ARCHIVES
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SPOKESPERSON’S NOON BRIEFING
BY MARTIN NESIRKY, SPOKESPERSON
FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON
FRIDAY,
5 AUGUST 2011
PEACEKEEPER KILLED, ANOTHER
WOUNDED IN DARFUR ATTACK
- A peacekeeper serving in the UN-African
Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) was
killed, and a second one was seriously wounded, when their vehicle came
under attack by unknown gunmen this morning in Duma Village,
which is 37 kilometres northeast of Nyala in South Darfur.
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- UNAMID personnel were sent to assess the
scene of the incident. Government police are also searching the area. The
vehicle has been recovered.
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- The Mission
says that the attack is a deplorable act and that it is working with the
Sudanese police to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice.
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- Asked about the delay in helicopter
evacuation for wounded UN peacekeepers in Abyei earlier this week, the Spokesperson said
that, as the Secretary-General made clear, any delay in transporting the
wounded peacekeepers to medical care was extremely serious.
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- He said the understanding was to bring UN
peacekeepers to Kadugli, but a helicopter could
not take off because of actions by the Sudanese authorities.
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- Nesirky added that three wounded peacekeepers
later died, bringing to four the total number of UN casualties in the
incident.
GREATER NUMBER OF SOMALI REFUGEES ARRIVING AT
KENYAN CAMP
- The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) says that
the number of daily arrivals of Somali refugees in Dadaab
camps has increased to an average of 1,500 a day in the first four days of
August, up from an average of 1,300 a day in July.
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- On arrival, all new refugees receive a
21-day food ration from the World Food Programme
(WFP), plastic sheets, cooking utensils,
jerry cans, blankets, sleeping mats and soap.
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- According to UNICEF, 80 per cent of new arrivals in Dadaab are women and children. UNICEF is ramping up
operations to meet the rising humanitarian needs of Somali children and
families in the Dadaab refugee camps and
surrounding host communities.
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- In Somalia, UNICEF has already
delivered close to 2,000 metric tons of emergency supplies by air, land
and sea. Since last Tuesday, UNICEF has been using two planes for daily
flights between Nairobi and Somalia to
move supplies into the country. And tomorrow UNICEF will have a ship
arriving in Mogadishu
with 600 tons of corn soya blend as
supplementary food for the affected southern areas.
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- UNHCR is also expecting to carry out its
first airlift to Somalia
in five years.
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- Asked why no flash appeal has been issued
for Somalia,
the Spokesperson noted that
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian
Affairs Valerie Amos has said that an additional one billion dollars
is needed for aid, above what has already been received. That figure is
likely to go up as needs increase, Nesirky
added.
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- He said that speed is of the essence, since
more people will die if time passes without full funding for the needed
aid.
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- Asked about an incident in which some
displaced people were reported to have died during food distribution in Mogadishu, the Spokesperson said that the World Food Programme (WFP) has
learned of an incident at a food distribution for IDPs
in Mogadishu
in which casualties have been reported.
WFP is working to clarify the details.
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- This incident highlights the challenges
that humanitarian agencies face in trying to deliver assistance in this
difficult environment.
SECRETARY-GENERAL APPOINTS NEW IRAQ ENVOY
- Today, the Secretary-General announced his
intention to appoint Martin Kobler of Germany as his Special Representative for Iraq and
Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI).
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- He will replace Ad Melkert
of the Netherlands who
served in Iraq
since July 2009. The Secretary-General is grateful for Mr. Melkert’s leadership of UNAMI.
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- Mr. Kobler has
served as Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan since March 2010.
SECRETARY-GENERAL
INTENDS TO OBTAIN INFORMATION FROM U.N. AGENCIES, OTHER GROUPS FOR REPORT ON SYRIA
- Asked about the Secretary-General’s
communications with Syrian officials, the Spokesperson reiterated that the
Secretary-General would try to communicate with Syrian officials directly;
he has not done so yet.
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- He noted that Syria
had promised access for humanitarian agencies, and the Security Council,
in its recent Presidential
Statement, asked Syria
to provide humanitarian access and for access to a UN human rights team.
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- At the same time, Nesirky
added, the United Nations does have a presence on the ground, including by
some UN agencies. The Secretary-General has said that he
will rely on the work of agencies and non-governmental organizations to
obtain information so that he can report to the Security Council, as he
was requested to do.
SECRETARY-GENERAL
HAS RECEIVED LETTER FROM LEBANON
- In response to questions, the Spokesperson
confirmed that the Secretary-General has received a letter from the
Permanent Mission of Lebanon, which is being translated from Arabic now
and is intended for circulation.
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- In addition, he said that the President of
the Security Council has also received a letter from Lebanon, concerning the Blue
Line incident from earlier this week, and it will be issued as a document.
THE WEEK AHEAD AT THE UNITED NATIONS
6 – 12 AUGUST 2011
Saturday, 6 August
Today, the Secretary-General will
depart for Japan.
He will visit Fukushima
to see first-hand the devastation caused by the March earthquake and tsunami in
the city of Soma.
He will visit an evacuation centre and speak with students at a high school in Fukushima City. In Tokyo,
the Secretary-General will meet with Prime Minister Naoto Kan and Foreign Minister Takeaki
Matsumoto.
Sunday, 7 August
There are no major events scheduled for today.
Monday, 8 August
Today, the 79th session of the Committee on the Elimination
of Racial Discrimination begins in Geneva.
It ends on 2 September.
Today, the seventh session of the Human Rights Council
Advisory Committee begins in Geneva.
It ends on 12 August.
Today, the United Nations Special Rapporteur
on trafficking in persons, especially women and children, Joy Ngozi Ezeilo, will begin an
official visit to Thailand.
Tuesday, 9 August
Today, the Secretary-General will depart Japan for the Republic
of Korea, where he will launch the
Global Model United Nations Conference in Incheon and
address the opening of the Academic Impact forum in Seoul. The Secretary-General will also meet
with President Lee Myung-bak and Foreign Minister Kim
Sung-hwan, the speaker of the National Assembly, and
the National Assembly’s Millennium Development Goals (MDG) Working Group, as
well as with members of the Global Compact Korea network.
Today is International
Day of the World’s Indigenous People.
This
morning, the Security Council will receive a briefing by the Department of Political
Affairs in consultations.
At 2:30
p.m. in Economic and Social Council Chamber of the North Lawn Building, there will be a panel
discussion on “Indigenous designs: Celebrating stories and cultures, crafting
our own culture,” followed by a screening of the film “Harmony of culture and
nature,” to commemorate the International Day of the World’s Indigenous People.
Wednesday, 10 August
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This morning, the Security Council will receive a briefing and hold consultations
on Somalia.
In the afternoon, the Security
Council will hold consultations on the situation in the Middle East.
Thursday, 11 August
Today is International Youth Day. This year’s theme is “Dialogue
and Mutual Understanding.”
This
morning, the Security Council will hold consultations on Sudan.
Friday, 12 August
There are no major events scheduled for today.
Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General
United Nations, SA-1B15
New York, NY
10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055
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