Betsy Pisik

In Tanzania, albinos are hunted for charms

According to a report by the International Red Cross, Tanzanian albinos are being killed or mutilated for charms made from their limbs, blood or skin.

December 8, 2009

Iran vows 10 new uranium plants

Iran vowed Sunday to build 10 additional uranium enrichment plants and to counter opponents' potential military strikes by hiding the plants deep in mountains throughout the Islamic republic.

November 30, 2009

U.N. to move 600 staff from Afghanistan

The U.N. will begin moving staff members in Afghanistan to safer locations after a suicide bombing demonstrated that the blue U.N. flag has increasingly become a bull's-eye for terrorists.

November 6, 2009

U.N. moving staff from Kabul after attack

The United Nations said Thursday it is moving 600 international staffers in Afghanistan to safer locations following the recent attack on a guest house in Kabul.

November 5, 2009

U.S. hits effort on religious speech

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Monday that the United States opposes an effort by Muslim nations at the United Nations to ban religious "defamation," because the proposal would conflict with freedom of speech.

October 27, 2009

U.S. threatens Sudan sanctions

The Obama administration on Monday accused the government of Sudan of committing war crimes in Darfur, and it threatened to tighten sanctions if benchmarks for human rights and peace-building were not forthcoming.

October 20, 2009

Obama pushes Sudan toward peace

The Obama administration on Monday accused the government of Sudan of committing war crimes in Darfur, and it threatened to tighten sanctions if benchmarks for human rights and peace building were not forthcoming.

October 19, 2009

U.N. Council backs Gaza war-crimes report

The U.N. Human Rights Council on Friday forwarded to the General Assembly a fact-finding report that accuses both Israel and the Palestinians of committing war crimes during Israel's three-week siege of the Gaza Strip.

October 17, 2009

5 members elected to U.N. Security Council

Bosnia and Lebanon will join the U.N. Security Council in January, even though both countries are cited in council resolutions calling for disarmament and political negotiations.

October 16, 2009

U.N. Security Council gets 5 new nations

Bosnia and Lebanon will join the U.N. Security Council in January, even though both countries are cited in council resolutions calling for disarmament and political negotiations. Gabon, Brazil and Nigeria also will serve two-year terms in the council, beginning Jan. 1.

October 15, 2009

Gaza war dominates U.N. session

Diplomats mainly from the Islamic world used the monthly session of the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday to criticize Israel by citing a U.N. report charging Israel and Hamas with war crimes.

October 15, 2009

War-crimes debate may shift to Geneva

The United States wants to shift debate over a U.N. report - charging Israel and Hamas with possible war crimes during Israel's winter invasion of Gaza - from the Security Council in New York to the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva.

October 14, 2009

Afghan vote count sparks feud in U.N.

The abrupt firing of the top American in the U.N. mission in Afghanistan - before the last ballots in the August presidential election could be vetted - has turned into a verbal melee in which the head of the mission and his ousted deputy are loudly accusing each other of permitting fraud and hiding evidence.

October 11, 2009

Attack kills 5 at U.N. office in Pakistan

A terrorist attack on a key U.N. agency office in Pakistan's capital Monday killed at least five, wounded dozens and drew swift calls for tighter security.

October 6, 2009

Bomber kills 5 at U.N. office in Pakistan

A terrorist attack on a key U.N. agency office in Pakistan's capital Monday killed at least five, wounded dozens and drew swift calls for tighter security.

October 5, 2009

U.N. fires Afghan vote monitor

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has fired a top political adviser in Afghanistan, Peter Galbraith, for publicly questioning the legitimacy of Aug. 20 elections that could give President Hamid Karzai a second term in office.

October 1, 2009

U.N. chief fires Afghan vote monitor

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has fired a top political adviser in Afghanistan, Peter Galbraith, for publicly questioning the legitimacy of the Aug. 20 elections that appear to have given President Hamid Karzai a second term in office.

September 30, 2009

U.N. focuses on Congo rape crisis

There will be no end to the ravages imposed on women and girls in eastern Congo until firm laws are put into place and enforced with trained police and honest judges, the U.N. human rights chief says.

September 30, 2009

Iran leader defends second nuke plant

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Friday that a newly disclosed uranium enrichment plant in his country does not violate international rules and that Western powers were trying to stack the deck against Iran before negotiations next week.

September 26, 2009

Iran remarks drive diplomats to exit U.N.

Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad accused Jews of dominating the world in a harsh speech Wednesday evening that drove many foreign diplomats to leave the U.N. chamber.

September 24, 2009