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- Ban urges universal support for ICC
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is urging countries around the world to join the International Criminal Court and expand its jurisdiction. "[The court] must have universal support. Only then will perpetrators have no place to hide," Ban said of those who commit war crimes. Member states are meeting in Kampala to review the ICC's progress and discuss a motion to give the court power to prosecute crimes related to state aggression. AlertNet.org/Reuters (5/31) , Google/Agence France-Presse (5/31)         | - G8 draft calls for renewed focus, action on MDGs
Improving performance on meeting Millennium Development Goals related to maternal and child health will feature prominently on the agenda when the G8 meets June 25 and 26, according to a draft text released in advance of the summit. The global economic crisis has jeopardized 2015 goals on poverty, disease, education, environment and maternal and child mortality rates, the draft warns. G8 representatives will also discuss creation of a legal framework for joint action on climate change. AlertNet.org/Reuters (5/31) - Famine fears grow as virus destroys East Africa's cassava crops
The brown streak virus is spreading rapidly across East Africa, infecting cassava crops and raising worries of a global pandemic that could leave as many as 800 million people in Africa, Asia and South America without their traditional source of high calorie food. Scientists warn efforts to address the virus' impact in Africa alone could require billions of dollars in food aid to help feed starving populations and prevent mass migrations. The New York Times (free registration) (5/31) Top five news stories selected by UN Wire readers in the past week. - Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.
- Hurricanes could complicate Gulf cleanup
The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicts that the start of hurricane season may bring winds that will spread the oil slick from the BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico to the coasts of Mississippi and Alabama. The stormy season, which begins today and ends at the end of November, could interrupt BP's new effort to stop the leak after the failure of the "top kill" campaign. BP will sever a riser pipe in hopes of replacing it with a cap that will help funnel oil to a surface ship. Bloomberg Businessweek (6/1) , Los Angeles Times (6/1) - Pakistani engineers race to drain lake created by landslide
A lake formed unexpectedly by a landslide in northeastern Pakistan could trigger a 65-foot-high wave if its banks fail -- an outcome that Pakistani army engineers are racing to prevent. Technicians have cut a "spillway" channel through part of the lake dam in order to allow it to train back into the Hunza River, from whose waters the lake was formed in January. Pakistani officials described the prospect of a collapse in the dam as remote but serious. The Miami Herald/McClatchy-Tribune News Service (free registration) (5/28) - "Danish text" gummed up UN Copenhagen climate conference
A letter written by former UN climate chief Yvo de Boer just days after the UN climate conference in Copenhagen reveals that de Boer blames Danish Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen for the failure of the session. In the letter, de Boer says that Danish climate chief Connie Hedegaard backed down from a disagreement with Rasmussen over the thrust of Rasmussen's draft "Danish text" -- which preferred the U.S. and other Western countries over developing countries. A leak of the Danish text frustrated more than 150 countries that had yet to see it and thwarted the progress of the conference. The Guardian (London) (5/31)  | - China limits torture in police work
Chinese authorities have issued the country's first guidelines on admissible prosecution evidence in a bid to end the use of violence in obtaining confessions. Under the new regulations, police officers will be required to testify in court if any accusations of torture are raised. The move follows public outrage over an admission by authorities torture was used to elicit a murder confession from a farmer, who spent 10 years in jail before the supposed victim was found alive. The New York Times (free registration) (5/31) - IAEA: Iran is ramping up nuclear program
Inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed that Iran has enough nuclear material to produce two nuclear weapons, provided that Iran continues its enrichment efforts. The IAEA further reported that a device used to extract plutonium to develop a nuclear bomb had gone missing from a laboratory in Tehran. These reports, released in advance of a meeting by the UN Security Council to debate a fourth round of sanctions against Iran boosted the U.S. case for sanctions, will likely boost the U.S. case for sanctions in the wake of a deal reached by Iran, Brazil and Turkey that would see some -- but not all -- of Iran's low-enriched uranium sent abroad for enrichment. The New York Times (free registration) (5/31) , Los Angeles Times (5/31) - Independence will not end South Sudan's challenges
 South Sudan's upcoming January vote for independence is widely expected to create Africa's newest country and begin dismantling artificial borders created as a result of Europe's colonial history, but will not address the myriad problems facing the area. Hunger, lack of infrastructure, frequent outbreak of disease and continued violence between ethnic groups are among the many issues that will keep an independent South Sudan almost completely reliant on foreign aid for survival. The Globe and Mail (Toronto) (5/31)
- Who is best equipped to handle massive environmental disasters like the Gulf oil spill?
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