COP28 deal calls for global transition away from fossil fuels

A new deal has been agreed at the UN climate summit in Dubai after days of negotiations, BBC reports.

For the first time, the deal calls on all countries to move away from using fossil fuels - but not to phase them out, something many governments wanted.

The text recognises the need for deep, rapid and sustained reductions if humanity is to limit temperature rises to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. The COP28 president said nations had "confronted realities and... set the world in the right direction."

Burning fossil fuels drives global warming, risking millions of lives. So far, governments have never collectively agreed to stop using them.

Island nations hard-hit by climate change are critical - representative Samoa says they were "not in the room" when the deal was approved.

Campaign groups also say the agreement doesn't go far enough; Greenpeace says it won't be possible to achieve the transition in a "fair and fast manner."

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