Haiti on brink of collapse, famine as the rule of criminal gangs spreads
Escalating violence prompts U.N. condemnation as lawless gangs terrorize and displace thousands and impede aid.
United Nations
Founded at the end of World War II, the New York-based United Nations is an international organization with 193 member nations. It began with 50 nations meeting at San Francisco in 1945 to maintain international peace and security. Over two months, the U.N. Charter was created as the basis for the organization's hope of preventing another world war. Founding members Britain, China, France, the Soviet Union and the United States took permanent veto-wielding seats on the powerful Security Council.
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