As
Arab League
Proposes
al-Khatib,
Libya UN
Fiasco &
Banning Not
Answered
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
February 12 --
When UN
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon
visited
Jordan earlier
this year, he
apparently
didn't even
speak with
Abdel
Elah
al-Khatib, the
Jordanian
politician and
businessman
who had a
rocky term as
UN envoy to
Libya,
complete with
conflicts of
interest,
and then quit.
On
February 9,
the
day after Ban
told the media
he had
discussed a
joint envoy
with the
Arab League's
Nabil Elaraby,
Inner City
Press asked
Ban's
spokesman
Martin Nesirky
when, in fact,
Ban last spoke
with
al-Khatib.
Nesirky
said he found
find out and
answer the
question, but
four days
later
has not.
Al-Khatib
never
disclosed nor
stopped his
business
activities,
which Inner
City Press
showed
included links
to a
Gaddafi-affiliated
bank in Libya,
while
serving as
envoy. He
demanded
private jets
and made UN
staff assigned
to help him
cry, from
abuse. Then he
was eased out
by current UN
envoy Ian
Martin, and
quit -- all
this according
to well placed
sources in the
UN Department
of Political
Affairs, and
then
unconvincingly
denied.
This
would be the
UN - Arab
League envoy
to Syria?
First, Ban or
his spokesman
should
have to answer
these
questions,
including the
one for which
an answer
was promised
four days ago.
Ban &
Khatib before
the fall. Now
what: member
states (of
LAS) decided?
From
the UN's
February 9
transcript:
Inner
City
Press: one
follow-up on
this issue of
an envoy. The
name of
Al-Khatib has
resurfaced,
who was
obviously the
Envoy to
Libya, and
so I just
wondered when,
if you can say
— I know that
the
Secretary-General
visited Jordan
recently —
have there
been any
contacts with
Mr. Al-Khatib,
or some people
saw it as
that, sort of
a
something of a
failed
endeavour.
Have they… are
they still in
contact? Does
Mr. Al-Khatib
have any
advisory or
other role
with the
UN, or did
that end
abruptly and
not… did they
speak when he
was in
Jordan, just
as one
example?
Spokesperson
Martin
Nesirky: I’m
not sure which
part of the
question to
answer
at this point.
Inner
City
Press: How
does it stand
between Ban
Ki-moon and
his previous
Envoy to a
crisis in
Libya? When is
the last time
they spoke?
Spokesperson
Nesirky:
I’d have to
check on that
particular
point. As for
the
League of Arab
States
proposal, as
you will have
heard me say,
this
was a proposal
from them, and
we are waiting
to hear more
details.
Therefore, it
doesn’t seem
appropriate to
put the cart
before the
horse. But on
your
particular
question about
the last
interaction,
let me find
out.
We're
still
waiting. Watch
this site.
, 
