HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC
SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK
Tuesday, 22 August 2006
D.R. CONGO: RELATIVE CALM RESTORED AFTER VIOLENT UNREST
Regarding the Democratic Republic of
the Congo (DRC), the UN
Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO)
reports that relative calm has been restored in the capital Kinshasa after
violent incidents between supporters of President Joseph Kabila and
Vice–President Jean Pierre Bemba, the two leading candidates in the
presidential poll. A run-off is planned for 29 October.
DPKO says that yesterday afternoon, a
group of President Kabila’s Presidential Guards opened fire on Vice-President
Bemba’s compound in an attempt to forcibly disarm Bemba’s bodyguards. The
presidential guards fired with light and heavy weapons on the compound, where
the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, William Lacy Swing, and a
dozen foreign diplomat members of Committee in Support of the Transition were
meeting with Bemba.
As the shooting continued, Swing spoke
on the telephone from Bemba’s residence with President Kabila and demanded
that Kabila immediately bring the situation under control. The shooting,
however, continued for another two hours.
Meanwhile, the Secretary-General from
New York reached President Kabila and Vice-President Jean-Pierre Bemba on the
telephone and demanded an immediate restoration of calm and safe evacuation of
Swing and other foreign diplomats as well as civilian personnel from the
residence. The Secretary-General urged both Kabila and Bemba to meet
immediately to resolve the situation.
Some 150 UN peacekeepers in armoured
personnel carriers were then dispatched to the Vice-President’s compound to
restore order and extract Swing and other foreign dignitaries. UN and European
Union peacekeepers later deployed around the residence and in other strategic
parts of Kinshasa to ensure public order and safety. There were no immediate
reports of casualties.
The UN Mission in the DRC says that
additional UN peacekeepers were this morning airlifted to Kinshasa from other
parts of the country as looting broke out in the capital and gangs of street
youths ransacked businesses and the homes of real or perceived Kabila
supporters. Additional European Union forces also arrived in Kinshasa from
Gabon and are now working with UN forces to restore order.
Meanwhile, Special Representative
Swing continued his efforts to broker peaceful talks between the parties as
military chiefs from the UN Mission, the European force, Vice-President
Bemba’s security detail and the Congolese Army met separately to secure an
agreement to stop the shooting.
U.N. DELEGATION MEETS WITH ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER IN
JERUSALEM
The UN delegation sent by the
Secretary-General to the Middle East to follow up on the implementation of
Security Council
resolution 1701 met with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in Jerusalem
to discuss all matters related to that resolution.
Among other subjects, they discussed
the abducted soldiers, the blockade of Lebanon, the arms embargo and
contributions of troops for the UN peacekeeping force. Delegation member Terje
Roed-Larsen said the discussions were frank and conducted in a good spirit.
The delegation earlier had met with
Ofer Dekel, the head of the Israeli task force dealing with the issue of the
abducted Israeli soldiers.
The team’s two senior members, Vijay
Nambiar and Roed-Larsen, are expected to brief the press in Tel Aviv later
today.
Asked about reports that Qatar may try
to bring a senior Lebanese delegation to visit Damascus, the Spokesman
recalled that the Secretary-General has on numerous occasions called for
normalized relations between Lebanon and Syria.
Asked about discussions by the
Secretary-General with the leaders of Iran and Syria, the Spokesman said that
the Secretary-General has been in touch with the leadership of both countries
to ensure that they exercise a positive influence regarding the implementation
of resolution 1701.
ANNAN TO BRIEF SECURITY COUNCIL DAILY ON COMPLIANCE WITH
MIDDLE EAST CESSATION OF HOSTILITIES
The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)
reports that the cessation of hostilities was generally maintained in the
course of the past 24 hours. However, Israeli airplanes twice flew over
Lebanese territory and a violent clash was reported between the Israeli
Defense Forces and Hezbollah members east of Shamaha.
The Secretary-General has written to
the Security Council, advising that he will inform the Council on a daily
basis of compliance by the concerned parties with the cessation of
hostilities.
Meanwhile, the Lebanese Army deployed
further inside areas vacated by the withdrawing Israeli troops, in accordance
with Security Council Resolution 1701 and the timeline agreed over the weekend
between the Israeli and Lebanese Armies.
To date, the Lebanese Army has
deployed in more than 50 percent of the territory south of the Litani River,
including some of the areas recently vacated by the Israel Defense Forces.
UNIFIL also reports that a team from
the Mine Action Coordination Center carried out the controlled demolition of
unexploded ordnance. UN peacekeepers also distributed 45,000 liters of
drinking water to three villages in southern Lebanon.
Asked when the first 3,500 troops of
an expanded UNIFIL would go to Lebanon, the Spokesman said that the United
Nations wants to see them in place as soon as possible and remains confident
that the bulkhead of a UN force could be brought in by the end of this month
or the beginning of September. Those troops, he clarified following a further
question, would be in addition to the 2,000 UNIFIL soldiers on the ground at
present.
Asked about the postponement of a
meeting at UN Headquarters with potential troop contributors today, Dujarric
said that, although there is no formal meeting today, the Department of
Peacekeeping Operations has been holding bilateral talks with potential troop
contributors. Those meetings, he said, have gone well and are moving ahead in
a detailed manner. Discussions are going on at all levels with potential
troop-contributing countries from Europe and Asia.
Although the United Nations would like
to be further down the line, he added, talks are proceeding well. He said that
the discussions were focused on technical issues related to deployment.
Dujarric added that the issue of the rules of engagement was “last week’s
story.” More clarity on the forces are expected when European officials meet
to discuss the matter in Brussels, first at the political directors’ level
tomorrow and then again on Friday.
The Spokesman said that the cessation
of hostilities has been holding generally, with Israeli troops withdrawing and
Lebanese troops taking up positions in the south. But the situation is fragile
and reliant on the current level of UNIFIL troops, so the rapid deployment of
additional “bulkhead” forces is crucial.
Asked whether the Secretary-General
intends to travel to deal with the issue of troop contributions, the Spokesman
said he has nothing to announce at this time.
Asked whether the Secretary-General
has been in contact today with Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi, the
Spokesman said that he hasn’t talked to him today but they have been in
contact repeatedly over the past few days. No one at the United Nations is
scheduled to be present at a meeting scheduled on Thursday between Prodi and
Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, he added in response to a question.
Asked whether the United Nations
agrees that troop contributing countries need to recognise Israel, the
Spokesman noted that the issue of diplomatic ties is one that is left to
Member States. It is possible that countries could be on the Lebanon force
that had no formal ties to Israel or Lebanon.
He said that the United Nations
continues to hold talks with Member States on the composition of a force, and
expects that European, Muslim and non-Muslim countries will be included in
that force. The important thing, he said, is to have a force that has
political and military legitimacy for all sides, which is truly an
international force.
Asked who would decide on the
evacuation of soldiers, the Spokesman said that the decision ultimately rests
with the Secretary-General, although some decisions can be made operationally
by the Force Commander.
Asked about the schedule for
deployment, the Spokesman said that soldiers would be deployed in a phased and
coordinated manner, with a timeline being worked on by the UN Department of
Peacekeeping Operations.
Asked whether there would be a second
resolution on Lebanon, the Spokesman noted that resolution 1701 mentions the
possibility of a second resolution, among the steps contributing to the
implementation of a long-term ceasefire.
Asked about the daily monitoring of
incidents, the Spokesman clarified that the United Nations would prepare a
daily incident report relating to any violations of the cessation of
hostilities and resolution 1701.
Asked whether UNIFIL has seen
Hezbollah carrying weapons in public, the Spokesman said that the UN Mission
has not reported on that.
LEBANON’S PROGRESS TOWARDS MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS WIPED
OUT BY RECENT DESTRUCTION
Regarding the humanitarian situation
in Lebanon, four UN convoys were dispatched from Beirut today.
For its part, the Office of the UN
High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
reports that returnees’ shelter needs remain high. UNHCR has therefore
been providing plastic sheets, hammers, nails, wood, and other such materials.
Meanwhile, the UN Development
Programme (UNDP) has donated $500,000 to Lebanon for emergency relief. UNDP
has also established a political advisory group within the Lebanese Prime
Minister's Office, concentrating on support to the recovery and reconstruction
effort, with initial funding of $800,000.
UNDP says that the current crisis
wiped out all the progress Lebanon had made towards achieving the
Millennium Development Goals;
the country now has to start from zero again.
ANNAN AWAITING DETAILS OF IRAN’S RESPONSE TO LATEST PROPOSAL
Asked whether the Secretary-General
has any response to Iran’s reply to the proposal made by the three European
Union nations plus three other permanent Security Council members, the
Spokesman said that the United Nations was awaiting details of that reply.
He said, in response to a further
question, that the six countries that had made the proposal were to receive
the reply, and the United Nations expects to be briefed by the recipients of
the reply.
Asked whether the Secretary-General
wants dialogue to continue on Iran’s nuclear programme, the Spokesman said
that the Secretary-General has always supported dialogue but wanted to see
what the specific reply contained.
VISION OF PEACEFUL CO-EXISTENCE BETWEEN ISRAEL & PALESTINE
SLIPPING FURTHER AWAY
Under-Secretary-General for Political
Affairs Ibrahim Gambari began an open meeting of the Security Council on the
Middle East this morning by telling the Council that we have seen the
vision of two States, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and
security, slip further away during the past year.
Among other problems over that year,
Gambari noted the differences between the parties, the degradation of the
Palestinian Authority, and the suffering, destruction and death on both sides
from the violence.
He noted that in the past year, a
total of 41 Israelis have been killed, and nearly 480 injured, by Palestinian
violence. In the same period, over 450 Palestinians have been killed, and
over 2,500 injured, by Israeli violence. And he added that no progress has
been made in securing the release of Israeli Corporal Gilad Shalit, despite
calls for his unconditional release.
Gambari asserted that the stalled
state of the peace process should therefore be regarded as unacceptable – both
on its own merits, and because of its broader regional implications. He
reiterated the Secretary-General’s call earlier this month for a renewed
international effort to address the region’s crises comprehensively.
The Council’s open debate is
continuing, with 26 speakers inscribed in all.
ANNAN DEEPLY CONCERNED BY INCREASED SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN DARFUR
The Secretary-General, in a
report
that is available today, details the abuse of children during the armed
conflicts that have been taking place in Sudan, and strongly urges the leaders
of the Government of National Unity and the Government of Southern Sudan to
end child recruitment.
That report also details the
recruitment, killing and rape of children by various parties in the region,
ranging from the Janjaweed militias and rebel groups in Darfur to Chadian
opposition forces and the Lord’s Resistance Army.
The Secretary-General says he is
deeply concerned about the increase in sexual violence against girls and
women, particularly in Darfur, as well about reports of the systematic
abduction and kidnapping of children there. He also expresses his deep concern
over the continued lack of access in many areas of Sudan for child protection
activities, particularly in the east.
Also available today is a
press release
from the UN Mission in Sudan concerning the successful completion of a
community-driven voluntary disarmament exercise in the state of Jonglei.
OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS
U.N. PROVIDES FOOD TO ETHIOPIAN FLOOD
SURVIVORS: In Ethiopia, the World Food Programme (WFP)
reports that,
together with its partners, it has provided food aid and basic supplies to four
locations where flood survivors are temporarily being sheltered. WFP warns that
the number of people affected by the floods – now at 118,000 – could rise
further.
ANNAN REACHES OUT TO CORPORATIONS:
Asked why Dow Chemical was invited to an event at the United Nations, the
Spokesman said that, in general, the Secretary-General has tried to reach out to
different constituencies, including civil society and transnational
corporations, through initiatives like the Global Compact and efforts to obtain
treatments for AIDS. He noted that the point of the Global Compact is to ensure
that corporations abide by the standards of international law.
Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General
United Nations, S-378
New York, NY 10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055
