|
|
UN:
BAN KI-MOON VOICES PROFOUND SADNESS AS UN DEATH TOLL IN ALGIERS REACHES 17:
14/12/2007 (MaximsNews Network)
|
|
UNITED NATIONS - / MaximsNews Network /
- 14 December 2007 --As
the United Nations today confirmed that 17 of its staff have perished in the
terror attacks in Algiers, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon voiced his great sorrow
at the toll this “unspeakable crime” has taken.
“I have learned with profound
sadness that the death toll on the bombing in Algiers last Tuesday is even
higher than we feared,” Mr. Ban said in a statement, after the Organization
announced that 17 UN staff members are now confirmed dead following the car
bombing in the Algerian capital. “Words cannot begin to do justice to the
grief I feel.
“I send my prayers to the loved ones
of those who perished, to those who are wounded, and to those who are grappling
with trauma after this terrible event,” stated Mr. Ban. “I send my thoughts
to all their colleagues who work every day, in difficult and dangerous
circumstances, for peace and security, development and human rights around the
world.”
He added that “those who target
innocent civilians in this way commit an unspeakable crime. Our colleagues there
were working with no other mission than to support the people of Algeria in
building a better future.”
The staff members confirmed to have
died and whose families have been notified include Hind Boukroufa, Djamel
Rezzoug, Saadia Boucelham, Samia Hammoutene, Chadli Hamza and Mohamed Khelladi
of Algeria, as well as Steven Olejas of Denmark, all of whom worked for the UN
Development Programme (UNDP).
Algerians Adnane Souilah, Kamel Sait
and Mustapha Benbara (UN Population Fund); Hanniche Abel-Rahim (International
Labour Organization); Nabil Slimani and Karim Bentebal (UN High Commissioner for
Refugees); Hakim Si Larbi (Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS); and Mohamed Laseli
(UN Industrial Development Organization) were also killed, as were Gene Luna of
the Philippines (World Food Programme); and Babacar Ndiaye of Senegal
(Department of Safety and Security).
UN spokesperson Marie Okabe told
reporters that efforts on the ground to clear away the rubble have led to the
discovery and identification of more bodies.
Mr. Ban has sent several of his top
aids to Algiers to determine how best to aid those injured in the attack and the
families of the victims.
Kemal Dervis, the head of the UN
Development Programme (UNDP), has met with the families of the victims as well
as those who were injured in Algiers. “It was sad to see the impact of the
attack on his colleagues, he said, adding that “the victims are not soldiers
who signed up for battle, but people, mostly Algerians, who are working for
peace, development and to alleviate human suffering.”
The Algiers bombing is not the first
time the UN has been attacked by terrorists. A bomb destroyed the world body’s
Baghdad headquarters in August 2003, killing 22 people, including top envoy
Sergio Vieira de Mello.
Labels: United
Nations, U.N.,
~~~~~
MaximsNews.com, An Independent Voice from the
U.N., provides commentary and analysis from
leading world figures: King Abdullah II
(Jordan), HRH Prince Zeid Ra'ad Zeid Al-Hussein
(Jordan), Sir Brian Urquhart, Hans Blix, Amb.
Richard Holbrooke, Anwar Ibrahim, Bianca Jagger,
Dr. Nafis Sadik, Shashi Tharoor, Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, Noeleen Heyzer,
Masood Haider, Kerry
Kennedy, Ian Williams, Stephen Schlesinger, Sen.
Timothy E. Wirth, Marc Morial, Amb. Jayantha
Dhanapala (Sri Lanka), Amb. Pierre Schori
(Sweden), Amb. William H. Luers, Susan Roosevelt
Weld, Rory Kennedy, Mehri
Madarshahi, J. Michael Adams, Gloria Feldt,
Jeffrey Laurenti, Rodney D. Smith, Ashley
Bommer, Rory
O'Connor, Genevieve Stamper, Max Stamper and
others.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
MaximsNews®
LLC
NEWS NETWORK FOR THE
INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY
MaximsNews Network® LLC is a Global News Network reaching over 30,000 in the International Community. It is associated with MediaChannel.org and Globalvision News Network, global news and media information services with more than 350 news affiliates in 135 countries.
Established in 1999.
The views expressed are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of MaximsNews®
LLC.
MaximsNews.com
U.N. ® LLC www.MaximsNews.com
| MaximsNews@MaximsNews.com |
Please
contact us about Republishing:
Syndication@MaximsNews.com ©Copyrights 1999 - 2007, MaximsNews® LLC. All rights
reserved.
|
