UN News Today 05 September 2025 |

DR Congo crisis: funding cuts curtail assistance to victims of sexual violence

Sexual violence is rife in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), but urgently needed assistance for survivors has had to be halted as sweeping funding cuts bite, the UN human rights office, OHCHR, warned on Friday.

Testimonies gathered by rights investigators into widespread violence in DRC’s North and South Kivu since January reveal a shocking level of sexual violence attributable to the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel paramilitary group.

With more, here’s UN human rights office spokesperson, Ravina Shamdasani:

“M23 members also systematically carried out widespread sexual violence, mainly in the form of gang rape, including sexual slavery. Women and girls were disproportionately targeted, but men, boys, and LGBT individuals were also victims of sexual violence, including in detention. Hundreds of children were detained by M23, and young males forcibly recruited. The report exposes the enormous toll of the conflict on children of all ages.”

The UN report documents the failure by all parties to adequately protect civilians during the fighting in eastern DR Congo, particularly during the takeover of Goma by the M23 in late January, as well as attacks on schools and hospitals.

Pakistan’s monsoon flood-hit communities face more misery: WMO

Monsoon flooding in northern Pakistan has impacted 1.5 million people and killed nearly 900. Hundreds of thousands need assistance after torrential rains triggered flashfloods, landslides and destruction.

The UN Secretary-General has expressed his sadness at the scale of the emergency, while UN agencies and partners are working closely with Pakistan to identify needs and address gaps in the disaster response.

According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), there is no immediate respite in sight.

Latest forecasts indicate that there is a low-pressure system in Madhya Pradesh, India, that was likely to bring strong monsoon currents to eastern Punjab over the weekend. 

Associated with this, heavy rains could generate flash floods in streams in Kashmir, Islamabad, Rabindi, north-east Punjab and Swat, and cause slow-moving but devastating urban flooding in low-lying areas, WMO said.

The UN agency noted that high temperatures causing glacial melt had made the situation worse.

Earlier this summer, Pakistan climate experts issued repeated warnings about glacial lake outbursts.

Air pollution is on the rise – but not everywhere, says UN weather agency

Staying with the impacts of extreme weather, the UN World Meteorological Organization has highlighted how damaging microscopic smoke particles from wildfires are continuing to pollute the air we breathe, even as particles travel huge distances.

According to the latest WMO Air Quality and Climate Bulletin, air pollution continues to get worse.

Wildfires in 2024 produced dangerous soot particles in Chile, Brazil, Ecuador, Canada, central Africa and Siberia which did not stop at the border, WMO said.

Today, billions of people continue to breathe polluted air that causes more than 4.5 million premature deaths every year.

In more positive news, the UN agency noted that there has been a reduction in emissions in some parts of the world, “particularly eastern China and Europe, year on year”.

In Shanghai, there’s been progress on boosting air quality by opening more parks and planting more trees.

Despite these successes, very few cities worldwide have air quality levels below those recommended by the UN World Health Organization (WHO).

Daniel Johnson, UN News