BBC News with Marion Marshall.
A $35m initiative against rape in wartime has been launched by the G8 group of industrialized countries. The money will be used to document incidents and to fund legal assistance for victims, as well as training peacekeepers to respond to sexual violence. At a G8 foreign ministers meeting in London, the British Foreign Secretary William Hague said sexual violence inflicted unimaginable suffering. The American actress Angelina Julie, who is a special envoy for the UN and has campaigned with Mr Hague on the issue welcomed the new commitment.
"I've heard survivors of rape from Bosnia to the DRC say that they feel that the world simply does not care about them. And who could blame them? For too long, they have been the forgotten victims of the war, responsible for none of the harm but bearing the worst of the pain. But today, I believe their voices have been heard and that we finally have some hope to offer them."
President Obama has called on North Korea to end what he called its belligerent approach. In recent weeks, North Korea has threatened war against the United States and its allies in response to UN sanctions over its nuclear weapons program. Speaking after talks with the UN Secretary General, he said that no one wanted to see a conflict on the Korean Peninsula. "It's important for North Korea, like every other country in the world, to observe the basic rules and norms that are set forth, including a wide variety of UN resolutions that have passed. And we will continue to try to work to resolve some of those issues diplomatically, even as I indicated the Secretary General that the United States will take all necessary steps to protect its people and to meet our obligations under our alliances in the region."