Flames rise during a fire casued by debris from an intercepted drone at the oil refinery hub in Fujeirah, United Arab Emirates, 4 March 2026. Iran continued to launch retaliatory attacks across the region following a joint US-Israeli military operation that started in the early hours of 28 February 2026, targeting multiple locations across Iran. (Keystone/EPA/Stringer)

💥UAE envoy to UN urges de-escalation of US-Israeli war with Iran. On Monday, Jamal Jama al Musharakh, the Emirati ambassador to the UN in Geneva, called Iran's attacks on his country's civilian infrastructure, including desalination plants and energy facilities, unacceptable.

♀️Exclusive: US seeks to scrap UN efforts to expand women's rights. The Trump administration is opposing proposals for a reparations fund for female victims of violence and for oversight of AI and emerging technologies linked to online abuse at negotiations at the UN Commission on the Status of Women in New York, which guides governments' policy on gender equality.

🚌Will UN plans to transform the way it works ‘throw equality under the bus’? As the UN seeks to reduce costs and boost efficiency under the UN80 Initiative, a proposal to merge UN Women and the UN Population Fund has sparked concerns that it could dilute the organistion’s commitment to advancing women’s rights.

💼Thousands flee Akobo after South Sudan army issues forced evacuation order. Two UN flights evacuated most humanitarian staff on Sunday following a military order for UN peacekeepers and other international organisations to evacuate ahead of a government offensive in the opposition-held area. Médecins Sans Frontières, whose staff and premises have been repeatedly targeted in the last year, also announced on Monday that its staff had been forced to leave.

⏸️Exclusive: Trump's Gaza plan on hold as Iran war pauses disarmament talks, sources say. Discussions between Washington and Hamas militants for them to lay down their weapons in exchange for amnesty have been paused since the Iran-US attack on 28 February, delaying the reconstruction phase expected to follow.