UN sounds alarm as locusts spread in East Africa

Researchers in California unveiled a bipedal robot on Wednesday (October 6) that combines walking with flying to create a new type of locomotion, allowing it to jump, skateboard and walk on a slackline. The robot, named LEONARDO or LEO for short, was developed by a team at the California Institute of Technology's Center for Autonomous Systems and Technologies. Researchers said LEO is the first robot to use multi-joint legs and propeller-based thrusters to enable it to balance and carry out complex movements.

A nine-year-old Indian boy known as Sharvesh was seen running in Tiruchirappalli on Sunday, as he covers the distance of 750 kilometres (466 miles) from Kanyakumari to Chennai to raise awareness about the 17 aims of the Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations. "No poverty, eradicate the poverty, zero hunger and everyone should get food, good health means everyone should live healthily, quality education and each one should get quality education, gender equality - boys and girls should be considered equally. Clean water and sanitation. Like this, there are 17 Goals, to achieve those goals I am running today.", said the young marathon runner, as he posed with supporters.  

Africa accounts for less than 4% of greenhouse gas emissions, but is projected to be severely affected by climate change. A UN report said the continent's glaciers could all melt by the 2040s.

Amid projections that a staggering 97 percent of Afghan households could fall below the poverty line by the middle of next year, the United Nations Development Programme has launched a $670 million trust fund to provide economic relief. Also, Evergrande makes a key debt payment and shares for Snapchat's parent company plunge as the application faces tighter privacy restrictions on iPhones.

The UN has suspended flights to Tigray's regional capital after a plane had to abort landing in Mekelle. The humanitarian situation in the region is dire with civilians facing famine-like conditions, the UN added.

"These tactics are ominously reminiscent of those employed by the military before its genocidal attacks against the Rohingya," the UN report has warned, calling on countries to deny the junta money and legitimacy.

The UN Security Council has agreed to extend the mandate of a European military mission in Bosnia. The decision came amid a simmering row over a diplomatic report citing a separatist threat.

General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan said the army takeover was "not a coup" but just an adjustment to the democratic transition. The US and UN are calling for the return of the government.

Top UN rights official Michelle Bachelet has slammed the military's violent repression following the October 25 coup. Sudan's prime minister is under house arrest.

The council's 15 member countries released the statement as Tigrayan rebels threatened to capture the capital, Addis Ababa, a year into the fighting. Twitter also has disabled the trends section on Ethiopia.

COVID and conflicts have pushed the number of people facing food insecurity to 45 million, with Afghanistan fast becoming the "world's largest humanitarian crisis."

Authorities in Portugal have launched raids after a tipoff that Portuguese troops may have smuggled contraband from the Central Afridan Republic. The country has 180 UN peacekeepers stationed in the African nation.