United Nations Radio

SG Ban Ki-moon

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has just completed his visit to Gaza, the first world leader to do so since each of the parties to the conflict announced a ceasefire. In this interview with Gerry Adams, UN spokesman Ahmad Fawzi described the Secretary-General's activities in Gaza as well as his meeting with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel:

FAWZI: The Secretary-General met with the staff of the UN Relief and Works Agency and thanked them for their hard work under difficult conditions. He said he was extremely impressed by their heroic provision of supplies under fire to the people of Gaza. He also listened to them talk to him about their problems and their needs. He promised that the United Nations would continue to provide the people of Gaza with the basic needs. There would be an urgent needs assessment followed by an assessment of medium and longer term requirements of recovery and reconstruction. The Secretary-General also met leaders of Palestinian society and listened to their grievances which of course covered the ordeal that Palestinians lived through over the past three weeks.

GERRY: WHAT SPECIFICALLY DID SOME OF THE UN WORKERS SAY TO THE SECRETARY-GENERAL?

FAWZI: They said that they were very grateful to him for visiting; it meant a lot to them. They said that they need humanitarian corridors always, even in times of war so that they could offer basic services to those in need. Some of them spoke about justice: justice for them and justice for their children. They spoke about UNRWA's role. They spoke about the roles of the individual agencies represented here: the UN Development Programme, the World Food Programme, the World Health Organization, the Office of the Coordinator of Humanitarian Affairs. And they spoke about the suffering of the people of Gaza which cannot continue as it has been over the past many years--especially over the past three weeks.

GERRY: THERE IS A CEASEFIRE NOW. WHAT HAPPENS NOW? HAS CLEAN-UP BEGUN TO HAPPEN OR WHAT IS THE NEXT STEP?

FAWZI: UNRWA has not stopped working. When the ceasefire was announced they went into action immediately to do what they could. I'd like to mention here that t The Secretary-General visited the warehouse that was bombed during the fighting. This was five days ago. It was still smouldering. There was a pungent scent of smoke in the air, and the Secretary-General visited the ruins of this warehouse and stood there and once again protested in the strongest terms that UN premises should be shelled or targeted during the time of war, and said that those responsible should be held accountable.

GERRY: WHAT ROLE DID THE SECRETARY-GENERAL PLAY IN BRINGING ABOUT THE CEASEFIRE

FAWZI: The Secretary-General along with many other world leaders has been exerting a lot of diplomatic pressure on the parties in order to stop the fighting over the past week or so since the Secretary-General arrived in the region. But indeed he did start even when he was in New York calling for a halt to the fighting.

GERRY: WHAT WAS DISCUSSED DURIGN THE SECRETARY-GENERAL'S MEETING WITH PRIME MINISTER EHUD OLMERT?

FAWZI: The Secretary-General met with the Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert this morning and said he was relieved that the ceasefire was holding, and said it was imperative that we put the framework in place for a sustainable and durable ceasefire and for the provision of humanitarian relief and opening of the crossing and the full withdrawal of Israeli troops. They also discussed the fact that the Secretary-General was visiting Gaza and the role of UNRWA in the provision of relief and recovery and reconstruction.

NARR: Ahmad Fawzi, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon during his visit to the Middle East. The Secretary-General is also visiting the Israeli town of Sderot which has been the target of rocket firing from Gaza.

Producer: Gerry Adams
Duration: 4'09"