Monthly Archives: September 2006
UN Envoy: Darfur Peace Accord on Verge of Collapse
“A top United Nations envoy warned on Thursday that the Darfur peace agreement was on the verge of collapse and lambasted the Darfur Ceasefire Commission (CFC), which is responsible for monitoring and implementing the accord.
Jan Pronk, the UN Special Representative to the Secretary-General in Sudan, echoing comments made on Wednesday to the UN Security Council in New York, warned that the 5 May Darfur peace agreement, signed by the Sudanese government and one faction of the rebel Sudan Liberation Army, was floundering.” More
Annan’s Extraordinary Middle Eastern Diplomacy
With the world focused on First Avenue this week, Secretary General Kofi Annan’s recent diplomatic success in the Middle East deserves attention. Diplomacy abhors a vacuum. And in the days following the calamitous month-long war in Israel and Lebanon, the ceasefire between the Israeli Defense Forces and Hezbollah militants looked quite tenuous. Neither side had much confidence that the other would comply with the ceasefire requirements set out in Security Council Resolution 1701, which ostensibly ended the conflict on August 11th. Adding to this uncertainty were key issues that remained unresolved: the composition of the peacekeeping force, the sea and air blockades, and the status of the two Israeli prisoners captured by Hezbollah were all kicked down road for further discussion.
UN: Nearly 6,600 Iraqi civilians killed in July, August
CNN: “Violence killed nearly 6,600 Iraqi civilians during July and August, while more than 8,000 were wounded, according to a report released Wednesday by the U.N. Assistance Mission in Iraq.
More than 20,600 Iraqi civilians have died in attacks so far this year, according to UNAMI. The carnage included a string of execution-style slayings, mortar and rocket attacks as well as suicide bombings apparently targeting civilians.”
Annan: Only Global Action Through UN Will Resolve World’s Greatest Challenges
“Countries will only overcome the “three great challenges” of development, security and human rights if they take action together, globally and coordinated through the United Nations, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Tuesday in a wide-ranging speech to world leaders gathered for the opening of the General Assembly’s annual debate.
In his final address to the Assembly’s general debate before he completes his term at the end of this year, Mr. Annan said the events of the past decade “have not resolved, but sharpened” the challenges of “an unjust world economy, world disorder, and widespread contempt for human rights and the rule of law.”
Wirth: UN at the Center of World Events
Timothy Wirth, President of the United Nations Foundation, speaks to Jim Lehrer. AUDIO & TRANSCRIPT
Iraq on Brink of Civil War, Needs Support, Annan Says
“Iraq is in danger of sliding into civil war and its government and the international community must do more to pull it back from the brink, United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan said.
“The everyday life of Iraqi people is dominated by the constant threat of sectarian violence and civil strife,” Annan said yesterday, addressing a meeting at UN headquarters in New York attended by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Iraqi President Jalal Talabani.” More
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The SC; HRC; DPRK; South Sudan
The SC: The Security Council today held its last consultations under the Council Presidency of ROK. Tomorrow, Russia will take over the rotating Presidency of the Security Council for March under Ambassador Vitaly Churkin.
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The SG; Mali; Middle East; Palestine
The SG: At the Fifth Global Forum of the UN Alliance of Civilizations in Vienna, Austria today, the SG emphasized the role of youth in ensuring a “prosperous, equitable and peaceful future.”
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The SG; DRC; HRC; Palestinian Prisoner
The SG: In Ethiopia over the weekend, the SG is now in the United Arab Emirates. Today he met with Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashed Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, where the two discussed developments in the region, including Syria, Iran, Lebanon, Egypt and Jordan, and in the Middle East Peace Process.
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