Switzerland

GENEVA, April 25 (Reuters) - The United States, as well as the Taliban authorities, is contributing to the suffering of women in Afghanistan through asset freezes, U.N. independent experts said on Monday.

The United Nations and foreign governments, including Washington, have condemned moves by the Taliban to backtrack on women's rights commitments such as on girls' education in the months following their takeover in Aug. 2021. 

ZURICH, April 23 (Reuters) - Hundreds of Ukrainians lined up for food handouts in central Zurich on Saturday as wealthy Switzerland struggles to cope with the arrival of around 40,000 refugees since Russia invaded Ukraine in late February.

Refugees in official accommodation receive some financial support from the state, although this is often not enough to live on in a country where the cost of living is among the highest in the world.

ZURICH, April 22 (Reuters) - The United Nations human rights office said on Friday there was growing evidence of Russian war crimes in Ukraine, including signs of indiscriminate shelling and summary executions, while it said Ukraine also appeared to have used weapons with indiscriminate effects.

21 April 2022; MEMO: After an eight-year legal battle, a Swiss court has recognised the statelessness of Palestinian refugees from Syria and acknowledged their right to protection. The landmark case could open the door for other Palestinians to secure basic rights as refugees that have been denied to them since their ethnic cleansing by Israel.

ZURICH, April 21 (Reuters) - More than 600,000 additional people were internally displaced in Ukraine in the first 17 days of April, the International Organization for Migration said on Thursday, pushing the total number since the start of the war above 7.7 million, or 17% of the population.

The new assessment conducted between April 11 and 17 showed that women represent at least 60% of those on the run. More than half of internally displaced persons -- mainly in the east of Ukraine -- reported a lack of some food products, it added in a report.

GENEVA, April 12 (Xinhua) -- The outlook for the global economy has darkened since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the World Trade Organization (WTO) said in its annual trade statistics and outlook report published on Tuesday.

Global gross domestic product (GDP) at market exchange rates is projected by the WTO to grow by 2.8 percent in 2022, down 1.3 percentage points from the previous forecast of 4.1 percent. Growth is expected to pick up to 3.2 percent in 2023, close to the average rate of 3.0 percent between 2010 and 2019.

GENEVA (AP) — Former FIFA officials Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini will go on trial for fraud and other offenses in June, Switzerland’s federal criminal court said Tuesday.

The trial will be before a panel of three judges on 11 days from June 8-22.

The trial will begin more than 6 1/2 years after criminal proceedings were opened, first against Blatter for a 2011 payment of 2 million Swiss francs (then $2 million) he authorized FIFA to make to Platini.

GENEVA, April 9 (Xinhua) -- Although the numbers of new weekly cases and deaths of COVID-19 continue to decrease in Europe since the end of March, the current high level of transmission is putting strain on testing capacity and surveillance systems in many countries and caution is still needed, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

GENEVA, April 7 (Reuters) - The World Health Organization's European head said on Thursday that the body was preparing for possible "chemical assaults" in Ukraine.

"Given the uncertainties of the current situation, there are no assurances that the war will not get worse," Hans Kluge, WHO regional director for Europe, said in a statement sent to journalists from Lviv, Ukraine.

GENEVA, April 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A full 99 percent of people on Earth breathe air containing too many pollutants, the World Health Organization said, blaming poor air quality for millions of deaths each year.

Fresh data from the UN health agency showed that every corner of the globe is dealing with air pollution, although the problem is much worse in poorer countries.