UN peacekeeper killed in attack by armed men in Central African Republic
DAKAR, Senegal — A United Nations peacekeeper was killed during an attack by armed men in Central African Republic , the UN said on Tuesday as the Security Council expressed concerns over growing attacks against peacekeepers in the country.
A Zambian peacekeeper was killed Friday when suspected Sudanese armed groups attacked a U.N. peacekeeping patrol team close to the country's northern border with Sudan in the village of Am-Sissia 1, according to a statement from the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.
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Fox News
9 hours ago
- Fox News
Trump does UN's job on world stage, leads on peace while secretary-general earns more at anti-US body
Following President Donald Trump's successful brokering of a ceasefire between Iran and Israel, India and Pakistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, critics say the U.N. secretary-general, António Guterres, could do well to follow Trump's lead as a peacemaker. However, as American taxpayers still continue to pay billions to the United Nations, and while Trump outshines Guterres on the world stage, Guterres' base salary is more than the commander in chief's. At $418,348, Guterres earns a higher base salary than President Donald Trump while running a body accused of anti-American bias, corruption and waste. Hugh Dugan, former National Security Council special assistant to the president and senior director for International Organization Affairs, told Fox News Digital, "Frankly, we put [Guterres] on this plateau as being on par with a pope or head of state, when, in fact, he's really an employee, and he's the country club manager, not the father of the bride, but he's calling all the shots when it comes to the ceremony and who sits where. "You flatter him right away," Dugan said, when comparing Guterres with Trump, "when in fact he is one of the president's employees – in fact, the employee of all the heads of state. And to outearn [him]… is really indicative of managerial capture of the organization and of the Deep State U.N. on the books." The spotlight on the salaries and perks comes at a time when the world body is facing serious financial constraints. Not including expenses and extras, Trump receives some $18,348 less than Guterres at $400,000. The presidential extras include a $50,000 expense allowance and other benefits. Guterres' salary, provided to Fox News Digital by his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric, only includes his salary and multiplier. It does not include the considerable array of other benefits that Guterres enjoys. In an email to Fox News Digital, Dujarric said the "Net base salary as of Jan 2025 – $238,375 per year (reference resolution 58/265 adjusted in accordance with the same procedures as those applicable to staff in the Professional and higher categories). "Post adjustment as of February 2025 – $179,973 per year. Adjustments to salaries are based on geographic locations." The spokesman later confirmed to Fox News Digital that the U.N. chief's salary was $418, 348. Those earnings do not include some of the lavish extras he gets, such as a plush Manhattan residence and a personal chauffeur. While the U.S. doesn't directly pay the salary of the secretary-general, it does continue to fund around a quarter of the organization's budget, and critics continue to question outlays that they believe harm U.S. interests. Just last month, U.S. Chargé d'Affaires Dorothy Shea issued a veiled warning to the world body upon vetoing an anti-Israel draft resolution at the U.N. Security Council. "Engaging in this performative process at a time when serious questions are being asked about the utility of the U.N., its funding and use of resources is shameful. This council should not be used in this way. This council must hold itself to a higher standard." A senior Republican congressional staffer who works on international organizations complained, "United Nations officials are the ultimate global elites. They earn lavish salaries and live in lavish New York penthouses, paid for largely with American taxpayer money. A large number of the U.N. organizations they lead are controlled by China. When they're not in New York, they spend their time and resources traveling all over the world attacking America and American allies. "The work of DOGE isn't done yet, and one step needs to be cutting off these officials from U.S. taxpayer money."
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Yahoo
The dollar sees a rebound after US strikes Iran, but can it continue?
The dollar rose on Monday as uncertainty over the Israel Iran conflict persisted following US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend. By around 2.45 CEST, the Dollar Index had risen 0.61% in daily trading to 99.31. Over the month, it showed a 0.19% increase, although its year-to-date value was still down almost 9%, failing to win back losses linked to erratic policies from the Trump administration. US President Donald Trump said that the weekend strikes had caused 'monumental damage', although some Iranian officials downplayed the impact. The full extent of the damage could not immediately be determined by the UN's nuclear watchdog. Israel — meanwhile — continued with its strikes on Iran on Monday, while Tehran vowed that it would 'never surrender to bullying and oppression'. Several nations warned Iran against a retaliatory closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a shipping lane responsible for around 20% of global oil and gas flows. 'In this morning's trading session, the dollar staged an expected rebound. The demonstration of US military strength, as well as the fear of higher oil prices, weakened the euro,' said ING economists in a note. Higher oil prices would likely drive up inflation and discourage the US Federal Reserve from cutting rates in the near future. This would spell bad news for US consumers but would simultaneously increase the dollar's attractiveness to investors. 'Looking ahead, one of the key questions is whether US involvement in the conflict could restore the dollar's safe-haven appeal. Here, a crucial factor will be the duration of any potential Strait of Hormuz blockade. The longer such a blockade lasts, the higher the likelihood that the value of safe-haven alternatives like the euro and yen is eroded, and the dollar can enjoy a decent recovery,' said ING economists. Related Energy in Europe is also at stake as Israel-Iran conflict escalates Is Trump destroying the dollar - and what does it mean for the euro? The greenback's value has dropped significantly this year as policies from the Trump administration have spooked investors, damaging the currency's status as a safe-haven asset. Signals worrying investors are not solely linked to trade policy, but also include a high US deficit, the cost-slashing bureau DOGE, sudden cuts to foreign aid, withdrawals from international treaties, and the prospect of financial deregulation. Greg Hirt, chief investment officer with Allianz Global Investors, told Euronews that 'structural issues around a twin deficit and the Trump administration's volatile handling of tariffs should continue to weigh on an overvalued US dollar'. Even so, he noted that the 'short term potential for higher oil prices will likely affect the Chinese and European economies to a greater extent, as they are more dependent on oil imports than the US'. Ryan Sweet, chief US economist at Oxford Economics, reiterated this point, noting that 'the US economy is essentially energy independent but others are not, including Japan as it imports most of its oil from the Middle East'. Sweet told Euronews that dollar gains are positive but still muted as 'currency markets are in a wait and see mode'. There is also significant uncertainty around President Trump's tariff deadline, with a 90-day pause on so-called 'reciprocal' duties set to expire on 9 July. Sign in to access your portfolio
Washington Post
20 hours ago
- Washington Post
Driven to starvation, Sudanese people eat weeds and plants to survive as war rages
CAIRO — With Sudan in the grips of war and millions struggling to find enough to eat, many are turning to weeds and wild plants to quiet their pangs of hunger. They boil the plants in water with salt because, simply, there is nothing else. Grateful for the lifeline it offered, a 60-year-old retired school teacher penned a love poem about a plant called Khadija Koro. It was 'a balm for us that spread through the spaces of fear,' he wrote, and kept him and many others from starving. A.H, who spoke on the condition his full name not be used, because he feared retribution from the warring parties for speaking to the press, is one of 24.6 million people in Sudan facing acute food insecurity —nearly half the population , according to the I ntegrated Food Security Phase Classification . Aid workers say the war spiked market prices, limited aid delivery, and shrunk agricultural lands in a country that was once a breadbasket of the world. Sudan plunged into war in April 2023 when simmering tensions between the Sudanese army and its rival paramilitary the Rapid Support Forces escalated to fighting in the capital Khartoum and spread across the country, killing over 20,000 people, displacing nearly 13 million people, and pushing many to the brink of famine in what aid workers deemed the world's largest hunger crisis. Food insecurity is especially bad in areas in the Kordofan region, the Nuba Mountains, and Darfur, where El Fasher and Zamzam camp are inaccessible to the Norwegian Refugee Council, said Mathilde Vu, an aid worker with the group based in Port Sudan. Some people survive on just one meal a day, which is mainly millet porridge. In North Darfur, some people even sucked on coal to ease their hunger. On Friday, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the Sudanese military leader Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan and asked him for a week-long ceasefire in El Fasher to allow aid delivery. Burhan agreed to that request, according to an army statement, but it's unknown whether the RSF would agree to that truce. A.H. said aid distribution often provided slight relief. His wife in children live in Obeid and also struggle to secure enough food due to high prices in the market. His poem continued: 'You were a world that sends love into the barren time. You were a woman woven from threads of the sun. You were the sandalwood and the jasmine and a revelation of green, glowing and longing.' Sudanese agricultural minister Abu Bakr al-Bashari told Al-Hadath news channel in April that there are no indicators of famine in the country, but there is shortage of food supplies in areas controlled by the paramilitary forces, known as RSF. However, Leni Kinzli, World Food Programme Sudan spokesperson, said 17 areas in Gezeira, most of the Darfur region, and Khartoum, including Jebel Aulia are at risk of famine. Each month, over 4 million people receive assistance from the group, including 1.7 million in areas facing famine or at risk, Kinzli said. The state is suffering from two conflicts: one between the Rapid Support Forces and the army, and another with the People's Liberation Movement-North, who are fighting against the army and have ties with the RSF, making it nearly impossible to access food, clean water, or medicine. He can't travel to Obeid in North Kordofan to be with his family, as the Rapid Support Forces blocked roads. Violence and looting have made travel unsafe, forcing residents to stay in their neighborhoods, limiting their access to food, aid workers said. A.H. is supposed to get a retirement pension from the government, but the process is slow, so he doesn't have a steady income. He can only transfer around $35 weekly to his family out of temporary training jobs, which he says is not enough. Hassan, another South Kordofan resident in Kadugli said that the state has turned into a 'large prison for innocent citizens' due to the lack of food, water, shelter, income, and primary health services caused by the RSF siege. International and grassroots organizations in the area where he lives were banned by the local government, according to Hassan, who asked to be identified only by his first name in fear of retribution for speaking publicly while being based in an area often engulfed with fighting. So residents ate the plants out of desperation. 'You would groan to give life an antidote when darkness appeared to us through the window of fear.,' A.H. wrote in his poem. 'You were the light, and when our tears filled up our in the eyes, you were the nectar. Vu warned that food affordability is another ongoing challenge as prices rise in the markets. A physical cash shortage prompted the Norwegian Refugee Council to replace cash assistance with vouchers. Meanwhile, authorities monopolize some markets and essential foods such as corn, wheat flour, sugar and salt are only sold through security approvals, according to Hassan. Meanwhile, in southwest Sudan, residents of Nyala, the capital of South Darfur, rely on growing crops, but agricultural lands are shrinking due to fighting and lack of farming resources. Hawaa Hussein, a woman who has been displaced in El Serif camp since 2004, told the AP that they benefit from the rainy season but they're lacking essential farming resources such as seeds and tractors to grow beans, peanuts, sesame, wheat, and weika — dried powdered okra. Hussein, a grandmother living with eight family members, said her family receives a food parcel every two months, containing lentils, salt, oil, and biscuits. Sometimes she buys items from the market with the help of community leaders. 'There are many families in the camp, mine alone has five children, and so aid is not enough for everyone … you also can't eat while your neighbor is hungry and in need,' she said. El Serif camp is sheltering nearly 49,000 displaced people, the camp's civic leader Abdalrahman Idris told the AP. Since the war began in 2023, the camp has taken in over 5,000 new arrivals, with a recent surge coming from the greater Khartoum region, which is the Sudanese military said it took full control of in May. 'The food that reaches the camp makes up only 5% of the total need. Some people need jobs and income. People now only eat two meals, and some people can't feed their children,' he said. In North Darfur, south of El Fasher, lies Zamzam camp, one of the worst areas struck by famine and recent escalating violence. An aid worker with the Emergency Response Rooms previously based in the camp who asked not to be identified in fear of retribution for speaking with the press, told the AP that the recent wave of violence killed some and left others homeless. Barely anyone was able to afford food from the market as a pound of sugar costs 20,000 Sudanese pounds ($33) and a soap bar 10,000 Sudanese pounds ($17). The recent attacks in Zamzam worsened the humanitarian situation and he had to flee to a safer area. Some elderly men, pregnant women, and children have died of starvation and the lack of medical treatment, according to an aid worker, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he's fearful of retribution for speaking publicly while living in an area controlled by one of the warring parties. He didn't provide the exact number of those deaths. He said the situation in Zamzam camp is dire—'as if people were on death row.' Yet A.H. finished his poem with hope: 'When people clashed and death filled the city squares' A.H. wrote 'you, Koro, were a symbol of life and a title of loyalty.'
