired the briefing which was also attended by Spokespersons for the United Nations Children's Fund, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the United…

Navanethem Pillay to Make First Address to Council as High Commissioner for Human Rights The Human Rights Council will hold its ninth regular session from 8 to 26 September at the Palais des Nations to discuss issues relating to the promotion and protection of human rights around the world. The…

Aharon Leshno Yaar, the new Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations Office at Geneva, today presented his credentials to Sergei Ordzhonikidze, the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva. Prior to his appointment to Geneva, Mr. Leshno Yaar had been serving, since…