UN News Today 21 April 2026 |

Middle East crisis driving global energy shock, UN chief warns 

The war in the Middle East has triggered the most severe energy crisis in a generation, the UN Secretary-General warned on Tuesday, highlighting how reliance on fossil fuels has exposed economies to instability and rising costs. 

In a video address to the Petersberg Climate Dialogue in Berlin, António Guterres said that the conflict “makes one fact crystal clear: fossil fuels are not just wrecking our planet – they are holding economies hostage”.  

The UN chief stressed that clean energy offers a more secure path forward and called for accelerated investment, stronger infrastructure and scaled-up financing to support a global transition. 

Clean energy investment last year surged to $2.2 trillion worldwide, Mr. Guterres continued, double the amount invested in fossil fuels. 

Today, homegrown renewable energy is the “cheapest, fastest and most reliable source of new power”, the Secretary-General insisted. 

Sudan: millions still impacted by war and displacement as war rages 

Three years into the devastating conflict in Sudan, nearly four million displaced people have returned to their places of origin across the country, only to face “another struggle for survival”. 

In an alert on Tuesday, the UN International Organization for Migration said that available resources in host communities have been stretched “almost to the limit”. 

Deputy Director General, Sung Ah Lee, said that returns were mainly to the capital Khartoum and neighbouring Al Jazirah state, where homes and critical infrastructure have been heavily damaged, including water, health and electricity. 

“Many are returning because they believe security has improved. Others are returning because life in displacement has become unbearable, because [of] economic pressures, also to reunite with families, or because conditions in neighbouring countries are increasingly hard.”  

In Al Jazirah, a major agricultural region, returnees are finding that they may not be able to grow what they need to survive. 

“Farmers are returning to fields where irrigation systems and equipment have been damaged, threatening livelihoods and food production,” the UN agency said. 

Despite repeated diplomatic efforts to achieve a ceasefire, the war between Sudan’s rival militaries has continued unchecked since April 2023, becoming the world’s largest displacement and protection crisis. 

The conflict has been marked by severe violence and widespread human rights violations against civilians, including sexual violence, torture, arbitrary killings, extortion and the targeting of specific ethnic groups. 

First UN global debate on AI to focus on bridging ‘huge divide’ in access 

Tech news now, and UN-led efforts are continuing to ensure that all countries can benefit and regulate Artificial Intelligence as it increasingly shapes our economies, societies and daily lives. 

The UN’s Global Dialogue on Artificial Intelligence Governance is one of the key initiatives on AI.  

It brings together all 193 United Nations Member States, the private sector, civil society, academia and the tech world to share best practices and build common approaches to AI governance. 

The Dialogue’s first meeting takes place in Geneva in July; its discussions will draw on data that’s being put together by another UN AI initiative – the Independent International Scientific Panel on AI. 

That’s being headed by campaigning Philippines journalist Maria Ressa and iconic computer scientist, Yoshua Bengio.  

With more on how the Dialogue and Panel work in tandem, here’s the UN Special Envoy for Digital and Emerging Technologies, Amandeep Gill: 

“The policy conversation will be science and evidence-based, pooled perspectives, scientific perspectives from a multidisciplinary lens from across the world. This is how policy discussions should be, and the UN is very proud to facilitate this first ever such confluence of science and policy in a fast-paced emerging technology.” 

Ahead of the UN’s AI governance meeting in Switzerland, discussions are continuing between all the parties involved to ensure that leading national initiatives on how to best use the technology are shared. 

Daniel Johnson, UN News.