In
Congress,
UNAMI Iraq
Cover-Up
Alleged, But
UN in NY
Hasn't Heard
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
September 14
-- On Capitol
Hill on
September 13,
the House
Committee on
Foreign
Affairs
investigations
subcommittee
held a
hearing about
Camp Ashraf in
Iraq. Twice in
the past
month, Inner
City Press has
asked the UN
about
complaints by
former UN
official
Tahar Boumedra
that his
reports were
covered up.
In
September 13
testimony,
Boumedra said
"I saw my
reports
doctored
and censored.
No first-hand
report of mine
ever reached
U.N.
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon or top
officials in
New York."
Back
in New York on
September 14,
Inner City
Press asked
the
spokesperson
for Ban
Ki-moon for
some UN
response to
Boumedra's
testimony. The
response was
that "I
haven't heard
the testimony,
but I can
assure you the
Secretary
General is
informed by
people in
human
rights... of
information
that needs to
get to him." Video
here,
from Minute
3:46.
So
what
information is
it, that needs
to get to Ban
Ki-moon?
Back
on On
August 27
Inner City
Press reported
that after
Ashrafis say
they were left
to wait three
hours in
temperatures
over 100
degrees
Fahrenheit,
violence broke
out. Photos of
beaten
Ashrafis,
including an
older man
bleeding from
the head, have
been sent to
Inner City
Press and were
published
here.
On
August 28,
Inner City
Press went to
the UN's noon
briefing and
asked about
the incident.
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
Associate
Spokesman
Farhan Haq
replied that
the facts were
"in dispute"
and that the
UN needed
"further
details." Video
here, from
Minute 14:25.
Inner City
Press tweeted
this response,
juxtaposing
it with the photo of the
bleeding older
man.
Subsequently
the following
UN response
arrived by
e-mail:
Subject:
Answer
on Camp Ashraf
From: UN
Spokesperson -
Do Not Reply
[at] un.org
Date: Tue, Aug
28, 2012 at
12:42 PM
To:
Matthew.Lee
[at]
innercitypress.com
UNAMI's
preliminary
reports
confirmed that
yesterday, an
incident
between
residents and
Iraqi Police
led to some
light injuries
on both sides.
However the
situation
returned to
normal.
Preparations
for the
relocation of
the next group
of 400
residents to
Camp Hurriya
are continuing
and we hope
the move will
soon be
completed.
Inner City
Press has been
sent video, of
the type often
shown by
broadcast
networks
despite saying
it could not
be
independently
verified,
which tends to
call into
question this
"light
injuries on
both sides"
claim. And here it is,
on Inner City
Press beta
Facebook.
Watch this
site.
, 
