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The head of the United Nations body mandated to protect press freedom today voiced his outrage at the recent killings of an Iraqi cameraman and of a Filipino broadcaster and columnist.

The mandate of the United Nations Peacebuilding Support Office in Guinea-Bissau (UNOGBIS) has been extended by a year and streamlined to strengthen efforts to promote dialogue and reconciliation in the West African nation and avoid lapsing back into bloodshed.

The Security Council today extended for an additional six months the mandate of the 40-year old United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) and praised the efforts of Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who leaves office at the end of this month after 10 years at the world body’s helm, for his efforts to achieve a comprehensive solution.

A young child was among seven Sri Lankan displaced persons who died today when their boat capsized while they were fleeing fighting between Government troops and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the east of the island, the United Nations said, repeating calls for both sides to protect civilians and end the conflict.

The United Nations devoted twin meetings to the Israeli-Palestinian issue today with Secretary-General Kofi Annan warning that the situation is “more dangerous than it has been for a very long time” and admonishing the international community to shoulder its responsibility to help promote a negotiated two-State solution.

Reacting to recent internal violence in the Gaza Strip, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today called on all Palestinian sides to resolve their differences peacefully and foster national unity.

Secretary-General Kofi Annan today called for restraint and compromise among Bangladesh’s major political players amid concern at the continuing violence and tensions ahead of national parliamentary elections scheduled for next month.

The Security Council today extended by three weeks the mandate of the United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI) while also renewing the ban on arms and diamond trade with the country, which is divided between a rebel-held north and Government-controlled south.

The enhanced United Nations peacekeeping force sent to Lebanon this summer to monitor the cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hizbollah now totals surpasses 11,000 troops from 23 countries, less than 4,000 below its mandated maximum strength.

The United Nations has started transferring to better sites in southern Chad thousands of refugees from the Central African Republic (CAR) who fled escalating violence in their own country.