United Nations Daily Highlights, 05-03-10

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From: The United Nations Home Page at <http://www.un.org> - email: unnews@un.org

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SPOKESMAN'S NOON BRIEFING

BY MARIE OKABE

ASSOCIATE

SPOKESWOMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Thursday, March 10, 2005

ANNAN OUTLINES U.N. STRATEGY AGAINST TERRORISM

Terrorism is a direct attack on the core values of the United Nations, and the United Nations must be at the forefront in fighting it, Secretary-General Kofi Annan

told the International Summit on Democracy, Terrorism and Security in Madrid today.

He set out the main elements of a principled, comprehensive strategy against terrorism, outlined by his High-Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change. He highlighted the need to dissuade disaffected groups from terrorism; to deny terrorists the means to carry out attacks; to deter states from supporting terrorists; to develop state capacity to fight terrorism; and to defend human rights during that fight.

The Secretary-General noted that the Panel

called for a definition of terrorism, which would make it clear that any action constitutes terrorism if it is intended to cause death or serious bodily harm to civilians or non-combatants with the purpose of intimidating a population or compelling a Government or international organization into, or away from, action. He said, I believe this proposal has clear moral force, and I strongly urge world leaders to unite behind it.

He said that, we must respect and listen to the victims of terrorism around the world and do what we can to help them, and to spare others from meeting their fate.

Before he addressed the closing plenary, the Secretary-General this morning met with a group of organizations representing victims of terror, accompanied by King Juan Carlos of Spain and former Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso. The summit is being held a year after the terrorist bombings that took place last March 11 in Madrid.

The Secretary-General is meeting with other leaders attending todays summit this afternoon, including the President of Portugal, the Prime Minister of Norway and the Foreign Minister of Germany.

U.N. ENVOY AND EGYPTIAN PRESIDENT DISCUSS

SYRIAN WITHDRAWAL FROM LEBANON

The Secretary-Generals Special Envoy for the implementation of Security Council

resolution 1559,

Terje Roed-Larsen, met today in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, to exchange views on the resolutions implementation. They discussed the withdrawal of Syrian troops and intelligence from Lebanon.

Other subjects of conversation included the upcoming parliamentary elections in Lebanon, the militias operating in Lebanon and the wider stability of the region. Following the meeting, Roed-Larsen stated that the President and himself saw eye-to-eye on the issues and that they would stay in full contact.

Roed-Larsen thanked the government of Egypt for the constructive role it is playing in safeguarding the stability of the region.

He will travel next to Jordan.

The Secretary-General, in response to a question from a reporter in Madrid yesterday, said that he hopes to have a sense of how quickly a withdrawal can take place when Roed-Larsen reports back to him. He added, I hope he will be able to come back with a timetable.

Asked about the Secretary-Generals position on whether Hezbollah is a political party or a terrorist organization, the Spokeswoman noted that Hezbollah is not included on the list put out by the

1267 Sanctions Committee, which concerns sanctions against individuals and entities linked to al-Qaeda and the Taliban. The

Counter-Terrorism Committee, she added, may eventually come out with its own list.

IRAQ: ELECTION OUTCOME OFFERS NEW HOPES FOR PROSPERITY

The outcome of Iraqs January elections offers a new opportunity for Iraqis to cast off the legacy of war and dictatorship and build the foundations for a democratic and prosperous country, the Secretary-General says in his latest

report to the Security Council on

Iraq.

Yet elections, he adds, are but a first step for achieving these goals. The key to a successful transition is that it be as inclusive, participatory and transparent as possible. This means creating a sustainable political process that all Iraqis feel they have a stake in.

The report says that failure to engage now in national dialogue and reconciliation could bring strife far more damaging than the compromises necessary for reaching a national consensus achieved through peaceful means.

The Secretary-General says that full Iraqi ownership of the constitution-making process will be particularly important. Special Representative Ashraf Qazi is already consulting with a wide range of Iraqi representatives to promote dialogue and consensus-building in support of the political transition, including the writing of the constitution.

Meanwhile, the report says, the United Nations is equally committed to assisting the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq in the preparations for the national referendum on the constitution and the elections that are to follow.

Qazi is scheduled to brief the Security Council on the report next Wednesday.

SECURITY COUNCIL CONSIDERS SUDAN RESOLUTION

AMID CONTINUING REPORTS OF INSECURITY IN DARFUR

At 3:00 p.m., the Security Council is scheduled to hold consultations on

Sudan with a view to holding a formal meeting afterwards.

A draft resolution on Sudan has been turned into blue which is the form that can be voted on.

In continued reports of incidents illustrating the state of insecurity from Darfur, the UN Advance Mission in Sudan today said that a humanitarian convoy was ambushed by armed tribesmen on camels on the road from in south Darfur. The attack caused one of the vehicles to lose control and overturn. It was the second incident on the same road in two days.

ANNAN RECOMMENDS SECURITY COUNCIL MISSION TO

ETHIOPIA & ERITREA

The Secretary-Generals

report on Ethiopia and Eritrea is out as a document today.

In it, the Secretary-General says the Security Council may find it opportune to reaffirm and demonstrate its commitment to support the peace process, including the demarcation of the boundary, by returning to Ethiopia and Eritrea.

He recommends the timing of such a mission to be no later than this summer.

The Security Council is scheduled to discuss the report tomorrow afternoon.

REFUGEE AGENCY

CALLS FOR ACTION AFTER LATEST GULF OF ADEN DROWNINGS

The UN

Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

fears that more than 100 people may have died at sea in the past week while attempting to reach Yemen aboard smugglers' boats from Somalia.

UNHCR has called for concerted international efforts to deal with human traffickers and to solve the root causes that push people to take such risks.|

In one of the accidents, a vessel carrying 93 passengers sank on 3 March in the Gulf of Aden after developing a technical problem, according to witnesses.

AFGHANISTAN: FLOOD PREPARATION ACTIVITIES UNDERWAY

The

UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and the

UN Environment Programme are

supporting an initiative to clean up the Kabul riverbed, to prepare for potential flooding as the snow melts in the country. The cleaning of the riverbed, which is being carried out by the municipality of Kabul, will also reduce water pollution, given the amount of garbage and silt that is there.

Meanwhile, UN assessment teams have been deployed in various other provinces to deal with questions of flood preparedness as the snows melt following an unusually severe winter.

U.N. AGENCIES ADDRESS EDUCATIONAL NEEDS IN TSUNAMI-HIT AREAS

Regarding tsunami relief activities in Aceh, Indonesia, the

UN Childrens Fund (UNICEF) says it has distributed educational supplies to some 240,000 primary school students over the past two and a half months.

To support UNICEFs teacher training activities, the

World Food Programme has agreed to provide two-month food rations to 1,000 newly recruited and trained teachers, who will be posted throughout the province.

Meanwhile, the UN

Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees says it has delivered close to 6,800 tents along with basic supplies to some 20 locations along Acehs west coast.

For its part, the

International Labor Organization is helping to provide vocational skills to displaced children between the ages of 15 and 17. The goal of the training, which starts on Monday, is to keep young people away from exploitative and hazardous work.

In other news, the UNs

World Tourism Organization

reports that, due to reconstruction throughout the Indian Ocean region, tourist arrivals for next winter might even exceed pre-tsunami figures.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

NO LETTER RECEIVED ON VIENNA CONVENTION WITHDRAWAL: Asked about media reports of a letter from the U.S. Secretary of State concerning a U.S. withdrawal from an optional protocol to the

Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, the Spokeswoman said that the United Nations has not yet received that letter.

MOROCCAN FOOD SECURITY EXPERTS TO GO TO NIGER: Morocco will

send 27 farming experts and technicians to Niger to work with local experts, as part of an agreement between the two countries, the Islamic Development Bank and the

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The Moroccan experts will advise in areas such as water management and crop intensification. The agreement is part of FAOs

South-South Cooperation Programme.

HUMMUS STANDARDS COULD BE APPROVED IN 2 YEARS: Three very popular Middle Eastern foods -- hummus, tahineh and ful medammes -- have made significant process in the food standards setting process, the

Near East Coordinating Committee announced today. The committee is a regional body of the

Codex Alimentarius Commission, the UN body that sets food safety, quality and trade standards.

Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General

United Nations, S-378

New York, NY 10017

Tel. 212-963-7162 -

press/media only

Fax. 212-963-7055

All other inquiries to be addressed to (212)

963-4475 or by e-mail to: inquiries@un.org

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