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Team appointed by Annan to look into security decisions before attack on UN in Iraq

Team appointed by Annan to look into security decisions before attack on UN in Iraq

Responding to a report that found - in the aftermath of the August terrorist bombing of the United Nations office in Baghdad - a "dysfunctional" security management system, Secretary-General Kofi Annan today named a team to investigate the responsibilities and decision-making of UN officials in the lead up to the deadly attack.

"The Secretary-General is giving close attention to the Report of the Independent Panel on the Safety and Security of United Nations Personnel in Iraq, headed by Martti Ahtisaari, former President of Finland," a spokesman for Mr. Annan said.

"In response to one of its main recommendations, the Secretary-General has established a team to determine accountability at all managerial levels at [UN] Headquarters and in the field to review responsibilities for relevant decisions prior to the attack on 19 August 2003 in Baghdad."

In its report last month, the Ahtisaari Panel said its main conclusion "is that the current security management system is dysfunctional. It provides little guarantee of security to UN staff in Iraq or other high-risk environments and needs to be reformed." It also labelled as a major deficiency a "lack of accountability for the decisions and positions taken by UN managers with regard to the security of UN staff."

The 19 August attack killed 22 people, including the Secretary-General's Special Representative for Iraq, Sergio Vieira de Mello.

The investigative team will be headed by Gerald Walzer, former Deputy UN High Commissioner for Refugees. The other members of the team will be Srinath Basnayake, former Director of the General Legal Division of the UN Office of Legal Affairs (OLA), Kevin Carty, Assistant Commissioner of the Irish National Police, and Stuart Groves, Senior Security Manager of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva.

Spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the team will hold its first organizational meeting very shortly, and Mr. Walzer has been asked to present its findings to the Secretary-General with the least possible delay. "The team will determine its methodology and will interview those individuals, both UN officials and others, who it considers will be able to provide it the information it requires," he added.

In addition, Ramiro Lopes da Silva, the Secretary-General's Acting Special Representative in Iraq, and UN Security Coordinator Tun Myat have asked to be relieved of their present responsibilities while the team conducts its work, Mr. Dujarric said.

"Accordingly, the Secretary-General has decided that they will take special leave until mid-January, while remaining available to the team to provide relevant information," Mr. Dujarric said. The Under-Secretary-General for Management, Catherine Bertini, will oversee the Office of the UN Security Coordinator during this period.