International Geneva

We cover global affairs from Geneva, focusing on humanitarian aid, conflict resolution, and climate change. Our UN-based reporters provide first-hand access to sources and information.

UBS gaining support for compromise on Swiss capital rules

This content was published on Oct 3, 2025 Liberal and right-wing lawmakers and lobbyists are discussing proposal that could slash capital increase by $10 billion or more.

Human rights

Navi Pillay (right) and Chris Sidoti during the presentation of the new report of the UN Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

UN Commission of Inquiry concludes genocide is taking place in Gaza

This content was published on Sep 19, 2025 The report’s authors point to the responsibility of Israeli leaders and call on states to act. Its publication has drawn little reaction in Europe.

Opinion

The challenge of proving genocide

This content was published on Sep 18, 2025 The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has to decide on whether Israel’s alleged crimes in Gaza amount to a genocide. Key to the ruling will be proving intent.

Timeline: Switzerland and the war in the Middle East since October 7, 2023

This content was published on Sep 18, 2025 Since October 7, 2023, Switzerland has repeatedly emphasised the need to end hostilities in the Middle East. However, its positions have attracted criticism.

An aerial photograph taken by a drone shows Palestinians walking through the destruction caused by the Israeli air and ground offensive in Jabaliya, Gaza Strip, Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Mohammad Abu Samra)

When is a ‘genocide’ really genocide?

This content was published on Sep 18, 2025 Is genocide being committed in Gaza? While more and more experts in international law say it is, the issue continues to divide opinion.

Slowness and alleged political interference mark Swiss record on international crimes

This content was published on Sep 16, 2025 In Switzerland, justice on universal jurisdiction cases continues to go at a snail’s pace, despite the attorney general’s promises to make them a priority.

Mehdi Rajabian (face on the phone) accompanies a rehearsal of the Zurich ensemble from his home in Teheran.

Zurich orchestra gives voice to composer who can’t leave Iran

This content was published on Sep 14, 2025 Mehdi Rajabian’s music is banned in his homeland. In Zurich, an orchestra led by Swiss conductor André Bellmont will play some of his songs for the first time.

Human Rights Council meets in Geneva amid budget crisis

This content was published on Sep 9, 2025 The UN’s main human rights body has begun its final session of the year in a context of budgetary woes and geopolitical tensions.

The Swiss-Tunisian Mustapha Djemali (left) has been in prison for over a year without charge. His daughter Yusra Djemali and his son Fadhel Djemali are very worried. They would like to see more commitment from the Swiss authorities.

Relatives fear for 81-year-old Swiss detained in Tunisia

This content was published on Sep 6, 2025 A former UN employee has been held in custody for over a year. Are the Swiss authorities and UNHCR doing enough for him?

Sand, an overexploited resource at the heart of global tensions

This content was published on Sep 5, 2025 Sand extraction is not subject to any global regulation and has tripled in the last 20 years. In Geneva, a global observatory is tracking this still little-known phenomenon.

On August 13, Roskomnadzor, the state media regulator, restricted calls on WhatsApp and Telegram, calling them “main voice services used to deceive and extort money, and to involve Russian citizens in sabotage and terrorist activities”

Behind Russia’s digital Iron Curtain: how the West and Switzerland look online

This content was published on Aug 29, 2025 We demonstrate how Russia’s digital Iron Curtain works with and without a VPN. [Spoiler: Swissinfo’s website doesn’t load in the country without one.]

This photo taken on May 21, 2024 shows a destroyed house and burned trees following fighting between Myanmar's military and the Arakan Army (AA) ethnic minority armed group in a village in Minbya Township in western Rakhine State. Fighting has rocked Myanmar's western Rakhine state since the Arakan Army (AA) attacked the junta there in November last year, and according to the UN more than 100,000 people have been displaced by conflict in the state since then. (Photo by AFP) / To go with 'MYANMAR-CONFLICT-COUP-RAKHINE'

How digital evidence is reshaping UN investigations in Myanmar

This content was published on Aug 27, 2025 UN investigators are using digital evidence to document war crimes in Myanmar, from torture to airstrikes, but shrinking funds threaten the work.

Global health

extreme heat work health. Construction worker Justino cools off during a heat wave in Texas.

Too hot to work? Extreme heat endangers billions of workers

This content was published on Aug 22, 2025 Billions of workers face heat stress, illness and lost income as global temperatures climb, warns a WHO-WMO joint report.

World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is seen on a screen delivering his report before delegates during the World Health Assembly in Geneva on May 19, 2025.

The WHO has to close a billion-dollar gap. Can private funding help?

This content was published on Jul 21, 2025 The US withdrawal from the WHO has left it scrambling for funds. Private donors are one solution but come with caveats.

Taiwanese honor guards hold a Taiwan flag at Liberty Square, amid a surge of domestic COVID-19 cases and the rising Taiwan-China tensions, in Taipei, Taiwan, 23 May 2021.

Fifty years of hurt: Taiwan struggles for Geneva role

This content was published on Jun 6, 2025 Taiwan hasn’t been part of the WHO since 1972. One man is trying to change that.

Global concern over measles is rising. Should Switzerland worry?

This content was published on May 30, 2025 Measles is making a global comeback. In Switzerland, a crisis is unlikely – but authorities warn a strong vaccination rate remains crucial.

MMR vaccine. Syringe and vial on a counter. This combined vaccine protects infants from three viral diseases: measles, mumps and rubella.

One paper, 20 years of damage

This content was published on May 30, 2025 Nearly 30 years ago an academic paper wrongly linked autism to a measles vaccine. The impacts are still being felt today.

A young patient is fitted with an exoskeleton.

Rare diseases take centre stage at global health summit

This content was published on May 27, 2025 Rare diseases have been recognised as a global health priority for the first time. How could this impact access to life-saving treatment?

Dolores Reyes Fernández, 61, hugs her father, José Reyes Lozano, 87, for the first time in nearly four months as visits resume at the nursing home in Barcelona, Spain, Monday, June 22, 2020.

Pandemic treaty comes as welcome sign of multilateralism

This content was published on May 16, 2025 Can the pandemic treaty withstand the withdrawal of the United States from the WHO?

Outdoor apparel companies have long relied on PFAS, so-called forever chemicals, to make products water-resistant.

PFAS regulation: ‘forever chemical’ banned under global treaty

This content was published on May 8, 2025 International negotiations in Geneva have led to a major breakthrough: the addition of a new “forever chemical” to the Stockholm Convention’s blacklist

An Ethiopian man carries a USAID donated sack of wheat on his shoulders to be distributed by the Relief Society of Tigray in the town of Agula, in the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia, in May 2021.

Trump’s aid cuts plunge humanitarian sector into existential crisis

This content was published on May 8, 2025 US President Donald Trump’s return to the White House has come with sweeping cuts to humanitarian aid.

International public media face uncertain future in democracies

This content was published on Apr 25, 2025 More and more Western governments are paring down their funding for international public media, even as authoritarian regimes beef theirs up.

Illustration depicting the break of USAID and Geneva, Switzerland.

Is Geneva prepared for Trump’s – and others’ – cuts to foreign aid?

This content was published on Mar 22, 2025 US cuts to foreign aid will have implications reaching around the world. For Geneva, home to thousands of NGOs, a lot is at stake.

Geneva organisations

On the night of August 31, Afghanistan was hit by a destructive earthquake measuring 6 on the Richter scale. More than 6,700 houses were destroyed.

Aid workers race against clock after earthquake in Afghanistan

This content was published on Sep 17, 2025 With winter approaching, humanitarian workers in Afghanistan are short of resources and are struggling to reach victims of a deadly earthquake, especially women.

Human Rights Council meets in Geneva amid budget crisis

This content was published on Sep 9, 2025 The UN’s main human rights body has begun its final session of the year in a context of budgetary woes and geopolitical tensions.

Russia has been increasing its isolation in technology, culture and education.

Russia bans International Baccalaureate over ‘Russophobia’

This content was published on Aug 29, 2025 Russia bans International Baccalaureate: Students lose access to global diplomas as Kremlin tightens educational isolation.

Ripple effect of aid freeze becomes real in Geneva

This content was published on Aug 26, 2025 Geneva is reckoning with fewer funds, fewer people and competition from cheaper countries vying for an international role.

The Place des Nations square opposite the UN headquarters in Geneva often hosts events and political demos. In this photo, Russians protest against the war in Ukraine, March 2025.

Egyptian, Chinese and Russian dissidents tracked and threatened in Switzerland

This content was published on Aug 19, 2025 Repression by autocratic states abroad is also happening in Switzerland, and the human rights hub Geneva is particularly exposed to this threat.

The WHO has to close a billion-dollar gap. Can private funding help?

This content was published on Jul 21, 2025 The US withdrawal from the WHO has left it scrambling for funds. Private donors are one solution but come with caveats.

The United States' Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield holds up a copy of the United Nations charter while addressing a United Nations Security Council meeting, which is being chaired by Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, at the United Nations headquarters in New York, New York, USA, 24 April 2023

UN Charter turns 80 – but does it still matter?

This content was published on Jul 2, 2025 The United Nations Charter turns 80 at a time when Israel, Iran and the US have been launching missile attacks and Russia is continuing its invasion of Ukraine.

Fifty years of hurt: Taiwan struggles for Geneva role

This content was published on Jun 6, 2025 Taiwan hasn’t been part of the WHO since 1972. One man is trying to change that.

What is the future of global climate cooperation without the US?

Inside Geneva: pandemics and climate change, can multilateralism still work?

This content was published on May 27, 2025 How will the world find consensus on weighty issues, such as pandemic and climate policies, without US support?

Workers unload humanitarian aid and relief goods for Sudan floods victims that were sent from UAE's emirate of Dubai, September 7, 2022.

Who will come to the aid of a humanitarian system left behind by the West?

This content was published on May 14, 2025 Emerging players such as China and the Gulf states could step up their financial contributions – but are likely to bypass the UN system.

Signing of the United Nations Charter in San Francisco on 26 June 1945.

What remains of the UN dream 80 years after the Second World War?

This content was published on May 6, 2025 Eighty years after the creation of the United Nations, the rise of extremes and the return of open conflict are challenging the international institutions that emerged after the war.

Global trade

UBS gaining support for compromise on Swiss capital rules

This content was published on Oct 3, 2025 Liberal and right-wing lawmakers and lobbyists are discussing proposal that could slash capital increase by $10 billion or more.

US tariffs force Switzerland to rethink trade ties

This content was published on Sep 24, 2025 United States trade policy is rattling countries worldwide and prompting them to redirect trade flows at record speed.

How the Swiss central bank built a $167bn tech-led US stocks portfolio

This content was published on Sep 16, 2025 The Swiss National Bank has more than $42 billion invested in Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Nvidia and Meta.

Can Switzerland lower agricultural tariffs to negotiate a better deal with the US?

This content was published on Sep 15, 2025 The European Union, which wrangled a much lower US tariff, offered concessions on certain food imports. Is this an option for Switzerland?

Swiss watchmaking industry grapples with spike in US trade tariffs

This content was published on Sep 12, 2025 The 39% customs duties on Swiss exports to the US, which came into force a month ago, are a big concern for watchmakers. How will they react?

Opinion

The trade agreement between India and EFTA countries comes just at the right time

This content was published on Sep 8, 2025 The new trade agreement between India and EFTA countries, of which Switzerland is part, is more than a trade deal argues economist Saon Ray.

Explainer: How the new US tariffs are already impacting the Swiss economy

This content was published on Sep 8, 2025 On August 1, US President Donald Trump announced a tariff of 39% for Switzerland. The effects are slowly becoming visible.

Sand, an overexploited resource at the heart of global tensions

Vitol capitalised better than competitors on disruptions in energy markets

Vitol: the secretive trading giant minting fortunes for its employees

This content was published on Sep 3, 2025 The commodity house is among world’s most profitable companies and has returned $20 billion to senior staff over past three years.

Lobbyists and oil-producers blamed for failure of Geneva plastics treaty

This content was published on Aug 18, 2025 Talks on a binding treaty on plastic pollution broke down on Friday. Several experts are pointing the finger at interest groups and oil- and plastic-producing countries.

Trump’s tariffs expose weakness of Switzerland’s economic independence

This content was published on Aug 12, 2025 Officials worry that Switzerland’s historic strengths have become liabilities in an age of trade wars.

Humanitarian aid

Displaced Palestinians move with their belongings southwards.

How the UN is navigating diplomacy, international law and humanitarian aid in Gaza

This content was published on Oct 2, 2025 No peace plan in Gaza can be implemented without the involvement of UN agencies, many of which are still operating on the ground.

Aid workers race against clock after earthquake in Afghanistan

Palestinians struggle to get donated food at a community kitchen in Gaza City, northern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Aug. 16, 2025.

UN-backed report declaring famine in Gaza ‘important’ but won’t change much

This content was published on Aug 22, 2025 Declaring a famine in Gaza is important but won’t bring any short-term relief to the Palestinian population, experts say.

A youth looks out through a metal fence as she stands in the rain at Camp Roj in Syria's northeastern Hasakah province.

Lost in limbo: calls for repatriation of Swiss jihadist detainees in Syria grow louder

This content was published on Jul 31, 2025 Human rights experts, humanitarian groups, and even the US are calling for repatriation. Switzerland says it won’t support their coming back.

Afghan men who have lost their legs due to landmines learn to use their new prosthetics at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) physical rehabilitation center in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, May 16, 2022.

Why five European countries want to allow anti-personnel mines again

This content was published on Jul 18, 2025 The three Baltic countries, Poland and Finland have decided to withdraw from the international treaty banning anti-personnel mines. Why now?

Cambodia’s Tun Channareth renews fight for mine-free world in Geneva

This content was published on Jul 18, 2025 A long-standing campaigner against anti-personnel mines, Cambodian Tun Channareth was in Geneva to defend the convention banning them, which has been weakened by the withdrawal of several Eastern European countries.

Viola Amherd, right, President of the Swiss Confederation, and Denys Shmyhal, left, Prime Minister of Ukraines, talk together during a bilateral meeting at the Ukraine Mine Action Conference, in Lausanne, Switzerland, Thursday, October 17, 2024.

Switzerland signs controversial reconstruction aid package for Ukraine

This content was published on Jul 14, 2025 The deal, which includes binding contracts for the involvement of Swiss companies in Ukraine’s reconstruction, has been widely criticised.

Tom Fletcher, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting on Gaza and the Middle East, at UN headquarters in New York City on March 18, 2025.

Is the UN still relevant in the Middle East?

This content was published on Jun 5, 2025 The UN is no longer at the center of negotiations for a solution to the Middle East conflict. But that doesn’t mean it’s irrelevant.

Palestinian girls crowd to receive food portions from a charity kitchen in a refugee camp in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on Friday, May 30, 2025.

Gaza Humanitarian Foundation begins aid deliveries amid chaos and bloodshed

This content was published on Jun 3, 2025 The new Gaza Humanitarian Foundation is accused of militarising aid. Witnesses report chaos and shootings at aid delivery points.

Climate refugees left in legal limbo

This content was published on Jun 3, 2025 “Climate refugees” are not recognised by international law. Should a new status be created to protect them?

Opinion

What is the cost for killing humanitarians?

This content was published on May 26, 2025 Médecins Sans Frontières calls for respect of international law and the end of attacks on humanitarian aid workers.

Community corner: latest debates and surveys on International Geneva

What do recent events tell us about the risks and rewards of sticking to nuclear treaties?

Russia, Ukraine, North Korea, Israel, Iran. What’s the point of nuclear deals if it pays off to flout them?

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Aug 2, 2025

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External Content

Latest content on International Geneva

How the UN is navigating diplomacy, international law and humanitarian aid in Gaza

This content was published on Oct 2, 2025 No peace plan in Gaza can be implemented without the involvement of UN agencies, many of which are still operating on the ground.

Newsletter Summer profile: Rieke Hayes, ICRC Physiotherapist

This content was published on Sep 30, 2025 Rieke Hayes is an ICRC physiotherapist. She speaks to Inside Geneva on working in North Korea and Gaza.

Photo of physiotherapists working in a tent in Gaza

Inside Geneva’s final summer profile: ICRC physiotherapist Rieke Hayes

This content was published on Sep 30, 2025 In this week’s final Summer Profile on the Inside Geneva podcast, we speak to Irish physiotherapist Rieke Hayes, now working in Gaza for the ICRC.

A young student holds a candle at the start of a memorial ceremony for the victims of the atomic bomb at the Hypocenter Park in Nagasaki, southwestern Japan, 08 August 2025.

Eighty years after Hiroshima, many Japanese teens see future with nuclear bombs

This content was published on Sep 29, 2025 Eighty years after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan is facing challenges of how to pass on wartime memories.

Yuval Raphael from Israel performs the song "New Day Will Rise" during the Grand Final of the 69th Eurovision Song Contest, in Basel.

Eurovision Members to Vote on Whether to Exclude Israel

This content was published on Sep 26, 2025 The EBU will host an extraordinary general meeting in early November at which member broadcasters will vote on Israeli participation in the next Eurovision Song Contest.

US tariffs force Switzerland to rethink trade ties

This content was published on Sep 24, 2025 United States trade policy is rattling countries worldwide and prompting them to redirect trade flows at record speed.

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Inside Geneva: international affairs from the world’s humanitarian capital

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More content on International Geneva

Opinion

BRICS and the legacy of the Non-Aligned Movement

This content was published on Sep 22, 2025 Are the BRICS the new Non-Aligned Movement? Historian Nataša Mišković points out differences and similarities.

UN Commission of Inquiry concludes genocide is taking place in Gaza

This content was published on Sep 19, 2025 The report’s authors point to the responsibility of Israeli leaders and call on states to act. Its publication has drawn little reaction in Europe.

Opinion

The challenge of proving genocide

Timeline: Switzerland and the war in the Middle East since October 7, 2023

When is a ‘genocide’ really genocide?

This content was published on Sep 18, 2025 Is genocide being committed in Gaza? While more and more experts in international law say it is, the issue continues to divide opinion.

The Democratic Republic of Congo produces over 70 percent of the global supply of cobalt. The metal is a critical component of batteries and seen as key to the renewable energy transition.

UN experts warn Congo’s conflict minerals slipping into global market

This content was published on Sep 17, 2025 A UN report warns that minerals extracted from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) financing war are illegally entering the global market.

Aid workers race against clock after earthquake in Afghanistan

The UN is 80 – but is it still relevant?

This content was published on Sep 16, 2025 Inside Geneva speaks to Richard Gowan, at the International Crisis Group, on UN achievements over the past 80 years and future challenges.

Is the UN still relevant at 80?

This content was published on Sep 16, 2025 As the United Nations marks its 80th anniversary, our Inside Geneva podcast asks whether the organisation still matters.

Opinion

Why Switzerland must put human rights at the core of the OSCE

This content was published on Sep 16, 2025 The OSCE presidency presents an opportunity to refocus the organisation on one of its core mission, argue Eleonora Mongelli and Florian Irminger.

Slowness and alleged political interference mark Swiss record on international crimes

How the Swiss central bank built a $167bn tech-led US stocks portfolio

This content was published on Sep 16, 2025 The Swiss National Bank has more than $42 billion invested in Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Nvidia and Meta.

Can Switzerland lower agricultural tariffs to negotiate a better deal with the US?

This content was published on Sep 15, 2025 The European Union, which wrangled a much lower US tariff, offered concessions on certain food imports. Is this an option for Switzerland?

Zurich orchestra gives voice to composer who can’t leave Iran

Swiss watchmaking industry grapples with spike in US trade tariffs

This content was published on Sep 12, 2025 The 39% customs duties on Swiss exports to the US, which came into force a month ago, are a big concern for watchmakers. How will they react?

Fighters from Arab Bedouin tribes gather in Syria's southern Sweida province amid fierce clashes with Druze gunmen on July 18, 2025. Reports indicate that dozens have been killed in intense fighting between Druze fighters and Sunni Bedouin tribes. (Photo by Rami Alsayed/NurPhoto) (Photo by Rami Alsayed / NurPhoto via AFP)

In Geneva, Syrian minorities demand protection and federalism

This content was published on Sep 11, 2025 After years of conflict, Syrian minorities are urging world leaders to block any normalisation of relations with the new authorities in Damascus.

Human Rights Council meets in Geneva amid budget crisis

This content was published on Sep 9, 2025 The UN’s main human rights body has begun its final session of the year in a context of budgetary woes and geopolitical tensions.

Opinion

The trade agreement between India and EFTA countries comes just at the right time

This content was published on Sep 8, 2025 The new trade agreement between India and EFTA countries, of which Switzerland is part, is more than a trade deal argues economist Saon Ray.

Explainer: How the new US tariffs are already impacting the Swiss economy

This content was published on Sep 8, 2025 On August 1, US President Donald Trump announced a tariff of 39% for Switzerland. The effects are slowly becoming visible.

Relatives fear for 81-year-old Swiss detained in Tunisia

This content was published on Sep 6, 2025 A former UN employee has been held in custody for over a year. Are the Swiss authorities and UNHCR doing enough for him?

Sand, an overexploited resource at the heart of global tensions

Vitol: the secretive trading giant minting fortunes for its employees

This content was published on Sep 3, 2025 The commodity house is among world’s most profitable companies and has returned $20 billion to senior staff over past three years.

Newsletter Summer Profile: Stéphane Jaquemet, a life in humanitarian work

This content was published on Sep 2, 2025 Despite today’s dangerous working conditions, Stéphane Jaquemet, who has dedicated his life to humanitarian work, says it’s still worth it.

Inside Geneva’s Summer Profiles: Stéphane Jaquemet

This content was published on Sep 2, 2025 Inside Geneva speaks to a man who has dedicated his life to humanitarian work. He grew up in a quiet Swiss village – so what inspired him to take this path?

Culture

How Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne honed their craft in Zurich

Personal belongings of the accident victims are retrieved during rescue work on the destroyed hut camp of the Mattmark reservoir building site in the Canton of Valais, Switzerland

History

Was the worst Swiss disaster an ‘unforeseeable event’?

The Neurath lignite-fired power station in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

Emissions reduction

Climate misinformation is ‘muddying waters’ and delaying urgent action, experts warn

Education

The global private education industry is coming for Switzerland’s expensive schools

Democracy

Can democracy still make a place richer?

What matters most in your choice of meat products and why?

Certain American farming practices are banned in other countries: cattle are treated with growth-promoting hormones, for example. Would this put you off from buying American produce or is price the key factor?

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Sep 16, 2025

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