Sahel countries withdraw from International Criminal Court
24/9/2025: The decision of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger to withdraw from the International Criminal Court will jeopardize access to justice for victims of atrocity crimes, warns Human Rights Watch. Increasingly repressive military juntas in the three countries have been engaged in armed conflicts with Islamist armed groups.
Source: Human Rights Watch
Seven of nine planetary boundaries now breached
24/9/2025: A new report from the Planetary Boundaries Science Lab reveals that 7 of the 9 critical Earth system boundaries have now been breached, one more than last year. For the first time, Ocean Acidification has transgressed its Planetary Boundary.
Source: Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research
Breakthrough in cost of HIV-prevention jab for poorer countries
24/9/2025: Cheap supplies of a groundbreaking twice-yearly HIV prevention jab will be available in many poorer countries within two years, funders have promised. Last year there were 1.3m new HIV infections globally and experts have said that lenacapavir could have a transformative effect on that figure.
Source: The Guardian
AI must not decide humanity’s fate, UN chief warns Security Council
24/9/2025: The UN Secretary-General has expressed concern that decisions on nuclear weapons “must rest with humans – not machines.” He proposes a legally binding instrument to effect a ban on lethal autonomous weapons systems operating without human control.
Source: UN News
ICC charges ex-Philippine President Duterte with crimes against humanity
23/9/2025: Having been held in a detention facility in the Netherlands since March, Duterte has now been formally charged with the murders of at least 76 people during his so-called “war on drugs”. The court must first consider whether the former president is fit to stand trial.
Source: Al Jazeera
UN at 80: a mixed legacy of highs and lows
23/9/2025: As the UN commemorates its 80th anniversary, the celebrations are muted. Failure in creating a world of peace and security contrasts with the UN's performance as a massive global relief organization, providing humanitarian aid to millions of people caught in worldwide conflicts.
Source: Inter Press Service
UN report slams global corporate capture of food systems
23/9/2025: A relatively small number of corporations have amassed so much power over the world’s food systems that “a small group of people shape food systems in a way that serves the ultimate goal of profit maximization instead of the public good”. These are the conclusions from the annual report by the UN-Rapporteur on the Right to Food, to be presented to the UN General Assembly.
Source: Corporate Euro Observatory
Look to Myanmar for a terrifying vision of authoritarian rule
21/9/2025: The brutality and repression in Myanmar highlight the failings of a dysfunctional world order. Unless we do better, this is the future.
Source: The Guardian
Electing the next UN Secretary-General: a test for multilateralism
21/9/2025: The election of the UN’s 10th secretary-general, in 2026, for the 2027-2031 term, is one of the most consequential in its history. The choice is not only about who leads the UN. It is also about whether multilateralism is reinvented or fades, critical for the rules-based world order.
Source: PassBlue
Momentum builds in national school meals programmes
19/9/2025: At least 466 million children now receive school meals through government-led programmes worldwide - an increase of 20% over the past four years. A significant share of new commitments are coming from low income countries where the needs are highest.
Source: World Food Programme