Officials at the United Nations are investigating accusations the organisation withdrew George Clooney's security escort as he travelled to a dangerous area of Africa.

Israel said it was approaching the “endgame” of its three-week offensive against Gaza’s Hamas rulers and scheduled a Security Cabinet vote today on a truce proposed by Egypt.

The United Nations’ most powerful body is close to approving 3,000 more peacekeeping troops for war-torn areas of eastern Congo, diplomats said today.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for an immediate ceasefire today to urgently help “at least 100,000 refugees” cut off by fighting in rebel-held areas in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

ZIMBABWE’S opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai will run the country under a mooted draft agreement while President Robert Mugabe will become ceremonial president, a South African newspaper reported yesterday.

Burma's military regime allowed a United Nations envoy into the devastated Irrawaddy delta for a brief tour today after barring almost all foreigners from the cyclone disaster zone for days.

The leader of Burma’s increasingly isolated ruling junta made his first public visit to a relief camp today as state media lashed out at swelling international criticism that it was closing the door on aid to millions in desperate need following Cyclone Nargis.

A senior UN envoy headed for Burma today to plead with its military junta to accept more international aid for cyclone survivors, amid mounting fears of starvation, especially among children.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is sending UN humanitarian chief John Holmes to Burma after he failed to sway the leaders of the cyclone-hit country to act more swiftly in helping victims.

Gaza erupted in the worst day of violence in a month, with at least 20 Palestinians and three Israeli soldiers dead, and putting Egyptian efforts to mediate a cease-fire in jeopardy.

George Clooney has been named a United Nations Messenger Of Peace in honour of his humanitarian work.

The death toll in the earthquake that struck Peru’s southern desert has risen to 450 with about 1,500 injured, a senior UN official said today, quoting figures from the National Disaster Management Authority in Peru.

Nobel Prize winner Jose Ramos-Horta vowed to heal deep political and social rifts in East Timor after poll results showed him on course for a landslide victory in presidential elections in Asia’s newest nation.

Artillery shells and mortars rained down on Mogadishu today after a week of fighting, despite a plea by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon for an end to the violence that local groups say has claimed the lives of over 350 people.

Artillery shells and mortars rained down on Somalia’s capital Mogadishu again today, despite a plea by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to end the violence that has left nearly 250 people dead.

The European Union presidency and the United Nations secretary-general condemned the reported arrest and torture of Zimbabwe opposition leaders after a weekend rally, and told Robert Mugabe’s government it must ensure the safety of those detained.

A powerful earthquake jolted western Indonesia today, killing at least 70 people and injuring hundreds as they fled shaking buildings, crumpled homes and hospitals, authorities said. Two school children were crushed by debris on a playground.

New United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon fears that US bombing in southern Somalia could increase hostilities and harm civilians, some of whom are reported to have been killed in the air strikes.

The new boss of the World Health Organisation has renewed the agency’s warning that the world must keep up its guard against bird flu.

FOUR UN peacekeepers in southern Sudan have been sent home in the past year following investigations of alleged sexual abuse and the organisation is looking into reports that more than 20 children were raped and abused, a UN spokeswoman has said.

Four peacekeepers from Bangladesh have been sent home and 13 other UN personnel serving in southern Sudan are under investigation for alleged serious misconduct, including sexual exploitation and abuse, the United Nations said tonight.

Secretary General Ban Ki-moon appointed a Mexican environmentalist who was chief of staff to former Secretary-General Kofi Annan to spearhead UN reform efforts and a British diplomat who served as a top adviser to two prime ministers as the UN’s new humanitarian chief.

South Korean diplomat Ban Ki-moon took the reins of the UN today as the world body's eighth secretary-general.