United Nations Daily Highlights, 07-04-02

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

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY MICHELE

MONTAS

SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

U.N.

HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Monday, April 2, 2007

SECRETARY-GENERAL ANNOUNCES HIGH-LEVEL MEETING ON DARFUR ON 16-17 APRIL

The Secretary-General returned to work at UN Headquarters today, following the conclusion of his trip to the

Middle East, and spoke to reporters this morning.

In his comments to the press, the Secretary-General said that he strongly deplored the killings of five African Union peacekeepers in

Darfur, which, he added, illustrates the necessity of dispatching a hybrid peacekeeping force to Darfur. He said he would meet the African Union Chairman, Alpha Oumar Konaré, here on 16-17 April to discuss those issues further.

Asked about the dispute between Iran and the United Kingdom, the Secretary-General expressed the hope that the issue can be resolved through diplomatic channels, with an early release of the UK naval personnel, and he added that the rhetoric over that issue should be toned down.

Asked about Kosovo, he reiterated his full support for the recommendations made by his Special Envoy, Martti Ahtisaari, adding, I hope that Security Council members will constructively engage in dialogue on this issue.

The Secretary-General also said that the members of the Quartet were waiting to see how the Palestinian National Unity Government will perform and hoping that it would meet the expectations of the international community.

Asked whether the Secretary-General had raised the issue of the Israeli hostages during his Middle East trip, the Spokeswoman said that he had raised the issue at all his meetings and had also brought up the issue of Palestinian and Lebanese prisoners.

Asked whether the Secretary-General would initiate a regional peace conference on the Middle East, Montas said that Saudi Arabia had already raised the idea of having an expanded meeting of the Middle East Quartet, including Arab States, the Israelis and the Palestinians, during the Arab Summit in Riyadh last week.

She said the issue had been widely discussed in Riyadh, and the United Nations would participate, adding that the League of Arab States was expected to organize such a meeting.

SUDAN: U.N. MISSION CONDEMNS KILLING OF AFRICAN UNION PEACEKEEPERS

The UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) strongly condemned the killing of the five peacekeepers of the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) during an unprovoked attack on Sunday.

UNMIS also condemns the attack on Saturday by unidentified armed men on an AMIS helicopter, which was carrying the AMIS Deputy Force Commander and his team to El Fasher in West Darfur.

The UN Mission stressed the urgent need to identify those responsible for the attacks on AMIS and to hold them accountable to the fullest extent of the law.

BAN KI-MOON SENDS CONDOLENCES TO TSUNAMI VICTIMS; AGENCIES PREPARE TO SEND AID

The Secretary-General is deeply concerned by the potential consequences of the earthquake and tsunami that hit the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea on 2 April 2007. He extends his deepest condolences to the families of those who have been killed, injured or rendered homeless.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has a team ready to deploy to the Solomon Islands and has offered assistance to the Government.

According to OCHA, the latest reports from the provincial capital, Gizo town, indicate that 12 people have been killed and 2,000 people (or roughly 10 per cent of the population) are now homeless. Many people remain missing, and there is widespread damage to infrastructure.

OCHA says it has disaster assessment and coordination teams on standby and ready to deploy. It has also been in direct contact with the Government of the Solomon Islands.

UNICEF, meanwhile, has pre-positioned emergency medical supplies for up to 10,000 people.

SOMALIA: HUMANITARIAN AGENCY REPORTS MORE THAN 100,000 HAVE FLED FIGHTING IN MOGADISHU

From Somalia, OCHA

reports that nearly 100,000 people have fled the capital, Mogadishu, since 1 February, due to continued fighting in the area.

Of the total figure, 47,000 have fled since 21 March alone, and have no access to shelter, water of food. The number of those fleeing the area continues to increase on a daily basis, and the lack of access to the city due to the fighting has severely hampered humanitarian agencies from responding to meet the vast needs.

OCHA urges all parties to take necessary measures to prevent unnecessary human suffering.

U.K. ASSUMES SECURITY COUNCIL PRESIDENCY FOR APRIL

The United Kingdom has succeeded South Africa as President of the Security Council for the month of April. UK Ambassador Emyr Jones Parry is holding bilateral consultations with the other Council members on the programme of work for the month.

The Security Council is expected to meet on Tuesday morning to hold consultations on the programme of work for April. Although Council members still have to agree on the programme of work, it is expected that, on Tuesday afternoon, they will hold consultations on Kosovo, at which the Secretary-Generals Special Envoy, Martti Ahtisaari, intends to be present. If Council consultations on Kosovo in fact take place that afternoon, Ahtisaari has already conveyed his willingness to talk to reporters at the Security Council stakeout afterward.

KOSOVO ENVOY EXPRESSES CONCERN OVER APPARENT MONASTERY ATTACK

The Secretary-Generals Special Envoy for

Kosovo, Joachim Rücker, on Sunday expressed concern over what appears to have been an attack directed at the Deçan/Decani monastery.

Rücker said that the police and the Kosovo Force (KFOR) are investigating what exactly happened on Saturday, and he emphasized that violence, especially directed at minority communities, is intolerable and impermissible and has no place in Kosovo.

UNHCR CHIEF SAYS U.N. WILL INCREASE PRESENCE IN IRAQ

UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres continues his visit to the Middle East, arriving in Bahrain after meeting with senior Iraqi officials in Baghdad over the weekend. There, he described the displacement of nearly four million people in Iraq and neighbouring countries as a humanitarian crisis.

Guterres announced that UNHCR would increase its international presence in Baghdad, as well as its activities elsewhere in Iraq. He also called on the countrys leaders to spearhead an international effort to ease the plight of uprooted Iraqis.

SECRETARY-GENERAL VISITS U.N. PEACEKEEPERS IN LEBANON

The Secretary-General on Saturday concluded his visit to Lebanon, and his nine-day trip to the Middle East, by visiting several parts of southern Lebanon by helicopter and seeing the work done by the peacekeepers of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

He said at a press conference afterwards that he was very much impressed by the contribution UNIFIL has made to Lebanons peace and security. He noted, in response to questions, that UNIFIL needs to be vigilant about any potential threats, adding that right now the situation on the ground is reported as calm.

Asked about reports of arms smuggling, he expressed concern about any such activity, which, the Secretary-General said, would destabilize the situation in Lebanon. He called for all the parties concerned fully to comply with Security Council resolutions, and added that there needs to be an enhanced maritime capacity of the Lebanese Armed Forces to ensure that there will be no such smuggling activities.

U.N. ENVOY IN NEPAL WELCOMES START OF INTERIM GOVERNMENT

Over the weekend, Ian Martin, the Secretary-Generals Special Representative for Nepal, welcomed the establishment of the new interim Government as a key moment for the consolidation of Nepal's peace process. He congratulated the leaders of the eight political parties on their willingness to share responsibilities in this transitional period.

Martin pointed out that a unified Government should be in a stronger position to face the challenges ahead, and he pledged the UN's help in ensuring full compliance with the commitments made by the parties to the Agreement on the Monitoring of the Management of Arms and Armies, as well as to support and monitor the electoral process.

F.A.O.: BIRD FLU CASES DECLINE, BUT DISEASE REMAINS A THREAT

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) says the number of bird flu cases is down this year, but avian influenza remains a threat, and continues to spread to new areas.

The FAO cites Thailand, Turkey and Vietnam as having been particularly successful in battling the disease but notes that Egypt, Indonesia and Nigeria have not yet been able to contain it yet, making them reservoirs of the virus for possible introduction to other countries.

CLIMATE CHANGE REGISTRY SET FOR RELEASE

The secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will put in place the International Transaction Log (ITL), available for industrialized countries that have signed on to the Kyoto Protocol to link to their national registries.

The ITL is an essential component of the trading infrastructure, as it forms the central hub of the settlement system, which will deliver traded allowances from sellers to buyers.

In line with the timeframe of April 2007 set by the parties to the Protocol, the ITL will become fully functional once national registries of the protocol have successfully established operational links.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

NO WORD ON REPLACEMENT FOR U.N. MIDDLE EAST COORDINATOR: Asked whether the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East, Alvaro de Soto, would be replaced, the Spokeswoman confirmed that de Soto has signified his desire to move on, and that the Secretary-General had asked him to stay until the end of his present contract. She said that de Soto would end his distinguished 25-year UN career on 7 May, adding that there was no word yet on a replacement.

NEW HEAD OF U.N. MEDIA DEPARTMENT TAKES OATH OF OFFICE:Under-Secretary-General for the Department of Information Kiyotaka Akasaka signed a declaration this morning promising to exercise in all loyalty, discretion and conscience the functions entrusted to him as an international civil servant". Akasaka took his oath of office this morning in a special ceremony in the Secretary-General's conference room.