UN chief praises creation of climate compensation fund

The creation of a fund to compensate climate-vulnerable countries has been praised by UN secretary general António Guterres.
Delegates at the global climate conference known as COP27 had taken an "important step towards justice," Guterres said in a statement.
"I welcome the decision to establish a loss and damage fund and to operationalize it in the coming period," he said.
"Clearly this will not be enough, but it is a much-needed political signal to rebuild broken trust."
The voices of those on "the frontlines of the climate crisis" must be heard, he said.
The UN would "support this effort every step of the way," he added.
The payment of reparations for damage caused by climate change in poorer countries was one of the thorniest issues at the the two-week conference.
The agreement is seen as a big win for poorer countries, who often bear the impacts of climate change though they have contributed the least to causing it.