"The United Nation Security Council today unanimously called on Syria to detain Syrian suspects identified by an independent probe into the terrorist assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and clarify all unresolved issues, threatening 'further action' in the case of non-compliance.
At a special ministerial-level session, the 15-member body adopted a resolution endorsing the findings of the UN International Independent Investigation Commission (UNIIIC) into the assassination. Resolution 1636 took note "with extreme concern" of the UNIIIC's conclusion that "while the Syrian authorities have cooperated in form but not substance with the Commission, several Syrian officials tried to mislead the Commission by giving false or inaccurate information." MORE
NYT: "The resolution threatens Syria with economic penalties if it does not give full cooperation to the United Nations investigation that has identified high-ranking security officials as suspects in the assassination of a former Lebanese prime minister, Rafik Hariri. The measure also orders Syria to take into custody and make available to the investigators people they suspect of involvement in the killing."
Update: "Key U.N. Security Council members dropped the threat of sanctions against Syria on Monday in a last-minute effort to get all 15 nations to back a resolution demanding that Damascus cooperate with an investigation into the assassination of Lebanon's former prime minister.... U.S. Ambassador John Bolton told reporters that foreign ministers of the five permanent veto-wielding nations agreed to the changes because of "the prospect of getting a near unanimous vote in the council." Despite the changes, he said, "it's going to be unmistakably a clear message" and "a strong resolution." - AP
Pakistani soldiers help carry boxes of high energy biscuits
from a UN helicopter for the families in the remote village
of Nauseri, Neelum Valley, PakistanAssociated Press: "The U.N. on Friday warned it will run out of money and be forced to ground helicopters delivering earthquake relief supplies to northern Pakistan unless donors come through with the hundreds of millions of dollars needed to see 2.3 million hungry people through the winter.
A sampling of United Nations related blog commentaryInformed Comment: "I am distressed at the prospect of a Cambodia in Iraq, which strikes me as a real possibility. As it is, there was that nastiness of Shiite and Sunni militiamen killing each other Thursday. I'd like to see such an outcome prevented. I said earlier that I thought the best outcome would be for Iraq to be internationalized and to have a United Nations military force enforce the peace."
Lebanese Political Journal: "Thank God, for Detlev Mehlis, head of the UN Commission investigating the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq al Hariri. Mehlis realizes that the fate of at least an entire nation is staked on what he comes up with. It's an unfair burden, but he's doing quite a bit to help Lebanon walk on its own."
BOP News: "The Oil for Food program run in the late 1990's has been roundly criticized, and now the investigation has come to a head. The reality is that while some companies and individuals violated the rules, the net effect was to dramatically reduce Saddam's access to capital. According to the Volcker report, Sadddam pocketted 1.8 billion dollars. This sounds like a great deal, until you realize that he had to pay for virtually his entire security apparatus out of it. In effect, he had just enough money to cling to power, but not enough to pay for, let alone upgrade, his military apparatus."
Davenetics: "So who misbehaved when it comes to the UN Oil for Food Program? Uh, gotta few minutes?: "More than 4,500 companies took part in the United Nations oil-for-food program and more than half of them paid illegal surcharges and kickbacks to Saddam Hussein, according to the independent committee investigating the program. The country with the most companies involved in the program was Russia, followed by France, the committee says in a report to be released Thursday. The inquiry was led by Paul A. Volcker, former chairman of the Federal Reserve Board." Oil and human nature. The world's most slippery slope."
Talking Points Memo: "Ariel Sharon: "A country calling for the destruction of another people cannot be a member of the UN."
Wilson's Blogmanac: "The UN agencies monitoring bird flu outbreaks say more research is needed to solve the puzzle of how the virus is spread and how it changes into forms deadly to humans as well as birds. Meanwhile, it recommends that wild and farmed birds should not mix." The Age."
"Receiving the final report of the Independent Inquiry Committee (IIC) into maladministration and corruption in the United Nations-run Iraqi Oil-for-Food Programme, Secretary-General Kofi Annan today called on Member States to take action against illegal practises by companies under their jurisdiction and to prevent recurrences.
At the same time he reiterated his commitment to "vital" reform of the UN management structure in response to criticism in earlier IIC reports that found failures in actions by the UN Secretariat in regard to the now defunct $64-billion Programme which allowed Saddam Hussein's sanctions-bound regime to sell oil to buy essential supplies." [More]
A sampling of United Nations related blog commentaryDemocratic Daily: "The following is an advance copy of the full text of John Kerry's speech today at Georgetown University: "When the Administration could have kept an Iraqi army selectively intact, they chose not to. They were wrong. When they could have kept an entire civil structure functioning to deliver basic services to Iraqi citizens, they chose not to. They were wrong. When they could have accepted the offers of the United Nations and individual countries to provide on the ground peacekeepers and reconstruction assistance, they chose not to. They were wrong."
A Nurse Journal: "An Indonesian man has died of bird flu, raising the country's human toll to four, officials said today, as international health experts prepared to go house-to-house to search for infected poultry. The government - accused of covering-up outbreaks of bird flu when it first started killing chickens two years ago - said it would work closely with the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation to hunt down sick fowl on the densely populated island of Java."
Liquid List: "The UN saves lives the best it can, despite the willful attempts by world's acknowledged greatest power to block that saving of lives. The UN has been the leading figure in a major increase in human security around the world. Don't believe me? Think the world is full of death and destruction? You're half-right, but that's mostly because we don't really talk about all the good things. This little gem, from a business paper in New Zealand, fills us in on the recent Human Security Report under the headline "Global peace breaks out: No one notices. (If you want to read the Human Security Report, click here.)"
Owen's Musings: "Today is the 60th birthday of the United Nations - the anniversary of the signing of the UN Charter here in San Francisco. Read this excellent summary (pdf) of 60 ways the UN makes a difference, ranging from human rights to humanitarian aid; from eradicating smallpox to creating a framework to support international business."
Open Democracy Blogs: "This October, openDemocracy - the online magazine of politics and culture - has hosted a discussion on UN SCR 1325 on Women, Peace and Security. This includes a series of articles, launched by Lesley Abdela, who recently reported for us on the real plight facing Iraqi women today, Sir Jeremy Greenstock, involved in the formulation of SCR 1325 during his time as UK Permanent Representative to the UN, and Maj Britt Theorin who secured the EU resolution calling for 40% representation of women participating in peacebuilding. Alongside their assessments, the Women Making a Difference blog has brought together 32 women who have fought against violent conflict from Cambodia to Sierra Leone, to ask: How does SCR 1325 affect us? Has it made any difference and what difference could it make? Our bloggers have been speaking in a personal capacity, drawing on their considerable experience, and that of the organisations to which they belong."
Swords into Plowshares: "Today marks the sixtieth anniversary of the entry into force of the Charter of the United Nations. At a time when considerable attention is being devoted to the future of the U.N. (Ambassador Bolton floated the idea before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last week of shifting from a system of mandatory assessments--dues--to a system of voluntary contributions to finance the Organization), I want to offer a few observations about the history of the Charter. The majority of the work of drafting the Charter occurred prior to the conclusion of World War II. In fact, most of the preparatory work was done at Dumbarton Oaks in Washington, D.C. during the fall of 1944..."
"Russia confirmed more bird flu cases on Monday, raising fears it could spread over Europe, but a U.N. official said the best way to stop it was for donors to pay up and fight it where it began, among Asian fowl.
The U.N. food agency's head said the world must focus on Asia, and on stopping the virus passing between birds, as the best way to prevent the nightmare scenario of it mixing with a human strain to cause pandemic deadly flu." [Full article]
"Monday, October 24, 2005 is United Nations Day, marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. This day commemorates the many ways the world has benefited from the lifesaving work of the UN." [Read more]
Click here to read 60 Ways the United Nations makes a difference (pdf file)