DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

Following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Marie Okabe, Associate Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

Good afternoon.

**Statement Attributable to the Spokesman for the Secretary-General on Sudan

I’ll start with a statement attributable to the Spokesman on the resolution just adopted by the Security Council on the situation in Darfur:

The Secretary-General welcomes the adoption today of the resolution by the Security Council on the situation in Darfur, Sudan.

The Secretary-General looks forward to the swift and sustained implementation by the Government of Sudan of the commitments it entered into with the United Nations in their Joint Communiqué of 3 July 2004.  Meanwhile, he hopes that the resolution will ensure that concerted action is taken to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe in Darfur and urges all actors to play their part in protecting the civilian population and improving the desperate plight of the people of the region.

The Secretary-General welcomes the Security Council's strong support for the efforts of the African Union.  He intends to respond quickly to the request that the United Nations assist the African Union with planning and assessments for its mission in Darfur.  He urges Member States to respond to the Security Council's call for them to reinforce the international monitoring team by providing personnel and other assistance.

[Associate Spokesman:  We also have a humanitarian update available on Darfur, in the form of the briefing notes from Geneva, as well as some bullet points from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).]

**AccraSummit:  Secretary-General, African Union Leaders Discuss Darfur

In Accra, Ghana, this morning, the Secretary-General first attended a discussion on the situation in Darfur, Sudan, in the margins of the Summit being held on Côte d’Ivoire.  The Darfur meeting was called by President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria in his capacity as Chair of the African Union (AU).  African Union Commission Chair Alpha Oumar Konare, Ghanaian President John Kufuor and several other heads of state also attended.

The group was briefed by the former Nigerian President, Gen. Abdusalami Abubakar, who recently carried out a fact-finding mission to Chad and Sudan, including Darfur, as Personal Envoy of the AU Chairman.

In a statement issued after that meeting, the African leaders collectively expressed their concern about the deterioration that had taken place since the Government of Sudan had pledged earlier this month to take effective steps to restore security.

They discussed the African Union’s observation mission in Darfur and agreed that this African force needs to be significantly expanded.  They said they were finalizing arrangements with the troop contributors to this expanded force and called on the international community to provide logistic and financial support for it.

The Summit meeting on Côte d’Ivoire then resumed in closed session, following a closed session yesterday that went on until 8:00 p.m. The participants today first called in the Ivorian Prime Minister, Seydou Diarra, to ask his views on a political solution to the constitutional dilemma.  Then they called on the President of Côte d’Ivoire, Laurent Gbagbo.

Also this morning, in the margins of the Summit, President Obasanjo convened a breakfast meeting to discuss the situation in Liberia.  The Secretary-General was represented at that meeting by Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Hédi Annabi.

**Statement Attributable to the Spokesman for the Secretary-General On Attacks in Uzbekistan

The Secretary-General expresses his strong dismay at today's series of bombings against the embassies of the United States and Israel, as well as the Office of the Prosecutor General, in the Uzbek capital of Tashkent.  Reportedly, two people were killed and about a dozen were injured in the attacks.

The Secretary-General condemns these criminal acts in the strongest terms.  Targeting of diplomatic missions and civilians is a crime that cannot be justified by any cause.

**Secretary-General’s Statement on Killing of Pakistani Hostages in Iraq

Earlier today, we had issued a statement on the killing of Pakistani hostages in Iraq.  In it, the Secretary-General says he learned with dismay and sadness of the brutal killing yesterday in Iraq of two contractors of Pakistani nationality who had been held hostage for several days.  The Secretary-General conveys his deepest sympathy and condolences to the Government of Pakistan and to the families of the victims.

The Secretary-General reiterates his condemnation of all hostage-takings and acts of violence against innocent civilians.  Such acts are utterly unacceptable and are aimed at undermining Iraq’s political and economic reconstruction.

**ICC Officials Wrap up First Visit to Democratic Republic of Congo

The delegation from the International Criminal Court (ICC), which undertook a first official mission to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) this week, has wrapped up its visit today.

The delegation held meetings with senior political and judicial Congolese authorities to discuss mechanisms of cooperation between the DRC and the Court when it begins its investigation of grave crimes committed in this country since July 2002.

Consultations were held with representatives of international organisations and embassies present in DRC, and with members of the civil society there.  hey assessed the difficulties of the operation of the Court in the field and how important justice and the fight against impunity are for the Congolese population.

Further information is available in a press release we have upstairs.

**Despite Relocation of Staff, UNRWA Still Able to Get Aid to Palestinians

The head of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) said that the Agency’s headquarters and field office in Gaza are continuing to operate fully and will maintain all the services they provide, despite the relocation of a small number of its staff.

UNRWA Commissioner-General Peter Hansen said that the relocation of some staff members to Jerusalem took place following extensive Israeli military operations in Beit Hanoun, and increased unpredictability and insecurity faced by UN staff in crossing into and out of the Gaza Strip at a checkpoint.  We have copies of his statement upstairs, which we put out after the noon briefing yesterday.

**Haiti:  Humanitarian Update

We also have a number of updates, including one on Haiti.  The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) this week coordinated a three-day rapid assessment visit to north-west Haiti following reports form the non-governmental organization (NGO) CARE that the current harvest, due in September, could fail in some areas. 

**China on Track to Reduce Tuberculosis Cases by Half by 2015

We also have an update from the World Health Organization (WHO) regarding tuberculosis in China.  China -- one the world’s largest countries affected by tuberculosis -- is on track to meet the Millennium Development Goal concerning the reduction of the prevalence of the disease by 50 per cent by 2015. 

We also have an update on efforts to fight avian influenza, known as “bird flu”, from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

**Afghanistan

And from the UN Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), we have an update regarding the decision by Medicins sans Frontières (MSF) to leave that country.  The Mission expressed its regrets at that decision, and says it can appreciate the group’s decision, as security is indeed a matter of concern in Afghanistan

**UNICEF

And the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is calling for an expansion in breastfeeding practices.  Their message comes on the eve of World Breastfeeding Week.  And there is more on that in a press release as well.

**Week Ahead at United Nations

And we have available for you our weekly feature “The Week Ahead at the United Nations” for your planning purposes.  Just to flag for you, on Sunday 1 August, Russia will be taking over from Romania as the Security Council President for the month of August.  Russia’s new Permanent Representative, Andrey Denisov will be giving you a briefing on the Council’s programme for the month next Tuesday, 3 August.

So that’s all I have for you.  If there are no questions for me have a good afternoon and a good weekend.

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