Reports

(Adds quotes, details) By Gopal Sharma KATHMANDU, March 3 (Reuters) - A former Maoist rebel commander said on Tuesday the group plans to recruit thousands of fighters, a move seen as a blow to peace that underlined serious tensions between Nepal's…

Following a six-day visit to Afghanistan, the ICRC Director of Operations, Pierre Krähenbühl expressed his concern about the likelihood of civilians bearing the brunt of any intensification in the conflict. The following are his introductory remarks at a press conference…

Panca Nugraha MATARAM - After living in uncertainty at a refugee center in West Nusa Tenggara for three years, 68 members of the Ahmadiyah Islamic sect have decided to risk returning home. Syahidin, coordinator for the refugees, said the 68 people…

Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Rod Smith has announced the Australian Government will provide an additional Php 32 million to help reduce the risks of natural disasters in the Philippines. Geoscience Australia will work with the National…

11 February 2009, Islamabad - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) together with World Food Programme (WFP) and National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has developed livelihoods baselines and contingency plans for disaster-prone pilot districts. The aim is…

The Rockefeller Foundation office in Bangkok has announced a 70 million USD fund to assist Asian cities develop plans to prepare, withstand and recover from the devastating effects of climate change, including six cities in Vietnam and India. The foundation…

Climate change will increase flooding and cause water shortages in the Greater Mekong Region's coastal localities over the next two decades, according to a report by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). The release, issued to review the two-pronged study…

The WWF Greater Mekong Program has called for a range of approaches to be taken for Ca Mau to counter climate change as its impacts are predicted to become more serious for the country's southernmost province in the coming…

COLOMBO, 30 January 2009 (IRIN) - Intense fighting in northern Sri Lanka continues to threaten civilian lives, the UN warned on 30 January. "We know from the intensity of the fighting and the position of [up to] 300,000 civilians -…

KABUL, 29 January 2009 (IRIN) - Air pollution in Kabul may be hastening the death of over 3,000 people every year, according to the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH). Epidemiological studies by the MoPH indicate cardiovascular and respiratory diseases resulting…