Annan cuts short Africa trip to focus on Iraq at UN Headquarters in New York

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today left Africa a day ahead of schedule to return to United Nations Headquarters and deal with the situation in Iraq.

On Wednesday, UN spokesman Fred Eckhard told reporters in New York that Mr. Annan was considering cutting his programme short “to deal with pressing business here.”

Today, a UN spokesman in Ouagadougou announced that Mr. Annan, who just attended the international conference on Iraq in Sharm-El-Sheikh, Egypt, would return to follow up on matters “relating to the UN presence in Iraq.”

On Tuesday, the Secretary-General told conference participants that the UN is committed to helping Iraq, including coordinating international aid and assisting the country's electoral authorities.