The UN General Assembly’s midterm review of the New Urban Agenda called for faster implementation, stronger urban planning and better financing for local governments as cities grow and face rising climate risks.
The World Meteorological Organization says El Niño has developed in the tropical Pacific and is forecast to strengthen rapidly from July through September 2026, increasing the risk of heat, drought, heavy rainfall and flooding.
A five-agency UN report says the share of people facing hunger fell to an estimated 7.8% in 2025, while warning that conflict, weather extremes and reduced aid funding could reverse progress.
The World Health Organization says Bundibugyo virus disease has continued spreading in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, with an imported case confirmed in France.
Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said July 19 that the country would cease holding elections. Proposed constitutional measures would bar political opponents from competing, prompting UN rights chief Volker Türk to condemn what he called a further deterioration of civil and political freedoms.
A Russian barrage killed 17 people in Ukraine’s Kyiv region on August 5, while a French Rafale shot down a drone in Latvian airspace during a NATO mission in June.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said the alliance emerged reunited from its July 7-8 summit in Ankara, while European members prepared for further tensions with President Donald Trump and the Pentagon reviewed its roughly 80,000 troops in Europe.
Taylor Farms and Sysco withdrew iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico on July 17 as U.S. authorities investigated a major cyclospora outbreak. The FDA later said a test associated with Taylor Farms was a false positive, but the broader investigation remains open.
INTERPOL said law-enforcement agencies from 59 countries made more than 1,000 arrests during Operation Global Chain, a five-day crackdown on human-trafficking networks.
The International Cricket Council imposed a three-month period of ineligibility on Pakistan cricketer Mohammad Nawaz after a test detected carboxy-THC following a February 7, 2026, T20 World Cup match in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
The World Health Organization says the Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has crossed borders, with linked transmission in Uganda and one confirmed imported case in France.
The World Health Organization says recalled infant formula and related nutritional products reached 99 countries and territories, with 144 suspected or confirmed cases reported in 10 countries.
The United Nations’ intergovernmental negotiating committee opened its fifth session on August 3, 2026, beginning a two-week effort to develop a framework convention on international tax cooperation.
The European Commission has launched a registry and testing environment for Digital Product Passports, a step toward new EU product-traceability requirements.
Five UN agencies reported that global hunger declined for a third consecutive year in 2025, while warning that conflict, extreme weather, high food costs and reduced aid could reverse progress.
The World Meteorological Organization says El Niño conditions have developed in the tropical Pacific and could strengthen rapidly toward a strong event during July–September 2026.
The financing will support flood protection, housing reconstruction, land administration and jobs in Greater Antananarivo and Greater Toamasina after major cyclone damage.
A July 22 UNHCR situation update says escalating hostilities are worsening protection risks and putting additional pressure on countries already hosting more than 31 million forcibly displaced people and recent returnees.
A global consultation for people ages 11 to 30 is seeking youth input to help shape a post-2030 education and learning agenda.
The International Maritime Organization’s non-mandatory code creates a global safety framework for cargo ships operated remotely or with little or no crew.
A United Nations committee will meet in New York from August 31 through September 4, 2026, to prepare a future diplomatic conference on protecting people affected by disasters.
UNESCO said on July 26, 2026, that six cultural and natural sites had been added to its World Heritage List in Danger, including three placed there through emergency procedures.
