The Earth's ozone layer continues to show signs of strong recovery and, on the current track, could return to 1980s levels by mid-century, the World Meteorological Organization reports, noting that the hole over Antarctica was smaller last year than in recent years and the maximum ozone mass deficit was below averages from 1990 to 2020. International agreements, particularly the Vienna Convention of 1985 and the 1987 Montreal Protocol, have been pivotal in the positive trend seen in the ozone layer's recovery, demonstrating the effectiveness of global cooperation in environmental protection.

Editor's note: Stories where things are better than most of us think are few and far between in this brief. Just under a third of you responded to Monday's poll with the correct answer -- 99% -- see the SmartBreak section below for the answer breakdown.

The UN has relocated the office of its Yemen resident coordinator to Aden from Sanaa after at least 18 UN personnel were detained in Sanaa by Houthi rebels. The coordinator will continue to operate across the country, including Sanaa. Yemen remains divided between the Iran-aligned Houthi administration in Sanaa and the Saudi-backed government in Aden since the Houthis took control of the capital in 2014.

Natural disasters in Pakistan and Afghanistan, ongoing conflicts in Gaza, Myanmar and Sudan and a "perfect storm" of factors have led to an increase in acute hunger and malnutrition, particularly among children, the World Food Program warns. Substantial aid cuts from the US and several European countries have cost the WFP approximately 40% of its resources, forcing it to reduce assistance in critical areas, WFP deputy executive director Carl Skau says, adding that the cuts threaten to worsen malnutrition, spark instability, and reduce the agency's capacity to preposition food before emergencies.

Hard-won advances in women's rights are being reversed due to a combination of global conflicts, aid reductions and growing resistance to gender equality, UN Women warns in its annual report. There has been notable progress toward enhancing maternal health, increasing education access for girls and reducing intimate partner violence, but the pace of improvement has stalled. The agency has asked countries to submit renewed commitments to gender equality at this year's General Assembly.

As aid cuts worsen conditions in Malawi's Dzaleka refugee camp, a growing number of women and girls are turning to sex work for survival, often facing violence and abuse in the process. The UN High Commission for Refugees has cut its personnel there from 44 to just three, and the World Food Program now provides only half the necessary food allowance per person. Reports of domestic abuse have doubled in two years, reflecting a rise in exploitation and vulnerability among women as economic pressures mount.

Capacity constraints and rising hotel costs in Belem, Brazil, have prompted the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change to formally request that heads of UN agencies and organizations reduce the size of their delegations to COP30. The UNFCCC cites cost and availability as reasons for limiting staff attendance, aiming to ensure that accommodation can be secured within budget for key participants.

A UN commission of inquiry has released a report concluding that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, citing reasonable grounds to believe that four of the five genocidal acts established under international law have occurred since the war with Hamas began in 2023. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk -- who has stopped short of using the term "genocide" -- has called for an immediate end to Israel's Gaza City ground assault, citing escalating evidence of war crimes and crimes against humanity.