Anjali Sharma
GG News Bureau
UNITED NATIONS, 19th Aug. The World body on Friday paid tribute to 22 staff members killed in the bombing of UN headquarters in Iraq 20 years ago, one of the darkest days in the Organization’s history.
The wreath-laying ceremony at the UN in New York was held on the eve of World Humanitarian Day, commemorated annually on 19 August.
The day marks August 2003 bombing of UN headquarters in Baghdad when a suicide bomber detonated a truck full of explosives outside at the Canal Hotel in Baghdad.
Sérgio Vieira de Mello, the High Commissioner for Human Rights and head of the UN mission in Iraq was killed among other staff members.
Over 150 people were injured in the attack, mainly local and international aid workers helping reconstruct the country after the overthrow of Saddam Hussein.
UN head Antonio Guterres in his message for World Humanitarian Day said “That tragedy marked a change in the way humanitarians operate,”
He noted that humanitarians are respected around the world, they may also be targeted by people seeking to harm them.
UN and partners TRYING to reach 250 million people worldwide affected by conflict and other crises which are 10 times more than at the time of the Canal Hotel bombing and a shortfall in humanitarian funds.
Mr. Guterres said “As crises multiply, it is unacceptable that humanitarians are being forced to reduce aid to millions of people in need”.
He added the risks that humanitarians face have also multiplied.
Guterres cited rising geopolitical tensions, blatant disregard for international humanitarian and human rights law, deliberate assault and disinformation campaigns.
In 2022, 444 aid workers fell victim to violence in 235 separate attacks. Of that number, 116 were killed, 143 injured and 185 kidnapped. Most were national staff working with NGOs, OCHA stated.
UN relief chief, Martin Griffiths, said that “World Humanitarian Day and the Canal Hotel bombing will always be an occasion of mixed and still raw emotions for me and many others.”
Mr. Griffiths and the UN’s head of Safety and Security, Gilles Michaud have published an op-ed that calls for “protecting the people who protect the world”.
They said the Canal Hotel bombing “triggered an urgent review of the UN’s security arrangements”.
They recalled that an independent panel, established after the tragedy, recognized the need for new approaches that would ensure “an acceptable balance between operational objectives and staff security in high-risk environments.”
“The Panel recommended investment in a new, adequately financed UN security management system with the highest levels of professionalism, expertise, and accountability at its core,” they added.
“As a result, in 2005, the United Nations Department of Safety and Security, or UNDSS, was created, mandated to lead a collective approach to UN security.”
UN officials highlighted the need for humanitarians to be able to safely access affected populations, saying that “security approaches must listen to and be attuned to local dynamics and sensitivities.”
They called for greater international support, including to educate warring parties on their obligations to respect, protect and provide support to aid workers.
“It means demanding, clearly and unequivocally, an end to direct or indiscriminate attacks on civilians, non-combatants, and humanitarian workers during conflicts in breach of international humanitarian law,” they said.
“And it requires us to challenge the disinformation and misinformation that are increasingly putting them at risk of attack and undermining humanitarian operations.”
The op-ed underscored the high-level diplomacy that supports humanitarian operations and access, especially in heavy conflict, as “recent experience shows that genuine agreements are possible, even when peace seems a distant possibility”.
The evacuation of hundreds of civilians from the Azovstal Steel Plant in the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol last year was one example.
The development was the result of a negotiated pause in the fighting to create a humanitarian corridor for a joint mission by the UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
The officials said “As we reflect on the gains of the past 20 years and how we can build on them to address the challenges of the next 20, we remain resolute in our determination to protect the communities we serve, while also protecting our staff,”.
“This is how we can best honour the memory of those who lost their lives in the Canal Hotel bombing and reaffirm our joint commitment to the noble cause they served,” they concluded
