UN mission in Liberia gets one new staff member, loses another

The United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) is receiving a new Deputy Special Representative while its police commissioner is on his way to UN Headquarters in New York.

Secretary-General Kofi Annan today named Steinar Bjornsson his Deputy Special Representative for Operations. Mr. Bjornsson, a native of Iceland, is scheduled to arrive in Liberia later this month.

From January 2003 to July 2004 he was Director of Administration for the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL).

Meanwhile, UNMIL Police Commissioner Mark Kroeker was leaving UNMIL to become the Civilian Police (CIVPOL) Adviser in the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO).

Mr. Kroeker, a national of the United States, previously was the Chief of Police in Portland, Oregon.