The draconian measures against homosexuality, under which repeat offenders could face the death penalty, have been described as among the world’s harshest.

Refugee agency said estimates of a million people fleeing by October ‘may be conservative’; crisis has ‘potential to destabilise entire region and beyond, as much as Ukraine does in Europe’.

In a joint statement early Sunday, the US and Saudi Arabia called for an extension of the current truce which expires at 9:45pm local time on Monday.

Ukraine’s military intelligence has said that Russian forces would strike the Zaporizhzhia plant and then report a radioactive leak, with the aim of disrupting a looming Ukrainian counteroffensive.

The UN’s head of peacekeeping operations said that a divided Security Council was hampering the work of the so-called Blue Helmet forces.

Online transactions that increased during pandemic are driving transformation, with the support of the UN-backed ‘Better Than Cash Alliance’.

The group pledged to provide U$21 billion ‘to address the worsening humanitarian crises this year’, but the United Nations puts the need closer to US$55 billion.

Jolie, whose kids Shiloh and Zahara have worn pieces from her archive, has just unveiled her new sustainable fashion project, Atelier Jolie – here’s what we know so far

Brunei and Thailand have also put their names to the bid to add the intricately embroidered blouse to the UN’s prestigious intangible cultural heritage list. ‘It’s not only meant for one culture’, a Malaysian kebaya seller said.

The Congolese president is expected to visit Beijing this month, not long after the US vice-president, first lady and several Biden cabinet members travelled to Africa.

The warrants are under seal so it is not clear who is targeted or for what crimes specifically, but on its website the court says the focus is alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes.

Multiple truce deals have been declared, without effect, since fighting erupted on April 15. Hundreds have been killed, and thousands wounded, sparking multiple warnings of a ‘catastrophic’ humanitarian crisis.

Moscow has ordered families with children and elderly to temporarily evacuate a slew of Russian-held areas in southern Ukraine, including the town near Europe’s largest nuclear plant.

‘We must act now to prevent the threat of a severe nuclear accident,’ warned International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi.

South Kivu Governor Théo Ngwabidje visited the area and posted on Twitter that the provincial government had dispatched supplies. Congo’s president has declared a national day of mourning on Monday.

Amir Khan Mutaqi is barred by sanctions from leaving Afghanistan but was granted an exemption for a trip to Islamabad to meet his neighbouring counterpart.

Order signed laying the groundwork for potential sanctions as intelligence chief warns conflict is unlikely to end soon.

Mainland China, which accounts for about half of the world’s total annual coal consumption, needs to do more in terms of climate commitments, a special envoy from Europe’s largest economy says.

The United Nations pressed Sudan’s warring factions to guarantee safe passage of humanitarian aid after six trucks were looted and air strikes in the capital undermined a supposed truce.

Beijing backed a resolution last week that described the conflict as ‘aggression by the Russian Federation’.

Several UN nations – including Russia, Venezuela, Iran – raised concern over police violence in France amid protests of new law that raises pension age from 62 to 64.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres’ announcement came shortly after rival Sudanese forces announced the extension of a truce they have largely violated.

UN chief Antonio Guterres will meet representatives from about 25 countries and international organisations to discuss what it considers to be the world’s biggest humanitarian crisis.

The conflict has triggered a rush to extract diplomats and citizens by air or road via Port Sudan on the Red Sea, about 800km from Khartoum.

Singapore said the UNHCHR’s statement ‘glossed over the serious harms that drugs cause’ to its society.