Secretary-General Kofi Annan will give a major address on Monday in London on how two major international conferences scheduled for this year –on financing for development and on sustainable development – can support the goals set at the UN's 2000 Millennium Summit, his spokesman announced today.

Addressing an awards ceremony for eminent individuals who have contributed to African development, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has stressed that the international fight against terrorism must not diminish efforts to overcome long-standing problems plaguing the continent.

After hearing a briefing on the latest developments in the Middle East, members of the Security Council today voiced their concern about the continuing violence in the region, including a recent Israeli attack that had resulted in injury to United Nations personnel and damage to UN property.

The current cycle of violence in the Middle East makes human rights work in the region both more urgent and more difficult, Mary Robinson, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said today, while backing a recent call by Secretary-General Kofi Annan for Israel to lift its restrictions against Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat.