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UN:
NINE STAFF MEMBERS KILLED IN ALGIERS, TWO FOUND ALIVE, CONFIRMS UN
OFFICIAL: 12/12/2007 (MaximsNews Network)
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UNITED NATIONS - / MaximsNews Network /
- 12 December 2007 --
Nine United Nations staff members are among the dozens
killed in yesterday’s twin bomb attacks in Algiers, a spokesperson for the
world body confirmed today, adding that two others were found alive and removed
from the debris, and several others remain missing.
Two car bombs
exploded in the Algerian capital on Tuesday morning. The first caused the
collapse of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) office, which also housed staff
from a number of other UN agencies, and damaged the office of the UN High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), located across the street. The second
exploded near the country’s Constitutional Court.
The UN released a
list of the nine staff members confirmed to have died and whose families have
been notified. They include Hanniche Abel-Rahim of Algeria (International Labour
Organization); Nabil Slimani of Algeria (UNHCR); Gene Luna of the Philippines
(World Food Programme); Adnane Souilah and Kamel Sait, both of Algeria (UN
Population Fund); and Babacar Ndiaye of Senegal (Department of Safety and
Security).
In addition, Hind
Boukroufa and Djamel Rezzoug of Algeria and Steven Olejas of Denmark, all of
whom worked for UNDP, were also killed.
Rescue efforts
yesterday helped to remove two UN staff alive from the rubble, and both are now
receiving medical treatment, UN spokesperson Marie Okabe told reporters in New
York.
“There are a
number of people who remain missing,” Ms. Okabe added, while noting that “at
this point, hopes for finding any more survivors in the rubble have dimmed, and
the local authorities have started to use heavy machinery to clear the site.”
According to
figures released yesterday, the UN has a total of 40 international staff in
Algeria, including 19 international staff based there and an additional 21 that
are there temporarily, as well as about 115 local UN staff in the capital.
Secretary-General
Ban Ki-moon earlier today paid tribute to the victims, stressing that “their
sacrifice cannot and shall not be forgotten… This was a despicable strike
against individuals serving humanity’s highest ideals under the UN banner.”
Mr. Ban has sent
UNDP Administrator Kemal Dervis, as well as top officials from his Executive
Office and DSS, to Algiers to determine how best to aid those injured in the
attack and the families of the victims.
In a statement
issued today, Mr. Dervis said that “the situation in Algiers remains fluid and
it is possible that additional UNDP staff remain unaccounted for.
“I do hope that
beyond the words of condemnation, the international community and Member States
will realize that concrete actions of support for the United Nations and for
development and humanitarian workers are of the utmost importance,” he added.
Two stress
counsellors are also arriving in the country today to assist those who have been
traumatized by the bombing, Ms. Okabe said.
Labels: United
Nations, U.N.,
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