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New York: The United Nations health agency has said that the health risks related to the ashes from the volcanic eruption in Iceland are not yet fully known, but they could be harmful when inhaled, especially for people with asthma and other respiratory problems.

New York: Nearly 2,000 indigenous representatives from all over the world will gather at United Nations Headquarters in New York on Monday for the start of a two-week meeting aimed at ensuring their full participation in development while preserving their culture and identity.

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has completed the second review of Iceland's economic performance under a program supported by a Stand-By Arrangement (SBA). `At the request of Iceland's authorities, the Board also extended the SBA by three months to August 31, 2011 to compensate for delays in completing this review, and approved the re-phasing of the undisbursed amounts over the remainder of the arrangement. The completion of the second review enables the immediate disbursement of an amount equivalent to SDR 105 million (about US$160 million), bringing total disbursements under the program to an amount equivalent to SDR 770 million (about US$1.2 billion).

New York: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has stressed the need for strong political commitment by post-conflict countries and their international partners, saying it is the key to building lasting peace in the aftermath of war.

New York: Kyrgyzstan still faces a lot of challenges following the ouster of president Kurmanbek Bakiyev and the establishment of a more democratic government, and the international community should step up to the plate to help it, a United Nations special envoy said.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) Statistics Department and the Financial Stability Board (FSB) Secretariat jointly organized a conference on April 8 and 9, 2010, on the Financial Crisis and Information Gaps. Senior officials from G-20 economies, other FSB members, and representatives from international institutions took part. The conference was hosted by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in Basel, Switzerland.

New York: The United Nations handed over formal control of policing operations in Baucau, Timor-Leste's second largest city, to national police as part of an ongoing strategy to lessen the Organization's direct control over the country's nascent security operations.

New York: Some 10 million detainees around the world are held in appalling conditions and stronger measures are needed to improve prison conditions and ensure full respect for human rights, according to a United Nations expert on torture.

New York: The top United Nations refugee official praised Tanzania's decision to grant citizenship to tens of thousands of Burundian refugees who fled their homeland some 38 years ago.

New York: European Nordic Governments agreed in principle to restart talks on a convention with the Sami people in a move hailed by a United Nations human rights expert as potentially enhancing indigenous rights and self-determination.