UN News Today 12 May 2026 |

Children shot, stabbed and pepper-sprayed in occupied West Bank

Israeli military operations and surging settler attacks in the occupied West Bank are killing and maiming a growing number of Palestinian children, UN aid teams said on Tuesday.

Latest UN data shows that approximately 70 children have been killed in the occupied territory since January 2025 at an average of at least one a week and a further 850 injured, mostly by live ammunition.

UNICEF spokesperson James Elder in Geneva described how Palestinian schoolchildren do not walk in a straight line to lessons because they are “constantly looking over their shoulder” for fear of being attacked:

“March 2026 saw the highest number of Palestinians injured by settler attacks in the last 20 years. And we’re seeing attacks become increasingly coordinated. So, documented incidents include children shot, stabbed, children beaten, and children pepper-sprayed.”

Meanwhile in Gaza, the UN has documented at least 229 children killed and 260 injured since the October ceasefire.

Today, around 10,000 children in the devastated Strip live with life-changing injuries.

Of the more than 2,200 amputees, fewer than one in four have been fitted with permanent prosthetics, owing to a severe shortage.

Hantavirus transmission kept low thanks to united effort: WHO

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the head of the UN World Health Organization – WHO – stressed once again on Tuesday that the risk of hantavirus transmission globally remains very low.

He was speaking after the last passengers and some crew left the Dutch cruise ship at the centre of an outbreak of the disease, disembarking in Tenerife.

Three passengers died after travelling on the ship which set off from Ushuaia in Argentina on 1 April. 

Here’s Tedros now, speaking in Madrid:

“So far, 11 cases have been reported, including three deaths. All 11 cases are among passengers or crew on the ship. Nine of the 11 have been confirmed as Andes virus, and the other two are probable. Those numbers have changed little over the past week, thanks to the efforts of multiple governments and partners. There have been no deaths since 2 May.”

The WHO Director-General said that all suspected and confirmed cases have been isolated and managed under strict medical supervision, minimizing any risk of further transmission.

While there are no signs of the start of a larger outbreak, Tedros noted that it was possible that more cases may be reported in coming weeks, given the long incubation period of the virus.

A world without sand? UN partners push for alternatives amid shortages 

In other news, how much sand do we all use every day to build the homes, roads and schools we all want, along with the solar panels for the green energy transition that the world needs? 

The answer is a staggering 18 kilogrammes, or nearly 40 pounds.

And that’s a major problem because sand isn’t an endless resource. 

According to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) we are extracting sand and gravel much faster than it can be replenished by natural erosion, at a rate of 50 billion tonnes per year.

Worse still, sand extraction is increasing in fragile rivers, lakes, coastal zones and protected marine areas. 

One of the main drivers of this demand is climate change, which will require ever greater volumes of sand to build walls to protect against sea level rise.

Population growth is another driver of demand, with migration from rural areas to cities set to continue, says UNEP’s Pascal Peduzzi:

“We’ve seen that particularly in Asia and Southeast Asia where the economy was booming. But we will see it now in Africa because the population is going to double from now to 2050. That’s plus 1.27 billion people. So all of them will need homes and schools and infrastructures and so on functioning ecosystems, where it underpins livelihoods, water security, food systems, territorial integrity, and shelter.”

While we need sand to underpin economic development, UNEP warns that the resource is vital for the planet’s health, too – and it should be left where it is, to preserve wildlife, support livelihoods and ensure the water we drink is clean.

These problems and more are explored in a new UNEP study which highlights only a marginal shift in the sustainable management of sand.

Concerted action is needed now from countries and partners to be more strategic in the way we approach sand extraction, UNEP insists, warning that demand is only increasing.

The agency highlighted one sustainable alternative: straw, which when compressed provides a strong building material with excellent insulation properties too.

Daniel Johnson, UN News