Evaluating the EU’s Position and Challenges Ahead for the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference

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25 February 2024

WFP pleads for aid access in Sudan, amid reports of starvation

WFP described the situation as dire, noting that almost 18 million people across the country are currently facing acute hunger.

An estimated five million are experiencing emergency levels of hunger due to conflict in areas such as Khartoum, Darfur, and Kordofan.

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Obstacles to aid delivery

“The situation in Sudan today is nothing short of catastrophic,” said Eddie Rowe, WFP Sudan Representative and Country Director.

“WFP has food in Sudan, but lack of humanitarian access and other unnecessary hurdles are slowing operations and preventing us from getting vital aid to the people who most urgently need our support.”

The Sudanese Army and a rival military known as the Rapid Security Forces (RSF) have been locked in battle since last April. WFP is urging them to provide immediate security guarantees so that it can reach millions in need.

Starvation reports

The UN agency has repeatedly warned of a looming hunger catastrophe in Sudan, where it has assisted more than 6.5 million people since war broke out.

“Yet life-saving assistance is not reaching those who need it the most, and we are already receiving reports of people dying of starvation,” Mr. Rowe said.

WFP is only able to regularly deliver food aid to one in 10 people facing emergency levels of hunger in conflict hotspots, including Khartoum, Darfur, Kordofan, and most recently Gezira.

To reach these areas, humanitarian convoys must be allowed to cross frontlines which is “becoming nearly impossible” due to security threats, enforced roadblocks and demands for fees and taxation, the agency said.

A school and an Internally Displaced People’s (IDP) area in West Darfur that were supported by Save the Children have been destroyed between 27th and 28th of April 2023, due to the ongoing fighting in Sudan.

‘Look beyond the battlefield’

WFP is trying to obtain security guarantees to resume operations in Gezira state, a vital humanitarian hub that supported more than 800,000 people a month.

Fighting in December forced half a million people to flee, many of whom were previously displaced. However, only 40,000 people so far have received aid because 70 WFP trucks were stuck in the coastal city of Port Sudan for more than two weeks.

Another 31 trucks that would have delivered aid to the Kordofans, Kosti and Wad Madani, have not been able to leave El Obeid for over three months.

“Both parties to this gruesome conflict must look beyond the battlefield and allow aid organisations operate,” said Mr. Rowe.

“For that, we need the uninhibited freedom of movement, including across conflict lines, to help people who so desperately need it right now, regardless of where they are.”

Humanitarians response plans

The UN continues to call for an end to the war in Sudan, which has killed more than 13,000 people. Nearly eight million have been displaced, including more than 1.5 million who have fled across the border.

UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, announced on Friday that it will launch two response plans next week to respond to the needs in Sudan and to support displaced Sudanese in neighbouring countries.

Overall, 25 million people urgently need assistance, OCHA spokesperson Jens Laerke told reporters in Geneva.

UN refugee chief in Sudan

Meanwhile, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees has been drawing attention to the situation of people affected by the war during a visit to the region this week.

Filippo Grandi arrived in Sudan on Thursday to “highlight the plight of Sudanese civilians (millions of whom are displaced), and of the refugees they still host, all caught in a brutal, worsening war which most of the world seems to ignore.”

Writing on the social media platform X, Mr. Grandi reflected on his conversations with displaced people in Port Sudan.

“They told me how war suddenly disrupted their peaceful lives. And how they’re losing hope — for them and for their children. Only a ceasefire and meaningful peace talks can put an end to this tragedy,” he said.

Support Sudanese refugees

His visit to Sudan followed a three-day mission to Ethiopia, where he called for urgent and additional support for Sudanese refugees, more than 100,000 of whom fled to the country since war broke out in April.

Ethiopia is one of six countries neighbouring Sudan that continue to receive thousands fleeing the fighting.

Mr. Grandi heads the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, which is supporting the Ethiopian Government, as well as regional and local authorities, to provide protection and life-saving services to the new arrivals.

We all want an Afghanistan at peace, UN chief says in Doha

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25 February 2024

We all want an Afghanistan at peace, UN chief says in Doha

Speaking to journalists during a two-day meeting with regional and national special envoys for Afghanistan, António Guterres said that there was consensus among delegates over what needs to happen, although the Taliban are not taking part.

“We want an Afghanistan in peace, peace with itself and peace with its neighbours and able to assume the commitments and the international obligations of a sovereign State … in relation to the international community, its neighbours and in relation to the rights of its own populations,” he said.

There was also consensus on the process to reach this objective, he added, noting proposals outlined in an independent review on an integrated and coherent approach conducted by Feridun Sinirlioğlu, in line with Security Council resolution 2679.

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Key concerns

It covered all the main areas of concern, Mr. Guterres said, including ensuring Afghanistan does not become a “hotbed” of terrorist activity and that it has inclusive institutions in which all its diverse groups feel represented in a “truly inclusive” State.

The review notes the importance of upholding human rights, in particular for women and girls, and a recognition of the progress made in combatting drug production and drug trafficking.

The UN chief also underscored the need for effective humanitarian assistance to the country as well as long-term questions on Afghanistan’s future development.

Mr. Guterres further noted ongoing cooperation between Afghanistan and neighbouring countries, such as trade and infrastructure development or bilateral arrangements on combatting illicit drug trade.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres addresses the media in Doha, Qatar.

Key questions

However, there are a set of key questions “in which we are stuck”, he added.

“On one hand, Afghanistan remains with a government that is not recognized internationally and in many aspects not integrated in the global institutions and global economy,” he said.

And on the other hand, there is a common international perception of deteriorating human rights, particularly for women and girls.

“To a certain extent we are in the kind of situation of the chicken or the egg,” he said, stating the need to overcome the deadlock and produce a common road map which addresses international concerns and those of the de facto authorities simultaneously.”

Unacceptable pre-conditions

In response to a correspondent’s question on the lack of participation of Taliban de facto authorities, the UN chief said that the group presented a set of conditions for its participation “that were not acceptable.”

“These conditions first of all denied us the right to talk to other representatives of the Afghan society and demanded a treatment that would, I would say, to a large extent be similar to recognition.”

On another question, Mr. Guterres said the meeting was very useful and the discussions were “absolutely needed”.

“Obviously it would be better if we would also have the opportunity after the meeting … to discuss our conclusions with the de facto authorities. It did not happen today; it will happen in the near future.”

Secretary-General Guterres addressing the media in Doha.

Circular of the Holy Synod of the Hierarchy of the Church of Greece on Marriage

By

Guest Author

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25 February 2024

Prot. 373

No. 204

Athens, 29 January 2024

E C Y C L I O S 3 0 8 5

To the Christians of the Church of Greece

Born in the Lord, beloved,

As you were informed, just a few days ago, that is, on January 23, 2024, the Hierarchy of the Church of Greece, which is the supreme authority of our Church, studied the issue that has arisen in our days, namely the establishment of “civil marriage” of homosexuals, with all the consequences that this brings to family law.

The Hierarchy discussed this matter responsibly and soberly enough, proving once again its unity, then unanimously decided the necessary things that were announced.

One of the decisions she has made is to inform her congregation who want to hear her decisions and positions.

In this context, the Hierarchy appeals to all of you to articulate the truth on this serious matter.

1. The work of the Church throughout the centuries is two-sided, i.e. theological, by professing her faith as revealed by Christ and lived by her saints, and pastoral, by preaching and leading people to the living Christ. This work of hers can be seen in the Holy Scriptures and in the decisions of the Ecumenical and Local Synods, which establish the conditions for the Orthodox faith and sacred rules and define the limits within which all its members, clerics, monks and laity, must observe. In this way, the Church shepherds, i.e. heals people’s spiritual diseases so that Christians live in communion with Christ and their brothers, free themselves from selfishness and develop philanthropy and philanthropy, i.e. selfish, selfish love to become selfless love.

2. God loves all people, righteous and unrighteous, good and bad, saints and sinners, so does the Church. After all, the Church is a spiritual hospital that heals people without excluding anyone, as the parable of the Good Samaritan that Christ told (Luke I’, 3037) shows. Hospitals and doctors do the same for physical ailments. When doctors operate on people, no one can claim that they have no love.

But people react differently to this love for the Church; some want it, some don’t. The sun sends its rays to all creation, but some light up and some burn, and this depends on the nature of those who receive the sun’s rays. Thus the Church loves all her baptized children and all people who are God’s creations, young and old, single and married, clergy, monks and laity, learned and unlearned, princes and poor, heterosexual and homosexual, and practices her love philanthropically, it is enough , of course, that they themselves want it and really live in the Church.

3. The theology of the Church regarding marriage derives from the Holy Bible, the teaching of the Fathers of the Church and the provision of the Sacrament of Marriage. In the book of Genesis it is written: “27. And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female he created them. 28. And God blessed them, saying to them: be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and possess it and have dominion over the fish of the sea (and over the beasts), over the birds of the sky (and over all livestock, over the whole earth) and over all animals , which crawl on the ground” (Genesis, 1, 27-28). This means that “the duality of the two natures and their mutual complementarity are not social inventions, but are provided by God”; “the sanctity of the union of man and woman refers to the relationship between Christ and the Church”; “Christian marriage is not just an agreement for cohabitation, but a sacred Sacrament through which man and woman receive God’s grace to continue towards their deification”; “father and mother are constituent elements of childhood and mature life”.

The entire theology of marriage is clearly seen in the sequence of the mystery of marriage, in the rites and blessings. In this mystery the union of man and woman is proclaimed in Christ Jesus, with the necessary conditions. The results of Marriage in Christ are the creation of a good marriage and family, the birth of children, as the fruit of the love of the two spouses, the man and the woman, and their relationship with church life. Childlessness, through no fault of the spouses, does not destroy a marriage in Christ.

The traditional Christian family consists of father, mother and children, and in this family children grow up knowing motherhood and fatherhood, which will be essential elements in their further development.

On the other hand, as seen in the “Trebnik” of the Church, there is a clear connection between the Mysteries of Baptism, Anointing, Marriage, Confession and Holy Communion of the Body and Blood of Christ. Any break in this relationship creates ecclesiastical problems.

That is why we are baptized and anointed to participate in the Body and Blood of Christ. The wedding ceremony takes place so that the spouses and family can participate in the Mystery of the Eucharist and partake of the Body and Blood of Christ. Any break in this connection of the mysteries is a falling away.

The Church is based on this tradition which was given by God to the saints and cannot accept any other form of marriage, much less to the so-called “homosexual marriage”.

4. In a state of law, the state with its institutions has the power to draft bills and pass laws so that there is unity, peace and love in the society.

However, the Church is an ancient institution, it has centuries-old traditions, it has participated in all the trials of the people in all times, it has played a decisive role in its freedom, as seen in history, the oldest and the most recent, and everyone should give it its due accordingly, respect. After all, all rulers, with the exception of a few, are her members by power and blessing. The Church neither supports nor opposes, but governs according to God and shepherds over all. Therefore, it has a special reason to be respected.

On the subject of the so-called “political marriage of homosexuals”, the Holy Synod not only cannot remain silent, but must speak out of love and mercy for all. That is why the hierarchy of the Church of Greece in its recent decision, in a unanimous and unifying manner, for reasons it has argued, announced that it “completely and categorically opposes the proposed bill”.

And this clear decision is based on the fact that “the initiators of the bill and those who agree with it promote the abolition of fatherhood and motherhood and their transformation into neutral parentage, the disappearance of the roles of both sexes within the family and the place above it, the protection of the interests of Future Children and the Sexual Choices of Homosexual Adults’.

Furthermore, the establishment of “child adoption” condemns future children to grow up without a father or mother in an environment of parental role confusion, leaving an open window for so-called “surrogate pregnancy” that will provide incentives for the exploitation of vulnerable women and changing the sacred institution of the family.

The Church, which must express God’s will and guide its members orthodoxly, cannot accept all this, because otherwise it will betray its mission. And it does this not only out of love for its members, but also out of love for the state itself and its institutions, so that they contribute to society and contribute to its unity.

We accept, of course, the rights of people if they move within permissible limits, combined with their duties, but the legalization of an absolute “right” to be practically deified challenges society itself.

5. The Church is interested in the family, which is the cell of the Church, society and nation. The state must also support this, since in the current Constitution it is understood that “the family as the basis for the maintenance and promotion of the nation, as well as marriage, motherhood and childhood are under the protection of the state” (Article 21) .

According to the Statutory Charter of the Greek Church, which is a state law (590/1977), “The Greek Church cooperates after the state, in matters of common interest such as… the promotion of the institution of marriage and family” (No. 2).

We therefore call on the State to deal with the demographic problem which is becoming a bomb ready to explode and is the foremost national problem of our time, the solution of which is undermined by the bill that is about to be passed, and we call on it to support the large families who offer much to society and the nation.

All of the above the hierarchy of the Greek Church announces to all its members, with a sense of pastoral responsibility and love, because not only is the so-called “homosexual marriage” an undermining of Christian marriage and the institution of the traditional Greek family, which changes its standard, but also because homosexuality is condemned by the entire church tradition, beginning with the apostle Paul (Rom. 1, 2432), and deals with repentance, which is a change in lifestyle.

Of course, there is the basic principle that while the Church condemns every sin as alienating man from the Light and love of God, at the same time she loves every sinner because he too has the “image of God” and can attain “likeness”. if he cooperates with God’s grace.

The Holy Synod addresses this responsible word to you, blessed Christians, its members and to all who await its word, because the Church “speaks the truth with love” (Eph. 4, 15) and “loves with truth”. (2 John 1, 1).

† JEROMEN of Athens, President

† Seraphim of Karistias and Skyros

† Eustathius of Monemvasia and Sparta

† Alexius of Nicaea †

Chrysostom of Nicopolis and Preveza

† Theoklitus of Jerisos, Agios Yoros and Ardamerios

† Theoclitus of Marconia and Comotina Panteleimon

† George of Kitrusi and Katerina

† Maximus of Ioannina

† Ellasson of Charito

† Amphilochius of Tyre, Amorgos and the Islands

† Nicephorus of Gortyn and Megalopolis

† Damascene of Aetolia and Acarnania

Secretary General:

archim. Ioannis Karamouzis

Source:here

Interpretation of the prayer “Our Father”

By

Guest Author

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25 February 2024

Compilation by St. Bishop Theophan, the Recluse of Vysha

St. Gregory of Nyssa:

“Who would give me dove’s wings?” – said the psalmist David (Ps. 54:7). I dare to say the same: who would give me those wings, so that I could raise my mind to the height of these words, and, leaving the earth, pass through the air, reach the stars and see all their beauty, but without stopping and to them, beyond all that is movable and changeable, to reach the constant nature, the immovable power, guiding and sustaining all that has being; all that depends on the ineffable will of God’s Wisdom. Moving mentally away from that which is changeable and perverse, I will for the first time be able to unite mentally with the Immutable and the Unchangeable, and with the closest name, by saying: Father!”.

St. Cyprian of Carthage:

“Oh, what a condescension towards us, what an abundance of favor and kindness from the Lord, when He allows us, when performing the prayer before the face of God, to call God the Father, and to call ourselves sons of God, just as Christ is the Son of God! None of us would dare to use that name in prayer if He Himself had not allowed us to pray in this way.

St. Cyril of Jerusalem:

“In the prayer that the Savior taught us through His disciples, we name God the Father with a clear conscience, saying: “Our Father!”. How great is God’s humanity! Those who have fallen away from Him and who have reached the extreme limit in evil are given such a communion in grace that they call Him Father: Our Father!”.

St. John Chrysostom:

“Father ours! Oh, what extraordinary philanthropy! What a high honor! In what words shall I give thanks to the Sender of these goods? See, beloved, the nothingness of your nature and mine, look into its origin – in this earth, dust, mud, clay, ashes, because we are created from the earth and finally decay into the earth. And when you imagine this, marvel at the unfathomable wealth of God’s great goodness to us, by which you are commanded to call Him Father, earthly – Heavenly, mortal – Immortal, perishable – Incorruptible, temporal – Eternal, yesterday and before, existing ages ago’.

Augustine:

“In every petition, the favor of the petitioner is first sought, and then the substance of the petition is stated. A favor is usually requested with praise of the one from whom it is requested, which is placed at the beginning of the request. In this sense, the Lord also commanded us at the beginning of the prayer to exclaim: “Our Father!”. In the Scriptures there are many expressions through which the praise of God is expressed, but we do not find a prescription for Israel to be addressed as “Our Father!”. Indeed, the prophets called God the Father of the Israelites, for example: “I brought up and raised sons, but they rebelled against me” (Is. 1:2); “If I am a father, where is the honor to Me?” (Mal. 1:6). The prophets called God thus, apparently to expose the Israelites that they did not want to be sons of God because they had committed sins. The prophets themselves did not dare to address God as the Father, since they were still in the position of slaves, although they were destined for sonship, as the apostle says: “the heir, while he is young, is not distinguished by anything from a slave” (Gal. 4:1). This right is given to the new Israel – to the Christians; they are destined to be children of God (cf. John 1:12), and they have received the spirit of sonship, which is why they exclaim: Abba, Father!” (Rom. 8:15)”.

Tertullian:

“The Lord often called God our Father, he even commanded us not to call anyone on earth Father except the One whom we have in heaven (cf. Matt. 23:9). Thus, by addressing these words in prayer, we fulfill the commandment. Blessed are those who know God their Father. The name of God the Father has not been revealed to anyone before – even the questioner Moses was told another name of God, while it is revealed to us in the Son. The very name Son already leads to the new name of God – the name Father. But He also spoke directly: “I have come in the name of the Father” (John 5:43), and again: “Father, glorify Your name” (John 12:28), and even more clearly: “I have revealed Your name to men ” (John 17:6)”.

St. John Cassian the Roman:

“The Lord’s Prayer presupposes in the person who prays the most exalted and most perfect state, which is expressed in the contemplation of the One God and in ardent love for Him, and in which our mind, permeated by this love, converses with God in the closest communion and with special sincerity, as with his Father. The words of the prayer suggest to us that we should diligently long for the attainment of such a state. “Our Father!” – if in such a way God, the Lord of the universe, with His own mouth confesses His Father, then at the same time He also confesses the following: that we have been completely raised from a state of slavery to a state of adopted children of God.

St. Theophylact, archbishop. Bulgarian:

“Christ’s disciples competed with John’s disciples and wanted to learn how to pray. The Savior does not reject their desire and teaches them to pray. Our Father, who art in heaven – notice the power of prayer! It immediately elevates you to the sublime, and inasmuch as you call God the Father, you convince yourself to make every effort not to lose the likeness of the Father, but to resemble Him. The word “Father” shows you with what goods you have been honored by becoming a son of God”.

St. Simeon of Thessaloniki:

“Father ours! – Because He is our Creator, who brought us from non-being into being, and because by grace He is our Father through the Son, by nature He became like us”.

St. Tikhon Zadonsky:

“From the words “Our Father!” we learn that God is the true Father of Christians and they are “sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus” (Gal. 3:26). Therefore, as our Father, we should confidently call upon Him, as the children of carnal parents call upon them and extend their hands to them in every need.”

Note: St. Theophan, the Recluse of Vysha (January 10, 1815 – January 6, 1894) is celebrated on January 10 (January 23 old style) and on June 16 (Transferring the relics of St. Theophan).

Challenge: Targeted Genome Editor Delivery (TARGETED)

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Newsdesk

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25 February 2024

Challenge: Targeted Genome Editor Delivery (TARGETED)

Recent advancements in the genome editing technology field have enabled scientists to manipulate genomic sequences rapidly and efficiently. Despite revolutionary progress in this area, several challenges remain. Existing gene editing technologies like CRISPR-cas9, base editors and prime editors have great potential. Still, existing delivery technologies cannot deliver gene editing technologies to many target tissues and cell types in sufficient quantities, which hinders clinical applications. While some cell types, like hepatocytes in the liver, have many delivery technologies capable of delivering genome editors, many other organs and cell types are harder to reach.

The Challenge is a three-phase competition:

In Phase 1, Participants will be asked to submit a proposal describing their proposed solution and how it will address the requirements for one of the Target Areas. Participants may submit proposed solutions to both Target Areas but must do so with separate proposals that independently address each Target Area’s requirements. Up to ten proposals judged to meet the best requirements will each be awarded up to $75,000. Additional prizes of $50,000 may be awarded to additional meritorious solutions based on the Judging Criteria.

In Phase 2, Participants must submit data from studies that demonstrate delivery and editing performance and describe their methodology, technology, and how their solution addresses the Challenge criteria. Participation in Phase 1 is not a requirement for participation in Phase 2; however, it is strongly encouraged. Up to 10 winners of Phase 2 will be each awarded $250,000 and will be eligible to compete in Phase 3. Only Phase 2 winners will be eligible to participate in Phase 3.

Phase 3 is separated into Phase 3a and Phase 3b; all participants must submit solutions for Phase 3a to be eligible to participate in Phase 3b. For Phase 3a, Participants must submit all required information showing that their technology is ready for large animal testing through NIH-supported independent evaluation and can solve the requirements for one of the Target Areas.

Submissions to this Challenge must be received by 12:00 AM EET, January 11, 2025.

Source: Challenge.gov

World News in Brief: Drought in Ethiopia, peacekeepers wounded in DR Congo, deadly strike on Ukraine aid workers

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24 February 2024

World News in Brief: Drought in Ethiopia, peacekeepers wounded in DR Congo, deadly strike on Ukraine aid workers

Drought is ravaging communities in Afar, Amhara, Tigray and Oromia, as well as the Southern and South West Ethiopia Peoples’ Region.

Severe water shortages, dried pastures and reduced harvests are impacting millions of people and livestock, with reports of food insecurity and rising malnutrition.

Among those who are particularly vulnerable are people affected by the two-year conflict in Tigray, which ended in 2022, the UN and the authorities said in a joint statement on Thursday.

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Numbers will rise

More than six million people are already receiving food and cash across affected areas, but huge gaps remain, OCHA warned.

The number of critically food insecure people will continue to grow over the next few months, reaching a peak of 10.8 million during the lean season from July through September, according to a recent joint assessment by the government and humanitarian partners.

Malnutrition rates in parts of Afar, Amhara and Tigray and other regions have already surpassed globally recognized crisis thresholds, but currently do not reflect famine-like conditions. 

“While the situation in many of these areas is already alarming, there is an opportunity to avert a serious humanitarian catastrophe through additional funding to urgently scale up and sustain response efforts,” OCHA said.

Peacekeepers injured in attack on UN helicopter in DR Congo

Two South African peacekeepers were injured, one seriously, in an attack on a UN helicopter in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) on Friday.

The helicopter from the UN Mission in the country, MONUSCO, was carrying out a medical evacuation when it came under fire from presumed members of the M23 armed group in the Karuba region, located in Masisi territory, North Kivu province.

The helicopter was able to land safely in the provincial capital, Goma, and the peacekeepers received medical treatment. 

MONUSCO chief Bintou Keita, strongly condemned the attack, which comes almost a year after a similar incident caused the death of a South African peacekeeper.

The UN Mission will spare no effort, in cooperation with the Congolese authorities, to bring the perpetrators to justice, she said.

The head of UN Peacekeeping deplored the attack in a post on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter.

He said that UN “blue helmets” should not be targeted.

Ukraine: Top UN aid official condemns deadly attack on aid workers

The UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Ukraine has condemned a deadly attack on aid workers in the south of the country.

Two French citizens volunteering with a Swiss non-governmental organization were killed and three other foreigners injured in a Russian drone strike in the Kherson region on Thursday, according to media reports.

“I am shocked to hear that their vehicles were attacked in a manner similar to a tragic incident in Chasiv Yar town in the east of Ukraine just a week ago, when a humanitarian vehicle was hit and an aid worker injured,” Denise Brown said in a statement on Friday.

Last year, 50 aid workers were killed or injured in Ukraine, including 11 who died in the line of duty.

Ms. Brown said that “this repeated pattern of attacks appears to have intensified” since the beginning of the year, as five aid workers were injured in January alone.

“This comes at a time when people in frontline areas are facing an extremely dire humanitarian situation with Russia’s invasion impacting every aspect of their daily lives,” she added.

Despite the challenges and insecurity, humanitarians continue to deliver aid in Ukraine.

The UN reported that on Friday, an inter-agency convoy delivered three trucks of humanitarian supplies to the residents of frontline communities in the Kharkiv area.

The items included hygiene kits, thermal blankets, sleeping bags, kitchen sets, evacuation kits and construction materials to repair damaged homes.

UK urged to end ‘national threat’ of violence against women and girls

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24 February 2024

UK urged to end ‘national threat’ of violence against women and girls

Concluding a 10-day visit to the country, Special Rapporteur Reem Alsalem noted that a woman is killed by a man every three days in the UK, and one in four women there will experience some form of domestic violence in her lifetime.

“Entrenched patriarchy at almost every level of society, combined with a rise in misogyny that permeates the physical and online world, is denying thousands of women and girls across the UK the right to live in safety, free from fear and violence,” she said in a statement summarizing her preliminary findings and observations.

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Leadership and inspiration

Ms. Alsalem acknowledged the robust legal framework for promoting gender equality, including the Equality Act 2010 and other legislation that applies across the UK, noting that this framework is complemented by important legislation and policies in the devolved regions, referring to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

She said the UK has been a leader in strengthening its legal framework to address current and emerging forms of violence against women and girls, including coercive control, digitally facilitated violence and stalking, as well as improving access to justice.

“Many countries will look to the UK for inspiration, as well as examples of innovation and good practice on how to make life safer for women and girls, and accountability for crimes committed against them,” she added.

Translate policy into action

However, the Special Rapporteur noted that a number of realities undermine the UK’s ability to realise the full potential of its legislation and policies on violence against women.

They include the dilution of the link between these policies and the UK’s international human rights obligations; a general critical discourse and positioning on human rights, particularly in relation to migrants, asylum seekers and refugees; and the fragmentation of policies on male violence against women and girls across devolved and non-devolved areas.

“The UK can do more to translate its political recognition of the scale of violence against women and girls into action,” she said, before offering several recommendations, such as bringing together all legislative and programmatic strands of intervention on the issue, upgrading and formalising responsibility for discrimination and violence against women and girls in government, and anchoring it in human rights commitments.

Grassroots groups struggling

Ms. Alsalem expressed concern about how grassroots organisations and specialised frontline service providers working with women and girls are struggling to meet the needs of the most vulnerable, both foreign and national, who fall through the cracks and are not covered by statutory service providers.

These groups “are struggling to survive in an increasingly challenging context of rising living costs, a deepening housing crisis and a critical lack of funding,” she said.

“The situation of NGOs working on gender equality and violence against women and girls has reached a crisis point and is simply untenable,” she added, urging the UK authorities to restore predictable and adequate funding to frontline organisations.

Ms. Alsalem, the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, was appointed by the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.

Independent experts who receive mandates from the Council are not UN staff and are not paid for their work.

Priests to the Russian authorities: Do not be more cruel than Pilate

By

Newsroom

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24 February 2024

Russian clergy and believers have published an open appeal to the authorities in Russia calling for the body of politician Alexei Navalny to be handed over to his family.

The text of the address is published on the website of the Orthodox project “Peace for all”. The authors of the address emphasize that Navalny was not only an opposition politician, but also an Orthodox Christian.

The open address was signed by priests and people of faith. So far, there are nearly three hundred signatures and their collection continues online here.

The appeal calls on the authorities to show mercy and compassion to the mother, wife, children and relatives of Alexei Navalny.

Here is the full text of the letter:

“We call on you to hand over the body of politician Alexei Navalny to the family, so that his mother, other family members and like-minded people can say goodbye to him and give him a Christian burial.” This is not only their wish and legal right, but also a duty to God for each deceased.

Alexei Navalny was not only an opposition politician, but also a man of faith, an Orthodox Christian. We urge you to respect his memory.

Do not cloud the tragedy of his death by refusing such a simple and human request. Remember that everyone is equal before God. The refusal to hand over Navalny’s body to his family will be seen as a manifestation of cruelty and inhumanity. This decision could lead to even greater tension in society. We urge you not to go down this path.

Show mercy and compassion to his mother, wife, children and loved ones. Every person deserves a humane burial. Even Pontius Pilate, who decided on the execution of Christ for fear of being disloyal to the emperor: “if you let Him go, you are not Caesar’s friend (John 19:12), did not put any obstacles to handing over the Savior’s body for His burial . Be not more cruel than Pilate. Make the right decision.”

Alexei Navalny died suddenly on February 16 in a Russian prison beyond the Arctic Circle, where he was transferred at the beginning of the year. Investigators investigating the opposition politician’s death said they would not release his body to relatives for another two weeks as it was sent for a “chemical examination”. Navalny’s sympathizers believe that he was murdered and that his body was hidden in order to erase “traces of the murder”. Human rights activists in Russia express the opinion that the body of a politician is not being returned to his relatives and with the intention of delaying his burial, as the Russian authorities fear that it will become a starting point for serious protest actions on the eve of the presidential elections in the country. which will take place from March 15 to 17 this year. In Russia, the arrests of people who present flowers in memory of the murdered opposition politician continue.

Earlier, the human rights project OVD-Info, created to help those detained during the anti-government rallies, also opened a petition demanding that Navalny’s body be handed over to his relatives. So far, the petition has been signed by more than 80,000 people.

Source: Appeal to the authorities of the Russian Federation by Orthodox clergy and laymen

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Experts Call for New Economic Modelling to Meet Energy Transition Ambition

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Newsdesk

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24 February 2024

Experts Call for New Economic Modelling to Meet Energy Transition Ambition

The ambition of policymakers navigating the energy transition has surpassed the capacity of economic modelling for the first time, a new keynote paper argues.

Renewable energy from windfarms. Image Credit: Karsten Würth/Unsplash

In a featured comment publication for Nature Energy, researchers – including from the Institute for New Economic Thinking and the Oxford Smith School at the University of Oxford – outline the challenges facing policymakers working with traditional economic modelling across the public and industrial sectors.

The paper calls for a shift from narrow cost-benefit analysis and modelling based on economic equilibrium, towards models which capture the dynamics of the transition and represent policy ideas in real detail. These capabilities are required to match the policies governments are actually designing and implementing now, such as the ETS in China, offshore wind auctions in the UK, and the Inflation Reduction Act in the US.

Lead author Dr Pete Barbrook-Johnson, a Senior Research Associate at the Institute for New Economic Thinking and the Smith School for Enterprise and the Environment at Oxford, said that the global policy conversation had shifted, bringing with it a different set of requirements for economic modellers.

‘We’ve been working with partners in China, India, Brazil, the UK, and Europe to explore what kind of modelling support they need to understand the energy transition.

‘What they tell us is that they really need models that allow them to capture the detail of policies to understand what their impacts might be and how the energy transition might unfold. We have been developing these capabilities for a few years, and this cohort of new models is now maturing.

‘But, we must acknowledge what is required is a new type of modelling that’s not been established and used in lots of places, so we need to do more to expand and learn from the promising work that’s already out there. In this paper, we explore what we what we need to do, things like invest in new teams, work with partners in more countries, and collect more detailed economic data to match the details of the models,’ Dr Barbrook-Johnson said.

INET Oxford Complexity Economics Programme Director and Smith School Baillie Gifford Professor of Complex Systems Science at the Oxford Martin School, Doyne Farmer, said that there was a danger that traditional economic modellers were being left behind by energy transition.

‘Traditional economics has failed us by providing, so far, mostly bad advice. We’re trying to remedy that by developing a whole new style of models based on a different set of principles that does a better job of explaining empirical facts and that can better guide us through the transition.

‘This paper lays out a kind of manifesto for what can be done, including talking about the successes we’ve had in the EEIST project, where we gave examples of models that we think are doing a significantly better job than others.

‘Among other things we’ve shown that the energy transition is going to happen much faster than people have been realising as the costs of renewable energy are going to drop lower than fossil fuels on a purely economic basis. We need new economic modelling to support this. We still need some government support for technologies like green hydrogen that are needed to provide storage,’ Professor Farmer said.

Source: University of Oxford