UN-Truth

Yes, the very same UN SG BAN who met last week in Vienna with former UN SG Kurt Waldheim, (who fell into disgrace when it was revealed that he had lied about his service to the NAZI war machine before and during the Second World War), met yesterday with the families of two Israeli soldiers whose capture by Hizbullah sparked last summer’s Israeli invasion of Lebanon.

Neither meeting was announced, until a journalist posed a question.

This was the exchange in yesterday’s regular Noon Briefing at UNHQ/NY:
“Question: Two quick… can you confirm whether the Secretary-General’s meeting with the families of abducted Israeli soldiers – I didn’t see that on his schedule today. I was wondering why it wasn’t listed if it was indeed taking place. And the other thing is, does the UN have a comment or plan to do anything about the head of the UN’s intellectual property bureau who is accused in this UN audit of apparently using a false birthday to make him nine years older when he applied to join, then backdating, and using a younger age in a bid to gain retirement benefits? And will that audit be released?
Spokesperson: Yes. Your first question — yes, I can confirm that the Secretary-General is meeting with the families of the prisoners. Second question concerning the WIPO, we have talked about this before. You can have additional information in my office on this, but this is being followed very closely.”

The Associated Press’ energetic Edith Lederer reported later that:
UNITED NATIONS — Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon met relatives of two Israeli soldiers seized by Hezbollah militants at the start of last year’s Lebanon war on Tuesday and promised he will keep working hard to seek their release. Ban told the wife and parents of Ehud Goldwasser and the brother of Eldad Regev that he has been working with a secret ‘facilitator’ [press reports suggest that this person is German] chosen by his predecessor, Kofi Annan, to help win the soldiers’ release, U.N. deputy spokeswoman Marie Okabe said. ‘The U.N. strongly hopes for their release’, she said. Goldwasser’s wife and Regev’s brother spoke with reporters and appealed to Hezbollah to provide information about their condition after almost eight months without a single word. ‘For us, the family, this is the worst time in our lives’, Karnit Goldwasser said. ‘We know that they got injured, but we don’t know if a doctor got to see them’. Hezbollah has not released any details on the condition of the soldiers or provided any sign they are still alive since they seized the pair in a July 12 cross-border raid that sparked the 34-day Israeli-Hezbollah conflict. Regev’s brother, Benny, said Ban didn’t provide any new information about their condition but told the families he is committed to keep working on the problem ‘and try to solve it as soon as he can’. Goldwasser’s wife called on Hezbollah to allow the Red Cross to visit the soldiers. ‘I think if the other side will be able to allow the Red Cross to go visit them, this will be, I think, the start of the end of this conflict’, she said.”
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/world/4588084.html

A report by Israel News Network adds that “The families hope to convince Ki-moon and other officials to pressure the Lebanese government to return their loved ones. They are also working to obtain the release of Gilad Shalit, who was kidnapped by Hamas over half a year ago. At the very least, the families are hoping that the UN can help them to receive a sign of life from the hostages.” http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/Flash.aspx/122237

Agence France Presse reported after the meeting: “Speaking to reporters after meeting with the secretary general at UN headquarters in New York, Karnit Goldwasser, the wife of Ehud Goldwasser, and Benny Reguev, brother of Eldad Reguev, recalled that UN Resolution 1701, which put an end to the Israeli-Hezbollah conflict in July and August, had called for the unconditional release of the hostages. Hezbollah’s capture of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Reguev on July 12 in Israeli territory sparked a devastating Israeli offensive in Lebanon, which ended on August 14 after the adoption of Resolution 1701. ‘Israel has fulfilled everything in the resolution and we asked him (Ban Ki-moon) to help Lebanon to fulfill their part in the resolution’, said Karnit Goldwasser. ‘We came on a humanitarian basis to ask for a sign of life, a sign that Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Reguev are OK, because it’s been almost eight months that they are in Lebanon and we didn’t have any kind of information’ regarding them. she said.
She said that Ban had promised to do all he could to obtain the full implementation of Resolution 1701. In January, the families of the captured soldiers wrote a letter to French President Jacques Chirac, who chaired an international aid conference on Lebanon, asking his help in seeking the soldiers’ release. Karnit Goldwasser also said the families had met with Pope Benedict XVI last week, and the Roman Catholic leader had promised to help.”
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070228/wl_mideast_afp/
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When, some five or six years ago, Hizbullah forces wearing UN Peacekeeping uniforms seized other Israeli soldiers, at the disputed Shebaa Farms area, UN officials were v-e-r-y slow to show the families any cooperation then. The families did not meet then-UN SG Kofi Annan, to recollection.

Filed under: BAN Ki-Moon, Israel, Lebanon, Shebaa Farms, UN Peacekeeping, UN Secretary-General