HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC
SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK
Monday, September 11, 2006
SEPTEMBER 11 ATTACKS “CUT US ALL TO
THE CORE”, ANNAN SAYS
Secretary-General Kofi Annan, in a
statement
released today, said that the attacks of 11 September 2001 “cut us all to the
core, for they were an attack on humanity itself”. He said that our thoughts
and prayers today are with the victims, and with all those who lost loved ones
in the tragedy.
The Secretary-General said that last Friday’s
adoption
by the General Assembly of a
UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy sends a clear message that terrorism
is unacceptable, no matter who commits it, no matter what the reason.
He noted that it underlines the resolve of all
Governments to take concrete actions to address the conditions conducive to
the spread of terrorism, prevent and combat terrorism in all its forms, and
strengthen the individual and collective capacity of States and the United
Nations to do so -- all while ensuring the protection of human rights.
The Secretary-General, in a
statement issued
last Friday, said he urged all Member States to honour the victims of
terrorism everywhere by taking swift action to implement all aspects of the
strategy.
DARFUR: ANNAN URGES SECURITY COUNCIL TO
RISE TO THE OCCASION
The tragedy in Darfur has
reached a critical moment, the Secretary-General
told the Security
Council in its open
debate on
Sudan today, and he urged the Council in the strongest possible terms to
rise to the occasion.
The Secretary-General said that thousands of Sudan Armed
Forces troops have been deployed to Darfur, in clear violation of the Darfur
Peace Agreement, and added that the area has been subjected to renewed aerial
bombing. “I strongly condemn this escalation,” he said, calling for the
Sudanese Government to stop its offensive immediately
.
As access gets harder, he added, the humanitarian gains
of the past two years are being rolled back and we face the prospect of having
to drastically curtail an acutely needed humanitarian operation. He asked,
“Can we, in conscience, leave the people of Darfur to such a fate?”
This is no time, he argued, for the middle ground of
half-measures or further debate. The Secretary-General once more urged the
Government of Sudan to embrace the spirit of
resolution 1706, to give its consent to the transition to a UN force, and
to pursue the political process with new energy and commitment. But, he added,
“my voice alone will not convince the Government” and encouraged the Security
Council and other governments to use their influence on Khartoum.
The meeting began with a minute of silence in observance
of the fifth anniversary of the 11 September attacks.
Asked whether the
Secretary-General supports Egypt’s reported offer on Darfur, the Spokesman
said that proposals from other nations must be looked at in detail, but added
that the Secretary-General had urged Council members and other governments
with influence on Khartoum, including Arab governments, to raise their voices.
Asked about Egypt’s desire to
seek a three-month extension of the African Union Mission in Sudan, the
Spokesman said that the United Nations would want the African Union Mission to
stay in operations until the end of the year.
He said that the African Union
had been doing an excellent job in difficult circumstances, adding that it
needed help from the international community. He noted that the United Nations
would convene a meeting with African Union officials to finalize a package in
support of the African Union Mission in Sudan on Friday, and would also hold a
meeting with potential troop contributors for Darfur next week.
HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS IN DARFUR ARE
GOING HUNGRY
The World Food Programme (WFP)
says that
hundreds of thousands of people in Darfur have gone hungry for three
consecutive months because fighting and banditry have prevented it from
reaching them.
Twelve humanitarian workers have been killed in Darfur
since May – more than the total number since the conflict began in early 2003.
In particular, WFP says that the situation is reaching a
critical stage for 355,000 people in North Darfur because the area has
experienced a sharp increase in tensions since May when the Darfur Peace
Agreement was signed.
Added to this is the fact that their situation is even
more desperate because they're in the middle of the “hunger season” – the
period right before the harvest – when they have very little chance of finding
food elsewhere.
WFP also says that this year it will cost $746 million to
run its emergency operation to feed a total of 6.1 million people in Sudan,
which includes Darfur – but so far, it has only received 78%, or $584 million,
of that amount.
At that funding level, WFP says it will only be able to
continue feeding people in Darfur at a reduced rate until the end of the year.
The UN
Mission in Sudan there says it has received reports that armed men
attacked the village of Al Amoud Al Akdar village, south of Buram in South
Darfur last Saturday; and UNESCO has condemned the recent kidnapping and
beheading of a Sudanese newspaper editor in Khartoum.
FORCE COMMANDER DISCUSSES FURTHER
ISRAELI WITHDRAWALS AND LEBANESE DEPLOYMENT
The Force Commander of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL),
Major-General Alain Pellegrini, met today with the senior representatives of
the Lebanese Armed Forces and the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) at the border
crossing at Ras Naqoura. They discussed further Israeli withdrawals and
Lebanese deployments, in conjunction with UNIFIL.
Pellegrini said, “The meeting was very fruitful and we
discussed in detail the further withdrawal of IDF from Lebanon. I believe that
this process is going well and that both sides understand the need to proceed
accordingly without any further delay.”
Over the past three days, 184,000 litres of water were
distributed by UNIFIL troops. In addition, the Chinese battalion destroyed 241
unexploded ordnances and cleared 1,346 metres of roadway.
UNIFIL currently has some 3,500 troops on the ground,
following the arrival of more than 200 French troops on Saturday.
The French personnel were the advance party for the
deployment of a French battalion in the coming days. Also, a Spanish
battalion, of about 1,000 troops, is expected in the coming week, so we could
have UNIFIL up to 5,000 personnel in the next week or so.
As for ships in the interim naval task force, headed by
Italy, that task force consists right now of four Italian ships, and one ship
each from France, Greece and the United Kingdom.
The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
(UNESCO) has
sent a team of experts there, to assess potential damage to cultural sites
in the recent conflict. The team will visit UNESCO’s World Heritage sites of
Tyre and Baalbek, which are known for their examples of Imperial Roman
architecture, and Byblos, where Phoenician landmarks may have been affected by
the recent oil spill.
Asked whether the
Secretary-General was concerned about Syrian comments about troops on the
Lebanon-Syria border, the Spokesman said that, following his meeting with
President Bashar al-Assad, the Secretary-General had received a promise from
Syria that it would deploy additional troops on its side of the border.
On the Lebanese side,
meanwhile, it is the Government of Lebanon’s responsibility to secure the
border. The Spokesman said that the United Nations is in touch with a number
of countries who are willing to assist the Lebanese Government, and he noted
that some countries may offer help to Lebanon bilaterally.
Asked about a visit by UN
independent human rights experts on Lebanon, the Spokesman said that four such
experts were visiting Lebanon and would report back to the Human Rights
Council on their work.
ANNAN
SUPPORTS EFFORTS TO FORM
PALESTINIAN GOVERNMENT OF NATIONAL UNITY
Asked about the reported
agreement to form a national unity government among the Palestinians, the
Spokesman noted that, when he met President Abbas in Ramallah recently, the
Secretary-General gave his strong support to efforts to form a Palestinian
government of national unity.
The Spokesman called the recent
reports “encouraging”, and he voiced the hope that there would be more
encouraging signs soon.
WORK CONTINUES
ON IRAQ COMPACT
Deputy Secretary-General Mark Malloch Brown co-chaired a
preparatory meeting on the International
Compact
with Iraq, which was hosted yesterday by the Government of the United Arab
Emirates in Abu Dhabi.
The meeting, attended by 13 governments, as well as
regional organizations and international financial institutions, resulted in
an agreement on the direction and process of the Iraq Compact, as presented by
the Iraqi Government.
A declaration issued at the meeting adds that the
participants look forward to the next stage of this process, the High-Level
Meeting, convened by the Secretary-General in New York on 18 September. The
New York meeting will review the development of the Iraq Compact within the
framework of relevant Security Council resolutions.
The participants at the Abu Dhabi meeting also expressed
their commitment to working towards the adoption of the Compact by the end of
the year.
SOME 100 IRAQIS
KILLED EACH DAY
Available today is the Secretary-General’s latest
report
updating the work of the UN Mission in Iraq.
He says that, despite significant achievements in the
political transition process, improving the security and human rights
situation remains a major challenge. Iraq today, he warns, has become one of
the most violent conflict areas in the world, with Iraqi Government figures
showing civilians being killed at an average of about 100 people per day.
He says that the Iraqi Government must do everything
possible to progressively foster an environment conducive to the
demobilization, disarming and reintegration of militias.
The Secretary-General adds his hope that the 18 September
meeting that he will convene on Iraq will provide an opportunity for
participants to engage in a frank and forward-looking dialogue about the
country’s future.
CONGOLESE
MILITIAMEN SURRENDER THEMSELVES TO AUTHORITIES
The UN Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of
the Congo (MONUC) says
that 34 militia members surrendered themselves and their weapons during the
past week at various locales throughout the Ituri district in the country’s
north-east.
This brings the total number of combatants who have
surrendered since the beginning of June to 4,816; and during the same period,
approximately 2,400 weapons of different types and over 350,000 units of
ammunition were recovered.
Meanwhile, on the political front, MONUC says that
preparations for the second round of the presidential elections as well as for
the provincial elections are ongoing. Ballot papers are being printed in South
Africa, while the electoral kits are being disseminated throughout the
country, with the Mission’s help.
The Secretary-General’s Special Representative in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC),
William Swing, has warned against a repeat of the violence in Kinshasa last
month, saying that they could tarnish the image of the DRC, which is competing
with UN peacekeeping activities elsewhere, namely in Sudan, Timor-Leste and
Lebanon.
Swing said resources are not unlimited, and the DRC
should keep showing to the world that it deserves its attention, by moving
forward, peacefully and orderly with the electoral process.
MONUC says that so far, the two candidates for the second
round of the presidential elections – Joseph Kabila and Jean-Pierre Bemba –
have not met yet. But this week could see them meet due to the diplomatic
efforts of the international community.
President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa and Aldo Ajello,
the European Union’s Special Envoy to the Great Lakes Region, arrived in
Kinshasa on Sunday; and Javier Solana, the European Union’s High
Representative for Common Foreign and Security Affairs is due to arrive there
tonight.
HUMANITARIAN CHIEF RAISES CONCERNS OF
INTERNALLY DISPLACED
WITH UGANDAN PRIME MINISTER
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Jan
Egeland is continuing his eight-day, three-nation mission to Africa. He is
currently in Juba, South Sudan, to follow up on the peace talks between the
Government of Uganda and the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) now taking place
there.
This morning, he met with the Ugandan Prime Minister.
Among other things, they discussed the situation in the north of the country,
and Egeland raised some of the issues brought to him by the communities of
internally displaced persons that he
met with over
the weekend.
Egeland is expected to be in Nairobi tomorrow.
Meanwhile, the Force Commander of the UN Mission in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo is due to arrive tomorrow in Kampala, to
discuss with Ugandan authorities the repatriation of LRA rebels hiding in the
DRC, in connection with the Peace Agreement signed in South Sudan last week.
Asked about Egeland’s position
on the indictments of Lord’s Resistance Army leaders, given that he recently
called LRA deputy leader Vincent Otti, the Spokesman said it is clear that the
indictments must stand.
UNITED NATIONS
HELPS COTE D’IVOIRE DEAL WITH TOXIC WASTE CRISIS
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
(OCHA) reports that it has sent a UN Disaster Assessment and Coordination team
there, to help the Government of Cote d’Ivoire respond to the recent toxic
waste contamination crisis.
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF
have contributed medicines, and the UN Industrial Development Organization
(UNIDO) has sent a chemical expert.
In conjunction with the UN Mission in Cote d'Ivoire
(UNOCI), an inter-agency coordination mechanism has been put in place to
conduct to a public awareness raising campaign.
OTHER
ANNOUNCEMENTS
FOOD AID GOES TO NEPALESE FLOOD SURVIVORS: The World
Food Programme (WFP) this week began feeding survivors of recent flooding in the
southwestern Nepal. Nearly 80,000 people affected by extensive flooding are
believed to be cut off from regular access to food and shelter.
“Over the weekend the country was again pounded by heavy
rainfall, but we’ve been able to get enough food out to feed nearly 50,000
people for seven days,” said Richard Ragan, WFP's Country Director for
Nepal.
COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD STARTS SESSION:
The Committee on the Rights of the Child began its 43rd session in Geneva
today. During its three week session, the body - which oversees implementation
of the Convention on the Rights of the Child - will consider a number of country
reports. Additional information is available at:
www.ohchr.org.
Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General
United Nations, S-378
New York, NY 10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055
