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HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY MARIE OKABE
DEPUTY SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

 Thursday, July 20, 2006

MIDDLE EAST: ANNAN
SAYS CESSATION OF HOSTILITIES URGENTLY NEEDED

  • The Secretary-General just now
    briefed the Security
    Council in an open meeting on the Middle East, telling the Council that almost
    every day brings a new escalation to the bloody conflict that has engulfed
    Lebanon and northern Israel.
     

  • He said that already, over 300
    Lebanese have been killed and over 600 wounded, and the casualties are mainly
    among the civilian population, about one third of them children. Meanwhile,
    the Israeli people, who had hoped that Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon would
    bring security along their northern border, find themselves under constant
    Hezbollah rocket attacks, which every day reach further into Israeli
    territory.  To date, 28 Israelis have been killed and over 200 wounded.
     

  • The

    Secretary-General
    said that is most urgently needed is an immediate
    cessation of hostilities, to prevent further loss of innocent life and the
    infliction of further suffering; to allow full humanitarian access to those in
    need; and to give diplomacy a chance to work out a practical package of
    actions that would provide a lasting solution to the current crisis.  He added
    that, while Hezbollah’s actions are deplorable, and Israel has a right to
    defend itself, the excessive use of force is to be condemned.
     

  • He told the Council that the mission
    he sent to the region, headed by his
    Special
    Adviser, Vijay Nambiar
    , has suggested elements which, in his opinion, must
    form the political basis of any lasting ceasefire, and on which they have
    conducted consultations with the leaders of Lebanon and Israel.
     

  • The elements include the following
    elements, among others:
     

  • The captured Israeli soldiers would be
    transferred to the legitimate Lebanese authorities, under the auspices of the
    ICRC, with a view to their repatriation to Israel and a ceasefire.
     

  • On the Lebanese side of the Blue Line
    an expanded peacekeeping force would help stabilize the situation, working
    with the Lebanese government to help strengthen its army and deploy it fully
    throughout the area. Meanwhile, the Lebanese government would fully implement

    Security Council resolutions 1559
    and
    1680
    , to establish Lebanese sovereignty and control.
     

  •  The Prime Minister of Lebanon
    would unequivocally confirm to the Secretary-General and the Security Council
    that the Government of Lebanon will respect the Blue Line in its entirety,
    until agreement on Lebanon’s final international boundaries is reached.
     

  • The Secretary-General added that we
    also need a peace track for Gaza – despite the different issues involved – as
    much as we do for Lebanon. He noted that Palestinians in Gaza are suffering
    deeply, with well over 100, many of them civilians, killed in the last month
    alone.
     

  • The open meeting was followed by
    consultations, also on the Middle East.

 HEAVY
FIGHTING
REPORTED ALONG BLUE LINE BETWEEN
ISRAEL, LEBANON

  • The UN Interim Force in Lebanon
    reports
    that heavy exchanges of fire have continued unabated along the length of the
    Blue Line. There were 31 incidents of firing close to UN positions during the
    past 24 hours, with three positions suffered direct hits from the Israeli
    side.
     


  • UNIFIL
    Headquarters compound in Naqoura, causing
    extensive damage to the UNIFIL hospital where doctors were operating at the
    time.
     

  • The UN Mission says that some
    re-supply convoys to its positions are planned for today, but the ability to
    move will depend on the situation on the ground. All UN positions close to the
    Blue Line are facing shortages of basic supplies, and the need to re-supply
    them is vital.

 NEPAL:
ANNAN SENDS TEAM TO ASSESS U.N. HELP TO PEACE PROCESS

  • Recent developments have provided an
    unprecedented opportunity to achieve a negotiated political solution to
    Nepal’s 10-year armed conflict.  With that in mind, the Secretary-General has
    decided to send a team to
    Nepal to discuss the proposed U.N. assistance in the peace process.
     

  • Through consultations with all
    concerned, the mission will seek a common understanding of the nature and
    scope of responsibilities the United Nations could undertake in the peace
    process.  The assessment team will be led by Mr. Staffan De Mistura and is
    scheduled to be in Nepal between 26 July and 3 August.

 GUINEA-BISSAU’S
STABILITY
IS THREATENED
 

  • The
    Security Council began its work this
    morning with consultations on Guinea-Bissau, with a briefing by the
    Secretary-General’s Representative, João Honwana. Honwana discussed the
    Secretary-General’s recent

    report
    on that country, which says that the political climate there
    remains fragile as deep antagonisms between political actors continue to
    hamper a frank and open national dialogue.
     

  • The Council also heard a briefing on
    sanctions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo by the chairman of the

    Council’s Sanctions Committee
    , Ambassador Oswaldo de Rivero of Peru.

 DR
CONGO: EXPERTS RECOMMEND TIGHTENING SANCTIONS REGIME

  • Available today is the latest report
    of the
    Group of Experts on the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
    In it, the experts document repeated violations of the Security Council’s arms
    embargo on the DRC by both Congolese and foreign actors.
     

  • Internal trafficking in arms and
    ammunition, the experts say, remains a genuine threat to the peace process.
    Equally threatening is the financing of violations of the arms embargo through
    the diversion of Congolese natural resources, including cross-border smuggling
    of diamond and radioactive material such as uranium and radium.
     

  • The Group of Experts also reports that
    despite repeated declarations by its leaders, Rwandan rebel groups based in
    eastern DRC continue to resist a UN-backed disarmament program.
     

  • The experts recommend a natural
    resources control system for the DRC, as well as financial and travel
    sanctions on armed groups resisting the disarmament program. The illicit
    transportation of arms by air should also be punished, the experts say.

  SOMALIA:
U.N. OFFICIAL URGES RESTRAINT

  • The Special Representative of the
    Secretary-General for Somalia, Francois Lonseny Fall, today

    urged
    leaders of the Transitional Federal Government and the Supreme
    Council of the Islamic Courts to restrain their forces.
     

  • He urged both sides to respect the
    ceasefire and other provisions of the Khartoum agreement of 22 June, including
    their commitment to refrain from any provocations that could lead to an
    escalation of the situation.
     

  • A continuation of the Khartoum
    process, he said, would give both parties an opportunity to flesh out their
    expectations and move towards a peaceful solution.

 COTE
D’IVOIRE : ANNAN’S LATEST REPORT URGES PARTIES TO PEACE

  • The Secretary-General’s latest
    progress
    report
    on Cote d’Ivoire was issued
    today.
     

  • In it, the Secretary-General says that
    while the steps taken so far to implement the peace process provide the
    ingredients for further progress, sustained and focused efforts to expedite
    country-wide identification and disarmament are needed to take the country out
    of crisis.
     

  • He adds that the international
    community needs to stay united in putting pressure on all the Ivorian parties
    to deliver on their commitments.

 INDONESIA:
EMERGENCY SUPPLIES
SENT TO TSUNAMI VICTIMS

  • Turning now to the tsunami that hit
    Java, Indonesia, on Monday, we issued a
    statement
    yesterday afternoon, expressing the Secretary-General’s sadness over the loss
    of life. For his part, the UN Deputy Special Envoy for Tsunami Recovery, Eric
    Schwartz, traveled to Java this week, where he called for accelerated progress
    on national disaster prevention efforts.
     

  • Meanwhile, on the ground, the
    World Food Programme has sent twenty tons of
    food to the hardest-hit areas, and UNICEF is sending emergency supplies,
    including tents, jerry cans and hygiene kits. For its part, the World Health
    Organization is assessing health needs and planning a measles vaccination
    campaign.

 U.N.
FOOD AGENCY COMMENDS NEW FOOD AID REPORT

  • The World Food Programme (WFP) today
    drew attention
    to a new report, which notes that, in the same year it stopped receiving food
    aid from WFP, China emerged as the world’s third largest food aid donor.
     

  • The report also says that donations of
    food aid, not just those handled by WFP, grew by 10 percent to 8.2 million
    tons in 2005. WFP aid accounted for over half of that figure and reached 97
    million people last year.

 GENERAL
ASSEMBLY DEBATES SECURITY COUNCIL REFORM

  • The
    General Assembly is holding a debate in
    plenary all day today on the reform of the Security Council. No action is
    expected to be taken during this debate on any of the existing resolutions on
    Security Council expansion or reform of its working methods. Several
    delegations are suggesting various ways of moving forward on this important
    issue, in a constructive spirit.
     

  • Consultations are continuing
    in the Assembly on the review of mandates, as well as work behind the scenes
    on a counter-terrorism strategy,
    ECOSOC
    reform, and other issues that are still to be acted upon during the
    60th session.
     

  • Meanwhile, the first
    provisional list of speakers has been issued for the General Debate of the 61st
    session of the Assembly, starting on Tuesday, 19 September.

OTHER
ANNOUNCEMENTS

GEORGIA’S WINEMAKING INDUSTRY AT RISK: The
Food and Agriculture Organization
reports
that Georgia’s winemaking industry is at risk, threatened by counterfeiting and
the sector’s failure to diversity its markets. FAO is helping to protect the
wine market by setting up a public-private regulatory body and training
government officials to improve traceability of bulk wine. Wine is the country’s
third biggest export and generated more than $80 million last year.

 

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