| |  | |  UN's Ban hails "unprecedented" action over Libya In a far-ranging interview, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon characterized as not only swift, but unprecedented, the recent consensus of the world body over imposition of a no-fly zone over Libya. "I don't believe this is the time for any political situation," he added. "First, they have to stop military fighting, and there should be a firm cease-fire; we have to monitor it, and we have to expand our humanitarian support for those people inside Libya as well as those streaming out of Libya." The Christian Science Monitor (3/23)     
|  |  | The [Libya] humanitarian situation is not only limited to the requirements in an emergency -- food aid, water supplies, medical supplies or shelter -- it's also protection of people who find themselves in the middle of cross-fire." UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Libya Rashid Khalikov. Click here for the full story. |
|  | "Compared to HIV/AIDS and Malaria, TB is by far the most prevalent infectious disease in Bangladesh. An estimated 65,000 people died from TB infections last year alone." UN Dispatch | |
- UN looks to get aid into Libya
United Nations officials are seeking to establish aid corridors inside Libya to get supplies to civilian populations trapped by fighting between government and rebel forces. Libyan authorities have said there is no major need for humanitarian assistance, but patchy reports from the field indicate widespread need for medical and food supplies. AlertNet/Reuters (3/23) - Nigeria seeks UN action on Cote d'Ivoire
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has called on the United Nations to take firmer action to counter the political crisis surrounding Cote d'Ivoire's incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo, urging a Security Council resolution to back the protection of civilians as the council has done for Libya. Jonathan warned that Cote d'Ivoire's violent political crisis poses a threat to regional security. AlertNet/Reuters (3/23) - WHO battles resistant TB
The UN World Health Organization is calling on world governments to commit more funds to step up the fight against the spread of tuberculosis, a multidrug-resistant form of which is expected to afflict more than 2 million people by 2015. Because current treatment methods are lengthy, and expensive, "many patients desist on their treatment and go on to develop resistant strains of the disease," said UNITAID, the organization's international facility for the purchase of TB and other drugs. AlertNet/Reuters (3/23) - FAO, WHO track tainted food from Fukushima plant
While some food products within Japan may be unsuitable for human consumption, there is no evidence that radiation leaked from the Fukushima nuclear plant has affected food in other countries, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization and WHO say. Japan has been struggling to contain the fallout from reactors and cooling systems damaged by the recent deadly tsunami. Bloomberg (3/23) - Problems mount at Japanese nuclear plant
Time is running out for Japanese technicians at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant as some of the most difficult and dangerous tasks lay ahead in a bid to halt the spread of contamination. There are also major hurdles ahead in terms of connecting the cooling system to the restored power supply as well as dealing with the presence salt that accumulated during efforts to cool the reactors with seawater. The New York Times (free registration) (3/23) - Gaming technology helps surgeries
Doctors at a Canadian hospital are field testing efforts to integrate gaming console programming into operating rooms as a means to decrease infections and minimize delays. Surgeons can use the technology to create and examine images such as MRIs right from the operating theater, instead of needing to leave the sterile area around the surgery. The Globe and Mail (Toronto)/The Canadian Press (3/21) - Protests resume in Syria
 Dozens of people were staging a sit-in in the southern Syrian city of Deraa a day after security forces shot and killed at least 15 people over protests that have become the biggest domestic challenge to the country's authoritarian rule in several decades. Many other demonstrators were believed to have been injured in the crackdown that human rights observers say has utilized not only live ammunition, but water cannons, tear gas and rubber bullets. The Guardian (London) (3/24), Google/The Associated Press (3/24) - Unity over Libya no-fly zone frays
The refusal by Turkey to participate in ongoing air strikes to enforce the UN-mandated no-fly zone over Libya -- chiefly, it says, out of fear of incidentally causing civilian deaths -- means that control of operations cannot be transferred to the 28-nation NATO alliance. Recently, India and South Africa joined China and Russia in calling for a cease-fire in what they see as military intervention that is not only disproportionate, but beyond the scope of the UN resolution authorizing the no-fly zone. Reuters (3/23), The Guardian (London) (3/23) - Drug violence bloodies Central America
Drug traffickers seeking to avoid crackdowns in Mexico and Colombia, and advances against smuggling routes in the Caribbean, are increasingly moving toward land routes in Central America. Authorities in the region are struggling to address a rise in deadly violence that has accompanied the shift. The New York Times (free registration) (3/23)
- Helping the UN and Global Partners achieve a TB-free world
Working with the UN and the Global Fund, we can stop tuberculosis, a disease that kills three people every minute. Help the Stop TB Partnership prevent unnecessary deaths from tuberculosis -- $20 will buy one full treatment for TB and can save a life. To donate through the UN Foundation, click here. Learn more about tuberculosis and the work of the Global Fund by watching A New Picture of Health. - Jennifer Potts named Director of Maternal-newborn mHealth Initiative
The mHealth Alliance announced Jennifer Potts, MPH, as Director of the Maternal-newborn mHealth Initiative. In this role, Potts will help the mHealth Alliance leverage the growing reach of wireless technologies in the developing world and reduce maternal and newborn mortality through the power of modern information and communications technologies, or ICT, especially mobile. Click here to read to full release from the mHealth Alliance. |
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