Four UN staff members were dismissed for sending and storing child pornography on UN computers and another was dismissed for using a UN vehicle to transport approximately 173kg of marijuana, according to a UN report obtained on Friday.
The report on UN disciplinary matters and cases of criminal behavior covers a year-long period through June this year, and documents about 60 cases that resulted in disciplinary measures, among the organization’s worldwide staff of about 40,000.
It does not identify any of the workers or where they worked, nor does it include the more than 100,000 UN peacekeepers who are under the jurisdiction of their home countries.
The report, circulated late last month, states that during the period eight cases involving “credible allegations of criminal conduct by United Nations officials or experts on mission were referred to member states.”
The disciplinary cases range from a senior UN employee’s demotion for harassing a subordinate to dismissal of a UN employee caught trying to steal money from the wallet of another staffer, and termination of the contract of a staffer performing security and screening duties at an airport who took US$2,200 from the luggage of a passenger traveling on a UN flight.
The report gave no details on the four employees sending child pornography. It said a fifth staffer was demoted for storing pornographic material on a computer and failing to report that another UN staffer had sent it though the UN’s e-mail system.
Australians were downloading virtual private networks (VPNs) in droves, while one of the world’s largest porn distributors said it was blocking users from its platforms as the country yesterday rolled out sweeping online age restriction. Australia in December became the first country to impose a nationwide ban on teenagers using social media. A separate law now requires artificial intelligence (AI)-powered chatbot services to keep certain content — including pornography, extreme violence and self-harm and eating disorder material — from minors or face fines of up to A$49.5 million (US$34.6 million). The country also joined Britain, France and dozens of US states requiring
Hungarian authorities temporarily detained seven Ukrainian citizens and seized two armored cars carrying tens of millions of euros in cash across Hungary on suspicion of money laundering, officials said on Friday. The Ukrainians were released on Friday, following their detention on Thursday, but Hungarian officials held onto the cash, prompting Ukraine to accuse Hungary’s Russia-friendly government of illegally seizing the money. “We will not tolerate this state banditism,” Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrii Sybiha said. The seven detained Ukrainians were employees of the Ukrainian state-owned Oschadbank, who were traveling in the two armored cars that were carrying the money between Austria and
Kosovar President Vjosa Osmani on Friday after dissolving the Kosovar parliament said a snap election should be held as soon as possible to avoid another prolonged political crisis in the Balkan country at a time of global turmoil. Osmani said it is important for Kosovo to wrap up the upcoming election process and form functional institutions for political stability as the war rages in the Middle East. “Precisely because the geopolitical situation is that complex, it is important to finish this electoral process which is coming up,” she said. “It is very hard now to imagine what will happen next.” Kosovo, which declared
MORE BANS: Australia last year required sites to remove accounts held by under-16s, with a few countries pushing for similar action at an EU level and India considering its own ban Indonesia on Friday said it would ban social media access for children under 16, citing threats from online pornography, cyberbullying, online fraud and Internet addiction. “Accounts belonging to children under 16 on high-risk platforms will start to be deactivated, beginning with YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, Bigo Live and Roblox,” Indonesian Minister of Communications and Digital Meutya Hafid said. “The government is stepping in so that parents no longer have to fight alone against the giants of the algorithm. Implementation will begin on March 28, 2026,” she said. The social media ban would be introduced in stages “until all platforms fulfill their
RSS