The United Nations today commended the Iraqi people for their active nationwide participation in yesterday’s elections, congratulated the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq (IECI) for the conduct of the poll, and pledged its continued support on the path to peace and democracy in the strife-torn country.

The General Assembly today decided to consider follow up to the recommendations of the Independent Inquiry Committee (IIC) into the scandal-ridden United Nations Oil-for-Food Programme.

Progress in returning to Kuwait the remains of its nationals and others killed during Saddam Hussein’s 1990 invasion and subsequent occupation of the country has been slow because of the prevailing insecurity in Iraq, Secretary-General Kofi Annan says in a new report to the Security Council.

The increasingly sectarian nature of violence in Iraq, the continued lack of security, and ongoing human rights violations pose key challenges as the country prepares to go to the polls next week, underscoring the need for the communities to reach out to each other, according to a United Nations report released today.