Sawt Falasteen - Humanity has opened 'Pandora's box of ills:' UN chief

"Our actions -- or inactions -- have unleashed a modern-day Pandora's box of ills," Guterres said.

"Four of those ills stand out because they represent, at best, threats that could disrupt every aspect of our agenda and, at worst, upend our very existence: Runaway conflicts. Rampant inequalities. The raging climate crisis. And out-of-control technology."

The UN chief was laying out his priorities in a speech to the General Assembly for the year ahead, at a time when the organization faces unprecedented crises and polarization.

The organization's top decision-making body, the Security Council, is paralyzed. The war in Gaza has seen Israel and its allies attack the UN's neutrality, and blue helmet peacekeepers have been caught in the crossfire in Lebanon and Syria.

The return of Donald Trump to the White House could further complicate Guterres's agenda, experts have warned.

"Yes, there is progress in our tumultuous world," Guterres said, pointing to the relative success of the ceasefire in Lebanon and the pace of renewable energy development.

"But let's have no illusions: this is very much a world in turmoil and grave uncertainty."

Z.AbuSaud--SF-PST