1 February 2022

UN

UN chief calls for Olympic Truce to build ‘culture of peace’ through sport

Secretary-General António Guterres is urging the world to “build a culture of peace” through the power of sport, calling for nations to observe the Olympic Truce, endorsed last week through a resolution of the UN General Assembly.  

Amidst spreading conflict and rising tensions, he reminded that the appeal calls on all parties to observe a ceasefire throughout the course of the upcoming winter games.

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Pledge to ‘never forget’ the Holocaust, Guterres tells synagogue ceremony

People everywhere must stand firm against hate, amid rising antisemitism and other forms of religious bigotry, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Tuesday. 

His appeal came in a video message to a ceremony at the Park East Synagogue in New York to commemorate the 77th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp. The annual service honours the memories of the six million Jews killed in the Holocaust and was again held virtually this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

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‘Daily life has become a frozen hell’: UN chief says Afghanistan ‘hanging by thread’

New York: Afghanistan is “hanging by a thread”, with millions of people suffering extreme hunger, and education and social services on the brink of collapse, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the Security Council on Wednesday.

Ukraine - Humanitarian Response Plan 2022

In 2022, humanitarian partners aim to assist 1.8 million people, including 144,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in GCA, with a funding requirement of $190 million. The target to assist 1.8 million people across the conflict-affected area is similar to the 2021 target and reflects the level of humanitarian response capacity and State ownership of the response as well as access restrictions and the development of COVID-19. The humanitarian response will span six sectoral areas – education, food security and livelihoods, health, protection, shelter/non-food items and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH).

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Labour market recovery still ‘slow and uncertain’

As the COVID-19 pandemic grinds on and global labour markets continue to struggle, the latest International Labour Organization (ILO) report, published on Monday, warns that recovery will remain slow.

In its flagship World Employment and Social Outlook Trends 2022 (WESO Trends), ILO has downgraded its 2022 labour market recovery forecast, projecting a continuing major deficit in the number of working hours compared to the pre-pandemic era.

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INTERPOL

Nigerian cybercrime fraud: 11 suspects arrested, syndicate busted

INTERPOL support protects cyber space and brings criminals to justice

The Nigerian Police Force (NPF) has arrested 11 alleged members of a prolific cybercrime network as part of a national police operation coordinated with INTERPOL.

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Ivory, rhino horns, pangolin and tiger parts seized in transit from Africa to Asia

INTERPOL operation disrupts the organized crime networks behind wildlife trafficking

SINGAPORE – An eight-week INTERPOL operation against wildlife crime and trafficking resulted in arrests and seizures across Asia and Africa. Codenamed Golden Strike, the operation - which ended late last year - targeted the criminals and networks smuggling wildlife protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) from Africa to Asia.

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South America: Two missing teens rescued in same week through INTERPOL coordination

Victims of human trafficking, the children were rescued through intense cooperation between national police authorities’ INTERPOL desks in Argentina, Chile and Peru.

On 8 January, an officer from Peru’s INTERPOL National Central Bureau (NCB) in Lima received a message from a counterpart at NCB Buenos Aires requesting assistance in locating a 16-year-old Argentine girl missing from home and thought to be in the Peruvian capital. The girl, referred to by her initials, JFA, was subject to an INTERPOL Yellow Notice – a global police alert for missing persons.

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Europol

The Digital Gold Rush? Debunking common myths on the criminal use of cryptocurrencies

Europol’s new report Cryptocurrencies: tracing the evolution of criminal finances offers insights into how criminals are using cryptocurrencies today. Based on the latest operational information contributed to Europol, data collected for the EU Serious Organised Crime Threat Assessment (SOCTA) 2021 and open sources, this report debunks particular myths. 

Recent Europol examples are testimony to this:

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Unhappy New Year for cybercriminals as VPNLab.net goes offline

Joint action by 10 countries and Europol sees 15 servers taken down

On 17 January, disruptive actions took place in a coordinated manner in Germany, the Netherlands, Canada, the Czech Republic, France, Hungary, Latvia, Ukraine, the United States and the United Kingdom. Law enforcement authorities have now seized or disrupted the 15 servers that hosted VPNLab.net’s service, rendering it no longer available. Led by the Central Criminal Office of the Hannover Police Department in Germany, the action took place under the EMPACT security framework objective Cybercrime - Attacks Against Information Systems.

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Bulgarian authorities take down online investment scam responsible for losses of more than EUR 10 million

The scammers operated through bogus websites and call centres in Bulgaria and targeted victims in Germany and Greece

Judicial and law enforcement authorities in Bulgaria, supported by Europol and Eurojust, have taken down a network of online investment fraudsters involved in money laundering. On the action day on 26 January, officers from the Bulgarian National Police (ГД Национална Полиция) arrested one suspect for defrauding mainly German and Greek investors of at least EUR 10 million. During the action day, a total of 24 locations were searched, while officers interrogated 66 witnesses in Sofia and Burgas. Furthermore, a variety of electronic equipment, financial information and recordings were seized.  

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29 arrested in Albania, Greece and Italy for smuggling more than 1 100 migrants in yachts

Active along the Eastern Mediterranean road, the criminal network made several hundred million euros in illegal profits

An investigation involving the Albanian Criminal Police (Policia e Shtetit), the Hellenic Police (Ελληνική Αστυνομία) and the Italian Financial Corps (Guardia di Finanza), and supported by Europol and Eurojust, led to the dismantling of a large organised crime group involved in migrant smuggling. The operation was carried out under the direction of Albanian, Greek and Italian judicial authorities. 

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