Somalia: UN welcomes investigation into staff member’s murder

The United Nations has welcomed the prompt efforts of the Somali authorities, including the regional Juba Valley Alliance (JVA), to investigate the murder earlier this week of a UN security official in southern Somalia.

“The killers must be apprehended and action taken against them, and we encourage the JVA and the people of Kismayo to do just that.” UN Resident/Humanitarian Coordinator Maxwell Gaylard said yesterday of the shooting death of Mohamuud Musse Gurage in Kismayo on Monday.

Mr. Gaylard stressed that the UN mandate is to support the Somali people in their development and peacebuilding efforts and that UN staff need to be safe to carry out their duties in the Horn of Africa country, which has been without a functioning central government since the collapse of President Muhammad Siad Barre’s regime in 1991.

“This murder is an outrage against all that the UN stands for, and an act of cowardice against a defenceless UN worker,” he said. “It is particularly unfortunate that this should happen at a time when Somalis are at last beginning to move towards peace and reconciliation with the support of the international community and the recent UN re-engagement in Kismayo.”