International
No deal on UN peacekeeping budget, risk of mission freeze: diplomats
AFP/Editor
The 193 member states of the United Nations have thus far failed to agree on a peacekeeping budget for the year beginning July 1, which could lead to “a freeze on all missions” should a deal not soon materialize, diplomats said Monday.
The roadblock stems from China and African countries making multiple last-minute requests, the sources said.
The budget for the UN’s global peacekeeping operations amounts to about $6.5 billion and covers a 12-month period starting each year on July 1, which is Thursday.
When asked by AFP about the absence of a deal in the UN’s General Assembly, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said peacekeeping missions had been advised of the situation, and were asked to make contingency plans should the missions have to be interrupted.
“We await the decision by the member states and hope that they will come to a decision promptly,” he said, highlighting that without an agreement, missions would no longer be able to incur any expenditures starting Thursday.
“In the absence of a decision by the General Assembly, the secretary-general can only enter into financial commitments to provide for the safety and security of staff and peacekeeping personnel,” and to safeguard UN assets, Dujarric explained.
“Curtailment of operations would limit the ability of the missions to implement their mandate, including, for example, supporting host countries on Covid response, protecting civilians, among others,” he said.
International
Concerns persist as Pope Francis faces complications amid hospitalization
Pope Francis, who remains hospitalized in critical condition due to pneumonia affecting both lungs, had a good night and is “resting,” the Vatican reported on Monday morning as concerns over the 88-year-old pontiff continue to grow.
“The night went well; the pope slept and is resting,” stated a Vatican communiqué on the 11th day of his hospitalization, the longest since his election in 2013. “The complexity of his clinical condition and the time required for pharmaceutical treatments to take effect necessitate caution regarding his prognosis,” the report added.
While his anemia has improved and his thrombocytopenia—a decrease in blood platelet count—has remained stable thanks to blood transfusions received on Saturday, “some blood tests indicate a mild initial kidney insufficiency, which is currently under control,” according to his medical team.
International
Armed group kills eight in Mexico’s most violent state, Guanajuato
An armed group shot and killed eight people in the state of Guanajuato, the most violent region in Mexico, authorities reported on Sunday.
The victims—five women and three men—were in the street when they were gunned down on Saturday night, according to the state prosecutor’s office. The attack took place in the municipality of Cortázar, where in 2023, armed men stormed a water park and killed seven people, including a child.
Also in Guanajuato, on Sunday, authorities arrested Christian Alejandro “N,” known as “Cholo,” whose last name has been withheld due to ongoing legal proceedings.
The suspect, captured by the National Guard, has been identified by local media as a top hitman leader for the Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel.
Guanajuato accounted for the highest percentage of homicides in Mexico in January, making up 13.3% of the total, according to official figures.
The state, home to major industrial and tourist hubs—including manufacturing plants for Mazda and Toyota—has become a battleground between the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, recently designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. government, and the Santa Rosa de Lima gang.
International
Newborn dies after being thrown from hotel window in Paris
A newborn died on Monday in Paris after being thrown from a hotel window by its mother, an 18-year-old American student, with the umbilical cord still attached, according to the prosecutor’s office and a police source.
The young woman threw the baby from the second floor of a hotel in eastern Paris, the prosecutor’s office stated. “The newborn received emergency medical care but did not survive,” it confirmed, as first reported by Paris Match. The infant was pronounced dead at 7:45 AM (6:45 AM GMT) at the Robert Debré Hospital in Paris, a police source told AFP.
Authorities were alerted after the baby was discovered wrapped in a cloth, with the umbilical cord still attached, according to the police source. The mother had given birth in a second-floor hotel room before throwing the baby out of the window, the source added.
Officials have launched a homicide investigation and have taken the mother into custody. She was reportedly part of a group of young adults traveling through Europe.
The young woman was transported to the hospital for surgery following the childbirth, the police source said.
According to Paris Match, the mother was in Paris on a study trip with other American students.
Concerns persist as Pope Francis faces complications amid hospitalization
Armed group kills eight in Mexico’s most violent state, Guanajuato
Newborn dies after being thrown from hotel window in Paris
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
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