[Updated at 8:22 a.m. ET] North Korea's announcement that it would restart all the facilities at its Yongbyon nuclear complex was followed by a plea for calm from United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who is himself South Korean.
Ban said he was "deeply troubled."
"The current crisis has already gone too far," he said in a statement from Andorra. "Nuclear threats are not a game. Aggressive rhetoric and military posturing only result in counter-actions, and fuel fear and instability.
[Posted at 2 a.m. ET] North Korea said Tuesday that it plans to restart all the facilities at its Yongbyon nuclear complex, including a uranium enrichment plant and a reactor that was shut down in 2007.
The announcement follows a new strategic line set out at a recent meeting of a key committee of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea on Sunday, the North's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Tuesday.
FULL STORYThe most senior surviving Khmer Rouge leader, Nuon Chea, has been declared fit for trial by a United Nations-backed court in Cambodia, the U.N. said Friday.
Nuon, the right-hand man to late leader Pol Pot and a former Cambodian prime minister, is reportedly 86 years old and is accused of murder and torture.
The United Nations Security Council unanimously approved a resolution Thursday to deploy about 3,100 peacekeepers to a restive region in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the U.N. announced.
FULL STORYNorth Korea reacted with indignation to a United Nations decision to investigate allegations of human rights abuses inside the isolated state, claiming it has one of the best systems worldwide for protecting citizens' rights.
The United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva said delegates agreed Thursday to set up a commission of inquiry to examine what it called "grave, widespread and systematic" violations of human rights in North Korea.
FULL STORYThe United Nations will probe Syria's claim that rebels may have used chemical weapons in the country, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Thursday.
Opposition groups, meanwhile, have insisted that the Syrian regime itself used such weapons.
Syria asked for a U.N. investigation of its claim, and Ban said he has a mandate to consider such a request from any member state. So the U.N. probe will focus on the government's allegation.
FULL STORYA group of farmers is on its way to tend to crops. Suddenly, a missile slams into its midst, thrusting shrapnel in all directions.
A CIA drone, flying so high that the farmers can't see it, has killed most of them. None of them were militants.
It's a common scenario, a United Nations human rights researcher said Friday in a statement on drone strikes in Pakistan's tribal region of North Waziristan.
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Syrian civilians are running out of places to take cover as indiscriminate shelling and aerial bombings destroy more neighborhoods, an independent U.N. panel said.
In addition, both government and rebel fighters have reportedly recruited boys to join their forces and are accused of violating international humanitarian law, the group said.
FULL STORYA U.N. agency has dispatched a team to collect 21 U.N. peacekeepers from Syrian rebels who detained them earlier this week, but the effort has been called off due to darkness, a U.N. spokeswoman says.
The team will try again Saturday, said U.N. Josephine Guerrero, spokeswoman for the U.N.'s peacekeeping agency.
The peacekeepers, identified by the Philippine government as Filipino, were detained in a Syrian village near the Golan Heights on Wednesday. Syrian opposition coalition President Moaz al-Khatib said Thursday that the rebels took the peacekeepers for the peacekeepers' own safety due to fighting there.
FULL STORYThe U.N. Security Council voted unanimously on Thursday for a resolution strengthening sanctions on North Korea.
The Security Council resolution targeting North Korea and its nuclear program includes tough new financial sanctions, travel restrictions, and inspection powers.
"These sanctions will bite and bite hard," U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Susan Rice told reporters after the unanimous resolution vote on Thursday.
FULL STORY[Updated at 3:36 p.m. ET] The South Sudanese armed forces admitted shooting down a United Nations helicopter in eastern South Sudan on Friday.
The Sudan People's Liberation Army said it was an accident, according to spokesman Philip Aguer.
Four crew members were killed, the United Nations Mission in South Sudan said. The group reported that there were no passengers on board.
Aguer said that a craft was seen about 9 a.m. hovering near an SPLA command area. The army asked the U.N. mission whether it had sent a plane.
"The U.N. said there is no plane, they don't have plane in the area," Aguer said.
FULL STORYShowing a side of his personality rarely seen in public, the United Nations Secretary-General tried to match “Gangnam Style” moves with the master of cheesy dancing.
Two of the world’s most recognizable South Koreans stood side-by-side. One wore spectacles, a U.N. lapel and a pressed black suit. The other stood in a black checkered jacket and his signature loose bow tie. And both raised their arms - locked and ready to bounce on imaginary horses in “Gangnam Style” fashion.
Will Lakhdar Brahimi succeed where his predecessor failed?
Brahimi, the special envoy to Syria, met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Sunday. His aim: try and broker a cease-fire in Syria before the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, which begins Friday.
But if history repeats itself, the odds of a cease-fire between Syrian government forces and rebels are stacked against Brahimi.
The man he replaced, Kofi Annan, made numerous trips to Damascus but was unable to halt the incessant violence.
Opposition activists say more than 30,000 people have been killed since the Syrian crisis began in March 2011.
FULL STORYPresident Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney hold their first debate on Wednesday from the campus of the University of Denver. Watch CNN.com Live for all the latest coverage from the election.
Today's programming highlights...
9:00 am ET - UN General Assembly - It's the final day of general debate at the United Nations General Assembly today. We expect to hear from Syria, Cuba and North Korea during the session.
President Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney hold their first debate October 3 from the campus of the University of Denver. Watch CNN.com Live for all the latest coverage from the election.
Today's programming highlights...
9:00 am ET - UN General Assembly debate resumes - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas are among the speakers scheduled to address today's session of the UN General Assembly.
The U.S. delegation "has decided not to attend" the speech to be delivered by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad before the United Nations General Assembly, Erin Pelton, spokeswoman for the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, said in a statement Wednesday.
"Over the past couple of days, we've seen Mr. Ahmadinejad once again use his trip to the U.N. not to address the legitimate aspirations of the Iranian people but to instead spout paranoid theories and repulsive slurs against Israel," Pelton said.
The Iranian leader's addresses to the assembly have often generated controversy in the past. The tensions over Tehran's disputed nuclear program and speculation over a possible attack on Iran by Israel offer ample material for drama this time around.
In previous years, several delegations have walked out during Ahmadinejad's speeches, which have assailed the United States and criticized countries that he said used the Holocaust as an "excuse to pay ransom to Zionists."
Five things we learned from Day One of the U.N. debate
He will be taking to the podium Wednesday, a day after President Barack Obama told the assembly that while Washington remains committed to a diplomatic solution to Iran's nuclear program, the United States "will do what we must to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon."
Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes and to fill energy shortages, but Western leaders believe Tehran is an aspiring armed nuclear power. U.N. inspectors have also expressed doubts about the program's aims.
President Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney hold their first debate October 3 from the campus of the University of Denver. Watch CNN.com Live for all the latest coverage from the election.
Today's programming highlights...
8:30 am ET - Romney in Ohio - GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney is getting a celebrity boost while campaigning in Ohio. First, he'll be joined by golf legend Jack Nicklaus in Westerville. Later, TV host Mike Rowe will assist Romney at a manufacturing roundtable in Bedford Heights.
Editor's note: President Barack Obama addressed the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday. You can read a live blog of his remarks below or see his remarks in full here.
[Updated at 10:51 a.m. ET] President Obama pointed to all of the Libyans who supported America and showed their love of Ambassador Chris Stevens as further hope for the world. He's bringing the speech full circle by going back to the attacks in Benghazi.
"Today I promise you this – long after these killers are brought to justice, Chris Stevens’ legacy will live on in the lives he touched. In the tens of thousands who marched against violence through the streets of Benghazi; in the Libyans who changed their Facebook photo to one of Chris; in the sign that read, simply, Chris Stevens was a friend to all Libyans,'" Obama said. "They should give us hope. They should remind us that so long as we work for it justice will be done; that history is on our side; and that a rising tide of liberty will never be reversed.""
[Updated at 10:50 a.m. ET] President Obama is talking about the hope he sees in the communities around the world like Jakarta, Seoul, Prague and others.
"These men, women and children of every race and every faith remind me that for every angry mob that gets shown on television, there are billions around the globe who share similar hopes and dreams. They tell us that there is a common heartbeat to humanity," he said. "So much attention in our world turns to what divides us. That’s what we see on the news, and that consumes our political debates. But when you strip that all away, people everywhere long for the freedom to determine their destiny; the dignity that comes with work; the comfort that comes from faith; and the justice that exists when governments serve their people – and not the other way around."
[Updated at 10:48 a.m. ET] President Obama says that while he has seen a lot of troubling things in recent times, he believes he has witnessed a similar amount of progress that leaves him hopeful.
"The war in Iraq is over, and our troops have come home. We have begun a transition in Afghanistan, and America and our allies will end our war on schedule in 2014," Obama said. "Al Qaeda has been weakened and Osama bin Laden is no more. Nations have come together to lock down nuclear materials, and America and Russia are reducing our arsenals. I’ve seen hard choices made – from Naypyidaw to Cairo to Abidjan – to put more power in the hands of citizens."
[Updated at 10:46 a.m. ET] President Obama is now addressing the concerns about a nuclear Iran and the policies and ideology of leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
"In Iran, we see where the path of a violent and unaccountable ideology leads. The Iranian people have a remarkable and ancient history, and many Iranians wish to enjoy peace and prosperity alongside their neighbors. But just as it restricts the rights of its own people, the Iranian government props up a dictator in Damascus and supports terrorist groups abroad," Obama said. "Time and again, it has failed to take the opportunity to demonstrate that its nuclear program is peaceful, and to meet its obligations to the United Nations."
Obama said that he would like to solve these issues with diplomacy - and it is still possible.
"But that time is not unlimited. We respect the right of nations to access peaceful nuclear power, but one of the purposes of the United Nations is to see that we harness that power for peace," Obama said. "Make no mistake: a nuclear-armed Iran is not a challenge that can be contained."
[Updated at 10:45 a.m. ET] Obama is now talking about the conflict in Syria.
"The future must not belong to a dictator who massacres his people. If there is a cause that cries out for protest in the world today, it is a regime that tortures children and shoots rockets at apartment buildings," Obama said. "And we must remain engaged to assure that what began with citizens demanding their rights does not end in a cycle of sectarian violence. "
Deaths mounting in Syrian towns; children being tortured, U.N. official says
[Updated at 10:44 a.m. ET] Obama is now addressing the peace process in Israel.
"Among Israelis and Palestinians, the future must not belong to those who turn their backs on the prospect of peace. Let us leave behind those who thrive on conflict, and those who reject the right of Israel to exist," he said. "The road is hard but the destination is clear – a secure, Jewish state of Israel; and an independent, prosperous Palestine. Understanding that such a peace must come through a just agreement between the parties, America will walk alongside all who are prepared to make that journey."
[Updated at 10:42 a.m. ET] President Obama is referencing a quote by Gandhi: "Intolerance is itself a form of violence and an obstacle to the growth of a true democratic spirit."
Obama says that we must all not just condemn the recent video and slander of Islam.
"Yet to be credible, those who condemn that slander must also condemn the hate we see when the image of Jesus Christ is desecrated, churches are destroyed, or the Holocaust is denied. Let us condemn incitement against Sufi Muslims, and Shiite pilgrims," he said.
[Updated at 10:40 a.m. ET] President Obama warned that while violence may initially be voiced against the West it will eventually spread if nothing is done.
"The same impulses toward extremism are used to justify war between Sunnis and Shia, between tribes and clans. It leads not to strength and prosperity but to chaos," Obama said. "In less than two years, we have seen largely peaceful protests bring more change to Muslim-majority countries than a decade of violence. Extremists understand this. And because they have nothing to offer to improve the lives of people, violence is their only way to stay relevant. They do not build, they only destroy."
He called on leaders and those who have protested during the Arab spring to reclaim the future.
"The future must not belong to those who target Coptic Christians in Egypt – it must be claimed by those in Tahrir Square who chanted 'Muslims, Christians, we are one.' The future must not belong to those who bully women – it must be shaped by girls who go to school, and those who stand for a world where our daughters can live their dreams just like our sons," Obama said. "The future must not belong to those corrupt few who steal a country’s resources – it must be won by the students and entrepreneurs; workers and business owners who seek a broader prosperity for all people. Those are the men and women that America stands with; theirs is the vision we will support."
President Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney hold their first debate October 3 from the campus of the University of Denver. Watch CNN.com Live for all the latest coverage from the election.
Today's programming highlights...
9:00 am ET - UN General Assembly debate begins - It's that time of the year where world leaders, diplomats and dignitaries gather to let a global audience know what they think about pretty much anything and everything. It's the annual debate of the United Nations General Assembly, and President Obama will address the world body for a fourth time during the 10am ET hour. Later speakers include the presidents of France and Afghanistan, as well as the Spanish prime minister.
A U.N. General Assembly resolution approved Friday stresses "grave concern" over the deteriorating conflict in Syria and slams the government for its actions and the Security Council for its "failure" to counter the crisis.
The assembly adopted the Saudi-sponsored resolution 133-12 with 31 abstentions. It comes a day after Kofi Annan announced his resignation as the U.N. and Arab League special envoy to Syria. He championed a six-point peace plan that has failed to take hold.
The resolution notes "human rights abuses by armed opposition groups" and condemns "all violence, irrespective of where it comes from, including terrorist acts." But most of its ire is reserved for Bashar al-Assad's regime.
General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding, unlike Security Council resolutions. But diplomats at the General Assembly strongly upbraided the Security Council for failing to deal with the issue. Russia and China vetoed tough Security Council resolutions against Syria earlier this year.
FULL STORYRussia and China vetoed a new U.N. Security Council resolution Thursday that would have imposed new sanctions on the Syrian regime.
Western countries have been pushing for a resolution that threatens sanctions against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad if government forces don't stop attacks.
However, Russia has opposed any international effort that would blame, punish or change the leadership of the Syrian government. Russia and China have vetoed two previous draft resolutions in the U.N. Security Council, leading to accusations that Russia is protecting the Syrian regime.
The resolution also calls for renewing the 300-member U.N. observer mission for 45 days after it was suspended because of violence.
Russia has put forward its own draft, which "strongly urges all parties in Syria to cease immediately all armed violence in all its forms."
U.S. President Barack Obama called his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, to discuss the Syrian situation, the White House said in a statement Wednesday.
"They noted the differences our governments have had on Syria, but agreed to have their teams continue to work toward a solution," it said.
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