Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), an armed group designated as a terrorist organization by the UN Security Council, has emerged as the dominant force in Syria, following the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime. 

Coinciding with Universal Health Coverage Day on Thursday the World Health Organization (WHO) released its 2024 Global Health Expenditure Report, revealing troubling declines in government health spending.

Describing the level of devastation across the Gaza Strip as “absolutely staggering”, the Head of Emergency Communications for the World Food Programme (WFP) has told UN News in an exclusive interview that civilians are desperate for lifesaving aid and there’s a growing risk of widespread famine.

The international community owes it to the Syrian people “to listen, to act and to work tirelessly” so the crimes of the deposed Assad regime can never happen again, the top UN envoy for the country said on Thursday.

Secretary-General António Guterres said the UN is “totally committed” to supporting a smooth transition of power in Syria through an inclusive political process that guarantees full respect of minority rights. 

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights has paved the way forward when it was adopted in 1948, inspiring more than 80 international treaties as well as UN photographers, who captured everyday struggles and triumphs over the decades in their latest photo essay on the heels of Human Rights Day.