Northeast

Terror sponsor Iran gets UN leadership overseeing Charter principles

Published

4 months ago

February 18, 2026

Terror sponsor Iran gets UN leadership overseeing Charter principles

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United Nations, New York – Iran has been elected vice-chair of the United Nations Charter Committee, a body tasked with examining and strengthening the principles of the U.N. Charter, drawing criticism from Israel and renewed scrutiny of the organization’s selection processes.

The appointment was approved during the committee’s opening meeting as part of its executive composition, through an agreed procedure and without a formal vote.

At a U.N. press briefing, Fox News Digital asked whether Iran’s record aligns with the values of the Charter and whether the secretary-general would condemn the move.

UPROAR AFTER IRAN NAMED VICE-CHAIR OF UN BODY PROMOTING DEMOCRACY, WOMEN’S RIGHTS

A view of the United Nations Headquarters building in New York City, N.Y., July 16, 2024. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

“The election of any member state to a body is the result of voting by member states themselves,” Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the secretary-general said. “So, questions about who gets elected to which bodies is a question for member states. We expect every member state of this organization to uphold the Charter, to uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, given that they themselves signed on to this club that the U.N. is and those are founding, some of our founding documents.”

Pressed on whether the secretary-general would condemn Iran’s election, the spokesperson added, “It is not for him to condemn the election of any member state to a body. He will condemn and has when member states, through their actions, he feels, violate the charter or human rights.”

The Charter Committee operates under the U.N. Legal Committee and meets annually. Its mandate includes examining issues related to the Charter and proposing ways to reinforce its implementation, though its work typically requires consensus among member states and rarely results in binding action.

ISRAELI UN AMBASSADOR SENDS STARK WARNING TO IRAN AMID GROWING UNREST

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Michael Waltz speaks with Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon before a meeting of the United Nations Security Council to consider a U.S. proposal for a U.N. mandate to establish an international stabilization force in Gaza at U.N. headquarters in New York City, N.Y., Nov. 17, 2025. (Eduardo Munoz/Reuters)

Anne Bayefsky, president of Human Rights Voices and director of the Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust, sharply criticized the move, linking it to longstanding concerns about the U.N.’s performance.

“The U.N. created a committee back in 1974 supposedly to ‘enhance the ability of the U.N. to achieve its purposes.’ The trouble is that, ever since, the U.N. has been a downward trajectory on actually achieving its primary purposes, namely, maintaining international peace and security and promoting respect for fundamental human rights,” Bayefsky said.

“Given that Iran is the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism and a country committed to the annihilation of the Jewish state and the bloody repression of its own people, the U.N. appointment helps clarify that in our time, U.N. purposes are in fact antithetical to peace, rights and human dignity.”

Iranian security forces reportedly killed detainees and burned bodies during protests, with clashes continuing in Kermanshah, Rasht and Mashhad, Iran, despite government claims. (NCRI)

Israel’s Ambassador to the U.N. Danny Danon sharply criticized Iran’s appointment.

“This is a moral absurdity,” Danon said. “A regime that violates the basic principles of the U.N. cannot represent them.

“A country that systematically violates the basic principles of the U.N. cannot sit in a leadership position that deals with strengthening them. The U.N. cannot continue to grant legitimacy to regimes that violate the very principles of its own charter.”

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Protesters rally outside the United Nations during Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s speech at the 2025 United Nations General Assembly in New York City, N.Y., Sept. 24, 2025. (Alireza Jafarzadeh)

The committee has in recent years served as a forum for political disputes among member states, including criticism directed at Israel, diplomats say. Iran’s selection to a leadership role comes amid ongoing debate over how the U.N. balances representation among member states with concerns about human rights records and adherence to the organization’s founding principles.

The U.N. maintains that leadership positions across its committees are determined by member states, not the secretariat, and reflect internal diplomatic processes rather than endorsement of any government’s policies or record.

Efrat Lachter is a world reporter for Fox News Digital covering international affairs and the United Nations. Follow her on X @efratlachter. Stories can be sent to efrat.lachter@fox.com.

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Boston, MA

Giannis to Boston is a possibility. Should the Knicks be worried?

Published

50 minutes ago

June 19, 2026

Press Room

Giannis to Boston is a possibility. Should the Knicks be worried?

According to ESPN, Boston has emerged as a leading destination in the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes. No deal is on the table (that we know of), but the mere possibility might raise a few concerns.

Concern numero uno is obvious. Giannis is one of the handful of players capable of altering the championship picture by himself. Pairing him with Jayson Tatum would create an impressive combination of size, athleticism, versatility, and star power. The question is whether Brad Stevens and the Celtics can actually pull it off without creating a new set of problems for themselves.

Boston’s path to Giannis is narrower than it first appears. The Celtics would almost certainly need to move Jaylen Brown, either directly to Milwaukee or through a third team. Reports indicate Brown has little interest in joining the Bucks (in paraphrase: “Milwaukee?! Yuck!”), which complicates matters further. We start moving from a blockbuster trade to a three-team puzzle involving contracts, draft compensation, and competing agendas.

Even if Boston finds a way through that maze, there’s no guarantee the resulting team will succeed.

Giannis may be a better asset than Brown, but championships are not won by comparing players one-for-one. They’re won by building complete teams (case in point: YOUR WORLD CHAMPION NEW YORK KNICKERBOCKERS ).

Brown averaged more than 28 points per game last season while defending multiple positions. He can create his own offense, punish smaller defenders, and absorb primary scoring responsibilities when Tatum is unavailable (as Tatum was for most of last season, recovering from a torn Achilles). Replacing him with Giannis raises Boston’s ceiling, perhaps, but also changes the structure of the roster.

The Celtics have spent years building an ecosystem around two star wings. Remove one and the supporting cast suddenly becomes more important, which means Stevens would have many more decisions to make before the start of training camp.

What catches me up is, if the Bucks believed that Giannis has more great years ahead of him, would they so quickly offload him to a conference rival? Might he actually be a distressed asset?

Giannis will turn 32 this season. He has generally been durable over his career but has dealt with increasing lower-body issues (especially calves and knees) in recent years, leading to more missed time. To wit:

• 2022–23: 63 GP / 19 missed

• 2023–24: 73 GP / 9 missed

• 2024–25: 67 GP / 15 missed

• 2025–26: 36 GP / 46 missed

Wouldn’t that just be the worst if the Celts parted with Brown to get him, and then Giannis missed extended time due to injury? Like, the absolute worst? (Insert diabolical laughter.)

A healthy Tatum-Giannis pairing would present unique challenges for New York. The Knicks would need to defend relentless downhill pressure while also containing one of the league’s best bucket creators. But, given their depth, New York may be better equipped than most teams to handle it.

So if the Celtics’ pursuit of Giannis causes an initial flutter of worry, you can let that just drift on by. The scenario only noses toward Red Alert if Boston nabs him while somehow also acquiring a guard who makes up for what they’d lose with Brown’s departure.

But wait! This just in: Chris Haynes has pushed back on the idea that a Giannis Antetokounmpo-to-Boston deal is close. He writes that Boston does not appear to be a promising destination and suggested the situation could extend into July. Additionally, Marc Stein reported that the Celtics are frustrated by speculation involving Jaylen Brown, while Brian Windhorst said Brown has not been formally offered in a trade. So, to quote the great William Goldman (also a Knicks fan), “Nobody knows anything.”

It’s worth noting that the Miami Heat are also reportedly in the mix. We’ve heard that the lack of income tax is alluring to the Greek Freak. Plus Florida offers sunny, warm weather, which is not a defining feature of Wisconsin. In the end, though, joining Boston would allow Giannis to keep all his favorite green-themed items in his wardrobe, and shouldn’t looking good be a priority, too?

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Pittsburg, PA

SportsNet Pittsburgh parts ways with Penguins rinkside reporter Hailey Hunter after three seasons

Published

1 hour ago

June 19, 2026

Press Room

SportsNet Pittsburgh parts ways with Penguins rinkside reporter Hailey Hunter after three seasons

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Connecticut

Sierra Club Connecticut, State Representatives Host Black Lungs Matter: Juneteenth Press Event – CleanTechnica

Published

2 hours ago

June 18, 2026

Press Room

Sierra Club Connecticut, State Representatives Host Black Lungs Matter: Juneteenth Press Event – CleanTechnica

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Hartford Advocates and Community Members Gathered to Remember, Honor Path to Freedom

HARTFORD, Ct. — Today, Sierra Club Connecticut and State Representatives Minnie Gonzalez, Maryam Khan, and Jilian Gilchrist hosted Black Lungs Matter, a Juneteenth Press Conference, at the Connecticut Legislative Office Building.

The event highlighted the disproportionate impact of air pollution on Black residents in Connecticut and the broken promises that have contributed to this impact. Speakers included state representatives, public health and civil rights experts, plus local voices from Sierra Club Connecticut and the Connecticut Coalition for Economic and Environmental Justice.

The groups are concerned that Governor Lamont is no longer moving ahead with eliminating all carbon emissions from state building heating and cooling systems, as he pledged in Executive Order 21-3. The Trump Administration has also cancelled at least $50 million in federal grants for environmental justice projects across New England, a substantial portion of which was slated to come to Connecticut environmental justice organizations.

Environmental injustice refers to the fact that environmental hazards, such as air and water pollution, and the health harms that they cause, are disproportionately experienced by people of color and low income people. Environmental justice is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people, regardless of race, income, ethnicity, tribal affiliation or disability, in the environmental decision making which affects them.

“Just like the enslaved people in Texas were some of the last to gain their freedom, the asthmatic children of Hartford are likely to be the last to breathe clean air,” said Dr. Mark Mitchell, founder of the Connecticut Environmental Justice Leadership Collaborative. “The Governor should keep his clean air promise to Hartford, and help fight back against the environmental injustice of the Trump Administration.”

“As a Puerto Rican woman, I stand in solidarity with Black communities fighting for the right to breathe clean air and live healthy lives,” said Rep. Minnie Gonzalez, who represents the residents that are most exposed to the pollution from Capitol Area Systems.

“As a representative of Hartford, I am deeply committed to ensuring that every child in our city breathes clean air,” said Rep. Maryam Khan. “On this Juneteenth, we recognize the painful legacy of environmental injustice that has disproportionately harmed Black communities. Today, I stand with the Sierra Club in demanding action to tackle air pollution in Hartford. No child’s future should be stolen by the air they breathe.”

“Connecticut has made commitments to Environmental Justice,” said Sharon Lewis, an Environmental Justice Advocate. “Juneteenth reminds us that commitments matter only when they reach the people they were intended to serve.”

“We cannot allow the environmental justice goals and objectives in this city to be ignored,” said Attorney Cynthia Jennings. “Any investment of our tax dollars must be used to improve the health and safety of residents in every Hartford community.”

“Let’s remind the Governor that Black Americans deserve to breathe clean air in Hartford,” said Sierra Club Connecticut Organizer Alycia Jenkins. “Once justice is won for Black Americans, justice will be won for all.”

About the Sierra Club

The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person’s right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.

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