Escalating violence keeps UN expansion plans in Iraq on hold

UNITED NATIONS – UN hopes of stepping up its activities in Iraq are still on hold due to the violence across the country and the risk of UN staff becoming targets, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said on Tuesday.

Efforts to reinforce the world body’s presence in satellite offices in Basra in the south and Erbil in the north appear to have failed because no country will provide the aircraft needed to ferry staff safely in and out of those cities, Annan said. Despite December parliamentary elections which took place in relative calm, “the organisation’s presence and its ability to operate effectively in Iraq remain severely constrained by the security environment,” Annan said in his latest quarterly report to the Security Council on UN operations in Iraq.The return to Iraqi self-rule and stepped-up efforts by Iraqi and US-led forces to maintain security “have been accompanied by the development of an increasingly complex armed opposition capable of carrying out a consistently high level of violent activity across the country,” he said.Violence is reaching new heights as “repeated bombings against civilians, mosques and more recently against churches are creating fear, animosity and feelings of revenge within the communities,” Annan said.Armed groups have killed thousands of Iraqi security and police officers in recent months, he said.Annan last year asked the United States, Britain and 10 other nations to provide aircraft to transport UN staff to the new satellite offices because Iraqi roads were too risky.But there have been no positive responses so far, he said.There are currently 262 UN staff in Iraq, about 160 of whom provide security for the rest, UN officials said.That is about the same number as four months ago.While the UN mission’s mandate includes reconstruction, development and humanitarian aid as well as political support, many mission activities are left to national and international partners due to the security situation, Annan said.- Nampa-ReutersDespite December parliamentary elections which took place in relative calm, “the organisation’s presence and its ability to operate effectively in Iraq remain severely constrained by the security environment,” Annan said in his latest quarterly report to the Security Council on UN operations in Iraq.The return to Iraqi self-rule and stepped-up efforts by Iraqi and US-led forces to maintain security “have been accompanied by the development of an increasingly complex armed opposition capable of carrying out a consistently high level of violent activity across the country,” he said.Violence is reaching new heights as “repeated bombings against civilians, mosques and more recently against churches are creating fear, animosity and feelings of revenge within the communities,” Annan said.Armed groups have killed thousands of Iraqi security and police officers in recent months, he said.Annan last year asked the United States, Britain and 10 other nations to provide aircraft to transport UN staff to the new satellite offices because Iraqi roads were too risky.But there have been no positive responses so far, he said.There are currently 262 UN staff in Iraq, about 160 of whom provide security for the rest, UN officials said.That is about the same number as four months ago.While the UN mission’s mandate includes reconstruction, development and humanitarian aid as well as political support, many mission activities are left to national and international partners due to the security situation, Annan said.- Nampa-Reuters