United Nations, Apr 27: Israel has sent a formal letter of protest to the secretary-general condemning remarks made by the top UN envoy to Iraq calling Israel's policy of domination "the great poison" in the Middle East. Israeli Ambassador Dan Gillerman said yesterday that Lakhdar Brahimi's comments were "vitriolic and biased" and heightened concerns about the UN's objectivity concerning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The flap erupted last Wednesday when Brahimi, who is trying to help Iraqis agree on a transitional government to take power on June 30, gave an interview to France inter radio criticising Israel's repressive policy and US support for it. He said his effort to help establish an interim government in Iraq was being made more difficult by Israeli policy toward the Palestinians - and that an eventual solution in Iraq was linked to the wider problem of peace between the Israelis and Palestinians.
Bureau Report