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UNITED NATIONS, March 22 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations on Wednesday called for game-changing action when world leaders, businesses, youth and other stakeholders gathered at the three-day UN 2023 Water Conference to address the global water crisis.

"This is more than a conference on water. It is a conference on today's world seen from the perspective of its most important resource," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in his opening remarks. The conference runs through Friday.

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The African Union appealed for nearly $90 million Wednesday for its peacekeeping force in Somalia, which is providing support to its military forces battling al-Shabab extremists.

Ambassador Bankole Adeoye, the AU commissioner for political affairs, peace and security, told two reporters that the more than 19,600-strong AU force won’t be able to function properly and help the Somalis unless that funding gap is filled.

NEW YORK, March 21 (Xinhua) -- The lives of thousands of people in Philadelphia, the largest city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, have been adversely affected by gun violence, and they feel negatively about the city's prospects because of it, reported The Philadelphia Inquirer on Monday.

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — A report issued on the eve of the first major U.N. conference on water in over 45 years says 26% of the world’s population doesn’t have access to safe drinking water and 46% lacks access to basic sanitation.

The U.N. World Water Development Report 2023, released Tuesday, painted a stark picture of the huge gap that needs to be filled to meet U.N. goals to ensure all people have access to clean water and sanitation by 2030.

NEW YORK (AP) — For 40 years, former President Donald Trump has navigated countless legal investigations without ever facing criminal charges. That record may soon come to an end.

Trump could be indicted by a Manhattan grand jury as soon as this week, potentially charged with falsifying business records connected to hush money payments during his 2016 campaign to women who accused him of sexual encounters.

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump claimed on Saturday that his arrest is imminent and issued an extraordinary call for his supporters to protest as a New York grand jury investigates hush money payments to women who alleged sexual encounters with the former president.

Even as Trump’s lawyer and spokesperson said there had been no communication from prosecutors, Trump declared in a post on his social media platform that he expects to be taken into custody on Tuesday.

March 17 (Reuters) - European Central Bank supervisors see no contagion for euro zone banks from recent sector turmoil, a source said on Friday, after U.S. lenders threw First Republic Bank (FRC.N) a $30 billion lifeline and tapped record amounts from the Federal Reserve.

Large U.S. banks on Thursday swooped in to rescue the San Francisco-based lender, which was caught up in market volatility triggered by the collapse of two other mid-size U.S. banks.

NEW YORK, March 16 (Xinhua) -- Wall Street's major averages advanced on Thursday, bolstered by solid gains in tech-related stocks and bank shares.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 371.98 points, or 1.17 percent, to 32,246.55. The S&P 500 added 68.35 points, or 1.76 percent, to 3,960.28. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 283.23 points, or 2.48 percent, to 11,717.28.

UNITED NATIONS, Mar 16 (APP): United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has praised the “exemplary” service of Major General Zia Ur Rehman of Pakistan who has completed his assignment as Force Commander of the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), a world body’s spokesman said Thursday.

Gen Reman has been replaced by Major General Md Fakhrul Ahsan of Bangladesh, Spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at the regular noon brief at UN Headquarters in New York.

NEW YORK, March 15 (Xinhua) -- Oil prices suffered steep losses on Wednesday, pressured by mounting fears of a banking crisis.

The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for April delivery dropped 3.72 U.S. dollars, or 5.22 percent, to settle at 67.61 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, reaching its lowest level since December 2021.

Brent crude for May delivery lost 3.76 dollars, or 4.85 percent, to close at 73.69 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.