Due to the prevailing situation in Iraq, 106 United
Nations staff members with the humanitarian programme left Baghdad by road early this
morning for Amman, Jordan, for temporary relocation. For the past few days all United
Nations personnel were staying at the Canal Hotel in Baghdad, where the office of the
United Nations is located.
The Special Envoy of the Secretary-General, Ambassador Prakash Shah,
and the Humanitarian Coordinator, Mr. Hans von Sponeck, remain in Baghdad along with 26
United Nations personnel, including representatives of the United Nations agencies and
programmes. In addition, the programme employs 578 national staff in the centre and south
of Iraq.
The humanitarian programme in the three northern governorates, which is
implemented by the United Nations, on behalf of the Government of Iraq, continues its
operations without interruption. There are 232 international and 880 national United
Nations personnel working with the programme in the three northern governorates.
The United Nations remains fully committed to implementation of the
"oil-for-food" programme and expresses the hope that all those relocated
temporarily will soon resume their duties in Iraq.
