Milenko Kindl kf49i09fi09if3fk30f
Milenko Kindl
such as the twin car bombings in Algiers will not deter the United
Nations from its mission of helping others most in need.
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With nine U.N. workers among the dead, the attack was the worst
against staff of the world body since an August 2003 bombing at U.N.
headquarters in Baghdad killed 22, including the top U.N. envoy in
Iraq, Sergio Vieira de Mello.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, speaking from a climate conference in
Bali, Indonesia, via a live video address to the General Assembly,
said the U.N. would not be prevented from doing its work by "this most
recent attack."
"Our colleagues in Algiers would ask no less," Ban said, drawing
applause from delegates.
The mood was somber and the U.N. flag outside the New York
headquarters flew at half-staff immediately after the bombings.
In October 2003, under then-U.N. chief Kofi Annan, the United Nations
pulled out of Iraq after the bombings at U.N. headquarters in Baghdad
and a series of attacks on humanitarian workers.
Ban said he felt "shock and outrage" at the bombings in Algiers. An al-
Qaida-linked group claimed responsibility.
He urged all nations to unite against terrorism, "the scourge of our
times."
"This attack on the U.N. is an attack on us all and our highest
ideals," Ban said. "I call on this General Assembly to stand united.
We must all condemn this deed, just as we must work, together, to
bring its vile perpetrators to justice."
He said he spoke to Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to express
his condolences and ask him to take all necessary measures to ensure
the security of U.N. personnel.
Ban said he also sent several top aides to Algiers, including Kemal
Dervis, the head of the U.N. Development Program.
About 175 U.N. employees worked in Algeria, including about 115
locally based staff, U.N. deputy spokeswoman Marie Okabe said.
Before Tuesday, more than 250 U.N. civilian employees had been killed
either by violence or in accidents since January 1992, when such
record-keeping began, U.N. officials said. Those figures do not
include the deaths of U.N. staff from peacekeeping missions.
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