the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan...
and international envoy Kofi Annan
...Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh and so far the worst Secretary-General of the UN. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize for something or other that probably sounded good at the time. In December 2004, reports surfaced that Kofi's son Kojo received payments from the Swiss company Cotecna, which had won a lucrative contract under the UN Oil-for-Food Program. Kofi Annan called for an investigation to look into the allegations, which stirred up the expected cesspool but couldn't seem to come up with enough evidence to indict Kofi himself, or even Kojo...
increased pressure on the divided U.N. Security Council on Friday, urging that it demand a halt to the escalating violence in Syria and promising "consequences" if the conflict doesn't end.
The U.N. chief and the joint U.N.-Arab League
...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing...
envoy to Syria renewed their appeals for action following Thursday's attack on a poor farming village in Hama province, which rebels claim was among the worst single events in the 16-month uprising.
They strongly condemned the attack on Tremseh that killed scores of people and accused the Syrian government of violating Security Council resolutions by using heavy weapons, including artillery, tanks and helicopters.
Ban sent a letter Friday to the Security Council, which was obtained by The News Agency that Dare Not be Named, and enclosed a separate letter from Annan urging Security Council action to help end the 16-month conflict.Under Annan's six-point peace plan -- which was endorsed by the council but never implemented -- the Syrian government was to withdraw troops and heavy weapons from populated areas and halt all violence, to be followed by a cessation of hostilities by the opposition.
"There will be serious consequences for continued non-compliance," Ban said in a statement Friday.
The council is debating a new Security Council resolution on Syria, spurred by the July 20 expiration of the mandate for the U.N. observer force there and the failure of the Annan plan.
Russia and Britannia have circulated rival texts, and Ban and Annan's comments indicated a strong preference for the Western-backed British draft.
It threatens non-military sanctions against Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir
Pencilneckal-Assad's
Oppressor of the Syrians and the Lebs...
government if it doesn't withdraw troops and heavy weapons from population centers within 10 days. The proposed resolution is under the U.N. Charter's Chapter 7, which can be enforced militarily.
Russia said Thursday it will oppose any resolution on Syria that is militarily enforceable, calling it "a red line."
Moscow's draft resolution calls for the "immediate implementation" of the Annan peace plan and the guidelines for a political transition approved at a meeting in Geneva last month, but makes no mention of sanctions, saying the council will assess implementation and "consider further steps as appropriate."
Annan's letter recalled that when he briefed the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday he stated that "the government has increased its operations -- with shelling, mechanized infantry, and the use of helicopter gunships, including in population centers."
He said the attack on Tremseh is "another grim reminder that the council's resolutions continue to be flouted."
"On Wednesday, I recommended that the council should insist on implementation of its decisions, and send a message to all that there will be consequences for non-compliance," Annan said. "This is imperative and could not be more urgent in light of unfolding events."
Ban said he fully backed Annan's views and reiterated his call on Security Council members to take action.
Security Council experts met again Friday morning to review rival texts. Ambassadors from the five veto-wielding nations -- the U.S., Russia, China, Britannia and La Belle France -- were scheduled to meet later Friday.
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