Ban Ki-moon news stories on Newser

Kofi Annan Strikes UN Monitoring Deal

Kevin Spak — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 08:45:05 CDT

Kofi Annan today touted an agreement he has reached with Syria over how to handle the UN's 30-member advance monitoring team, outlining the "tasks and responsibilities" of the government. An Annan spokesman tells the AP that he's having "similar discussions" with rebels. The team is supposed to ensure that both...

1 Dead as Syria Protests Test Ceasefire

Matt Cantor — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 07:47:41 CDT

Syria's fragile ceasefire seems to be largely holding, as renewed protests today put it to its first real test. But one Hama protester was shot dead by security forces as thousands of protesters again took to the streets, reports the BBC, while the New York Times notes that clashes had...

Arab League Hems, Haws on Whether Assad Must Go

Evann Gastaldo — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 07:43:42 CDT

Even as the Arab League met in Baghdad today to discuss implementation of a Syria peace deal, clashes between rebels and security forces continued, killing at least 15. With only 10 of 22 leaders in attendance, the League is apparently backing down from a call for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad...

Middle East Quartet Meets as Gaza Toll Hits 23

Matt Cantor — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 10:28:04 CDT

With 23 Palestinians now dead in the latest Gaza conflict , the Middle East Quartet is meeting for the first time in six months in New York. Hillary Clinton, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and EU diplomat Baroness Ashton will discuss the growing violence after Israeli air...

Arab League, UN Struggle to Respond to 'War on Syrians'

Mary Papenfuss — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 04:46:37 CST

As Syrian forces continue to bombard civilians in Homs , a desperate Arab League is considering reviving a monitoring mission with the help of the United Nations in a bid to stem the violence. UN chief Ban Ki-Moon said the "disastrous" failure to agree on a UN resolution on Syria has...

Syrian Army Strikes Damascus 'Burbs

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 12:36:03 CST

The Syrian military launched an offensive to regain control of suburbs on the eastern edge of Damascus today, storming neighborhoods and clashing with groups of army defectors in fierce fighting that sent residents fleeing and killed at least 12 people, activists said. Violence elsewhere in the country killed at least...

UN Chief to Syria's Assad: Stop Killing Your People

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 07:09:47 CST

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon demanded today that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad stop the slaughter of his own people, and said the "old order" of one-man rule and family dynasties is over in the Middle East. In a keynote address at a conference on democracy in the Arab world, Ban said...

Saleh Signs Deal to Step Down

Kevin Spak — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 10:21:40 CST

Ali Abdullah Saleh resigned as president of Yemen today, signing a deal in Saudi Arabia to cede power to vice president Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi until elections can be held in three months. The signing was aired on Saudi state-run TV, which showed a smiling Saleh sitting beside King Abdullah...

Palestinians Request UN Membership

Fri, 23 Sep 2011 11:13:14 CDT

Defying US and Israeli opposition, Palestinians asked the United Nations today to accept them as a member state. In his letter accompanying the application, Mahmoud Abbas asked UN chief Ban Ki-moon to immediately forward the request for full UN membership to the Security Council. Action on the membership request could...