U.N. AIRCRAFT CRASHES IN D.R. CONGO

• 
  The UN can confirm that a UN
  aircraft crashed at 13:00hrs GMT
  today on landing in Kinshasa, in the
  Democratic Republic of the Congo.
   

• 
  There were 29 passengers plus the
  air crew on board the aircraft,
  which originated from Kisangani.
   

• 
  A crisis task force set up by the UN
  mission in the country (MONUSCO)
  is working at the crash site.
   

• 
  The UN is not in a position to
  provide exact figures on casualties
  at this point.

SENIOR U.N. HUMAN RIGHTS OFFICIAL TO
ASSESS SITUATION IN CÔTE D’IVOIRE

• 
  The Assistant Secretary-General for
  
  Human Rights, Ivan Simonovic,
  has arrived in Abidjan. He is there
  to assess the human rights
  situation, which has deteriorated
  seriously.
   

• 
  On his arrival, Mr. Simonovic
  expressed deep concern over the
  worsening of the human rights
  situation, including massacres in
  the west of the country.
   

• 
  The Secretary-General
  
  spoke by telephone this weekend
  with President Alassane Ouattara and
  expressed his concern and alarm
  about reports that pro-Ouattara
  forces may have killed many
  civilians in the town of Duékoué in
  the west of the country. The
  Secretary-General said those
  responsible should be held
  accountable.
   

• 
  President Ouattara, while denying
  his forces were involved, said he
  had launched an investigation and
  would welcome an international
  inquiry into the matter.
   

• 
  In Abidjan, the headquarters of the
  United Nations Mission (UNOCI)
  continues to come under fire from
  Laurent Gbagbo’s Special Forces, who
  are also threatening civilians in
  the area, including with heavy
  weapons. The head of the Mission,
  Choi Young-Jin, has said that these
  attacks are unacceptable.

AFGHANISTAN: U.N. EXPRESSES SOLIDARITY
IN WAKE OF DEADLY ATTACK

• 
  The Chef de Cabinet, Vijay Nambiar,
  and the Under-Secretary-General for
  Security and Safety, Gregory Starr,
  have arrived in Afghanistan, where
  they are expressing the solidarity
  of the entire UN system for the
  
  UN Mission there following the
  attack last Friday on the UN
  compound in Mazar-i-Sharif.
   

• 
  Staffan de Mistura, the Special
  Representative for Afghanistan, said
  that the United Nations will remain
  by the side of the Afghan people and
  does not intend to withdraw from the
  country.
   

• 
  He said that, although
  demonstrations in other parts of the
  country have given rise to further
  questions about the UN presence and
  posture, the United Nations does not
  intend to evacuate from the country
  or diminish its presence for the
  time being.
   

• 
  Asked about the circumstances of the
  attack, the Spokesperson said that a
  Board of Inquiry has been opened to
  look into the matter, as it does for
  any situation in which UN staff have
  died.
   

• 
  The killings in Mazar-i-Sharif
  cannot be justified under any
  circumstance, Nesirky added.
   

• 
  In response to a question, the
  Spokesperson said the killings did
  not include beheadings.

NO RELIGION TOLERATES KILLING OF
INNOCENT PEOPLE, STRESSES U.N. OFFICIAL

• 
  The UN High Representative for the
  
  Alliance of Civilizations,
  President Jorge Sampaio, responded
  to the recent burning of a Qur’an in
  Florida by
  
  saying that any desecration of
  the Qur'an – as of any holy text –
  has to be vehemently repudiated. But
  he added that no religion tolerates
  the slaughter of innocents.
  Mr. Sampaio said that the outrageous
  attack on the
  
  UN Assistance Mission in
  Mazar-i-Sharif in Afghanistan should
  be firmly condemned, as should the
  violence that is spreading to other
  provinces.
   

• 
  Asked about Qur’an burnings, the
  Spokesperson said that the
  Secretary-General is on record as
  specifically condemning such acts
  when the issue first arose in
  September. Such actions cannot be
  condoned by any religion.
   

• 
  He added that they contradict the
  efforts of the United Nations and
  many people around the world to
  promote tolerance, intercultural
  understanding and mutual respect
  between cultures and religions.
   

• 
  The Secretary-General, Nesirky
  noted, supports the UN High
  Representative of the Alliance of
  Civilizations in this regard.

SECURITY COUNCIL APPROVES APRIL
PROGRAMME OF WORK; TO BE BRIEFED BY
SECRETARY-GENERAL’S LIBYA ENVOY

• 
  The
  
  Security Council approved its
  programme of work for April earlier
  this morning. The new Security
  Council President, Ambassador Nestor
  Osorio of Colombia, held a press
  conference to discuss the Council’s
  work over the coming month.
   

• 
  In the afternoon, the Council will
  hold a formal meeting, followed by
  consultations, on Libya. Council
  members will hear from the
  Secretary-General’s Special Envoy
  for Libya, Abdul Ilah al-Khatib, who
  visited Tripoli and Benghazi last
  week.
   

• 
  Mr. Khatib intends to speak to
  reporters at the Council stakeout
  once consultations have ended.

HEADS OF U.N.
AGENCIES VOICE CONCERN OVER LIVING
CONDITIONS OF SOMALI REFUGEES IN KENYAN
CAMPS

• The heads of
  three United Nations agencies
  
  say they are deeply concerned
  about the living conditions of the
  more than 310,000 Somali refugees at
  the Dadaab camps in northeastern
  Kenya.
   

• High Commissioner
  for
  
  Refugees António Guterres, World
  Food Programme (WFP)
  Executive Director Josette Sheeran
  and
  
  UN Women Executive Director
  Michele Bachelet visited the site
  over the weekend.
   

• Refugees arrive
  every day to Dadaab, home to one of
  the largest refugee concentrations
  in the world. The camps were
  originally designed to accommodate
  90,000 people, but are now
  overcrowded.

OTHER
ANNOUNCEMENTS

REACTION TO RECENT GOLDSTONE REMARKS
MATTER FOR MEMBER STATES:

Asked about recent remarks by Justice
Richard Goldstone, the Spokesperson said
that any reaction would be a matter for
the Member States, including those in
the

Human Rights Council.

U.N. IS WILLING TO SUPPORT BAHRAINI
DIALOGUE:

Asked about Bahrain, the Spokesperson
noted that the Secretary-General has

spoken directly with the King of
Bahrain to discuss the need for
dialogue, which the United Nations is
willing to support.