TLW's United Nationsscope™ (United Nations Historyscope) |
By T.L. Winslow (TLW), the Historyscoper™ |
© Copyright by T.L. Winslow. All Rights Reserved. |
Original Pub. Date: Feb. 27, 2018. Last Update: Oct. 15, 2020. |
Westerners are not only known as history ignoramuses, but double dumbass history ignoramuses when it comes to U.N. history. Since I'm the one-and-only Historyscoper (tm), let me quickly bring you up to speed before you dive into my Master Historyscope.
The United Nations (U.N.), the replacement for the lame ineffective League of Nations was founded on Oct. 24, 1945 by 51 member states, which grew to 193 (16 dozen plus 1); it is the world's #1 org. for deliberating on matters of peace and security (conflict prevention), and encompasses scores of entities devoted to health and humanitarian needs, economic and cultural development; its HQ is in Manhattan, N.Y., and is subject to extraterritoriality; as of 2016 its annual budget is $50B, with the largest donor being founding member U.S., who pays $10B.
On Feb. 17, 1863 the Internat. Committee of the Red Cross (originally the Committee of the Five) is founded in Geneva by Swiss businessman-activist Jean Henri (Henry) Dunant (1828-1910), holding its first internat. conference on Oct. 26-29 attended by delegates from 13 nations, who adopt a set of resolutions leading to the 1864 Geneva Convention; in 1865 the Swedish Red Cross (Roda Korset) is founded in Stockholm, and on Sept. 22, 1865 the Norwegian Red Cross (Rode Kors) is founded in Kristiania (Oslo).
On Aug. 22, 1864 far, far away from the U.S. Civil War carnage, after lobbying by Swiss activist Henri Dunant, 13 Euro states agree to the First Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field, establishing humane regulations regarding the treatment of sick and wounded POWs; all of the sick and those who minister to them are required to display the Swiss Army knife Geneva cross (red on a white background), and battlefield medical facilites are officially neutral; the first of Four Geneva Conventions by 1949.
On Aug. 4, 1914 - Nov. 11, 1918 the horrific World War I causes 15M deaths and 39M military casualties. and destroys the Old Order of white formerly Christian Europe. On Feb. 26-28, 1915 the Germans first use a Flamethrower (Flame Projector) in the village of Douaumont, France near Verdun, becoming the first of 653 flamethrower attacks in the war. On Apr. 1, 1915 French aviator Roland Garros (1888-1918) becomes the first pilot to shoot down an aircraft using a deflector gear, which allows shooting through the propeller; after more Vs against German aircraft on Apr. 15 and Apr. 18, he is shot down and the Germans capture his plane, after which Dutch designer Anthony (Anton Herman Gerard) Fokker (1890-1939) clones then improves the deflector gear into the synchronization (interrupter) gear, mounting them on the new Fokker E.I. in Aug., beginning the Fokker Scourge (Scare) as they shoot down nearly every enemy aircraft they encounter and generate the first German aces, incl. Max Immelmann (1890-1916); next year the French counter with the Nieuport 11 Bebe (Bébé), in which the gun is mounted on the top wing clear of the prop, and the British with the Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.2b and Airco DH.2 (Feb. 1916), which mount the engine backwards with the prop in back, causing them to be called "pushers", ending the Fokker Scourge by spring 1917. In 1915 arsenic-based vomiting-sneeze gas Adamsite (DM) (diphenylaminechlorarsine) is synthesized by German chemist Heinrich Otto Wieland (1877-1957); in 1918 Am chemist Roger Adams (1889-1971) duplicates it, and both sides stockpile it, but it is allegedly never used on the battlefield. On Mar. 22, 1916 the British have their first success with their new Depth Charge off the SW coast of Ireland, destroying a German U-boat. Are you used to Hell yet, try this? On Sept. 15, 1916 Winston Churchill's pet project the Tank (Russian Water Closet) (Char-Schneider) is first used by the Brits in the Somme.
The Great War ends in a Mirror Trick? On June 28, 1919 after ex-chancellor Dr. Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg asks the Allied Supreme Council to place him on trial instead of Kaiser Wilhelm II for war offenses, which they shrug off, the 200-page Treaty of Versailles, containing some 440 articles is signed in the Hall of Mirrors in Versailles by Woodrow Wilson of the U.S., David Lloyd George of Britain, and Georges Clemenceau of France, along with 24 other Allied countries, ending the Great War; Germany signs under protest; the U.S. and Britain agree to come to France's aid if Germany attacks it, although the U.S. never ratifies it; Germany is stripped of much of its power and overseas territories; Belgium acquires the German districts of Eupen, Malmedy, and Moresnet; French marshal Ferdinand Foch utters the immortal soundbyte: "This is not a peace, it is an armistice for 20 years"; Articles 42-44 forbid Germany from having armed forces in the Rhineland; Article 80 forbids Germany and Austria to unite "except with the consent of the Council of the League of Nations"; Articles 100-106 end German sovereignty over Danzig, making it a free city under League of Nations protection; Articles 119-120 deprive Germany of all colonial possessions; Article 170 forbids Germany from importing any military material; Article 191 forbids Germany from buying or building submarines; Article 198 forbids Germany from having any military or naval air forces; Article 231 forces Germany and its allies to accept "responsibility" for the loss and damage caused by the war "imposed upon" the Allies "by the aggression of Germany and her allies"; after the signing, the Allies issue a List of War Criminals to be surrendered to the Allies, incl. the Kaiser, whom the Dutch govt. refuses to extradite.On Jan. 10, 1920 the Treaty of Versailles comes into force sans the approval of the U.S., whose support it was framed to require; on Jan. 11 the Euro powers in Versailles recognize the Azerbaijan Dem. Repub. de facto; the League of Nations is founded (until Apr. 20, 1946), holding its first meeting in London on Feb. 11; Sir James Eric Drummond, 7th Earl of Perth (1876-1951) of Britain becomes secy.-gen. #1 (until 1933); the HQ is then moved to Geneva, and The Hague is selected as the seat of the Internat. Court of Justice (World Court); the League of Nations Covenant (effective Jan. 10) incl. Article 16, stating that an act of war against one member will be deemed an act of war against all, with the military forces of the members combined "to protect the covenants of the League"; Article 23 tries to curb the arms, drug, and white slave trades, provide "just treatment" for native peoples, and provide for internat. prevention and cure of disease.
In 1929 the Third Geneva Convention is adopted, defining humanitarian protections for POWs; it is revised in 1949.
In 1929 the Palace of Nations (Palais des Nations) in Ariana Park overlooking Lake Geneva in Geneva, Switzerland is begun (finished in 1938) as the HQ of the League of Nations, becoming the HQ of the Geneva office of the U.N. in 1946, although Switzerland doesn't become a U.N. member until 2002.
On Sept. 1, 1939 - Sept. 2, 1945 the horrific $3.5T World War II results in 24M military and 49M civilian deaths, and features the low point of the Jewish Holocaust (Shoah) by the German Nazis - I guess it was the Jews' fault for not ransoming themselves to go to Israel before they could round them up for the camps? The whole experience turns Jews from lovers into fighters, ramping up the Zionist movement with full world sympathy and support by new world superpower U.S., which has its own guilt trip because on Nov. 24, 1942 Budapest-born Am. Zionist leader Rabbi Stephen Samuel Wise (1874-1949) announces in a press conference in Washington, D.C. that he was authorized by the U.S. State Dept. to confirm that the Nazis had murdered 2M Jews as part of a plan to exterminate all Jews in Europe; too bad, the nat. newspapers don't consider it front page news, and the U.S. govt. does nada. After the war ends and Americans tour the concentration camps in horror, Polish-born Jewish scholar Raphael Lemkin (1900-59), who single-handedly led an unsuccessful campaign to get the League of Nations to give internat. protections against genocide starting in 1933 finally gets what he wanted after his own people got it, namely the Dec. 9, 1948 U.N. Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Gen. Assembly Resolution 260), which doesn't come in force until Jan. 12, 1951, and which the U.S. still doesn't ratify until 1988.
On Aug. 11, 1941 after FDR leaves New London, Conn. on his pres. yacht USS Potomac on Aug. 3 allegedly for a fishing trip, banning the press, then on Aug. 4 secretly boards heavy cruiser USS Augusta, Churchill and FDR hold their first official war meeting in Placentia Bay, Newfoundland aboard new British battleship HMS Prince of Wales, with Churchill wanting a U.S. declaration of war, and FDR only wanting a declaration about the postwar peace, and after Churchill warns FDR "that he would not answer for the consequences if Russia was compelled to sue for peace and, say, by the spring of next year, hope died in Britain that the United States were coming into the war", he agrees to give aid to Russia "on a gigantic scale", and to issue a statement that any "further encroachment" by Japan in the SW Pacific will "produce a situation in which the United States Government would be compelled to take countermeasures, even though these might lead to war between the United States and Japan"; on Aug. 12 they issue the Atlantic Charter, calling for the renunciation of aggression and disarmament of aggressor nations, with no territorial changes "that do not accord with the freely expressed wishes of the people concerned", becoming a foundation stone of the United Nations; FDR utters the soundbyte to the press: "There has never been, there isn't now and there never will be, any race of people on earth fit to serve as masters over their fellow men... We believe that any nationality, no matter how small, has the inherent right to its own nationhood"; they agree to send a joint military mission to Moscow headed by Lord Beaverbrook and W. Averell Harriman to discuss Soviet war production needs.
The coalition against the Nazi Azis, er, Axis comes into full formal existence? On Jan. 1, 1942 reps of 26 Allied nations incl. the U.S., Britain, and the Soviet Union sign the United Nations Declaration (Declaration by United Nations), pledging their full resources against the Axis, and promising not to make peace separately, with the goal being "to ensure life, liberty, independence and religious freedom, and to preserve the rights of man and justice" - Stalin broke that New Year's resolution in a millisecond?
On Jan. 1, 1945 France is admitted to the U.N.
On Apr. 25, 1945 delegates of 46 nations meet in San Francisco for the United Nations Conference on Internat. Org. on June 25 the 111-article U.N. Charter ("We the Peoples of the United Nations... United for a Better World") (the first words authored by U.S. Rep. Sol Boom), drafted by Philip John Noel-Baker (1889-1982) of Britain is adopted unanimously; on Oct. 24 the United Nations (U.N.) is created, with a U.N. Gen. Assembly and a U.N. Security Council, consisting of the Permanent (Big) Five Members (U.S., U.K. Soviet Union, France, Repub. of China) and 10 non-permanent members, changing every two years, the U.N. Relief Rehabilitation Admin. (UNRRA) is created, caring for nearly 7M liberated civilians; the Internat. Maritime Consultative Org. and the Internat. Law Commission are created.
On Oct. 16, 1945 Scottish agricultural scientist John Boyd Orr, 1st Baron Boyd Orr (1880-1971), an expert on nutrition and leader of the OWG (world federal govt.) movement is elected dir.-gen. of the new U.N. Food and Agriculture Org. (FAO) (until 1947), gaining him a Nobel Peace Prize in 1949.
On Jan. 17, 1946 after chairing the U.S. delegation to the 1945 U.N. Conference on Internat. Org, Chicago, Ill.-born U.S. secy. of state #48 (1944-5) Edward Reilly Stettinius Jr. (1900-49) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #1, resigning on June 3 after getting pissed-off at Truman's refusal to use the U.N. as a tool to resolve tensions with the Soviet Union, while Truman thinks he's soft on Communism as proved by yielding too much to Stalin as FDR's advisor at Yalta; on June 3 Atlanta, Ga.-born N.C.-raised diplomat Herschel Vespasian Johnson (1894-1966) becomes acting U.S. U.N. rep. (until Jan. 14, 1947).
On Jan. 17, 1946 after Iran complains over Soviet interference in its internal affairs, the U.N. Gen. Assembly holds its first session; on Jan. 24 it establishes the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) "to deal with the problems raised by the discovery of atomic energy".
On Jan. 25, 1946 the U.N. Security Council adopts Resolution 1 without a vote, establishing the Military Staff Committee (MSC) to plan U.N. military operations and assist in armament regulation, providing a command staff for a set of air force contingents provided by the Permanent Five.
On Feb. 1, 1946 after being recommended by the Soviet Union, Norwegian foreign minister and labor leader Trygve Halvdan Lie (1896-1968) is chosen to be secy.-gen. #1 of the U.N., taking office on Feb. 2 (until Nov. 10, 1952), calling it a "going organization"; after the U.N. becomes involved in the Korean War, the Soviet Union vetoes his reappointment in 1951, but the U.S. stages an end-around run, getting him reappointed by the U.N. Gen. Assembly by 46-5-8, pissing-off the Soviet Union even more, causing him to finally resign.
On Aug. 29, 1946 the U.N. Security Council votes 10-0-1 (Australia) for Resolution 8 to admit Afghanistan, Iceland, and Sweden, rejecting Albania, Mongolia, Afghanistan, Transjordan, Ireland, Portugal, and Siam.
On Dec. 11, 1946 the U.N. Internat. Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) is established to service children in countries devastated by WWII, with Polish physician-bacteriologist Ludwik Witold Rajchman (1881-1965) as chmn. #1 (until ?), and Am. businessman Maurice Pate (1894-1965) as exec. dir. #1 in 1947-65; in 1953 the words "internat." and "emergency" are dropped from the name; when Pate dies on Jan. 19, 1965, UNICEF has 550+ long-term programs, and has helped 55M children in 116 countries; in Oct. 1965 UNICEF is awarded the 1965 Nobel Peace Prize.
On Dec. 11, 1946 Spain is suspended from the U.N.
On Dec. 11, 1946 the 1st Session of the U.N. Gen. Assembly adopts U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 96, "The Crime of Genocide", making genocide an internat. crime separate from gen. crimes against humanity, inviting the U.N. Economic and Social Council to draw up an internat. treaty that would oblige states to prevent and punish acts of genocide, which is adopted in 1948 as the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
On Dec. 12, 1946 the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0-0 to admit Siam (Thailand).
On Dec. 12, 1946 after being convinced by N.Y. planning czar Robert Moses (1888-1981) not to build it in Philadelphia, Penn., a U.N. committee votes to accept a 6-block tract of Manhattan real estate offered as a gift by John D. Rockefeller Jr. to be the permanent site of their U.N. HQ, which is begun on Sept. 14, 1948; on Dec. 14 the U.N. Gen. Assembly okays the deal, and adopts a disarmament resolution prohibiting the A-bomb.
On Dec. 14, 1946 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 97 (1) is adopted, titled "Registration and Publication of Treaties and International Agreements: Regulations to give effect to Article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations", inviting the U.N. Secretariat to draw up a register of internat. treaties and agreements and establish procedures for modification and certification of extracts.
On Jan. 14, 1947 after being appointed by Pres. Truman, U.S. Sen. (R-Vt.) (1931-46) Warren Robinson Austin (1877-1962) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #2 (until Jan. 22, 1953), the first official one since the previous ones had been reps to the U.N. Conference on Internat. Org. not the U.N. per se; he goes on to see the creation of Israel, the partition of India and Pakistan, the 1948 Communist coup in Czech., the Soviet blockade of Berlin and the Berlin Airlift, the Marshall Plan, NATO, the People's Repub. of China, the Chinese occupation of Tibet, and the Korean War.
On Apr. 30, 1947 the U.N. Security Council votes 10-0-1 (Australia) for Resolution 24 to admit Hungary; on May 23 it votes 10-0-1 (Australia) for Resolution 25 to admit Italy; on Aug. 12 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 29 to admit Yemen and Pakistan, and 9-0-2 (Poland, U.S.S.R.) to admit Bulgaria and Romania.
On Aug. 14, 1947 India becomes independent after 200 years of British rule, and on Aug. 15 Britain voluntarily withdraws its troops as the Union Jack complete with the Star of India is taken down from Viceroy's House in New Delhi seconds after midnight on Aug. 14/15; on Aug. 15 Jawaharlal Nehru (1899-1964) becomes PM #1 of India (until May 27, 1964); India and Pakistan (West Pakistan and East Pakistan, 1K mi. apart), led by secular Muslim gov.-gen. #1 Muhammad Ali Jinnah (1876-1948) (Aug. 11) become independent dominions of the British Commonwealth; they are separated by the Wagah (Wagha) Rd. on the Grand Trunk Rd., marking the Radcliffe Line of demarcation; Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan (1896-1951) becomes PM #1 of Pakistan (until Oct. 16, 1951); Jinnah becomes "Father of the Nation" of Pakistan, and his dentist sister Fatima Jinnah (1893-1967) becomes "Mother of the Nation"; 400M people (20% of the pop. of the Earth) gain independence from Whitey, er, Britain; the word "Pakistan" was concocted from Punjab, Afghan, Kashmir, and Baluchistan; Bombay becomes a state of India; in 1947-51 15M people migrate between Pakistan and India; Henry Francis Grady (1882-1957) becomes the first U.S. ambassador to India (until 1948); too bad, Jinnah starts out with a speech seemingly promising a secular state where "Hindus will cease to be Hindus and Muslims will cease to be Muslims, not in a religious sense, for that is the personal faith of an individual, but in a political sense as citizens of one state", then after Hindu-Muslim rocks the house, on Oct. 11 he flip-flops, saying "We should have a state in which we could live and breathe as free men and which we could develop according to our own lights and culture and where principles of Islamic social justice could find free play", then next Feb. 21 adds "We have to stand guard over the development and maintenance of Islamic democracy, Islamic social justice and the equality of manhood in your own native soil"; meanwhile Hindu-Muslim violence kill 200K-1M, and creates 1M refugees in Pakistan and India; Gandhi begins a fast in protest at the partition of Pakistan and India; on Oct. 26 despite a rebellion of the Muslim pop., Hindu maharaja (last) (1925-61) Hari Singh (1895-1961) of Muslim-majority Kashmir signs the Instrument of Accession with India; Lord Mountbatten promises that no permanent union with India will be accepted without a plebiscite by the Kashmiri people, but the Indian govt. hogs its way in and pushes the plebiscite into the future, triggering the Kashmir Conflict (War) (ends ?), causing heavy fighting and becoming a recipe for decades of torment.
In Sept. 1947 the U.S. refers their dispute over Korea with the Soviet Union to the U.N., and in Nov. a U.N. commission is established to arrange all-Korean elections, which the Soviet-backed North Korean authorities refuse to cooperate with.
On Nov. 21, 1947 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 177 is adopted, directing the Internat. Law Commission to "formulate the principles of international law recognized in the Charter of the Nuremberg Tribunal and in the judgment of the Tribunal, allowing the creation of the Nuremberg Principles defining war crimes from the experience of the Nuremberg Trials on Nov. 20, 1945 to Oct. 1, 1946, which are later (1998) used by the Internat. Criminal Court.
On Nov. 29, 1947 as the British Mandate for Palestine is expiring, after extensive Zionist lobbying by superbrain Jew Abba Eban (1915-2002) and Lithuanian-born Am. Zionist rabbi Abba Hillel Silver (1893-1963) of Cleveland, Ohio, the U.N. by a two-thirds majority (33-13 with 10 abstentions) approves the U.N. Partition Plan for Palestine (U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 181), which recommends the partition of mother-of-all-headaches Palestine into an Arab state and a Jewish state starting next May 15, giving the Jews three slivers of disconnected land along the Mediterranean coast and the Sinai Desert, 60% in the Negev Desert, along with "the creation of a special international regime in the City of Jerusalem, constituting it as a corpus separatum under the administration of the United Nations", with Jews given access to it only as an island cut off from their slivers, surrounded by Arab-controlled land, what an insult; the international regime (which also incl. the city of Bethlehem) was to remain in force for a period of 10 years, after which referendum was to be held in which the residents were to decide the future regime of their city; of course the Arabs reject even this generous plan that gave them about 90% of the original Palestine Mandate, not only in Transjordan and the U.N. partition area, but in the new state of Israel, 800K Arabs bumping elbows with 1.2M Jews, with Jews barred from settling in the 35K sq. mi. of Transjordan, later renamed Jordan, a probable double snub on Christians and their John the Baptist; the Muslim Arabs immediately declare jihad against the 600K Jews there, starting with a fatwa by the ulema at Al-Ahzar U. in Cairo calling for "jihad to save Palestine and defend the Al-Aqsa Mosque"; the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon is founded, later becoming Hezbollah; the seaport of Haifa at the base of Mt. Carmel on the S shore of the Bay of Acre, where the British-owned oil pipeline from Iraq terminates is included in Israel, becoming a main scene of attacks by the Arab League; after the Arabs place the Jewish pop. in Jerusalem under siege in 1948, Israel regards the internationalization proposals null and void, and establishes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in 1950.
On Jan. 17, 1948 the U.N. Security Council votes 9-0-2 (Ukraine, U.S.S.R.) to approve Resolution 38, calling upon the govts. of India and Pakistan to refrain from aggravating the situation in Kashmir, and to inform the council of any changes in the situation.
On Jan. 20, 1948 the U.N. Security Council votes 9-0-2 (Ukraine, U.S.S.R.) to approve Resolution 39, establishing a 3-man committee to advise it on the best course of action in Kashmir.
On Mar. 5, 1948 the U.N. Security Council votes 8-0-3 (Argentina, U.K., Syria) for Resolution 42 to be informed of the situation in Palestine; on Apr. 1 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 43 to request representatives relating to the Palestine situation, and 9-0-2 (Ukraine, U.S.S.R.)for Resolution 44 to call for a special session of the Gen. Assembly on Palestine; on Apr. 17 it votes 9-0-2 (Ukraine, U.S.S.R.) for Resolution 46 to call for an end to hostilities in Palestine; on Apr. 23 it votes to establish a Truth Commission for Palestine.
On Apr. 10, 1948 the U.N. Security Council votes 10-0-1 (Argentina) for Resolution 45 to admit Burma.
A big day for Bible thumpers and Millennium Feverists? "Thus says the Lord God: O my people, I will open your graves and have you rise from them, and bring you back to the land of Israel." (Ezekiel 37:12) On May 14, 1948 (midnight) the Jewish Nat. Council in Tel Aviv, Palestine proclaims the new Jewish State of Israel, with David Ben-Gurion (1886-1973) (known for the soundbyte "The Bible is our deed to the land of Israel") as PM #1 (until Jan. 24, 1954); it incl. an Unwritten Israeli Constitution, and a unicameral Knesset (Heb. "assembly"), whose HQ along with the Israeli Supreme Court bldg. are paid for by Yad Hanadiv (Rothschild Foundation), chaired by wealthy English Zionist Dorothy Mathilde de Rothschild (nee Pinto) (1895-1988); "We offer peace and amity to all the neighboring states and their peoples, and invite them to cooperate with the independent Jewish nation for the common good of all. The State of Israel is ready to contribute its full share to the peaceful progress and development of the Middle East"; the U.S. recognizes it 11 min. later, but Pres. Truman refuses to call it a Jewish state, although he ignores advice from his advisers in order to recognize it because he believed that it fulfills Biblical prophecy?; "Thus says the Lord God: O my people, I will open your graves and have you rise from them, and bring you back to the land of Israel." (Ezekiel 37:12); the Israeli army had nine obsolete planes for an air force, no cannons or tanks, and 60K trained fighters, only 18.9K of them fully ready for fighting, causing operations chief Yigael Yadin to tell David Ben-Gurion, "The best we can tell you is that we have a 50-50 chance." On May 15 the British Palestine Mandate ends and the British withdraw, leading to the 1948 Arab-Israeli War with Arab states as Lebanese, Syrian, Iraqi, Egyptian, and Transjordanian troops, supported by Saudi and Yemenite troops attack, screaming "Allahu Akbar", "Jihad", and "Idbah al-Yahud" (slaughter the Jews), showing that it isn't a nationalist but a religious struggle, and sorry, but Islam will never accept the Jewish state of Israel; the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon is founded to wage jihad, later becoming Hezbollah; on May 15 Egyptian Arab League secy.-gen. #1 (1945-52) Abdul Rahman Hassan Azzam Pasha (1893-1976) utters the soundbyte "This will be a war of extermination and a momentous massacre"; on May 17 the Soviet Union recognizes Israel; Jordanian King Abdullah Ibn Hussein's British-trained Arab League under British Lt. Gen. Sir John Bagot Glubb (1897-1986) (AKA Glubb Pasha) seizes control of Judea and Samaria, along with the Jewish Quarter in the Old City of Jerusalem on May 28 ("The blackest event in Israel's War of Independence") and annexes them, cutting off access by Jews to the Western Wall until 1967, going on to destroy or desecrate 50+ synagogues in the Jewish Quarter; only Great Britain and Pakistan recognize the annexation; Egypt occupies (but doesn't annex) Gaza; on May 22 the U.N. Security Council votes 8-0-3 (Ukraine, U.S.S.R., Syria) to order a ceasefire in Palestine; U.S. aircraft manufacturer Adolf "Al" Schwimmer (1917-2011) violates U.S. laws to smuggle surplus aircraft and found the Israeli Air Force on May 28, is convicted in 1950 of violating the U.S. Neutrality Act, and becomes pres. of Israel Aircraft Industries until 1978, finally receiving a pardon by Pres. Bill Clinton in 2000; on May 29 the U.N. Truce Supervision Org. (UNTSO) (the first U.N. peacekeeping force) is established, with HQ in Jerusalem to oversee the truce; Golda Meir (1898-1978) becomes the Israeli ambassador to the U.N; after losing 6,373 of 650K Israelis and spending $500M to achieve the truce; on July 7 the U.N. Security Council votes 8-0-3 (Ukraine, U.S.S.R., Syria) to urgently appeal to prolong the truce in Palestine; Ha Tikva(h) becomes the Israeli national anthem; the knee-jerk reaction of Arabs is to expel all Jews from Arab cities from Casablanca to Baghdad; the Christian pop. of Jordanian Jerusalem falls from 25K to 11K by 1967 as restrictive laws are placed on them; the Vatican hides the Temple Menorah and other holy vessels looted from the Jewish Temple of Jerusalem in 70 C.E. so that they can't be used by the Israelis to rebuild it; they are returned on ?
On May 20, 1948 Swedish diplomat Count Folke Bernadotte (1895-1948) is appointed as the first U.N. mediator on Palestine. On June 28 he makes the first formal peace proposal to the Arabs and Israelis, proposing that Palestinian and Transjordan form a "union, comprising two members, one Arab and one Jewish". After that was rejected, he made a 2nd proposal on Sept. 16 for two independent states. On Sept. 17 (Fri.) he is assassinated in Jerusalem by the Zionist Lehi terrorist group (AKA the Stern Gang), who wrongly believes that the Israeli govt. is about to accept the proposal. On Sept. 18 the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0-0 to condemn the killing as "a cowardly act which appears to have been committed by a criminal group of terrorists", after which the Lehi group is disarmed and its members arrested, but nobody is ever charged with the killing, causing Sweden to have frosty relations with Israel, even though it recognizes it in 1950. In Sept. the Israeli govt. also dissolves the Irgun Zionist terrorist org. (founded 1931), whose members later found the right-wing Herut (Heb. "freedom") Party, predecessor of the Likud Party; Bernadotte is succeeded as U.N. mediator #2 by U.S. diplomat Ralph Johnson Bunche (1904-71), who works out a truce on Nov. 4 (U.N. Security Council Resolution 61) and an armistice on Nov. 16 (U.N. Security Council Resolution 62), and on Dec. 29, 1950 becomes the first African-Am. to win the Nobel Peace Prize.
On Nov. 3, 1948 the U.N. Gen. Assembly elects the 15 members of the U.N. Internat. Law Commission; it holds its fist session next Apr. 12-June 9 in Lake Success, N.Y.
On Dec. 9, 1948 after over a decade of lobbying by Polish-born Jewish scholar Raphael Lemkin (1900-59) (who coined the word "genocide" in 1943) the U.N. Gen. Assembly adopts Resolution 260: Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide; it goes into effect on Jan. 12, 1951; the U.S. doesn't ratify it until 1988; meanwhile the Fagan Report (Report of the Native Laws Commission of 1946) issued by the govt. of South Africa admits the impracticability of complete racial segregation and recommends abolishing restrictions on black migration into urban areas, but the Afrikaner Nat. Party vehemently rejects it, and the govt. of Jan Smuts is narrowly defeated in the gen. election, putting Afrikaner nationalist Daniel Francois Malan (1874-1959) in power as PM on June 4 (until Nov. 30, 1954), who goes on to pass comprehensive white supremacist Apartheid Laws (ends 1994).
On Dec. 10, 1948 the U.N. Gen. Assembly votes 48-0-8 for U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 217 adopting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, partially formulated by Eleanor Roosevelt, but it is not given the legal force of a treaty until 1966; it declares that everyone has the right to an adequate standard of living incl. satisfactory housing; the first Internat. Human Rights Day; too bad, Communist nations abstain, as does the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and in 1981 the Repub. of Iran calls it a secular interpretation of Judeo-Christian tradition incompatible with Sharia, after which in 2000 the 57-nation Org. of the Islamic Conference (OIC) votes to endorse the Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam, which states that people have "freedom and right to a dignified life in accordance with the Islamic Sharia", after which in July 2001 the European Court of Human Rights rules that "the institution of Sharia law and a theocratic regime were incompatible with the requirements of a democratic society".
On Dec. 11, 1948 by 35-23 the non-binding U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 194 is passed, calling for the return of Palestinian refugees to their homes; all six Arab countries at the U.N. (Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Yemen) vote against it; Israel isn't a U.N. member yet.
On Mar. 4, 1949 the U.N. Security Council votes 9-1-1 (Egypt against, U.K. abstaining) for Resolution 69 authorizing the admission of Israel; on May 11 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 273 is passed by 37-12-9, admitting the state of Israel to the U.N. as member #59, with the soundbyte that it "decides that Israel is a peace loving State which accepts the obligations contained in the Charter and is able and willing to carry out those obligations", raising the Israeli flag on the U.N. bldg.
On Apr. 4, 1949 the North Atlantic (Washington) Treaty is signed in Washington, D.C. by 12 nations from W Europe and North Am., incl. Belgium, Canada, Denmark (so much for its tradition of neutrality?), France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, U.K., U.S.), creating the North Atlantic Treaty Org. (NATO), with the goal to "safeguard the freedom, common heritage and civilization of member states' peoples founded on the principles of democracy, individual liberty, and the rule of law", with the Soviet Union becoming enemy #1 until 1991, when Islamism (Islamic fundamentalism) becomes enemy #1; NATO HQ is sited on Blvd. Leopold III in Brussels; U.S. funding of NATO forces frees Western European states to concentrate on economic development.
On Aug. 12, 1949 the Fourth Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War (GCIV) is adopted by the U.N. Gen. Assembly, becoming the first to protect civilians in a war zone, forbidding "individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory to the territory of the Occupying Power or to that of any other country", which doesn't stop mass persecution of Jews in Arab lands, resulting in mass flight to you guessed it, the Jewish state of Israel; by 2018 196 countries are a party; meanwhile the Second Geneva Convention is adopted, replacing the 1907 Hague Convention, extending the First Geneva Convention to protect the wounded, sick, and shipwrecked members of the armed forces at sea; all four conventions and pub. in 4 vols. in 1952-8.
On Dec. 8, 1949 the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is established after its 1-year mandate runs out, and today it's still in charge of giving aid to 400K Palestinian "refugees" in Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, reaching 5M by 2010, becoming a giant bureaucracy with 20K+ employees that seemingly seeks to perpetuate the problem to stay in biz, allowing the children to be systematically indoctrinated with Jew hatred and trained for jihad; too bad, a U.S. State Dept. report in 2018 claims tht the true number of Palestinian refugees is 20K. Meanwhile after pogroms in British-occupied Libya in 1945 killed hundreds of Jews and destroyed many shops and synagogues, 30K Libyan Jews wisely fled for Israel between 1949-51 before Libya became independent in 1951, and PM Mahmoud Muntasser proclaimed that the 8K remaining Jews in Libya had "no future", are you a gambling kind of gal, which was proved true as virtually all remaining Jews were expelled after the 1967 Six-Day War.
On May 1, 1950 the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) (founded Dec. 8, 1949) begins administering the 950K Palestinians in refugee camps, which grow by 1987 to 2.2M, one-third still living in U.N. camps.
On June 10, 1950 after stepping up guerrilla activity in South Korea, which suffers from inflation, a cabinet crisis, gen. unrest and brutal police actions, the North Korean govt. proposes to the U.N. Korean Commission that elections for an all-Korean legislature be held in Aug.
M*A*S*H time? On June 25, 1950 North Korean forces (with permission from Stalin) cross the 38th parallel and invade South Korea, starting the Korean War (ends 1953); China assists the North, while U.N. troops, led by U.S. Gen. Douglas MacArthur (1880-1964) aid the South; on June 25 the U.N. Security Council is called by the U.S., and the Soviet delegate doesn't attend, making it possible for them to pass Resolution 82 by 9-0-1 (Yugoslavia abstaining), calling for the withdrawal of the North Korean troops and a ceasefire; on June 27 the U.N. Security Council passes Resolution 83 by 7-1-0 (Yugoslavia against, Egypt abstaining), calling on U.N. members to assist South Korea and invokes military sanctions, causing Pres. Truman to order the U.S. Air Force and Navy into the Korean conflict, and orders the U.S. Seventh Fleet into the Straits of Formosa to block an invasion of China by Formosa (freeing the Chinese to build up forces to cross the Yalu River into North Korea later?); on June 28 Seoul is captured by the North Koreans; on June 30 the first U.S. ground forces are committed; on July 7 the Security Council authorizes a unified U.N. command in Korea under U.S. leadership, and the hastily-formed U.S. Eighth Army backed by 20 other U.N. members takes the North Koreans on; MiG Alley in the Yalu River Valley in NW Korea becomes the scene of a 10-1 kill ratio for U.S. planes; in the opening months of the war, the South Korean military and police execute 4.9K pro-Communist civilians who signed up for reeducation classes, and don't admit it until Nov. 2009 - do you know why we're here, to jack my price up?
On July 18, 1950 UNESCO releases The Race Question, written by English-born Jewish-Am. anthropologist Montague Francis Ashley-Montagu (Israel Ehrenberg) (1905-99), black Am. sociologist Edward Franklin Frazier (1894-1962) et al., questioning the validity of race as a biological concept and suggesting the substitution of "ethnic group"; revised eds. pub. in 1951, 1967, and 1978.
On Sept 26, 1950 the U.N. Security Council votes 10-0-1 (Repub. of China) for Resolution 86, authorizing the admission of Indonesia.
On Oct. 6, 1950 40K Chinese troops invade Tibet, starting the Battle of Chamdo, defeating the 8K-man Tibetan force and taking Chamdo on Oct. 19 after killing, wounding, or capturing 3,341, pissing-off the U.S. Britain, India and other countries; in Nov. the Tibetan nat. assembly holds an emergency session, requesting 16-y.-o. Tibetan Dalai Lama #14 (since Feb. 22, 1940) "His Holiness" Tenzin Gyatso (Lhamo Thondup) (1935-) to become head of state, appealing to the U.N. for aid, after which he flees Lhasa for Dromo near the Indian border; too bad, India objects to a U.N. Gen Assembly discussion, calling it a local problem for them and China.
On Nov. 4, 1950 the U.N. Gen. Assembly votes 37-10-12 to reverse its 1946 diplomatic isolation of Spain.
On Jan. 8, 1951 the Secretariat Bldg. of the new windowy U.N. HQ (begun Sept. 14, 1948) officially opens in Manhattan, New York City for 3.3K employees on 17 acres of land on 1st Ave. between 42nd and 48th Sts. on rundown Turtle Bay overlooking the East River, donated by John D. Rockefeller Jr. and his son Nelson Rockefeller, allowing the U.N. to move on May 18 from temporary HQ in Lake Success, Long Island to its permanent home; architects incl. Le Corbusier, Oscar Niemeyer, and Harrison & Abramovitz; it is completed next Oct. 9 at a cost of $65M.On Feb. 1, 1951 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 498 (44-7-9) condemns the aggression of Red China in Korea, exhorting it to pull its troops out, and exhorting U.N. member states to support U.N. troops in Korea, becoming the first time the U.N. treats a nation as an aggressor, passed after every resolution in the U.N. Security Council to take action is vetoed by the Soviet Union.
On Mar. 30, 1951 after India and Pakistan sign the Karachi Agreement establishing a ceasfire line, the U.N. Security Council votes 8-0-3 (India, Yugoslavia, U.S.S.R.) to adopt Resolution 91 establishing the U.N. Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) to monitor it.
On Feb. 1, 1952 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 505 is adopted 25-9-24 by the Sixth Session of the U.N. Gen. Assembly after the Repub. of China (Taiwan) complains, condemning the Soviet Union's violations of the Aug. 14, 1945 Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship and Alliance and the U.N. Charter by assisting the Chinese Communist Party during the Chinese Civil War of Mar. 31, 1946 - May 1, 1950.
On Feb. 5, 1952 the U.N. Gen. Assembly adjourns in Paris after voting to postpone action on the Korean conflict.
On Jan. 26, 1953 after losing his reelection to John F. Kennedy in a close race because of spending too much time supporting Ike's candidacy, former U.S. Sen. (R-Mass.) (1937-44, 1947-53) Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. (1902-85), grandson of U.S. Sen. (R-Mass.) (1893-1924) Henry Cabot Lodge Sr. (1850-1924) (who went on a tour of duty in WWII as a senator then was forced to resign to stay fighting) becomes U.S. U.N. rep. #3 (until Sept. 3, 1960), with his position elevated to cabinet rank, becoming the longest-serving in that position (until ?); his granddaddy defeated JFK's granddaddy John F. Fitzgerald for the same Senate seat in 1916, and later in 1962 Lodge's son George Cabot Lodge is defeated for the same seat by JFK's brother Ted Kennedy; Lodge Sr. hated the League of Nations, but Lodge Jr. is pro-U.N., uttering the soundbyte "This organization is created to prevent you from going to Hell; it isn't created to take you to Heaven."
In Feb. 1953 Gallup takes its first poll on the U.N., finding that a majority of Americans believe it's doing a good job; the polls turn negative next year, except for 1990-1, 2000-2002 (with the highest approval rating of 58% in Feb. 2002), and 2013; on Feb. 1-10, 2018 only 34% say the U.N. is going a good job, becoming the 22nd time with less than 50%.
On Mar. 31, 1953 the U.N. Security Council elects Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjold (Hammarskjöld) (1905-61) of Sweden as U.N. secy.-gen. #2, taking office on Apr. 10 (until Sept. 18, 1961); after being reelected unanimously to a 2nd term in 1957, the Soviet Union gets pissed-off at this handling of the Congo Crisis, and tries unsuccessfully to get him replaced by a 3-man troika; he never marries and is never seen in the company of the opposite gender - that makes him a metrosexual, or a workaholic?
At the first sign of smoke someone is dialing 911? Millions die for a line drawn in the sand and some medals, like a sick chess tournament using real people as pieces? On July 27, 1953 (Mon.) after seven weeks of negotiation on behalf of the U.S. and U.N. by New York atty. Arthur Hobson Dean (1898-1987), the "forgotten" Korean War ends with an Armistice Agreement signed in Panmunjon near the 38th parallel by the U.S. North Korea, South Korea, and the People's Repub. of China (PRC), ending (suspending?) the Korean War (begun 1950) after 3 years 32 days; the U.N. Command, Military Armistice Commission, Korea (UNCMAC) composed of U.N. and Communist officers is established to supervise the truce, which incl. the creation of a 2.4-mi.-wide Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) running 150 mi. between the two Koreas, where 1K plant species, 50 types of mammals (incl. the rare Asiatic black bear, Amur leopard and Siberian tiger) and hundreds of bird species, incl. two endangered cranes live; the Bridge of No Return is used for POW exchanges; total casualties: 800K soldiers killed and 1.6M wounded, plus 2M civilians killed and 2M-3M wounded; total South Korean casualties: 1,312,836, incl. 415,004 killed; U.N. casualties: 334,227, incl. 36,914 U.S. dead (36,576 official), and 103,284 wounded, 8,176 MIA, 7,245 POW, 131 Medals of Honor; Communist casualties: 1.5M-2M; and that's not counting the destruction of most of the peninsula, and the hundreds of thousands of families left homeless; the only war the U.S. enters in the 20th cent. that remains unresolved at the end of the cent. (until ?); U.S. Gen. Mark Wayne Clark (1896-1984) signs the armistice for the U.S., gaining "the unenviable distinction of being the first United States Army commander in history to sign an armistice without victory"; the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission (NNSC), consisting of reps. from Sweden, Switzerland, Poland, and Czech. is created to investigate truce violations outside the DMZ; a top-level political conference between the Communists and U.N. is scheduled for "within 3 months" "to insure the peaceful settlement of the Korean question"; M/Sgt. Anthony B. "Tony" Herbert is the war's most decorated GI, and later gets into a war with the U.S. govt. over alleged atrocity coverups in the Vietnam War; Capt. Joseph "Joe Mac" McConnell is the top U.S. ace of the war, with 16 kills; the Communists lose 954 aircraft in the war, 827 of them MiG-15s, 792 of them downed by U.S. F-86 Sabres in MiG Alley S of the Yalu River, losing only 78 Sabres.
On June 8, 1954 the 256-lb. 3'3" x 2' U.N. (Japanese) Peace Bell (cast on Nov. 24, 1952) is presented to the U.N. by Japan, with the inscription "Long Live Absolute World Peace"; it is rung each year on the Mar. Equinox.
On Aug. 30, 1955 after the First U.N. Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders is held in Geneva to resume the work of the Internat. Penal and Penitentiary Commission (IPCC), dissolved in 1950, based on the 1872 First Internat. Congress on the Prevention and Repression of Crime in London, the non-binding Std. Min. Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners are adopted, and approved by the U.N. Economic and Social Council on July 31, 1957 and May 13, 1977; new congresses are held every five years; the Nelson Mandela Rules are adopted by the U.N. Gen. Assembly on Dec. 17, 2015.
On Dec. 14, 1955 the U.N. Security Council votes 8-0-3 (Belgium, U.S., Repub. of China) for Resolution 109 to admit Albania, Jordan, Ireland, Portugal, Hungary, Italy, Austria, Romania, Bulgaria, Finland, Ceylon, Nepal, Libya, Cambodia, Laos, and Spain.
On Feb. 6, 1956 the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 112 to admit Sudan; on July 20 it votes 11-0-0 to admit Morocco; on July 26 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 116 to admit Tunisia; on Dec. 12 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 121 to admit Japan.
On July 19, 1956 the Suez Crisis (ends Nov. 7) begins after ungrateful pres. Gamal Abdel Nasser trades $200M in Egyptian cotton for guns from Czech., causing U.S. secy. of state John Foster Dulles to cancel the U.S. Aswan High Dam loan, causing Nasser on July 20 to nationalize the Suez Canal (which carries 1.5M barrels of oil a day, 1.2M going to W Europe), saying "I look at Americans and say, may you choke to death on your fury!", followed by "We shall build the high dam as we desire. The annual income of the Suez Canal is $100M. Why not take it ourselves?"; in Sept. Egypt takes control of the canal, expelling foreign technicians; at this point the Israelis are pissed-off by Egyptian-backed guerrilla raids from the Gaza Strip, the Brits by the nationalization of the Suez Canal, and the French by Egyptian support of Algerian independence, forming a conspiracy to overthrow Nasser, with British PM Sir Anthony Eden (who sees him as a new Mussolini) hiring CIA man (close friend of Nasser) Miles Axe Copeland Jr. (1916-91) to assassinate him, while planning begins for Operation Musketeer, a French-British plan to recapture the Suez Canal; too bad, Ike opposes the invasion on the grounds that he is an advocate of decolonization, showing up Eden and the British as wusses when they are forced to back down because of their financial dependence on the U.S.; the net result is that Israel moves closer to the U.S. govt., which becomes dominant in the region, and never undertakes any significant military operation without obtaining U.S. consent in advance (until ?); in Sept. French PM Guy Mollete secretly requests to merge France with the U.K. and join the Commonwealth of Nations, but British PM Anthony Eden turns him down, after which in Oct. he meets with Israeli PM David Ben-Gurion and agrees to stage a joint attack on Egypt. On Oct. 13 the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0-0 to adopt Resolution 118, requiring any settlement of the Suez question to incl. respect for the sovereignty of Egypt while allowing free and open transit through the canal without any kind of discrimination or political considerations, with future disputes between Egypt and the Suez Canal Co. to be settled by arbitration. On Oct. 29 (Mon.) the Suez War (Crisis) (Tripartite Aggression) ramps up (begins) (ends Nov. 7) when 100K Israeli troops invade Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, giving Britain and France an excuse to issue an ultimatum to Egypt and Israel on Oct. 30 calling for a ceasefire, then citing their right to reoccupy the canal under the 1950 Tripartite Declaration; on Oct. 31 Cyprus-based British bombers bomb Egyptian airfields, causing Ike to go nonlinear, and in the evening he goes on TV, saying "We cannot subscribe to one law for the weak, another for those allied to us"; on Oct. 31 the U.N. Security Council votes 7-2-2 (France against, Australia and Belgium abstaining) in Resolution 119 to pass the debate to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, which holds its first emergency special session; on Nov. 3 John Foster Dulles is taken to Walter Reed Hospital for surgery for an ulcer; on Nov. 5 British paratroopers begin landing on the N end of the canal, causing Soviet PM Nikolai Bulganin to warn that nukes will be used if they don't withdraw, and asking the U.S. for an alliance with the Soviet Union, to which Ike replies "Those British, they're still my right arm", accusing the Soviets of trying to divert attention from Hungary, and deciding to send aid to Israel, also issuing the Washington Declaration with British PM Anthony Eden; on Nov. 6 French infantry seize the E side of the canal, but the U.S. intervenes, arranging a ceasefire on Nov. 7 and demanding full British and French withdrawal, which they cave-in and obey; in Nov. a U.N. Emergency Force is created, organized by Lester B. Pearson of Canada (who wins the 1957 Nobel Peace Prize), and in Dec. it supervises withdrawal of French and British forces (ends Jan. 1957), while the U.N. fleet leaves the Suez Canal; Egypt agrees to pay $81M in reparations to the World Bank; the Sinai is demilitarized, with U.N. troops deployed along the Egyptian-Israeli border, and the U.S. commits to keeping the Straits of Tiran open to Israeli shipping; in Nov. Eden, his health breaking down, goes on vacation on Ian Fleming's 007 estate in Jamaica, allowing Harold Macmillian to work to push him out of office.
On Oct. 29, 1956 (Mon.) the Suez War (Crisis) (Tripartite Aggression) begins when 100K Israeli troops invade Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, giving Britain and France an excuse to issue an ultimatum to Egypt and Israel on Oct. 30 calling for a ceasefire, then citing their right to reoccupy the canal under the 1950 Tripartite Declaration; on Oct. 31 Cyprus-based British bombers bomb Egyptian airfields, causing Ike to go nonlinear, and in the evening he goes on TV, saying "We cannot subscribe to one law for the weak, another for those allied to us"; on Oct. 31 the U.N. Security Council votes 7-2-2 (France against, Australia and Belgium abstaining) in Resolution 119 to pass the debate to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, which olds its first emergency special session; on Nov. 3 John Foster Dulles is taken to Walter Reed Hospital for surgery for an ulcer; on Nov. 5 British paratroopers begin landing on the N end of the canal, causing Soviet PM Nikolai Bulganin to warn that nukes will be used if they don't withdraw, and asking the U.S. for an alliance with the Soviet Union, to which Ike replies "Those British, they're still my right arm", accusing the Soviets of trying to divert attention from Hungary, and deciding to send aid to Israel, also issuing the Washington Declaration with British PM Anthony Eden; on Nov. 6 French infantry seize the E side of the canal, but the U.S. intervenes, arranging a ceasefire on Nov. 7 and demanding full British and French withdrawal, which they cave-in and obey; on Nov. 7 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 1001 establishes the U.N. Emergency Force (UNEF), organized by Lester B. Pearson of Canada (who wins the 1957 Nobel Peace Prize), and in Dec. it supervises withdrawal of French and British forces (ends Jan. 1957), while the U.N. fleet leaves the Suez Canal; which is ordered out of the Sinai on May 16, 1967, and evacuates on June 17 after 15 troops are KIA in the Six Day War of June 5-10; Egypt agrees to pay $81M in reparations to the World Bank; the Sinai is demilitarized, with U.N. troops deployed along the Egyptian-Israeli border, and the U.S. commits to keeping the Straits of Tiran open to Israeli shipping; in Nov. Eden, his health breaking down, goes on vacation on Ian Fleming's 007 estate in Jamaica, allowing Harold Macmillian to work to push him out of office.
On Jan. 8, 1957 after withdrawing from the Suez Canal to a distance of 50 km last Dec. 3, Israel withdraws to a line E of El Arish, allowing the U.N. Emergency Force to control the canal. On Jan. 17, 1957 Israeli foreign minister (since June 18, 1956) Golda Meir (nee Mabovitch) (1898-1978) gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly on the continuing problem of Egypt, the Sinai, Gulf of Aqaba, and Gaza Strip, ending with the soundbyte: "Mr. President, the General Assembly will surely have no difficulty in concluding that the problem of the Gulf of Aqaba with its broad international perspectives; and the question of the Gaza Strip, with its almost unparalleled complexity, require further clarification in a cooperative spirit."
On Jan. 23, 1957 Indian nationalist diplomat V.K. (Vengalil Krishnan) Krishna Menon (1896-1974) gives a speech on Kashmir to the U.N. Gen. Assembly that lasts for 8 hours, becoming the longest U.N. speech until ?
On Mar. 7, 1957 the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 124 to admit Ghana; on Sept. 5 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 125 to admit Malaya (Malaysia).
On Dec. 9, 1958 the U.N. Security Council votes 10-0-1 (France) for Resolution 131 to admit Guinea.
On Nov. 20, 1959 the U.S. Gen. Assembly adopts the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, based on the "World Child Welfare Charter" endorsed by the League of Nations on Nov. 26, 1924, causing Nov. 20 (first proclaimed by the U.K. in 1954) to be recognized as Universal Children's Day, leading to the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) on Nov. 20, 1989.
Black is as black does, or, Play that funky music white boy? The U.N. declares 1960 the Year of Africa: 17 African states (out of 51, with over 1K different cultures and 800 languages) gain their full or token independence from white European govts. (16 join the U.N.): Cameroon (Jan. 1), Togo (Apr. 27), Mali (June 20), Senegal (June 20), Malagasy Repub. (Madagascar) (June 26), Belgian Congo (Kinshasa) (June 30), Ghana (Gold Coast) (July 1), Somalia (July 1), Ghana (July 1), Dahomey (Aug. 1), Niger (Aug. 3), Upper Volta (Aug. 5), Ivory Coast (Aug. 7) (two brands of bar soap?), Chad (Aug. 11), Central African Repub. (CAR) (Aug. 13), Congo Repub. (Brazzaville) (Aug. 15), Gabon (Aug. 17), Nigeria (Oct. 1), Mauritania (Nov. 28).
On Dec. 14, 1960 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 1514, titled "Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples" is adopted 89-0-9 (Australia, Belgium, Dominican Repub., France, Portugal, Spain, South Africa, U.K., U.S.), providing for the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples; on Dec. 15, 1960 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 1541 affirms that complete compliance with the principle of self-determination is required to ensure decolonisation.
On Jan. 26, 1960 the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 133 to admit Cameroon; on May 31 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 136 to admit Togo; on June 28 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 139 to to admit Mali; on June 29 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 140 to admit the Malagasy Repub. (Madagascar); on July 5 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 141 to admit Somalia; on July 7 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 142 to admit the (Dem.) Repub. of Congo; on Aug. 23 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 147 to admit Dahomey (Benin); on Aug. 23 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 148 to admit Niger; on Aug. 23 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 149 to admit Upper Volta (Burkina Faso); on Aug. 23 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 150 to admit Ivory Coast; on Aug. 23 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 151 to admit Chad; on Aug. 23 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 152 to admit the Repub. of the Congo; on Aug. 23 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 153 to admit Gabon; on Aug. 23 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 154 to admit the Central African Repub.; on Aug. 23 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 155 to admit Cyprus; on Sept. 28 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 158 to admit Senegal; on Sept. 28 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 159 to admit Mali; on Oct. 7 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 160 to admit Nigeria.
On Mar. 21, 1960 the Sharpeville Massacre sees South African police kill 69 and injure 180 of 5K-7K blacks in Sharpeville protesting the apartheid pass laws, causing an internat. protest; on Mar. 30 the govt. declares a state of emergency (until Aug. 31); on Apr. 1 the U.N. Security Council votes 9-0-2 (France, U.K.) to adopt Resolution 134, calling for South Africa to abandon apartheid, making it an internat. pariah; meanwhile the South African govt. bans the PAC and ANC, causing them to go from passive to active resistance; in 1966 the U.N. establishes Mar. 21 as the Internat. Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.
On June 24, 1960 Joseph Kasavubu (Kasa-Vubu) (1910-69), leader of the Alliance des Bakongo (ABAKO) Party is elected pres. #1 of the Repub. of Congo (Leopoldville) (which becomes independent of Belgium), taking office on June 26 (until Nov. 24, 1965). On June 30, 1960 the Repub. of the Congo (capital Leopoldville) is granted independence from Belgium, with Patrice Lumumba as PM, and Joseph Kasavubu as pres.; on July 11 after the Congolese army mutinies against the remaining Belgian officers, Belgian-appointed Christian anti-Communist pro-Western Moise Kapenda Tshombe (1919-69) leads a Belgian-backed secession in mineral-rich Katanga Province in SE Congo (W of Lake Tanganyika), which is controlled by the Belgian Union Miniere and produces weapons-grade uranium, raising the stakes and bringing in internat. intrigue; on July 14 the U.N. Security Council votes 8-0-3 (France, U.K., China) for Resolution 143, calling on Belgium to withdraw its troops and deciding to send U.N. troops (supported by Ghana, Guinea and India), led by U.N. secy.-gen. Dag Hammarskjold to Katanga to oversee the withdrawal, starting the Congo Crisis (ends Nov. 25, 1965), featuring an anti-colonial struggle, a secessionist war, a U.N. peacekeeping operation, and a Cold War proxy battle between the dueling superpowers U.S. and Soviet Union, who lust for all that uranium ore and other minerals; on Sept. 5 Lumumba appoints Machiavelli-thumping ("one of my favorite books)" journalist (former soldier, and one big mean dude) Joseph Desire (Joseph-Désiré) Mobutu (1930-97) as army chief of staff, who gets pissed-off at the U.N. forces for not helping him crush the secessionists and turns to the Soviet Union, which sends massive military aid incl. 1K technical advisors, causing the U.S. to kick Repub. of the Congo pres. #1 (1960-5) Joseph Kasavubu (1910-69) in the pants, after which he fires the govt. of Patrice Lumumba and has him placed under house arrest, causing Lumumba to declare Kasavubu deposed and call on Mobutu to arrest him instead; on Sept. 14 after consulting his Machiavelli, Mobutu leads a CIA-backed military coup, placing Lumumba under house arrest for a 2nd time, and keeping Kasavubu as pres., then ordering the Soviets to leave, accusing Lumumba of Commie sympathies to gain U.S. support, causing him to flee to Stanleyville, where he is captured on Dec. 1, sent to Katanga, then tortured and assassinated next Jan. 17, causing the U.N. Security Council next Feb. 21 to vote 9-0-0 (France, Soviet Union) to adopt Resolution 161, urging the withdrawal of Belgian and other foreign military and mercenary troops and launching an investigation into Lumumba's death, causing the Soviet Union to seek unsuccessfully to get the office of secy.-gen. replaced by a 3-man troika; meanwhile on Nov. 14 Belgium threatens to leave the U.N. if it doesn't stop criticizing its Congo policy, after which on Nov. 22 the U.N. supports Kasavubu and Mobutu anyway; next Nov. 24 the U.N. Security Council votes 9-0-0 (France, U.K.) to adopt Resolution 169, opposing secessionist activities in Katanga and asking all U.N. member states to aid the govt. of the Repub. of the Congo. On Dec. 30, 1962 U.N. troops occupy the last rebel positions in Kanga, forcing Moise Tshombe to flee to Southern Rhodesia.
On Sept. 26, 1960 Fidel Castro gives his longest U.N. speech so far (4 hrs. 29 min.), during which he calls JFK "an illiterate and ignorant millionaire", and utters the immortal soundbyte: "When the philosophy of robbery disappears, then the philosophy of war will disappear" - no need to debate with anybody?
New Law & Order on Shoe Day on N-BBC? On Oct. 1, 1960 (Shoe Day Minus Eleven) Nigeria declares independence from Britain, and is admitted to U.N. membership as a loose federation of self-governing states with 250 ethnic and linguistic groups; on Nov. 16 U.S.-educated Igbo gen. Benjamin Nnamdi (Igbo "My father is alive") "Zik" Azikiwe (1904-96) becomes gov.-gen. #3 of Nigeria (first native) (until Oct. 1, 1963), also becoming the first Nigerian on the Queen's privy council, founding the African liberation philosophy of Zikism, with the five principles of spiritual balance, social regeneration, economic determination, mental emancipation, and political resurgence, uttering the soundbyte "The challenge of Nigeria as a free state in 20th century Africa is the need to revive the stature of man in Africa and restore the dignity of man in the world"; Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa (1912-66) (Muslim) (who was knighted in Jan. by Elizabeth II of Britain and awarded an honorary doctorate in May by the U. of Sheffield) becomes PM #1 of Nigeria (until Jan. 15, 1966), going on to lead the protest against the Sharpeville Massacre, enter an alliance with Commonwealth ministers who want South Africa expelled in 1961, and become a founder of the Org. of African Unity (OAU) in 1963.
Destiny: Shoes? Shoe Day, 10-12-60 (10/2 x 12 = 60)? On Oct. 12, 1960 (Wed.) (Shoe Day) (15th anniv. session) after Soviet PM Shoechev, er, Khrushchev got away with interrupting a speech by British PM Harold Macmillan twice on Sept. 29 by pounding his fists and shouting in Russian (causing Macmillan to ask U.N. Gen. Assembly pres. Frederick Henry Boland (1904-85) of Ireland that he would like a translation), he ramps it up to the next level by waving and pounding his table with his right shoe during a U.N. Gen. Assembly speech by Filipino delegate Lorenzo Sumulong (1905-97), after he said that the Soviet resolution condemning Western imperialism should be viewed with the shoe on the other foot when it comes to their domination of Eastern Europe, uttering the rejoinder "You're a hooligan and stooge of imperialism", causing an adjournment - Bun-dy, Bun-dy?
On Jan. 23, 1961 after he refuses to endorse JFK before the Dem. Convention, pissing-off JFK and causing him to snub him for secy. of state and give him the choice of atty. gen., ambassador to the U.K., or this, Los Angeles, Calif.-born former Dem. Ill. gov. #31 (1949-53) Adlai Ewing Stevenson II (1900-65) (who served on the committee that created the U.N., and on the early U.S. delegations to it) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #5 (until July 14, 1965), going on to be treated as a bit player and kept from knowing about the Apr. 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion in advance, giving a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly with the CIA coverstory that there was no U.S. involvement, embarrassing him but not enough to resign.
On Feb. 4, 1961 after the Portuguese insist on staying, pissing-off the Communist-led natives, the Portuguese Colonial (Overseas) War (of Liberation) in Angola (ends Apr. 25, 1974) begins with an uprising of Africans in Luanda, led by the Nat. Front for the Liberation of Angola (FNLA), founded on July 14, 1954 as the Union of Peoples of Angola (UPA) by Holden Alvaro (Álvaro) Roberto (1923-2007); on Mar. 13 Adlai E. Stevenson votes against Portuguese policies in Africa in the U.N. Security Council; on Mar. 15 4K-5K Bakongo rebels attack strategic locations in N Angola, killing 1K+ whites and seizing their farms, with Roberto uttering the soundbyte "This time the slaves did not cower"; on Apr. 18 Portugal sends its first military reinforcements to Angola; on Apr. 25 Roberto meets with Pres. Kennedy, causing Ghanaian pres. Kwame Nkrumah to turn him down for aid; on June 9 the U.N. Security Council votes 9-0-2 (France, U.K.) for Resolution 163, affirming U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 1603 declaring Angola a non-self-governing territory and calling on Portugal to go along; in Mar. 1962 the UPA merges with the Dem. Party of Angola to form the FNLA, establishing the Rev. Govt. of Angola in Exile (GRAE) in Kinshasa on Mar. 27, with Jonas Savimbi as foreign minister, after which Roberto divorces his wife and marries a woman from the village of the wife of Zairian pres. Mobutu Sese Soko to establish a political alliance; in 1963-9 Israel gives it aid.
On Apr. 13, 1961 the U.N. Gen. Assembly passes U.N. Resolution 1598, condemning South Africa for apartheid; meanwhile white South African anti-apartheid activist Helen Beatrice May Joseph (nee Fennell) (1905-92), who was arrested for treason in Dec. 1956, banned in 1957 and became the first person to be placed under house arrest is finally acquitted after a 5-year trial, but she stays banned for the next 10 years; meanwhile on May 29-31 Nelson Mandela (1918-2013), leader of the South African Nat. Congress (ANC) (founded 1912) stages a stay-at-home strike, and when that doesn't work, he and Walter Max Ulyate Sisulu (1912-2003) give up on peaceful solutions and set up the Spear of the Nation (MK) militant wing, which issues a public announcement on Dec. 16: "The time comes in the life of any nation when there remains only two choices: submit or fight... We shall not submit and we have no choice but to hit back by all means within our power in defense of our people, our future, and our freedom."
On Apr. 15, 1961 six repainted U.S. Air Force B-26 bombers knocked out half of the Cuban air force, but Pres. Kennedy recalled them on Apr. 16 without the 1,511 CIA-trained commandos being informed, and on Apr. 17, 1961 they invaded Cuba in four chartered merchant ships and two landing crafts from Nicaragua in the unsuccessful Bay of Pigs Invasion in Cochinos Bay on the S coast of Cuba 90 mi. from Havana, getting pinned down on a swampy beachhead while their supplies were blocked by reefs until the supply ships were sunk; on Apr. 19 the 300K-man Cuban army finished the invaders off, killing 114 and capturing 1.2K POWs (released in Dec. 1962 for $53M in food and medical supplies, privately raised), after which on Apr. 20 Castro announced the defeat of the invasion; on Apr. 22 Pres. Kennedy accepted "sole responsibility", saying "How could I have been so stupid?" for trusting the CIA and Joint Chiefs of Staff, but he actually held CIA dir. (since 1953) Allen Welsh Dulles (1893-1969) responsible, and he was pressured into resigning in Sept., along with deputy dir. USAF Gen. Charles Pearre Cabell (1903-71), brother of Dallas mayor (1961-4) Earle Cabell (1906-75), allegedly saying that he wants "to splinter the CIA in a thousand pieces and scatter it to the winds", although his memo to do it is ignored (turning the whole CIA against him with a reason to assassinate him?); E. Howard Hunt uses the cover name Eduardo in the Bay of Pigs operation; after the Cuban V, Khrushchev gets the idea of installing nuclear missiles in Cuba to protect it from another invasion, and vetoes Castro's plan of doing it publicly, preferring to do it in secret before the U.S. can react; on Apr. 21 JFK holds a press conference, accepting responsibility for the fiasco, with the soundbyte: "There's an old saying that victory has a hundred fathers, and defeat is an orphan"; in Apr.-May the Cuba Study Group, led by retired gen. Maxwell Davenport Taylor (1901-87) performed an "autopsy" of the fiasco, then published a report on June 13 concluding that the invasion was Ike's plan, that JFK's decision to not call in additional air strikes did not doom it, and that the CIA and Joint Chiefs of Staff shared the blame; during this time Taylor became a friend of Robert F. Kennedy, who was wowed by his intellect and named one of his sons after him in Jan. 1965; meanwhile Taylor was recalled to active duty and installed to the new post of military rep. to the U.S. pres., causing him to end up cutting off the Joint Chiefs, until JFK appointed him as chmn. on Oct. 1, 1962 (until 1964). So it is here that the plot to kill JFK, who just approved the execution of a U.S. soldier and stabbed others in the back, began, somebody just bought a new shirt, I told you it was your color?
On Sept. 17-18, 1961 U.N. secy.-gen. #2 (since Apr. 10, 1953) Dag Hammarskjold (b. 1905) is killed in a plane crash in Northern Rhodesia on the way to negotiate a ceasefire in the Congo; meanwhile JFK, who has been working with him to create an independent Congo rejects proposals for direct military intervention, preferring to support the U.N. peacekeepers, pissing-off the multinat. corps. who seek to carve the Congo up for themselves, causing JFK to get into a war with the CIA, which has has been arming the secessionists in order to promote Belgian mining interests.
On Sept. 29, 1961 the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 165 to admit Sierra Leone; on Oct. 25 it votes 9-0-1 (U.S., China) for Resolution 166 to admit Mongolia; on Oct. 25 it votes 9-1-1 (UAR, U.S.S.R.) for Resolution 167 to admit Mauritania; on Dec. 14 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 170 to admit Tanganyika (Tanzania).
On Nov. 30, 1961 after being appointed to serve-out Dag Hammaskjold's term, U Thant (1909-74) of Burma (known for his mixed Muslim-Buddhist background) is unanimously elected as U.N. secy.-gen. #3 (first non-European and first Asian), getting reelected on Dec. 2, 1966 and serving a record 10 years 1 mo. (3,684 days) (until Dec. 31, 1971) after declining a 3rd term.
On Dec. 15, 1961 after lobbying by Austalia, Colombia, Italy, Japan, and the U.S., U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 1668 is adopted by a 61-34-7 vote, deeming the issue of China representation at the U.N. so important that any proposal to change the designated representation of China will require a two-thirds majority vote.
On Dec. 20, 1961 the U.N. Gen. Assembly unanimously adopts the McCloy-Zorin Accords, conceived by Pres. Eisenhower and Pres. Kennedy, establishing a roadmap for all future negotiations and internat. treaties between the U.S. and U.S.S.R. with regard to nuclear and gen. disarmament under effective internat. control, with the ultimate aim of abolishing war as an institution, with member states supplying "agreed manpower... necessary for an international peace force".
On Jan. 15, 1962 Portugal walks out of the U.N. Gen. Assembly during a debate on Angola.
On Mar. 18, 1962 France and Algeria sign the Evian (Évian) Agreement (Accords) in Evian-les-Bains, France, ending the 7-year Algerian War, with France agreeing to pull out of Algeria, ending 132 years of French rule; on Mar. 19 an armistice in Algeria begins, ending the Algerian War of Independence (begun Nov. 1, 1954), although the OAS continues terrorist attacks against traitor Algerians, exploding a bomb on May 2, killing 110 and injuring 147 total; on Apr. 8 a nat. referendum in France approves the accords by 90%-10%; on May 20 the French begin an airlift to evacuate Europeans from Algiers; on May 29 negotiations between the OAS and FLN cause a real armistice in Algeria, which is signed on June 17; too bad, on June 18 the OAS announces that it will continue to fight; on June 30 the last French Foreign Legion troops leave Algeria; on July 1 Charles de Gaulle recognizes Algerian independence, and on July 3 the U.S. recognizes it; on July 31 Algeria declares independence; war losses since 1954 total 30K French and 1.5M Algerians; 1M Europeans are repatriated; on Sept. 15, 1963 FLN founder (1954) Mohamed Ahmed Ben Bella (1916-2012) (released from priz soon after the truce is signed, after which he uses Communist tactics to eliminate all opposition) becomes pres. #1 Algerian Socialist Repub. (until June 19, 1965), and is recognized by the U.S. on Sept. 29 even though he openly courts Commie support, and 76 FLN vets are sent to Cuba to train terrorists; longtime Algerian nationalist leader Ahmed Messali Hadj (1898-1974) tries to create a party in opposition to the FLN, and ends up in exile in Paris for life; meanwhile on Mar. 23 de Gaulle orders the French army to stage an all-out war against the French right-wing anti-independence OAS and its four leader generals, causing the arrest of gen. Edmond Jouhaud (1905-95) in Oran on Mar. 24, followed on Apr. 20 by gen. Raoul Albin Louis Salan (1899-1984) in Algiers; on Apr. 13 Jouhaud is sentenced by a military tribunal in Paris to death, followed on May 23 by Salan, who gets it reduced to life in priz, and released in 1968; politician Pierre Lagaillard (1931-), who was arrested in Madrid last Oct. is exiled to the Canary Islands, then pardoned in 1968; Jean-Jacques Susini (1933-) hides out in Italy while attempting to assassinate Charles de Gaulle, getting twice condemned to death in absentia, then returns to France after the 1968 amnesty; in June WWII Resistance leader and PM (1949-50) Gen. Georges-Augustin Bidault (1899-1983) (who claims not to belong to the OAS) is accused of conspiracy against the state and stripped of parliamentary immunity, fleeing to Brazil, followed in 1967 by Belgium, then returning to France in 1968 after an amnesty; it takes until 1999 for France to officially call the "operation to maintain order" a "war"; in 1963 the Soviets send experts to Algeria to rid it of hundreds of thousands of French land mines. On Oct. 8, 1862 new Algerian PM Ben Bella arrives in New York City for Algeria's admission into the U.N., and meets at the Dryden Hotel with Cuban pres. Osvaldo Dorticos Torrado to get some pointers, after which he denounces the U.S. to the U.N. Gen. Assembly; amazingly, Adlai E. Stevenson turns his ears off then praises him for "cutting the chains" holding the people of Algeria down, and pledging U.S. financial support; on Oct. 9 Ben Bella addresses the assembly again, proclaiming Algeria's neutrality but also announcing support for Communist nationalist movements in Africa incl. Angola, Rhodesia, South Africa, and Southwest Africa, and calling for Communist China to be admitted to the U.N.; on Oct. 12 his foreign minister Mohammed Khemisti (1930-63) addresses the assembly, calling Capitalism "inappropriate" and saying that Algeria will take the "Socialist road", praising Castro and denouncing efforts to undermine his regime as a threat to internat. peace, and backing the Soviet position on Berlin, saying the settlement must "recognize the realities of the German situation"; despite this, on Oct. 15 JFK gives Ben Bella a friendly welcome on the South Lawn of the White House (first foreign chief JFK greets there), complete with a 21-gun salute, after which he gets another 21-gun salute in Cuba on Oct 16; despite quarantining Cuba on Oct. 22, JFK goes through with $47.5M in food grains and dairy products, 11K U.S. Army tents, a 60-bed field hospital and other medical assistance, then attempts to cover it up with tricky reasoning, all tracing back to his 1957 Senate resolution for U.S. support of the FLN? - so JFK really is pink right down to his underwear?
On July 26, 1962 the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 172 to admit Rwanda; on July 26 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 173 to admit Burundi; on Sept. 12 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 174 to admit Jamaica; on sept. 11 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 175 to admit Trinidad and Tobago; on Oct. 4 it votes 11-0-1 (China) for Resolution 176 to admit Algeria; on Oct. 15 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 177 to admit Uganda.
It takes a real guy to wear pink? On Oct. 14, 1962 (Sun.) after wasting three weeks photographing the wrong end of the island despite intel reports indicating the real location, CIA U-2s detect Soviet ballistic missiles in Cuba; U.S. Air Force pilot Maj. Richard S. Heyser and CIA contract pilot James A. Barnes Jr. (1929-99) identify missile sites in separate flights; on Oct. 16 Pres. Kennedy is informed of them, beginning the Cuban Missile (Caribbean) Crisis (Scare) on Oct. 16-28 (Tue.-Sun.), forcing nuclear missiles out of Cuba only after bringing the U.S. to DEFCON 2 on Oct. 24 (until Nov. 20), and coming close to World War III; too bad, JFK fails to consult Canadian PM John G. Defenbaker before requesting Canada to put its forces on DEFCON 3 status, pissing him off; on Oct. 16 JFK recites the following verse to the State Dept. after being told of the crisis: "Bullfight critics ranked in rows/ Crowd the enormous plaza full;/ But only one is there who knows,/ And he's the man who fights the bull"; on Oct. 18 JFK meets foreign minister Andrei Andreyevich Gromyko (1909-89); on Oct. 22 (7:00 p.m. EDT) JFK announces an air and naval blockade of Cuba, with the soundbyte: "It shall be the policy of this nation to regard any nuclear missile launched from Cuba against any nation in the Western Hemisphere as an attack by the Soviet Union on the United States, requiring a full retaliatory response upon the Soviet Union"; on Oct. 23 U.S. ambassador to the U.N. (1961-5) Adlai Ewing Stevenson II (1900-65) speaks at the U.N. about the Cuba crisis; on Oct. 24 (7:06 p.m. ET) JFK signs Proclamation 3504, officially beginning the U.S. blockade of Cuba (ends ?); on Oct. 25 mouse-turned-lion Stevenson presents photographic evidence of Soviet missile bases in Cuba to the U.N. Security Council, demanding that Soviet ambassador Valerian Alexandrovich Zorin (1902-86) answer regarding Cuban missile bases, uttering the immortal mouse-that-roared soundbyte: "I am prepared to wait for my answer until Hell freezes over"; on Oct. 26 JFK warns Russia that the U.S. will not allow Soviet missiles to remain in Cuba, causing Khrushchev to send a private message offering to remove them in return for a U.S. pledge not to invade; on Oct. 27 (a.m.) Khrushchev sends a public hardliner message to JFK offering to withdraw the missiles if the U.S. closes its bases in Turkey, warning that if the U.S. attacks Cuba they will respond with massive military power, causing RFK and George McBundy to suggest the Trollope Ploy of answering the first note and ignoring the second, while making a private assurance that the bases will be closed; on Oct. 28 after receiving a telegram from Castro reading "We should deliver a nuclear first strike", causing him to tell his son Sergei "That is insane", and a warning from ABC-TV journalist John Albert Scali (1918-95) to Soviet embassy official and KGB station chief (1960-4) Col. Alexander (Aleksandr) Semyonovich Feklisov (1914-2007) that a U.S. invasion is only hours away, Khrushchev informs the U.S. that he has ordered the dismantling of the Soviet missile bases in Cuba, and on Oct. 29 Radio Moscow reports that the Cuban nukes have been deactivated, although they really start doing it on Nov. 1?; the final deal also made the U.S. pledge to not invade Cuba, as suggested by Feklisov?; the missiles were dismantled without Castro's knowledge, later pissing him off?; Khrushchev told JFK that their two countries had knotted the cord between them, and the more they pull the tighter the knot gets, and if the knot has to be cut nobody knows what will happen?; Khrushchev was in a bind, and the U.S. gave him a way out by allowing him to tell his people that he stopped the U.S. from exterminating Cuba?; JFK awards plaques to McNamara et al. with calendars that circle the dates Oct. 16-28; in Nov. Che Guevara utters the soundbyte: "If the missiles had remained, we would have fired them against the very heart of the U.S. including New York. The victory of Socialism is well worth millions of atomic victims"; in Jan. 1992 Fidel Castro tells Robert McNamara: "Of course I knew the missiles were nuclear-armed. That's precisely why I urged Khrushchev to launch them. And of course Cuba would have been utterly destroyed in the exchange"; "My dream is to drop three atomic bombs on New York City" (Raul Castro, Nov. 1960).
On Oct. 31, 1962 the U.N. Gen. Assembly asks Britain to suspend enforcement of the new racist 1961 Southern Rhodesian Constitution, but they waffle and it goes into effect on Nov. 1, after which on Nov. 6 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 1761 calls for sanctions to be imposed on pesky South Africa and its racist apartheid policies, calling on member states to discontinue economic and military relations with them.
On Mar. 4-Apr. 22, 1963 the U.N. Conference on Consular Relations is held at the Neue Hofburg in Vienna; on Apr. 18 the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations is opened for signing, providing a framework for diplomatic relations between countries, specifying the privileges of a diplomatic mission and forming the legal basis for diplomatic immunity, becoming the cornerstone of modern internat. relations; by Feb. 2017 it is ratified by 191 states; it is followed on Apr. 24, 1963 by the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, which by 2018 is ratified by 179 states.
On Oct. 21, 1963 the U.S. votes against admitting Communist China to the U.N.
On Nov. 20, 1963 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 1904 is adopted, promulgating the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, becoming a precursor to the U.N. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination (1969).
On Dec. 13, 1963 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 1962, titled "Declaration of Legal Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Uses of Outer Space" is approved, declaring that outer space is free for exploration by all states on an equal basis, that exploration and use should be carried on for the benefit of all mankind, that it is not subject to nat. appropriation by claim of sovereignty or occupation, that astronauts shall be regarded as envoys of mankind, etc.
On Dec. 16, 1963 the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 184 to admit Zanzibar; on Dec. 16 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 185 to admit Kenya.On Dec. 17, 1963 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 1991 is adopted, increasing U.N. Security Council membership to 15 and U.N. Economic and Social Council membership to 27.
On Jan. 20, 1964 Pakistan calls for an immediate meeting of the U.S. Security Council to consider the situation in Kashmir; on Jan. 24 India blames Pakistan for stirring up trouble, and asks for direct negotiations; on Feb. 17 the Security Council suspends debate on Kashmir at the request of Pakistani foreign minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
On Mar. 29, 1964 after numerous Egyptian-backed guerrilla attacks, the British RAF under Capt. Edwards attacks a fort in Yemen, killing 25, during which Edwards and Sapper John Warburton are captured and beheaded and their heads displayed in Sana'a, causing the U.N. Security Council to vote 9-0-2 (U.K., U.S.) on Apr. 9 to adopt Resolution 188 condemning it, after which PM Harold Wilson announces his intention to hand over power to the Federation of South Arabia in 1968, with the British military remaining; too bad, there are 280 guerrilla attacks this year, and 500+ next year, causing the British to announce in 1966 that all forces will be withdrawn at independence.
In Mar. 1964 the phrase "Zionism = Racism" is born at the U.N. Subcommission on the Prevention and Discrimination and the Protection of Minorities after the U.S. proposes that anti-Semitism be recognized as a form of racism, and the anti-Semitic Soviet Union counters next Oct. by reversing the equation.
On Apr. 13, 1964 the pro-white Rhodesian Front Party of Ian Douglas Smith (1919-) is elected to power in Southern Rhodesia, and he becomes PM of Southern Rhodesia (until Nov. 11, 1965, then PM of Rhodesia until June 1, 1979). On Nov. 11, 1965 the 5% white minority Repub. of Rhodesia does a United States of America and formally declares its independence from Britain via the Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI), with Ian Douglas Smith as PM #1 (until June 1, 1979); on Nov. 12 the U.N. Security Council votes 10-0-1 (France) to adopt Resolution 216, condemning the UDI as "made by a racist minority" and calling on all member states to refuse to recognize or render assistance to it; Britain, which insists on the No Independence Before Majority Rule (NIBMAR) refuses to recognize it, and on Nov. 20 the U.N. Security Council votes 10-1-1 (France) to adopt Resolution 217, calling for a boycott along with the use of force by the U.K., which Zambia (former Northern Rhodesia) supports, causing Rhodesia to deprive it of their trade route through their territory. On Dec. 18, 1965 nine states break off diplomatic relations with Britain for not using force against Rhodesia. On Dec. 28, 1965 the U.S. bans oil sales to Rhodesia. On Jan. 10, 1966 a meeting of Commonwealth heads of govt. in Lagos, Nigeria on pesky Rhodesia condemns its "political system based on racial discrimination" as "an outrageous violation of the fundamental principles of human rights" that is of "wider concern to Africa, the Commonwealth and the world", after which a committee is set up to monitor it. On Jan. 31, 1966 Britain ceases all trade with Rhodesia. On Mar. 18, 1966 the U.S. Dept. of Commerce orders economic sanctions against Rhodesia, prohibiting exports of useful items. On Apr. 7, 1966 after the British Beira Patrol muffs its interception of Greek oil tanker Joanna V headed for Beira, Rhodesia, Britain asks the U.N. Security Council for authority to use force against oil tankers violating their embargo against Rhodesia; on Apr. 9 they vote 10-0-5 (Bulgaria, France, Mali, Uruguay, U.S.S.R.) to adopt Resolution 221 aimed at blocking it, calling on U.K. to use force if necessary, but limiting the blockade to Beira and only by the Royal Navy, allowing other toil tankers with oil for Rhodesia to dock at other Mozambican ports; on May 12 the African members of the council call for the British army to blockade all of Rhodesia. On Apr. 27, 1966 the ZANU Rebellion (Second Chimurenga) (ends 1980) begins in white-run Rhodesia as the Zimbabwe African Nat. Liberation Army (ZANLA) (formed in 1965), led by Herbert Wiltshire Pfumaindini Chitepo (1923-75) battles Rhodesian forces, who kill seven ZANLA men. On July 12, 1966 Zambia threatens to leave the British Commonwealth over its peace overtures to Rhodesia, causing Rhodesia to cut off its trade route, after which the U.S., Britain, and Canada organize an airlift to ship gasoline into Zambia; next year Britain agrees to finance new trade routes for Zambia. In Sept. 1966 a 2nd meeting of Commonwealth heads on Rhodesia (first in Jan.) is held, issuing a communique supporting Britain's objections to using force, which Tanzanian pres. Julius Nyerere refuses to sign. On Nov. 5, 1966 38 African states demand that Britain use force against Rhodesia. On Dec. 2, 1966 British PM Harold Wilson negotiates with Rhodesian PM Ian Smith on the HMS Tiger in the Mediterranean, agreeing to black majority rule within 15 years; too bad, the British govt. rejects the agreement on Dec. 5,, and appeals on Dec. 6 for U.N. sanctions. On Dec. 16, 1966 the U.N. Security Council approves an oil embargo against Rhodesia, and adopts the Internat. Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Internat. Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; on Dec. 17 South Africa refuses to participate, causing British PM Harold Wilson on Dec. 20 to withdraw all his offers to Rhodesia and announce that he will only agree to independence after a black majority govt. is founded; Portugal also refuses to participate. On Feb. 27-Mar. 4, 1967 the Org. of African Unity (OAU) meets, urging the use of force to end South Africa's mandate over South-West Africa (Namibia) and topple the Ian Smith regime in Rhodesia.
On Oct. 9, 1964 the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 195 to admit Malawi; on Oct. 30 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 196 to admit Malta; on Oct. 30 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 197 to admit Zambia.
Sukarno no, Suharto go? On Jan. 2, 1965 after getting pissed-off at the seating of its neighbor enemy Malaysia on the U.N. Security Council, Indonesia becomes the first nation to withdraw from the U.N. (resuming membership next year after a peace agreement), and on Mar. 19 it nationalizes all foreign oil cos.; on Sept. 30-Oct. 1 a coup by junior military officers in Jakarta kills six generals, and is crushed by Pres. Sukarno, after which Java-born Muslim Gen. Suharto (Soeharto) (1921-2008) stages a military coup against Sukarno, becoming pres. #2 of Indonesia on Mar. 12, 1967 (until May 21, 1998); on Oct. 20 Suharto begins mass arrests of Communists after blaming them for the coup, outlawing the Communist Party then massacring 500K-1M peasants, workers, students and activists by next year, with the CIA furnishing 5K names of Communist leaders, while using his Golkar Party (founded Oct. 20, 1964) to rule with an iron hand, proclaiming the New Order (ends 1998), banning celebration of the Chinese New Year and other Chinese culture in an effort to force assimilation of mainly rich Chinese Indonesians (5% of the pop.); Indonesian leftist writer Pramoedya Ananta Toer (1925-2006), known for being sympathetic to the Indonesian Chinese is imprisoned on Buru Island without charges until 1979, then kept under house arrest until 1992; in 1979 his 4-part novel Buru Quartet is pub., getting banned by the govt. and making him a poster boy for human rights and free speech advocates; the 1983 Mel Gibson film "The Year of Living Dangerously" is set in the 1965 Indonesian civil war.
On Mar. 15, 1965 the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0- for Resolution 200 to admit Gambia; on Sept. 20 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 212 to admit Maldives; on Sept. 20 it votes 11-0-0 for Resolution 213 to admit Singapore.
On July 28, 1965 after being nominated by Pres. Johnson, liberal assoc. justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (since Sept. 28, 1962) Arthur Joseph Goldberg (1908-90) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #6 (until June 24, 1968), laboring under an exaggerated opinion of his abilities to end the Vietnam War, along with the expectation of being reappointed to the court and/or backed as the first Jewish pres. of the U.S., with the soundbyte: "I thought I could persuade Johnson that we were fighting the wrong war in the wrong place."
On Aug. 5, 1965 the undeclared Indo-Pakistani (Kashmir) War of 1965 (ends Sept. 23) begins with India charging Pakistan with infiltrating with irregulars, after which on Aug. 6 Indian forces cross the ceasefire line in an offensive toward Lahore, winning their first major mountain battle on Aug. 14-15, after which the Pakistanis counterattack around Tithwal, Uri, and Punch, causing an Indian thrust into Azad Kashmir, capturing the key pass of Haji Pir 5 mi. inside the Pakistan border; on Sept. 1-19 72 Pakistani tanks and two infantry brigades counterattack in Punjab, catching the Indians unprepared and causing heavy losses, causing Indian air counterattacks, which Pakistan copies on Sept. 2, followed on Sept. 6 by a paratrooper raid of Punjab; on Sept. 4 the U.N. Security Council unanimously adopts Resolution 209, calling for a ceasefire and cooperation with the U.N. Military Observer Group in Pakistan; on Sept. 6 the U.N. Security Council unanimously adopts Resolution 210 calling for a ceasefire in Kashmir, on Sept. 8 Britain bans arms supplies to India, while the U.S. lends military aid to both sides, despite a Pakistani loan agreement with Communist China; on Sept. 20 the U.N. Security Council votes to approve Resolution 211 calling for a ceasefire on Sept. 22 at 07:00 GMT, with both sides withdrawing to their pre-Aug. 5 positions, which is accepted by both sides by Sept. 22, and marked by frequent violations for months, with India having control of two-thirds of Kashmir, after a total of 3K Indians and 3.8K Pakistanis are KIA.
On Dec. 16, 1965 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 2065 is adopted by 94-0-14, recognizing the existence of a sovereignty dispute between the U.K. and Argentina over the Falkland Islands, with U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 1514 calling for the elimination of all forms of colonialism applying, inviting the parties to find a peaceful solution taking into consideration the wishes of the inhabitants.
On Dec. 21, 1965 the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) is opened for signing, establishing the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination; it goes into force on Jan. 4, 1969; by Jan. 2018 it has 88 signatories and 179 parties.
On June 21, 1966 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 223 to admit Guyana; on Oct. 14 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 224 to admit Botswana; on Oct. 14 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 225 to admit Lesotho; on Dec. 7 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 230 to admit Barbados.
On Nov. 17, 1966 the U.N. founds the U.N. Industrial Development Org. (ONUDI), with HQ in Vienna, Austria to promote and accelerate industrial development in developing countries - to spend U.S. money on the Third World?
On Dec. 16, 1966 the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0-4 (Bulgaria, France, Mali, U.S.S.R.) to adopt Security Resolution 232, approving an embargo against Rhodesia of asbestos, iron ore, pig iron, chrome, sugar, tobacco, copper, animal products, oil and oil products, arms, ammo, military vehicles and aircraft, and equipment and material for the manufacture of arms and ammo, and adopts the Internat. Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Internat. Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; on Dec. 17 South Africa refuses to participate, causing British PM Harold Wilson on Dec. 20 to withdraw all his offers to Rhodesia and announce that he will only agree to independence after a black majority govt. is founded; Portugal also refuses to participate.
In 1966 the U.N. passes two Internat. Human Rights Covenants and presents them to the U.S. for signing, but the latter cites Cold War concerns and refuses (one of them is ratified in 1992); meanwhile the U.S. is busy propping up repressive regimes around the world merely because they claim to be anti-Communist: Bolivia, Chile, Guatemala, Haiti, Iran, Liberia, Pakistan, Paraguay, Somalia, South Africa, South Korea, South Vietnam, Sudan, Zaire et al. The U.N. adds four 2-year-term non-permanent seats to the U.N. Security Council to go with the five permanent seats (U.S., Soviet Union, U.K., France, Taiwan); in 1971 Red China replaces Taiwan, and in 1991 the Russian Federation replaces the Soviet Union.
On Aug. 24, 1967 the U.S. and Soviet Union finally submit identical texts of a proposed nuclear non-proliferation treaty to the U.N.
On Oct. 10, 1967 after being ratified on May 19 by the Soviet Union, the Treaty of Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies AKA the Outer Space Treaty (signed on Jan. 27 by the U.S., U.K., and Soviet Union) enters into force; by July 2017 107 countries incl. the Repub. of China (Taiwan) are party to the treaty, and another 23 have signed but not completed ratification.
On Nov. 7, 1967 the U.N. Gen. Assembly adopts the Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, declaring discrimination against women "fundamentally unjust and constitutes an offence against human dignity", calling for abolition of discriminatory laws and customs, becoming a precursor to the 1979 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.
On Nov. 22, 1967 (JFK Assassination Day) the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 to approve Resolution 242, calling for Israel to withdraw from territories it captured in the Six-Day War, an end to belligerency, and recognition of the right of every state in the area "to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries", while implicitly calling on adversaries to recognize Israel's right to exist; U.S. ambassador #6 to the U.N. (since July 28, 1965) Arthur Joseph Goldberg (1908-90) (drafter of the resolution) utters the soundbyte: "I never described Jerusalem as occupied territory... Resolution 242 in no way refers to Jerusalem, and this omission was deliberate", and "It can be inferred from the incorporation of the words secure and recognized boundaries that the territorial adjustments to be made by the parties in their peace settlements could encompass less than a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from occupied territories"; the principle of land for peace becomes the basis of all future peace agreements between Israel and the Arabs until ?
On Dec. 12, 1967 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 243 to admit Yemen.
Let's forget the past, or, Your mouth, mouth, mouth? Czechoslovakia plays cat and mouse with the Soviet Bear and gets eaten? On Jan. 5, 1968 the Prague Spring begins when Leonid Brezhnev replaces repressive (since 1957) Antonin Novotny (1904-75) as first secy. of the Czech Communist Party with indubitably liberal Alexander Dubcek (1921-92) (until Apr. 17, 1969); on Mar. 22 Dubcek announces liberal dem. reforms to implement "Socialism with a human face"; on Mar. 30 (as a hedge or a cover-story?); Moravian-born Communist hardliner war hero Ludvik Svoboda (1895-1979) is elected Czech pres. #8 (until May 28, 1975), then on Apr. 7 centrist fuel minister (son of a miner) Oldrich Cernik (1921-94) becomes PM (until Jan. 28, 1970); on Apr. 19 the secy. of the nat. assembly promises rehabilitation of political prisoners and freedom of the press, assembly and religion, and on June 27 does as promised; both Dubcek and Svoboda turn down invites to conferences in Moscow and Warsaw, although they receive support from Tito of Yugoslavia and Ceausescu of Romania - what's that creaking noise on the frontier?
On Apr. 18, 1968 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 249 to admit Mauritius; on Sept. 11 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 257 to admit Swaziland; on Nov. 6 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 260 to admit Equatorial Guinea.
On May 29, 1968 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 to adopt Resolution 253, blockading Southern Rhodesia and requesting member nations to end trade and travel relations, condemning the recent "inhuman executions carried out by the illegal regime in Southern Rhodesia which have flagrantly affronted the conscience of mankind."
On June 26, 1968 Des Moines, Iowa-born former undersecy. of state for economic affairs in the Kennedy admin. (1961-8) George Wildman Ball (1909-94), known for Ball's Rule of Power "Nothing propinks like propinquity", and who was called crazy by JFK for suggesting that the Vietnamese War one day might need up to 300K troops, then helped overthrow Pres. Ngo Dinh Diem replaces resigning Arthur J. Goldberg as U.S. ambassador to the U.N. #7 (until Sept. 25), becoming known for his pro-Israel quotes incl. "Until 1956, Americans treated Israel not much differently from other friendly states", "Yet the wonder of it all is that, while engaged in a seemingly endless struggle, the Israelis have managed to turn a desert into a garden"; "Most Americans approach the problems of the Middle East with a pro-Israeli bias, and rightly so", "Not only must Americans admire Israel, there can be no doubt that we have an interest in, and special responsibility for, that valiant nation", and "The question is no longer whether the United States should contribute to assuring Israel's survival and prosperity; that goes without saying."
On July 1, 1968 the U.S., Britain, and U.S.S.R. sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons), drafted by Alfonso Garcia Robles of Mexico, pledging to refrain from helping any non-nuclear country get nukes; 59 other nations soon sign it, with France and Communist China holding out until 1992, and India, Pakistan, and Israel holding out until ?; the Soviet invasion of Czech. causes the U.S. Senate to delay ratification until Mar. 5, 1970, and in 1995 the 174-nation U.N. votes to extend it indefinitely - are you ready for hearts on fire?
Every spring the toilets explode? Prague Spring yes, Hungarian Summer no? On Aug. 20, 1968 (night) fearing a Hungarian-copycat rev., the Soviets announce new military maneuvers along the Czech border, and in the early hours of Aug. 20/21 200K forces (incl. 5K tanks) of the Warsaw Pact (Soviet Union, Bulgaria, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, but not Romania) stage the 1968 Czech Invasion (AKA Operation Danube) to prevent the new govt. of Alexander Dubcek from carrying out promised dem. reforms; Dubcek and other members of the Czech Presidium incl. PM Oldrich Cernik are arrested to take them to the Kremlin (Dubcek is making a phone call, and Russian parachutists tear the phone from his hands and cut the cord); occupation forces are increased to 650K; Hollywood child star Shirley Temple Black (1928-) is in Prague during the invasion, and leads the first car of a convoy of Westerners to the Czech border; after PC pres. Ludvik Svoboda lobbies on their behalf, the arrested leaders return to Prague on Aug. 27 and announce reversal of their reforms, then on Aug. 28 Slovak anti-reform deputy PM Gustav Husak (1913-91) takes over from duped Czech, er, Dubcek as first secy. of the Czech Communist Party, taking office next Apr. 17 (until Dec. 12, 1987); after Soviet foreign minister Adm. Nikolai Gerasimovich Kuznetsov (1904-74) arrives in Prague, Dubcek bans political clubs on Sept. 6, Czech authorities introduce a censorship system on Sept. 13, and the foreign minister who presented the Czech case at the U.N. resigns under pressure on Sept. 19; Soviet writer Vladimir Emelyanovich Maximov (originally Lev Alekseyvich Samsonov) (1930-95) resigns as ed. of the Communist lit. journal Oktyabr to protest the Czech invasion. On Aug. 23the Soviet Union casts its 105th U.N. Security Council veto to block a resolution condemning its own invasion of Czech.
On Oct. 7, 1968 after being appointed by lame duck Pres. Johnson, Luverne, Minn.-born managing ed. of The Washington Post (since 1947) James Russell Wiggins (1903-2000) (known for ending racial IDs in news articles) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #8 (until Jan. 20, 1969), replacing George W. Ball, who resigned on Sept. 25 to advise Hubert H. Humphrey on foreign policy.
On Nov. 1, 1968 the U.N. Gen. Assembly elects Colombia, Finland, Nepal, Spain, and Zambia to replace Brazil, Denmark, India, Canada, and Ethiopia on the U.N. Security Council in 1969-71.
On Dec. 26, 1968 Arab terrorists fire on an Israeli airliner in Athens, killing one passenger; on Dec. 28 Israeli heli-borne commandos retaliate by bombing Beirut Internat. Airport, destroying 13 Lebanese airliners; on Dec. 31 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 262 condemning Israel for the attack.
On Jan. 23, 1969 after being appointed by Pres. Nixon, Watertown, N.Y.-born Dem. diplomat Charles Woodruff Yost (1907-81) (ambassador to Thailand in 1946, Laos in 1954-6, Syria in 1958, and Morocco in 1958-61) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #9 (until Feb. 25, 1971), resigning to concentrate on writing, visiting Red China in 1973 and 1977 and becoming co-chmn. of Americans for Salt II in 1979.
In May 1969 Britain promulgates a new 1969 Gibraltar Constitution for Gibraltar (ceded from Spain in 1713), declaring defiance of Spanish pressure for its return; on June 8 Spain closes its border with Gibraltar, keeping 4,730 Spanish workers from going to their jobs there; Britain fails to comply with a U.N. request to end the situation by Oct. 1, and Spain cuts telephone links and sends a small fleet to demonstrate outside the harbor; on June 8 Gen. Franco closes Spain's frontier with Gibraltar.
On Sept. 16, 1969 the 24th U.N. Gen. Assembly convenes, and Angie Elizabeth Brooks (1928-2007) of Liberia is elected pres., becoming the 2nd woman and 1st African woman in the post, taking office on Jan. 1, 1970 (until Dec. 17).
On Sept. 22-25, 1969 an Islamic conference in Rabat, Morocco, caused by the Al-Aqsa Mosque fire of Aug. 21 condemns the Israeli ownership of Jerusalem, and results in the formation of the 57-member Org. of the Islamic Conference (OIC) (Org. of Islamic Criminals?), which becomes the 2nd largest inter-govt. body after the U.N.; its flag is green (Islam's color), with a red crescent Moon in a white disc with the legend "Allahu Akbar" (Allah is the Greatest).
On Dec. 12, 1969 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 243 to admit Yemen.
In 1969 former "Wee Willie Winkie" child star Shirley Jane Temple Black (1928-2014) is named by Pres. Nixon as a member of the U.S. delegation to the U.N. under ambassador Charles W. Yost, going on to become U.S. ambassador to Ghana #9 in 1974-6, chief of protocol of the U.S. #18 in 1976-7, and U.S. ambassador to Czech. in 1989-92.
On Feb. 15, 1970 nationalists disrupt a U.N. session on the Congo.
On Mar. 17, 1970 the U.S. casts its first veto in the U.N. Security Council, killing a resolution that would have condemned Britain for failure to use force to overthrow the white-ruled govt. of Rhodesia.
On Apr. 22, 1970 (Lenin's birthday) the U.S. environmental movement is born with the first Earth Day, proposed in 1969 by UNESCO and founded by U.S. Sen. (D-Wisc.) (1963-81) and former Wisc. gov. #35 (1959-63) Gaylord Anton Nelson (1916-2005), organized by the Earth Week Committee of Philadelphia, Penn., and celebrated in the U.S. by 22M people with demonstrations against pollution of Spaceship Earth (coined by Adlai E. Stevenson) amid herds of massive leaded-gas-slurping V8 sedans, a nation filled with smoky industrial smokestacks, and a coverup of a fuel rod meltdown at the Savannah River Nuclear Plant near Aiken, S.C. (acknowleged in 1988); the idea was first proposed in 1969 by Davis City, Iowa-born John McConnell (1915-2012) (designer of the Earth Flag) to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, then coordinated by environmental activist Denis Allen Hayes (1944-), and supported by U Thant, Margaret Mead et al.; meanwhile on Jan. 14-23 Nelson goes for a double and holds the Nelson Hearings on the safety of combined oral contraceptive pills, resulting in the first side-effect disclosure for a pharmaceutical drug in the U.S.; too bad, zany incorrect predictions are made, incl. "Population will inevitably and completely outstrip whatever small increases in food supplies we made, the death rate will increase until at least 100-200 million people per year will be starving to death during the next ten years (Stanford U. biologist Paul Ehrlich); "Air pollution... is certainly going to take hundreds of thousands of lives in the next few years alone" (Ehrlich); "Civilization will end within 15 or 30 years unless immediate action is taken against problems facing mankind" Harvard biologist George Wald); "In a decade urban dwellers will have to wear gas masks to survive air pollution... By 1985 air pollution will have reduced the amount of sunlight reaching Earth by one half" (Life mag.); "By the year 2000, if present trends continue, we will be using up crude oil at such a rate... that there won't be any more crude oil. You'll drive up to the pump and say, 'Fill 'er up, buddy', and he'll say, "I am very sorry, there isn't any'" (ecologist Kenneth Watt).
On Oct. 10, 1970 the South Pacific island group of Fiji declares independence after 96 years of British rule; on Oct. 10 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 287 to admit Fiji.
On Oct. 24, 1970 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 2625 is adopted, titled "The Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Co-operation among States", commemorating the 25th anniv. of the U.N., defining the most authoritative and comprehensive formulation of the principle of self-determination, with the soundbyte: "The principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations" embraces the right of all peoples "freely to determine, without external interference, their political status and to pursue their economic, social and cultural development" as well as the duty of every State "to respect this right in accordance with the provisions of the Charter; it adds: "The establishment of a sovereign and independent State, the free association or integration with an independent State, or the emergence into any other political status freely determined by a people constitute modes of implementing the right of self-determination", stressing as the critical issue the methods of reaching the decision rather than the result.
On Dec. 11, 1970 Pres. Nixon announces the appointment of not-a-CIA-man-not George Herbert Walker Bush as a U.S. delegate to the U.N.
On Dec. 17, 1970 the U.N. Gen. Assembly's 24th session is adjourned by new pres. Angie E. Brooks with an appeal for peace - a kiss, a smile, and perfume?
On Feb. 10, 1971 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 292 to admit Bhutan; on Aug. 18 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 296 to admit Bahrain; on Sept. 15 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 297 to admit Qatar; on Sept. 30 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 299 to admit Oman; on Dec. 8 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 304 to admit the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
On Mar. 1, 1971 after being appointed by Pres. Nixon and unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Milton, Mass.-born U.S. Rep. (R-Tex.) (since Jan. 3, 1967) George Herbert Walker Bush (1924-) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #10 (until Jan. 3, 1971).
Muslim Pakistan, split in two by Hindu India finally becomes two Muslim nations with India's help? On Mar. 1, 1971 Pakistani pres. Agha Mohammad Yahya Khan postpones the opening of the country's first popularly elected nat. assembly over a disagreement over the proposed new all-Pakistan constitution; meanwhile after the Bengal-based Awani League wins 167 of 313 seats, a revolt in East Pakistan simmers, with widespread riots and strikes; on Mar. 7 Bengali Sheik Mujibur Rahman (1920-75) of the Awami League gives a historic speech at the Race Course Ground in Dhaka (Dacca) before 1M, calling for civil disobedience and armed resistance, resulting in murders of non-Bengalis, pissing-off Yahya Khan, who calls him a traitor and on Mar. 25 orders the army sent in under bloody Operation Searchlight, which becomes known for systematically raping hundreds of thousands of Bengali women to make them unmarriageable, causing many suicides, assisted by the fanatical local Muslim paramilitary Razakars (Pers. "volunteers"), who consider that dismemberment of "Pure" Muslim Pakistan would be an offense against Islam itself; on Mar. 26 (midnight) East Pakistan proclaims independence, and Rahman is arrested and hauled off to Faisalabad (Lyallpur), West Pakistan (until Jan. 8, 1972), beginning the Bangladesh Liberation War (ends Dec. 17); on Apr. 25 the new bang-a-dish country takes the name Bengali Dish, er, Bangladesh ("Country of Bengal") (modern pop. 150M) (#7 most populous country on Earth), with capital at Dhaka (Dacca) (modern pop. 6.7M/12.3M) on the Buriganga River, known as the "the City of Mosques", with 90% of the country being Muslims (96% Sunni, 3% Shiite), and 9% Hindus; despite an Apr. 2 plea from the U.S., Soviet Union and other nations to settle it peacefully, Indian-Pakistani troops clash along the East Pakistani frontier on Apr. 24-25; 200K-3M East Bengalis are eventually killed in the fighting, while 8M-10M refugees flee to India; on Aug. 1 (7:00 p.m.) (Sun.) the Concert for Bangladesh is held by ex-Beatle George Harrison in Madison Square Garden in New York City, with help from Bob Dylan, Ravi Shankar, Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr, Billy Preston, Leon Russell, Badfinger et al., to a crowd of 40K, becoming the first large benefit concert in history; it raises $243,418.51, which is administered by UNICEF, after which sales of the triple album and concert film bring in more bucks; on Dec. 6 after failing to come to an agreement, the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0-4 for Resolution 303 (France, Poland, U.K., U.S.S.R.) referring the matter to the U.N. Gen. Assembly; meanwhile the Pakistani govt. begins persecuting the 5K-sq.-mi. Chittagong Hill Tracts, committing genocidal acts against its mainly Buddhist pop. while attempting to resettle the area with Bengalis, killing 10K in 1980-97.
On Aug. 2, 1971 after 20 years of opposition the U.S. Dept. of State ("Foggy Bottom") announces support for the U.N. membership of the Communist People's Repub. of China - a real booty exercise?
On Oct. 25, 1971 over the objection of the U.S. by a 76-35 vote (17 abstentions), U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 2758 recognizes the People's Repub. of China (PRC) (Red China) as the sole lawful representative to the U.N.; they also vote "to expel forthwith the representatives of Chang Kai-shek from the place which they unlawfully occupy at the United Nations"; on Nov. 15 the PRC is seated at the U.N. for the first time, taking the Repub. of China's seat on the U.N. Security Council.
On Nov. 29, 1971 the U.N. sponsors its first annual Internat. Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People to mark the Nov. 29, 1947 date when the gen. assembly approved its partition resolution (ends ?); Kofi Annan later calls Nov. 29 a "day of mourning and a day of grief".
On Dec. 8, 1971 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 to admit the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
On Dec. 10, 1971 on U.N. Human Rights Day the Soviet Union places 20 prominent dissidents under house arrest, cutting off telephones and threatening to break up a planned silent demonstration in Moscow's Pushkin Square.
On Dec. 21, 1971 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 306 to appoint crypto-Nazi Kurt Josef Waldheim (1918-2007), Austria's permanent rep. to the U.N. to succeed U Thant as U.N. secy.-gen. #4; he takes office on Jan. 1, 1972 (until Dec. 31, 1981).
The U.N. designates 1972 as the Internat. Year of the Book.
On Mar. 3, 1972 the Red Chinese ambassador to the U.N. lays claim to Hong Kong, Macao, and the uninhabited Senkalu Islands (contested with Japan); another Chinese U.N. delegate charges Japan with expansionism.
On Apr. 10, 1972 the Biological and Toxic Weapons Convention, the world's first multilateral disarmament treaty banning production and use of an entire category of weapons (supplementing the 1925 Geneva Protocol) is opened for signatures by the U.S., Soviet Union, and 70 other nations, to come into effect on Mar. 26, 1975; by June 2000 144 states sign, incl. all five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council; too bad, there is no mechanism for monitoring compliance.
On June 5-6, 1972 after the Soviet Union dissolves in 1991, ending the balance of powers era of internat. relations, and 152 experts from 58 countries submit data for the report "Only One Earth: The Care and Maintenance of a Small Planet", the U.N. Conference on the Human Environment of reps. from 114 nations (with the slogan "Only One Earth") meets in Stockholm, Sweden, and agrees on 200 points regarding environmental improvement, proclaiming a declaration of 26 principles on June 16, and agreeing to a Global Governance Agenda, with a plan for a permanent secretariat to coordinate progress; China insists that pop. is not a world problem; China and France insist on the right to stage atmospheric nuclear tests; the U.S. refuses to spend money on internat. environmental problems; the U.N. founds the U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP) in Nairobi, Kenya (first U.N. agency with HQ in the Third World), with Socialist Canadian oil exec ("Father of the Global Environmental Movement") Maurice Frederick Strong (1929-2015) (member of the Malthusian Club of Rome) as dir. #1 (until 1976), who utters the soundbyte: "We may get to the point where the only way of saving the world will be for industrial civilization to collapse"; too bad, his real agenda is pop. reduction via abortion et al., fueled by his devotion to New Age pagan religion, run from the New Age Manitou Centre on the 200K-acre Baca Ranch near Crestone, Colo. (founded 1978), which spawns several other pagan centers; in 1992 Strong becomes chmn. of Ontario Hydro, going on to destroy Ontario's economy, taking it from the top performer among Canada's provinces to the bottom; the UNEP goes on to underpin the U.N. effort to use CO2-driven global warming as the excuse for massive transfer of wealth from wealthy to poor countries; "What's truly alarming about Maurice Strong is his actual record. Strong's persistent calls for an international mobilization to combat environmental calamities, even when they are exaggerated (population growth) or scientifically unproven (global warming), have set the world's environmental agenda" (Neil Hrab); "Strong was using the U.N. as a platform to sell a global environment crisis and the Global Governance Agenda" (Elaine Dewar).
On Dec. 18, 1972 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 3010 is adopted, declaring 1975 as the Internat. Women's Year; on Dec. 10, 1974 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 3275 is adopted, declaring 1975 as a period of intensified action with regard to equal rights and recognition of women.
On Feb. 20, 1973 Canton, Ohio-born ABC-TV journalist John Albert Scali (1918-95) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #11 (until June 29, 1975).
On June 22, 1973 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 335 to admit East and West Germany; on July 18 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 336 to admit the Bahamas.
Drop your matzohs, it's time to fight again? The U.S. backing of Israel causes a 2nd mini-Armageddon after the first one in 1967 didn't phase it, and this time it feels it? The definition of intelligence failure? On Oct. 6, 1973 (Sat.) (Yom Kippur) (2:00 p.m.) after Saudia Arabia and the other OPEC nations double the price of oil to $3.07 a barrel and cut back production, and Libya nationalizes foreign-owned oil assets, and Egyptian troops stage a fake drill on May 27 to lull the Israelis into complacency, and on Sept. 13 Israel shoots down 13 Syrian fighter jets after being attacked first, causing Egypt and Syria to have an excuse to put their armies on alert on Oct. 1, which the Israelis underestimate, Egypt and Syria start the Yom Kippur (Ramadan) (October) (Fourth Arab-Israeli) War (ends Oct. 25) with Israel to regain the Sinai and the Golan Heights "like the wolf on the fold" (Lord Byron) a 1.2K-tank 50K-man Syrian army, supported by counter-battery artillery fire and a Soviet-made SAM-6 network attacks Israel's Purple Line (180 tanks) on the Golan Heights, outnumbering the two Israeli brigades, the 7th on the N and the Barak (Thunderbolt) on the S by 9-1; under the leadership of Lt. Col. (later brig. gen.) Avigdor Kahalani (1944-) the Barak Brigade is broken in the "Valley of Tears" and the Syrians race towards the Sea of Galilee, but are turned back on Oct. 7; meanwhile on Oct. 6-8 Egyptian tanks cross the Bar-Lev Line and establish a bridgehead on the E bank of the Suez Canal, but are stopped and turned back by Oct. 11 despite the arrival of Iraqi reinforcements after anti-tank and other weapons are rushed in by the U.S.; on Oct. 12 the Israelis push to within 18 mi. of Damascus; on Oct. 13 Jordanian troops arrive to defend Damascus; on Oct. 14 Israeli tanks rout the Egyptian army, destroying 250 Egyptian tanks while losing only 25 of their own; on Oct. 15 Israeli tanks under Gen. Ariel Sharon (who resigned from the army in July to form the right-wing Likud Party, and is recalled) cross to the W bank of the canal and fight the Battle of the Chinese Farm (ends Oct. 17), and poise to encircle the Egyptian Third Army, while on Oct. 15 Moscow announces that it will assist the Egyptians "in every way" to regain the territory lost in 1967; on Oct. 16 after Pres. Nixon forgets his anti-Semitism and asks Congress to authorize emergency aid for Israel, and Saudi oil minister (1962-86) Ahmed Zaki Yamani (1930-) spurs it to quadruple the price of crude, OPEC announces the Second Arab Oil Embargo (ends Mar. 18, 1974) (first in 1967) to the U.S. and other countries supporting Israel, raising the price of oil another 70% to $5.11 a barrel, which Arab ministers agree to on Oct. 17, agreeing to cut production in 5% increments until their objectives are met; over the opposition of defense secy. James Schlesinger and state secy. Henry Kissinger, who tries to delay it for fear of offending the Russians, with the soundbyte: "We are going to get blamed just as much for three planes as for three hundred... Use every [plane] we have, everything that will fly", Nixon bulldogs Operation Nickel Grass into high gear, flying 567 airlift missions that deliver 22K tons of supplies, plus another 90K tons by sea; upon hearing of the airlift, Israeli PM Golda Meir cries; meanwhile on Oct. 17 four Arab foreign ministers meet with Pres. Nixon in Washington, D.C. to urge mediation; on Oct. 17 Soviet PM Alexei Kosygin meets with Anwar Sadat in Cairo, and on Oct. 19 Nixon publicly proposes a $2.2B military aid package for Israel, ccausing Libya, Saudi Arabia and the other Arab states to join the embargo by Oct. 20, and after Netherland is added to the embargoed nations, oil prices rise to $12 a barrel, triggering recessions and inflation that last until the early 1980s, with oil prices continuing to rise until 1986; on Oct. 20 Henry Kissinger meets in Moscow with Leonid Brezhnev, uttering the soundbyte "The Arabs can get guns from the Russians, but they can get their territory back only from us"; on Oct. 22 the joint U.S.-Soviet Resolution 338 calling for a ceasefire receives a 14-0-0 (China) vote in the U.N. Security Council, but fighting resumes 12 hours later, and on Oct. 23 they vote 14-0-1 (China) for Resolution 339, calling for a new ceasefire to be agreed by Israel and Egypt on Oct. 24; on Oct. 25 the U.S. Nat. Security Council votes 14-0-1 (China) for Resolution 340 demanding a ceasefire and a return to positions occupied on Oct. 22 at 16:50 GMT, setting up a U.N. Emergency Force II (UNEF II) (ends July 1979), with permanent council members excluded, causing the U.S. to put its forces on precautionary alert while Nixon is moping about the Watergate affair, but after the U.S. detects plutonium on Soviet ships in the Mediterranean and fears Soviet intervention, Nixon calls Brezhnev on the Hot Line and negotiates a mutual pullback, causing the ceasefire to hold after 18 days of fighting, ending the war on Oct. 25 with 7.5K Egyptians, 7.3K Syrians, and 4.1K Israelis KIA; on Oct. 7 at 3:55 a.m. Operation Joshua (arming an A-4 Skyhawk jet with nuclear-tipped missiles?) is ordered at an Israeli AF base in Beersheba, but countermanded?; after Syrian missile batteries in Lebanon take a heavy toll on their fighter jets, Israel develops the first modern unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV); on Nov. 21 the Israeli Agranat Commission convenes to investigate why the military wasn't prepared for the invasion, and ends up blaming chief of staff (1972-4) Gen. David "Dado" Elazar (1925-76), even though military intel chief Eli Zeira and defense minister Moshe Dayan blocked his requests for a callup of reserves on Oct. 5 plus a preemptive air strike at 11:00 a.m. on Oct. 6, causing him to soon die of a heart attack (broken heart?) - what did Churchill say you get when you put the bravest military heroes at a table together, the sum of their fears?
On June 10, 1974 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 351 to admit Bangladesh; on June 21 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 352 to admit Grenada; on Aug. 12 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 356 to admit Guinea-Bissau.
On Nov. 13, 1974 the U.N. Question of Palestine Debate features PLO chmn. Yasser Arafat (1929-2004) (picked by an Arab summit over King Hussein I of Jordan) addressing the U.N. Gen. Assembly wearing a fatigue uniform complete with pistol, giving a speech calling for "one democratic state" to replace Israel, after which Israeli chief delegate Yosef "Joe" Tekoah (1926-91) denounces his speech; on Nov. 22 the U.N. by 89-8-37 adopts U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 3236 and U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 3237, recognizing "the right of the Palestinian people to regain its rights by all means in accordance with the purposes and principles of the U.N. Charter", and giving the PLO status as their rep, with U.N. observer status; European Community countries support the continued existence of Israel; meanwhile left-wing secular Palestinian radical rejectionist (rejecting a peaceful settlement with Israel) Abu Nidal (Arab. "Father of the Struggle") (real name Sabri Khalil al-Banna) (1937-2002) founds the Abu Nidal ("father of struggle") Org. (ANO) after being expelled from Yasser Arafat's Fatah faction in the PLO in Mar., going on to orchestrate random cruelty attacks in 20 countries that kill or injure 900+, calling himself "the Father of Jihad", with the soundbyte "I am the evil spirit of the secret services. I am the evil spirit which moves around only at night causing them nightmares" - love stinks?
On Dec. 14, 1974 after U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 2330 of Dec. 1967 established the 35-member Special Committee on the Question of Defining Aggression, U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 3314 is adopted, proposing a non-binding recommendation to the U.N. Security Council on the definition of the crime of aggression.
On Jan. 1, 1975 begins the U.N. Internat. Women's Year, which declares 1976-85 as the U.N. Decade for Women; on Jan. 10 Uganda sends Bernadette Olowo to Rome as the first female envoy to the Vatican; on Jan. 15 it is launched in Britain by Princess Alexandra; on Mar. 8 the U.N. begins celebrating Internat. Women's Day; on June 19-July 2 the U.N. World Conference on Women is held in Mexico City to celebrate it; on Dec. 15 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 3520 passes, adopting the World Plan of Action and other resolutions from the conference.
On June 19-July 2, 1975 the World Conference of the Internat. Women's Year is held in Mexico City, Mexico; on July 2 the Declaration of Mexico on the Equality of Women and Their Contribution to Development and Peace is adopted by the U.N. Gen. Assembly.
On June 30, 1975 after being appointed by Pres. Ford, Tulsa, Okla.-born U.S. ambassador to India (since Feb. 28, 1973) Daniel Patrick Moynihan (1927-2003) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #12 (until Feb. 2, 1976), going on to become a vocal critic of U.N. Security Council Resolution 3379 declaring Zionism to be racism, making him a star, despite pissing-off Henry Kissinger, who accuses him of confusing foreign policy with a synagogue; he also shamelessly panders Pres. Ford's line that since Indonesia is a key ally against Communism, their 1975 invasion of East Timor is okay, successfully preventing U.N. Security Council action.
The original Dili Dili? On July 17, 1975 86% Muslim Indonesia seals its occupation of 97% Roman Catholic East Timor (a half-island 1.2K mi. from Jakarta and 400 mi. from Australia) with a formal annexation; on Aug. 11 a civil war between the UDT and Fretilin causes gov. Mario Lemos Pires to flee the capital Dili; on Nov. 28 Portuguese colonial rule collapses, and East Timor proclaims independence; on Dec. 5 U.S. secy. of state Henry Kissinger leaves Indonesia after visiting with pres. Suharto and giving tacit approval to a Dec. 7 invasion of East Timor by Indonesia (ends July 17, 1976), which leaves 200K of 600K dead (many of starvation) after a prolonged genocide that the world turns its back on, with appeals to the U.N. getting nowhere and U.N. observers prevented from visiting guerrillas, who fight on in the jungles for the next 24 years (until Oct. 1999).
On Aug. 18, 1975 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 372 to admit Cape Verde; on Aug. 18 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 373 to admit Sao Tome and Principe; on Aug. 18 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 374 to admit Mozambique; on Sept. 22 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 375 to admit Papua New Guinea; on Oct. 17 it votes 14-0-1 (France) for Resolution 376 to admit Comoros; on Dec. 1 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 382 to admit Suriname.
On Nov. 10, 1975 by 72-35-32 the infamous Arab-sponsored U.N. General Assembly Resolution 3379 (co-sponsored by Fidel Castro) is adopted, equating Zionism with racism, as if wanting to live in one's ancestral homeland after two thousand years of suffering racism is racist, and wanting pesky hate-filled Muslim locust Arabs to resettle in Arab lands with others of the same mental sickness instead of fighting their attempts at setting up Muslim superiority Sharia where Jews have to pay a yearly jizya tax just to not be murdered is racial discrimination, when they're all the same race and it's about religious ideology; of course it causes a worldwide Jewish outcry, with U.S. ambassador Daniel Patrick Moynihan saying that the U.S. will never "acquiesce in this infamous act"; it is revoked on Dec. 16, 1991, becoming the first and only resolution the U.N. revoked (until ?).
On Mar. 15, 1976 after being nominated by Pres. Ford, Repub. Penn. gov. #38 (1963-7) William Warren Scranton (1917-2013) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #13 (until Jan. 19, 1977).
On Aug. 16, 1976 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 394 to admit Seychelles; on Dec. 1 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 399 to admit Western Samoa.
On Sept. 21, 1976 the 31st Session of the U.N. Gen. Assembly begins (ends Dec. 22); resolutions going back to 1946 stop at #3,541, and are replaced with a numbering scheme consisting of the session and order of adoption.
On Dec. 16, 1976 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 31/136 is adopted, declaring the year 1976-85 as the U.N. Decade for Women, Equality, Development and Peace.
On Jan. 30, 1977 after being appointed by Pres. Carter on Dec. 16, New Orleans, La.-born U.S. Rep. (D-Ga.) (since Jan. 3, 1973) Andrew Jackson Young Jr. (1932-) (former friend of MLK Jr., who was with him when he was assassinated in Memphis, Tenn. in 1968) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #14 (first African-Am.) (until Sept. 23, 1979), going on to become Atlanta, Ga. mayor #55 in 1982-90.On July 7, 1977 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 412 to admit Djibouti; on July 20 it adopts Resolution 413 by consensus to admit Vietnam.
On Nov. 4, 1977 the U.N. Security Council votes unanimously to adopt Resolution 418, imposing a mandatory arms embargo on South Africa; on Nov. 28, 1986 it unanimously adopts Resolution 591, strengthening the embargo; on May 25, 1994 it unanimously adopts Resolution 919, recalling all resolutions on South Africa.
On July 12, 1978 after an impeachment attempt (HR 805) in 1977 only gains 10 votes, on the eve of SALT negotiations Le Matin of Paris pub. a July 10 interview with U.S. ambassador to the U.N. (1976-9) Andrew Jackson Young Jr., in which he compares Soviet dissidents to U.S. civil rights activists, and utters the soundbyte that there are "hundreds, maybe even thousands" of "political prisoners in the United States", pissing-off Jews, causing Rep. Larry McDonald to try to impeach him on July 13, and Pres. Carter to rebuke him and the White House to disavow his views; he is finally forced to resign after meeting with a rep of the PLO against U.S. policy.
On Aug. 17, 1978 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 433 to admit the Solomon Islands; on Dec. 6 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 442 to admit Dominica.
On Dec. 18, 1978 after speeches by Grenadian PM Sir Eric Gairy, U.N. Gen. Assembly Decision 34/426 "invites interested member states to take appropriate steps to coordinate on a national level scientific research and investigation into extraterrestrial life, incl. unidentified flying objects, and to inform the Secretary-General of the observations, research and evaluation of such activities."
On Jan. 1, 1979 the U.N. Internat. Year of the Child is proclaimed by U.N. secy.-gen. Kurt Waldheim, drawing attention to malnutrition, lack of access to education et al., becoming a precursor to the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child. ABBA writes the song Chiquitita to commemorate it, and performs it on Jan. 9 at the Music for UNICEF Concert at the U.N. Gen. Assembly, hosted by David Frost, also featuring the Bee Gees, Rod Stewart, Earth, Wind and Fire, and Donna Summer.
On Aug. 23, 1979 (night) hunky Soviet ballet dancer Alexander Godunov (1949-95) defects while the Bolshoi Ballet is on tour in New York City; he only has 75 cents in his pocket; on Aug. 25 his wife Russian ballerina Lyudmila Iosifovna Vlasova (1942-) is prevented from taking off to Moscow from New York City in a Soviet airliner because U.S. secy. of state Warren Christopher suspects she is being deported involuntarily; after negotiations with U.S. diplomat Donald McHenry, she is allowed to talk to U.S. reps. in a mobile lounge, convincing them she is not under coercion, and allowed to take off; on Sept. 23 after being appointed by Pres. Carter St. Louis, Mo.-born Dem. diplomat Donald Franchot McHenry (1936-) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #15 (until Jan. 20, 1981), becoming the 2nd African-Am.
On Sept. 12, 1979 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 453 to admit Saint Lucia.
On Nov. 21, 1979 the 34th Session of the U.N. Gen. Assembly votes 85-6-41 for U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 34/37 ("Question of Western Sahara"), reaffirming "the inalienable right of the people of Western Sahara to self-determination and independence, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, the Charter of the Organization for African Unity and the objectives of the UN General Assembly Resolution 1514, and the legitimacy of their struggle to secure the enjoyment of that right."
On Dec. 18, 1979 the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women is adopted by the U.N. Gen. Assembly, coming into force on Sept. 3, 1981; all developed nations except the U.S. ratify it until ?
In 1979 the Conference on Disarmament (originally Committee on Disarmament until 1984) is established by multiple nations to negotiate the Biological Weapons Convention and the Chemical Weapons Convention, succeeding the 10-Nation Committee on Disarmament (1960), the 18-Nation Committee on Disarmament (1962-8), and the Conference of the Committee on Disarmament (1969-78); not a U.N. org., but linked via a personal rep of the U.N. secy.-gen.
On Feb. 19, 1980 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 464 to admit Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; on July 30 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 477 to admit Zimbabwe.
On July 30, 1980 the Israeli Knesset passes the Basic Law for Jerusalem, declaring it Israel's "eternal and indivisible capital"; on Aug. 20 the U.N. Security Council votes 14-0-1 (the U.S. abstaining) for Resolution 478, which declares it a violation of internat. law that is "null and void" and "must be rescinded", and calls for member states to withdraw their diplomatic missions from the city, causing many to relocate to greater Tel Aviv, and others to the Jerusalem suburb of Mevaseret Zion, located on a mountain ridge 10 km. away straddling the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway.
On July 30, 1980 the Repub. of Vanuatu ("land, home") (formerly New Hebrides) (modern-day pop. 270K) gains independence from joint British-French rule (since Nov. 16, 1887); next July 8 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 489 to admit Vanuatu.
In Sept. 1980 (Internat. Year of the Child) the U.N. Gen. Assembly holds its Sixth U.N. Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders in Caracas, Venezuela; on Nov. 29, 1985 it adopts the Beijing Rules (Std. Min. Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice), a bill of rights for youthful offenders, mainly drafted in Beijing, China and supported by the U.S.
On Feb. 4, 1981 after being nominated by Pres. Reagan, Duncan, Okla.-born staunch anti-Communist Repub. Jean Jordan Kirkpatrick (nee Jeane Duane Jordan) (1926-2006) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #16 (first woman) (until Apr. 1, 1985), becoming known for her Kirkpatrick Doctrine of U.S. support for any anti-Commie govt., incl. authoritarian regimes, causing Noam Chomsky to call her the "chief sadist-in-residence of the Reagan administration", uttering the soundbyte: "What takes place in the Security Council more closely resembles a mugging than either a political debate or an effort at problem-solving."
On Sept. 23, 1981 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 491 to admit Belize; on Nov. 10 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 492 to admit Antigua and Barbuda.
On Nov. 25, 1981 the U.N. Gen. Assembly adopts the U.N. Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief.
On Dec. 9, 1981 the U.N. Gen. Assembly adopts the Declaration on the Inadmissibility of Intervention and Interference in the Internal Affairs of States.
On Dec. 11, 1981 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 494 to appoint Javier Perez de Cuellar (Javier Pérez de Cuéllar) y de la Guerra (1920-) of Peru as U.N. secy.-gen. #5, becoming the first from Latin Am.; he takes office on Jan. 1, 1982 (until Dec. 31, 1991).
On Dec. 14, 1981 after Syrian dictator Hafiz al-Asad utters the soundbyte that he will never make peace with Israel "even in a hundred years", Israeli PM Menachem Begin annexes the Golan Heights (seized from Syria in 1967), and the Knesset ratifies it the same day, pissing-off the U.S., which on Dec. 18 suspends the Dec. 1 U.S.-Israel Strategic Cooperation Agreement; on Dec. 20 U.S. ambassador Samuel Lewis meets with Begin in Tel Aviv, and receives a dressing-down, with the soundbyte: "The people of Israel have lived 3,700 years without a memorandum of understanding with America, and will continue to live for another 3,700", bringing up the Inquisition, Vietnam War, and anti-Semitism in the U.S., after which the Reagan admin. backs down; meanwhile on Dec. 17 the U.N. Security Council votes 13-0-2 (East Germany, U.S.S.R.) for Resolution 497, declaring the annexation "null and void and without international legal effect", calling on Israel to rescind it; next Jan. 28 after they refuse, they vote 13-0-2 (U.K., U.S.) for Resolution 500 to call an emergency meeting of the U.N. Gen. Assembly.
On Feb. 25, 1982 Kuwaiti Airways Flight KU561 with 150 aboard is seized after landing in Beirut en route from Libya to Kuwait by 12 Shiite gunmen led by Hamza akl Hamieh in retaliation for the 1978 disappearance on Muammar Gaddafi's orders of Iranan-born Islamic leader Imam Moussa Sadr, highest-ranking Muslim cleric in Lebanon, becoming their 7th hijacking protesting his disappearance; after a Shiite cleric promises that their case will be pressed at the U.N. and Internat. Court of Justice, they are released, disappearing into the night, after which a Lebanese official later says "They are probably sipping hot coffee with their kin", and Capt. Les Bradley flies the plane back to Kuwait, saying that they warned the airline to drop this route.
On Mar. 18, 1982 after talks in New York City break down in Feb., a group of 50 Argentine scrap metal dealers raise the Argentine flag in Leith Harbor in South Georgia Island in the 300-island Falkland Islands, which Britain has claimed since 1833, while Argentine claims them and calls them the Islas Malvinas; on Apr. 2 Argentine troops seize disputed sheep-filled Falkland (Maldive) Islands located in the S Atlantic from Britain, followed on Apr. 3 by South Georgia Island, causing Britain to go to war, imposing a blockade on Apr. 12 after the U.N. Security Council votes 10-1-4 (Panama; China, Poland, Spain, U.S.S.R.) for Resolution 502, demanding an end to hostilities and a complete withdrawal by Argentine forces, giving the U.K. the right to invoke Article 51 of the U.N. Charter and claim the right of self-defense, immediately imposing sanctions supported by the British Commonwealth and the European Economic Community; on Apr. 25 British commandos invade and retake South Georgia Island in Operation Paraquet; on May 2 British nuclear sub HMS Conqueror sinks ARA General Belgrano, Argentina's only cruiser (formerly the U.S. light cruiser Phoenix, which survived the Pearl Harbor Attack with only one bullet hole in a range-finder shield), killing 323; on May 4 HMS Sheffield (D80) is hit by an Argentine Exocet missile, killing 20, then sinking on May 10; on May 14 a British force arrives on the QE2, after which there is heavy fighting and casualties on both sides; on May 21 the Battle of San Carlos; on May 22 HMS Ardent (F184) is sunk by Argentine aircraft, killing 22; on May 24 HMS Antelope (F170) is sunk, followed on May 25 by HMS Coventry (D118) and SS Atlantic Conveyor; on May 26 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 505, reaffirming Resolution 502 and after noting tht the situation has seriously deteriorated, expressing appreciation for the peace efforts of U.N. secy.-gen. Javier Perez de Cuellar, urging both sides to work with him to achieve a ceasefire and arrange for U.N. observers; on June 8 the Bluff Cove Air Attacks see British RFA Sir Galahad (L3005) destroyed; on June 14 Argentina surrenders after 74 days and 1.2K Argentines and 243 British killed; Argentina loses 74 planes and 7 helis, vs. 48 British planes; on June 18 Argentine dictator pres. (since Dec. 22, 1981) Leopoldo Fortunato Galtieri Castelli (1926-2003) resigns; the Israelis under PM Menachem Begin secretly supplying arms to Argentina because he wanted to get even for the Brits hanging his friend Dov Gruner in Palestine in 1947?
On Apr. 24, 1982 a bomb explodes outside Agence France Press in West Beirut; on Apr. 26 a French U.N. peacekeeper officer is seriously wounded by Islamic gunmen in West Beirut.
On June 12, 1982 after an internat. convocation at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, 750K stage a March from the U.N. to Central Park to protest the Reagan nuclear arms buildup, becoming the largest protest in U.S. history, virtually shutting New York City down; protesters demand a nuclear freeze, i.e., moratorium on nuclear weapon development, which the U.S. rejects after claiming a Soviet advantage with missiles based E of the Urals; musicians James Taylor, Bruce Springsteen, Jackson Browne, and Linda Ronstadt perform; on June 29 Polish-Am. U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Edward L. Rowny (1917-) opens new talks in Geneva with Soviet negotiator Viktor Karpov; in July U.S. medium-range arms negotiator Paul Henry Nitze (1907-2004) and Soviet negotiator Yuli A. Kvitsinsky (1936-) have a "walk in the woods" outside Geneva, and agree on a "joint exploratory package" of 75 launchers for each nation in Europe, Soviet SS-20 missiles to be limited to three warheads each, NATO Tomahawk cruise missiles to four, and no deployment of U.S. Pershing II missiles.
On June 17, 1982 U.S. Pres. (1981-9) Ronald Wilson Reagan (1911-2004) delivers a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly Special Session Devoted to Disarmament, with the soundbytes: "The United Nations is dedicated to world peace, and its charter clearly prohibits the international use of force. Yet the tide of belligerence continues to rise. The charter's influence has weakened even in the 4 years since the first special session on disarmament. We must not only condemn aggression; we must enforce the dictates of our charter and resume the struggle for peace"; "The record of history is clear: Citizens of the United States resort to force reluctantly and only when they must. Our foreign policy, as President Eisenhower once said, 'is not difficult to state. We are for peace first, last, and always for very simple reasons.' We know that only in a peaceful atmosphere, a peace with justice, one in which we can be confident, can America prosper as we have known prosperity in the past, he said"; "America has no territorial ambitions. We occupy no countries, and we have built no walls to lock our people in. Our commitment to self-determination, freedom, and peace is the very soul of America. That commitment is as strong today as it ever was"; "My country learned a bitter lesson in this century: The scourge of tyranny cannot be stopped with words alone. So, we have embarked on an effort to renew our strength that had fallen dangerously low. We refuse to become weaker while potential adversaries remain committed to their imperialist adventures."
On Sept. 21, 1982 the U.N. holds its first Internat. Day of Peace.
On Oct. 28, 1982 the U.N. Gen. Assembly by 111-1-18 (U.S. against) adopts the World Charter for Nature, proclaiming "principles of conservation by which all human conduct affecting nature is to be guided and judged."
On Dec. 10, 1982 the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is signed, attempting to put it under the control of world courts, effective Nov. 16, 1994; Pres. Reagan refuses to sign it, but the U.S. Navy is systematically downsized from 594 ships in 1987 to 281 in 2009, and 100 submarines in 1990 to 53 in 2009.
On Sept. 22, 1983 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 537 to admit Saint Kitts and Nevis.
That's Grenada, not Granada, or, We'll give you a kick in the ass, that's the American Way? On Oct. 12, 1983 in Grenada pro-Cuban Marxists within the govt. (which came to power in a 1979 coup) led by deputy PM Winston Bernard Coard (1945-) overthrows and imprisons PM Maurice Bishop and his supporters at Ft. Rupert (later Ft. George), then assassinate him and 40 others on Oct. 19 after supporters try to break him out, after which gen. Hudson Austin (1938-) seizes power and declares a military curfew, causing Dominican PM (1980-95) Mary Eugenia Charles, a member of the Org. of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) to appeal to the U.S. to intervene, citing ties with Cuba and construction of a 10K-ft. runway that could be used for Cuban and Soviet arms shipments; on Oct. 21 citing the presence of U.S. medical students at St. George's Medical School that need protection, U.S. Pres. Reagan authorizes Operation Urgent Fury, a 10-ship invasion of Grenada, and on Oct. 25 (two days after the Marine Barracks disaster in Lebanon) 6K U.S. and 1K OECS forces, incl. 1.8K U.S. Marines invade the island (the 2nd largest country in the Western hemisphere invading the 2nd smallest), handily defeating the 750 Grenadian troops and 600 Cuban construction workers; 19 Americans, 45 Granadians and 29 Cubans die before resistance ends on Oct. 28; the U.S. vetoes a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning the invasion, while some U.S. allies claim it's a ploy to distract attention from the debacle in Lebanon; Austin and other military officers are sentenced to death in 1986, their sentences later commuted to life in prison; no Medal of Honor awards result from the Grenada action.
On Jan. 1, 1984 the Islamic sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from Britain after 95 years, with sultan #29 (since Oct. 4, 1967) Hassan al Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah (1946-) as PM (until ?), who appoints family members to other official posts; on Jan. 7 Brunei becomes member #6 of the Assoc. of SE Asian Nations (ASEAN); on Feb. 23 Brunei holds its first Nat. Day in a celebration in their new $50M stadium attended by Prince Charles and leaders of 70 countries before a crowd of 30K-50K; on Feb. 24 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 548 to admit Brunei; on Sept. 21 Brunei joins the U.N. as member #159.
On Mar. 5, 1984 Iran accuses Iraq of using chemical weapons, causing the U.N. to condemn their use on Mar. 30.
On Dec. 11, 1984 Benjamin Netanyahu gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly on why Jordan is the real Palestine, with the soundbyte: "Clearly, in Eastern and Western Palestine, there are only two peoples, the Arabs and the Jews. Just as clearly, there are only two states in that area, Jordan and Israel. The Arab State of Jordan, containing some three million Arabs, does not allow a single Jew to live there. It also contains 4/5 of the territory originally allocated by this body's predecessor, the League of Nations, for the Jewish national home. The other state, Israel, has a population of over four million, of which 1/6 is Arab. It contains less than 1/5 of the territory originally allocated to the Jews under the Mandate... It cannot be said, therefore, that the Arabs of Palestine are lacking a state of their own. The demand for a second Palestinian Arab State in Western Palestine, and a 22nd Arab State in the world, is merely the latest attempt to push Israel back into the hopelessly vulnerable armistice lines of 1949."
In 1984 the U.S. State Dept. pub. its first Report to the Congress on Voting Practices in the United Nations; by the 2018 report U.N. member states vote with the U.S. only 31% of the time, vs. 10% the year before, despite U.S. taxpayers paying for 22% of the U.N. budget; by 2018 Zimbabwe has voted zero times with the U.S. despite receiving $58M/year aid.
On Apr. 16, 1985 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 39/248 is adopted, promulgating the U.N. Guidelines for Consumer Protection (UNGCP), "a valuable set of principles for setting out the main characteristics of effective consumer protection legislation, enforcement institutions and redress systems and for assisting interested Member States in formulating and enforcing domestic and regional laws, rules and regulations that are suitable to their own economic and social and environmental circumstances, as well as promoting international enforcement cooperation among Member States and encouraging the sharing of experiences in consumer protection"; they are expanded by U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 70/186 on Dec. 22, 2015.
On May 22, 1985 after fellow Roman Catholic Pres. Reagan promotes him from roving ambassador (since 1981), New York City-born military intel expert Army lt. gen. Vernon A. Walters (1917-2002) (CIA deputy dir. in 1972-6) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #17 (until Mar. 15, 1989), going on to become U.S. ambassador to West Germany in 1989-90 and to Germany in 1990-1.
On Oct. 24, 1985 U.S. Pres. (1981-9) Ronald Reagan delivers a speech to the 40th Session of the U.N. Gen. Assembly, with the soundbytes: "Thank you for the honor of permitting me to speak on this anniversary for the United Nations. Forty years ago, the world awoke daring to believe hatred's unyielding grip had finally been broken, daring to believe the torch of peace would be protected in liberty's firm grasp. Forty years ago, the world yearned to dream again innocent dreams, to believe in ideals with innocent trust. Dreams of trust are worthy, but in these 40 years too many dreams have been shattered, too many promises have been broken, too many lives have been lost. The painful truth is that the use of violence to take, to exercise, and to preserve power remains a persistent reality in much of the world"; "The vision of the U.N. Charter - to spare succeeding generations this scourge of war - remains real. It still stirs our soul and warms our hearts, but it also demands of us a realism that is rock hard, clear-eyed, steady, and sure - a realism that understands the nations of the United Nations are not united. I come before you this morning preoccupied with peace, with ensuring that the differences between some of us not be permitted to degenerate into open conflict, and I come offering for my own country a new commitment, a fresh start"; "On this U.N. anniversary, we acknowledge its successes: the decisive action during the Korean war, negotiation of the nonproliferation treaty, strong support for decolonization, and the laudable achievements by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Nor must we close our eyes to this organization's disappointments: its failure to deal with real security issues, the total inversion of morality in the infamous Zionism-is-racism resolution, the politicization of too many agencies, the misuse of too many resources. The U.N. is a political institution, and politics requires compromise. We recognize that, but let us remember from those first days, one guiding star was supposed to light our path toward the U.N. vision of peace and progress - a star of freedom."
In Oct. 1985 the Internat. Conference of the Assessment of the Role of Carbon Dioxide and of Other Greenhouse Gases in Climate Variations and Associated Impacts is held in Villach, Austria, led by Canadian climatologist Frederick Kenneth Hare (1919-2002) and Swedish meteorologist Bert Bolin, after which the U.N. Advisory Group on Greenhouse Gases is founded by the U.N. Environment Programme, the World Meteorological Org. (WMO), and the Internat. Council of Scientific Unions, holding its last meeting in 1990 after being replaced by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (founded 1988).
On Sept. 22, 1986 as the Soviet Union is cracking, lame duck U.S. Pres. (1981-9) Ronald Reagan delivers a speech to the 41st Session of the U.N. Gen. Assembly, with the soundbytes: "The United States remains committed to the United Nations. For over 40 years this organization has provided an international forum for harmonizing conflicting national interests and has made a significant contribution in such fields as peacekeeping, humanitarian assistance, and eradicating disease. And yet no one knows better than those in this chamber how the noble ideals embodied in the charter have often remained unfulfilled"; "Last year I pointed out in my address to the General Assembly the differences between the United States and the Soviet Union are deep and abiding. But I also called for a fresh start in relations between our two nations, a fresh start that could benefit our own people and the people of every nation. Since that time, the United States has taken action and put forth new proposals that could lead our two countries and the entire world in a direction we all have long sought to go. Now more than ever, it is the responsibility of the Soviet Union to take action and demonstrate that they, too, are continuing the dialog for peace"; "In the past, when I have noted such trends—when I've called for a forward strategy for freedom and predicated the ultimate triumph of democratic rule over totalitarianism - some have accused me of telling people what they want to hear, of urging them not to engage the day but to escape it. Yet, to hope is to believe in humanity and in its future. Hope remains the highest reality, the age-old power. Hope is at the root of all the great ideas and
On Oct. 27, 1986 the U.N. Gen. Assembly approves U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 41/11, creating the 25-member South Atlantic Peace and Cooperation Zone (ZPCAS or ZOPACAS), based in Brasilia, Brazil, with the aim of preventing proliferation of nuclear weapons and military occupations, making the South Atlantic a nuclear-weapon-free zone.
On July 20, 1987 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 598 to approve a U.S.-sponsored resolution demanding an end to the Persian Gulf War between Iraq and Iran, a move supported by Iraq but dismissed by Iran; it also requests the U.N. secy.-gen. to send a team of observers to monitor the ceasfire, effective Aug. 8, 1988.
On Sept. 14-16, 1987 the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer is signed by 46 nations, effective Jan. 1, 1989, calling for a 50% reduction in the use of all substances responsible for ozone layer depletion esp. chloroflurocarbons (CFCs) by the year 2000; 197 U.N. members eventually ratify it; the ozone layer depletion stops by 1995, and is projected to return to 1980 levels in 2050-2070.
On Dec. 6, 1987 a Jewish salesman is stabbed to death in Gaza, followed on Dec. 8 by an Israeli army tank transporter accidentally on purpose running into a group of Palestinians from Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza, killing four and injuring seven, causing the pissed-off Palestinians to launch the First Intifada (Intefadeh) (Arab. "shaking off") (1987-93), spreading from the Jabalia refugee camp through Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem, and resulting in 3.6K Molotov cocktail, 100 hand grenade, and 600 gun or explosive attacks on Israeli forces.
In 1987 Burma, once the "rice bowl of Asia" earns the title of Least Developed Country in Asia from the U.N.
On Jan. 3, 1988 the Israeli Army orders nine Palestinian activists deported as part of a controversial crackdown to stop the uprising in the occupied territories; on Jan. 5 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 607 to ask Israel not to do that in the first council vote against Israel since 1981, citing the Geneva Conventions; meanwhile the Jewish Women in Black begin holding weekly vigils at busy road junctions in Jerusalem, holding signs saying "End the Occupation", their protest spreading to other countries incl. Serbia, Spain, Belgium, England, India, and Philippines.
On July 30, 1988 Jordanian King Hussein I dissolves his country's lower house of parliament, half of whose 60 members were from the Israeli-occupied West Bank; on July 31 in a televised speech Hussein calls for an independent Palestinian state in the Israeli-occupied territories and urges the Palestinians to take affairs into their own hands, giving them no choice by disenfranchising and cutting all ties with all Arabs living on the West Bank - no mention of a Palestinian state in Jordan?
On Aug. 9, 1988 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 619, creating the U.N. Iran-Iraq Military Observer Group, led by Bangladeshi Brig. Gen. Anam Khan to monitor the ceasefire.
On Sept. 20, 1988 the 43rd U.N. Gen. Assembly opens.
On Sept. 26, 1988 in a farewell speech to the 43rd Session of the U.N. General Assembly, Pres. Reagan claims to see "a moment for hope" for peace in the world, citing a new U.S.-Soviet treaty to sharply reduce nukes during the following year - what about the Chinese and Islamists?
On Nov. 12-15, 1988 the Palestine Nat. Council, the legislative body of the PLO meets in Algiers, and on Nov. 15 the Palestinian Declaration of Independence is adopted by the PLO, er, Palestine Nat. Council in Algiers, proclaiming the Muslim state of Palestine, forgetting that they denied the validity of the 1947 U.N. resolution sanctioning the creation of a Jewish state, and flopping to cite its simultaneous sanctioning of the creation of a Palestinian state; on Nov. 20 Egypt and China recognize it; it is is soon recognized by 100 countries; there is no de facto state of Palestine until ?
On Dec. 13, 1988 PLO chmn. Yasser Arafat addresses the U.N. Gen. Assembly in Geneva, where it had reconvened after the U.S. refused to grant Arafat a visa to visit New York, and on Dec. 14 in a dramatic policy shift Pres. Reagan authorizes the U.S. to enter into a "substantive dialogue" with the PLO after Arafat claimed that he was renouncing "all forms of terrorism"; on Dec. 15 U.S. ambassador to Tunisia (1987-91) Robert H. Pelletreau Jr. (1935-) telephones the PLO HQ in Tunisia; on Dec. 17 Israeli PM Yitzhak Shamir expresses shock, calling the U.S. decision a "painful blow".
On Dec. 15, 1988 after only Israel and the U.S. oppose it, Gen. Assembly Resolution 43/176 is adopted, titled "Question of Palestine' calling for a U.N.-sponsored Internat. Peace Conference on the Middle East, with the principles for comprehensive peace being withdrawal of Israel from occupied Palestine territories incl. Jerusalem and other occupied Arab territories, security of all states in the region incl. those named in Resolution 181, within secure internationally-recognized boundaries, execution of Resolution 194, dismantling of Israeli settlements, and free access to holy places; the same day Gen. Assembly Resolution 43/177 is adopted, recognizing the proclamation of the State of Palestine, supporting Palestinian (PLO) sovereignty over occupied Palestinian territories, and recalling Resolution 181.
In 1988 the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is founded by the World Meteorological Org. (WMO) and U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP) to prove an objective scientific view of climate change and its political-economic impacts, receiving endorsement by the U.N. Gen. Assembly in Resolution 43/53; too bad, it is taken over by sinister OWG globalists who want to force the rich nations to cough-up their wealth and give it to the poor nations to supposedly atone for their sins, ensuring that all nations will be poor?
On Jan. 6, 1989 the U.S. presents photographic evidence to the U.N. Security Council to justify its shootdown of two Libyan jet fighters off the Libyan coast as self-defense; the Libyan ambassador claims it's faked.
On Mar. 20, 1989 after being appointed by Pres. George H.W. Bush, Orange, N.J.-born diplomat Thomas Reeve "Tom" Pickering (1931-) (U.S. ambassador to Jordan in 1974-8, Nigeria in 1981-3, El Salvador in 1983-5, and Israel in 1985-8) becomes U.S. U.N. ambasbador #18 (until May 7, 1992), going on to help lead the U.N. Security Council during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, upstaging U.S. secy. of state James A. Baker so much that Bush makes him the U.S. ambassador to India on Aug. 14, 1992 (until Mar. 23, 1993), after which Pres. Clinton makes him U.S. ambassador to Russia in 1993-6, and Madeleine Albright makes him undersecy. of state for political affairs in 1997-2000 after being passed over for secy. of state for her, causing Time mag. to call him the "five star general of the diplomatic corps".
On Apr. 11, 1989 Israel begins Operation Grapes of Wrath air offensive against Hezbollah party leaders in Beirut and S Lebanon, conducting 1.1K airraids and using 25,132 artillery shells; too bad, on Apr. 18 the Qana Massacre sees an Israeli artillery barrage mistakenly hit the U.N. peacekeeping camp in Qana, S Lebanon, killing 106 Lebanese civilians; Israeli PM Shimon Peres describes it as a "grave error"; on Apr. 27 U.S. secy. of state Warren Christopher (deputy atty. gen. under LBJ) mediates an end to the operation; the Qana massacre is used by al-Qaida to recruit members, incl. Mohammed Atta.
On Nov. 8, 1989 chemistry-trained British Conservative PM (1979-90) Margaret Hilda Thatcher (nee Roberts) (1925-2013) AKA the Iron Lady gives a Speech on Climate Change to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, warning of the dangers of rising CO2 and calling for an internat. framework convention on climate change, with the aim being "to prevent rather than just cure a global environmental problem", becoming the first world leader to put climate change at the top of the global agenda; Watch video.
On Nov. 20, 1989 (30th anniv. of the U.N. Declaration of the Rights of the Child) the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is signed in New York City by 140 nations of the U.N. Gen. Assembly, effective next Sept. 2, establishing the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child; the U.S. signs but doesn't ratify it until ?.
In 1989 the Abkhaz-Georgian Conflict begins (ends ?), with the Abkhaz people attempting to achieve independence, going on to attempt ethnic cleansing of Georgians. On July 9, 1993 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 849, the first of 32 resolutions by Apr. 15, 2008 supporting the territorial integrity of Abkhazia as an integral part of Georgia; on May 15, 2008 the U.N. Gen. Assembly adopts the non-binding U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 10708 recognizing the rights of refugees to return, expressing regret at the attempts at ethnic cleansing.
9/11 minus 11? On Feb. 13, 1990 the Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany AKA the Two Plus Four Agreement is drafted by the Four Powers that occupied Germany at the end of WWII (U.S., U.K., U.S.S.R., France), renouncing all rights and allowing a unified Germany to become sovereign next year; it is signed in Moscow on Sept. 12, effective next Mar. 15, clearing the way for a united Germany on Oct. 3, when East and West Germany reunify after 45 years, and the burly Berlin Wall officially comes down.
On May 28, 1990 Iraqi dictator-pres. (since July 16, 1979) Saddam Hussein (1937-2006) opens a 2-day Arab League Summit in Baghdad with a keynote address in which he says that if Israel were to deploy nuclear or chemical weapons against Arabs, Iraq would respond with "weapons of mass destruction" - talk about putting your foot in your mouth?
Saddam's big miscalculation? On Aug. 2, 1990 Black Thursday sees Iraqi troops invade Kuwait and set up a well-oiled puppet govt. by Aug. 3; on Aug. 2 by a 14-0-1 (Yemen) vote the U.N. Security Council approves Resolution 660, condemning Iraq and demanding the unconditional withdrawal of Iraqi troops; PLO chief Yasser Arafat's support of Sodamn Insane results in the PLO's isolation; on Aug. 3 thousands of Iraqi soldiers push to within a few mi. of the border with Saudi Arabia, heightening world concerns about the invasion spreading; on Aug. 6 the U.N. imposes sanctions on Iraq, barring it from selling oil except in exchange for food and medicine; on Aug. 6-7 Operation Desert Shield begins as Pres. Bush at the request of King Fahd sends U.S. troops to Saudi Arabia to guard it, and are joined on Aug. 11 by Egyptian and Moroccan troops from the Arab League; on Aug. 8 Iraq annexes Kuwait as its 19th province, with Saddam Hussein's cousin Ali Hassan Al-Majid (Ali Hassan Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti) (1941-2010) as military gov.; Italian politician Cicciolina (Ilona Staller) (1951-) offers to have sex with Saddam Hussein if he will release all foreign hostages; the Saudis permit U.S. troops to use a base in their country, angering Muslim conservatives, who see infidels polluting their soil, while Kuwaitis are more practical, but politely request Army chaplains to remove religious insignia from their uniforms and get antsy about the sight of women driving cars and carrying guns?; after seeing women soldiers among the U.S. forces, 47 women from the Saudi intelligentsia go for a joy ride to protest Saudi Arabia being the world's only country that keeps women from driving, getting arrested and crushed by the regime; meanwhile Am. Christian evangelist Franklin Graham (1952-) (son of Billy Graham) is told by Saudi officials that Christian Bibles and religious material is illegal to send to Saudi Arabia in the mail, along with alcohol and porno - the U.S. is faced with the dilemma that destroying minority Sunni control of Iraq will make it easy for Shiite Iran to absorb it, opening a royal road to Israel through Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, which is why they don't attack and cut off Baghdad when the Iraqi troops are out in Kuwait, but just try to drive them back? Too bad, Bush Jr. isn't up to speed when he gets in the White House?
In other words, I hate all you infidels? On Aug. 5, 1990 the 57-member Org. of the Islamic Conference (OIC) signs the upside-down Cairo Declaration of Human Rights, a rebuke to the Dec. 10, 1948 U.N. Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), substituting you-guessed-it Sharia, declaring "the place of mankind in Islam as viceregent of Allah on Earth", a reference to Quran 3:110, proclaiming Muslim supremacy and calling Christians and Jews (People of the Book) "perverted transgressors".
On Oct. 12, 1990 the U.N. Security Council votes unanimously to condemn Israel via Resolution 672, sending a mission to investigate, which Israel snubbed, causing Resolution 673 to be passed on Oct. 24 urging them to reconsider, which they don't, after which the U.N. pub. a report anyway.
On Jan. 16/17, 1991 (Wed./Thur.) the (Persian) Gulf War (AKA Operation Desert Storm) (ends Feb. 28) is launched by the U.N. to recover Kuwait less than 17 hours after Iraqi Pres. Saddam Hussein fails to meet a U.N. deadline for withdrawal of military forces from his "19th province"; 680K Allied troops (incl. Arab, British and French and 415K Americans) are arrayed against 545K Iraqi troops (with 480K reserves) concentrated in Kuwait and SE Iraq; U.S. forces incl. 245K Army, 75K Marines, 50K Navy, and 45K Air Force (who have use of NATO air bases in Turkey); the U.S. has 13 combat ships in the Mediterranean, 26 in the Red Sea, incl. aircraft carriers Saratoga, Kennedy, Roosevelt, and America, and 34 in the Persian Gulf, incl. the aircraft carrier Midway, and amphibious ships; the U.S. Central Command is just E of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; no-fly zones are declared and patrolled by U.S. and British planes; U.S. troops are vaccinated for anthrax in preparation for the war; the Styx song Show Me the Way is adopted by the Gulf War Troops as their anthem; Operation Desert Storm, commanded by U.S. Gen. Herbert "Stormin'" Norman Schwarzkopf Jr. (1934-2012) sees coalition forces from 35 nations begin a 6-week air attack on Iraq; CNN correspondents Peter Arnett, Bernard Shaw, and John Holliman report the start of the war live from a Baghdad hotel; Iraq fires eight Scud surface-to-surface missiles at Israel; in early Feb. 1.5K allied tanks and 150K allied troops are positioned for a flanking maneuver along Iraq's lightly defended S border with Saudi Arabia; on Feb. 24 the U.S.-led coalition opens its ground war against Iraq, faking a frontal invasion in S Kuwait, with the real forces attacking from the W on three points; on Jan. 17 U.S. Navy pilot Capt. Michael Scott Speicher (b. 1957) becomes the first U.S. service member KIA in the Gulf War, and it takes until Aug. 2, 2009 to identify his remains; on Feb. 26 the main highway from Kuwait to Basra becomes the Highway of Death in a huge traffic jam of fleeing Iraqis, and 10K Iraqis are KIA; on Feb. 27-28 Saddam stages his last stand with a fierce tank battle (largest since WWII), in which 200 Iraqi tanks and no U.S. tanks are destroyed (during the war U.S. Abrams M1 and M2 tanks kill 2K Iraqi tanks without a loss); the fighting ends on Feb. 28 after 110K Iraqi soldiers and tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians are killed, and 30K Iraqi POWs are taken; Saudi Arabia is charged $60B to pay for their defense, and takes out its first-ever ($4.5B) loan to pay for it (paid up on May 22, 1995); no Medals of Honor are issued for this action.
On Mar. 2, 1991 the U.N. Security votes 11-1-3 for Resolution 686, demanding that Iraq implement their 12 resolutions 660-2, 664-7, 669-70, 674, 677-8 after arranging a ceasefire; on Apr. 3, 1991 the U.N. Security Council votes 12-1-2 (Cuba, Ecuador, Yemen) for Resolution 687, laying down the law for loser Iraq, and establishing the U.N. Special Commission (UNSCOM) to ensure compliance with WMD prohibition; on Apr. 5, 1991 the U.N. Security Council votes 10-3-2 (Cuba, Yemen, Zimbabwe) (China, India) for Resolution 688, calling for Iraq to end repression of its people incl. Kurds; France, U.K., and U.S. use the resolution to establish no-fly zones above the 36th parallel to protect humanitarian operations; on Apr. 9 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 689, recalling Resolution 687 and setting up a DMZ with Kuwait and deploying the U.N. Iraq-Kuwait Observation Mission of 200 military observers, with HQ in Umm Qasr, Iraq, growing to a max of 1,187 on Feb. 28, 1995 before withdrawing on Sept. 30, 2003.
On Aug. 8, 1991 the U.N. Security Council adopts Resolution 702 without vote to admit North Korea and South Korea; on Aug. 9 it adopts Resolution 703 without vote to admit the Federated States of Micronesia; on Aug. 9 it adopts Resolution 704 without vote to admit the Marshall Islands; on Sept. 12 it adopts Resolution 709 without vote to admit Estonia; on Sept. 12 it adopts Resolution 710 without vote to admit Latvia; on Sept. 12 it adopts Resolution 711 without vote to admit Lithuania.
On Nov. 21, 1991 after the 102-member Non-Alignment Movement lobbies for it, the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 720 to appoint Boutros Boutros-Ghali (1922-) of Egypt as U.N. secy.-gen. #6; he takes office on Jan. 1, 1992 (until Dec. 31, 1996); the U.S. vetoes his reappointment, claiming he failed to implement necessary reforms.
On Nov. 27, 1991 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 721 supporting the efforts of secy.-gen. Javier Perez de Cuellar to end the fighting in Yugoslavia, and begins deploying peacekeeping troops as requested by Serbia and Croatia.
On Dec. 1, 1991 the Ukraine becomes an independent nation, with Leonid Makarovych Kravchuk (1934-) of the Social Dem. Party as pres. on Dec. 5 (until July 19, 1994). Ding Dong the witch is dead - which old witch? On Dec. 8 the Commonwealth of Independent States Treaty is signed in the Belovezhskaya Pushcha Nat. Reserve 31 mi. N of Brest, Belarus by Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus (formerly Byelorussia), putting an end to the U.S.S.R. (Soviet Union) (founded Dec. 30, 1922); on Dec. 21 Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Moldova join the five Central Asian repubs. Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan (formerly Kirghiz), Tadzhikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan in agreeing to join the Commonwealth; as Boris N. Yeltsin begins to gain control of the govt., Gorbachev diplomatically resigns on Dec. 25, giving him the nuclear codes; the collapse of the Soviet Union creates a "short twentieth century", framed by the 1917 Russian Rev. and this year, throwing the U.S. out of work as the needed counterforce to the evil empire, and giving it more of an old United Kingdom imperialist role?; "The collapse of communism in effect signified the collapse of liberalism, removing the only ideological justification behind U.S. hegemony" (Immanuel Wallerstein, Pax Americana is Over); Belarus, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan return their nuclear weapons inherited from the Soviet Union.
On Dec. 16, 1991 the U.N. Gen. Assembly repeals it 1975 resolution equating Zionism with racism - look who finally got his basement back?
On Dec. 17, 1991 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 46/119 is adopted, promulgating the Principles for the Protection of Persons with Mental Illness and the Improvement of Mental Health Care (MI Principles), non-binding basic standards that mental health systems should meet, defining rights that people diagnosed with a mental disorder should have.
On Jan. 23, 1992 the U.N. Security Council adopts Resolution 732 without vote to admit Kazakhstan; on Jan. 29 it adopts Resolution 735 without vote to admit Armenia on Jan. 29 it adopts Resolution 736 without vote to admit Kyrgyzstan; on Jan. 29 it adopts Resolution 737 without vote to admit Uzbekistan; on Jan. 29 it adopts Resolution 738 without vote to admit Tajikistan; on Feb. 5 it adopts Resolution 739 without vote to admit Moldova; on Feb. 7 it adopts Resolution 741 without vote to admit Turkmenistan; on Feb. 14 it adopts Resolution 742 without vote to admit Azerbaijan; on Feb. 25 it adopts Resolution 744 without vote to admit San Marino; on May 18 it adopts Resolution 753 without vote to admit Croatia; on May 18 it adopts Resolution 754 without vote to admit Slovenia; on May 20 it adopts Resolution 755 without vote to admit Bosnia and Herzegovina; on July 6 it adopts Resolution 763 without vote to admit Georgia.
In Feb. 1992 the EEC recognizes Slovenia, and in May it joins the U.N.
In Feb. 1992 the UNPROFOR (U.N. Protection Force) peacekeeping mission begins in Yugoslavia, reaching a full strength of 39,992 in Sept. 1994, incl. a Rapid Reaction Force (ends Mar. 1995).
On June 4, 1992 the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is opened for signatures at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, entering into force on Mar. 21, 1994, with the objective to "stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system", setting non-binding limits on greenhouse gas emissions with no enforcement mechanisms.
On Sept. 3, 1992 the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) is adopted by the U.N. Gen. Assembly, outlawing production, stockpiling, and use of chemical weapons incl. precursors, with signing on Jan. 13, 1993, coming into effect on Apr. 29, 1997; it is administered by the Org. for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague; by 2018 it is signed by 165 states and ratified by 65 states, with 192 parties.
On Sept. 19, 1992 the U.N. Security Council votes 12-0-3 for Resolution 777, recommending the removal of the Federal Repub. of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) from participation in the U.N. Gen. Assembly, and prohibiting its U.N. membership application; on Sept. 22 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 47/1 is adopted by a 127-6-26 vote, expelling Yugoslavia; NATO imposes a naval blockade on it to enforce the U.N. embargo.
On Jan. 7, 1993 Macedonia submits its application for U.N. membership; in Feb. Greece steps in and objects to the use of the name Macedonia, claiming it as theirs from historical use, and that it shouldn't be adopted by Slavs, who might have designs on N Greece; internat. arbitration results.
On Jan. 8, 1993 the U.N. Security Council adopts Resolution 800 without vote to admit the Slovak Repub.; on Jan. 8 it adopts Resolution 801 without vote to admit the Czech Repub.; on Apr. 7 it votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 817 to admit Macedonia; on May 26 it adopts Resolution 828 without vote to admit Eritrea; on May 26 it adopts Resolution 829 without vote to admit Monaco; on July 8 it adopts Resolution 848 without vote to admit Andorra.
On Jan. 27, 1993 after being appointed by Pres. Clinton, Prague, Czech.-born Dem. Madeleine Albright (Marie Jane Korbelova) (1937-) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #20 (until Jan. 21, 1997), going on to get in a long catfight with U.N. secy.-gen. Boutros Boutros-Ghali and refuse until the end to call the genocide in Rwanda genocide.
On Apr. 11, 1993 the U.N. Security Council issues a formal ceasefire to end the Gulf War (begun Jan. 16, 1991); on Apr. 14 the final withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from S Iraq begins 88 days after the offensive began.
On May 25, 1993 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 to adopt Resolution 827, establishing the Internat. Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in The Hague; it goes on to indict 161 persons by Dec. 2004; the court is abolished on Dec. 31, 2017.
Black Hawk Down? On June 5, 1993 Somalian warlord Mohammed Farrah Aidid kills 24 Pakistani peacekeepers, causing U.N. secy.-gen. Boutros Boutros-Ghali to call him "a menace to public safety"; U.S. Adm. Philip Gardner Howe III (1962-) puts out a $25K reward for info. leading to his apprehension, and the peacekeepers go to war with Aidid, launching Operation Gothic Serpent on Aug. 22 (ends Oct. 13) to kick Aidid's butt. On July 12 U.S. Cobra helis attack a house in S Mogadishu where Aidid clan members are meeting, and four Western journalists are beaten to death by an angry mob; on Aug. 26 U.S. Rangers arrive, led by Lt. Gen. William F. "Bill" Garrison (1944-); too bad, in Sept. U.S. defense secy. Les Aspin denies requests for armored reinforcements, On Oct. 3-4 the Battle of Mogadishu (Black Hawk Down Battle/Ambush) sees U.S. MH-60 Black Hawk helis of the elite Army 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR) (AKA Night Stalkers) (formed during the Vietnam War and kept secret until now) stage an urban attack on the Olympic Hotel in Mogadishu, Somalia, having apparently forgotten about RPGs, and Somalian militiamen shoot down two of the helis; by the time U.N. mainly Pakistani peacekeeping forces from the nearby safe zone stadium rescue them, 19 U.S. troops are killed vs. 1K Somalians, but the press runs horrible photos of dead mainly white Yankee soldiers (our sons?) being dragged like dead meat through the streets in celebration (food for black cannibals?), putting a permanent shock into not only American cowboys but most Westerners; the sole survivor is white pilot Michael J. "Mike" Durant (1961-), who is captured and released after 11 days; on Oct. 7 Pres. Clinton reinforces Somalia, but orders all troops to withdraw by Mar. 31 of next year; the hunt for Aidid is abandoned, and peace talks with former Pres. Carter are resumed; on Oct. 17, 2005 former interior minister Abdi Hassan Awale Qeybdiid (1948-) is arrested in Stockholm on suspicion of leading the militia during the battle; Operation Urban Warrior is launched by the U.S. Marine Corps to plan and test urban warfare.
In Sept. 1993 the U.N. Mission in Haiti (UNMIH) is established, operating until June 1996, then reestablished in Apr. 2004.
On Oct. 5, 1993 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 to adopt Resolution 872, establishing the U.N. Assistance Mission for Rwanda (UNAMIR) to assist in the implementation of the Arusha Accords of Aug. 4 ending the Rwandan Civil War; it ends in Mar. 1996 after failing to prevent the 1994 Rwandan Genocide.
On Dec. 20, 1993 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 48/114 is adopted, drawing attention to the plight of Azerbaijani refugees.
On Dec. 20, 1993 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 48/104 is adopted, promulgating the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women, recognizing "the urgent need for the universal application to women of the rights and principles with regard to equality, security, liberty, integrity and dignity of all human beings", after which in 1999 the U.N. Gen. Assembly designates Nov. 25 as the Internat. Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.
In 1993 U.N. Watch is founded in Geneva, Switzerland "to monitor the performance of the United Nations by the yardstick of its own Charter", going on to expose human rights abuses in DRC, Darfur, China, Venezuela, Cuba, and Russia, and become outspoken against anti-Semitic and anti-Israel sentiment in the U.N.Tut-tut-tutsi goodbye, tut-tut-tutsi don't cry? The war of tall vs. medium in a land with one-percent pygmies? On Apr. 6, 1994 (Wed.) the Rwandan Genocide begins after longstanding hate between the short-statured majority (85%) Hutu and tall-statured minority (15%) Tutsi (Watusi) tribes goes critical mass after a plane carrying Burundian Hutu pres. Cyprien Ntaryamira and Rwandan Hutu pres. Juvenal Habayrimana is shot down as it approaches the Rwandan capital of Kigali, killing them both, and triggering civil wars in both countries, with Hutu youth gangs in Burundi massacring Tutsi, crying "Cut down the tall trees", followed by the Tutsi-controlled army killing Hutus, killing 300K by 1996; Hutu Sylvestre Ntibantunganya (Gishubi Gitega) (1956-) becomes pres. of Burundi (until 1996); meanwhile across the border in Rwanda (Africa's most Christian nation), news of an imminent power-sharing agreement between Hutus and Tutsis proposed by Hutu moderate Habyarimana causes a state-run radio station controlled by Hutu extremists to inflame fears of a Tutsi takeover, and after the double assassination of Hutus (by Hutu extremists?) "proves" it, a 100-day killing spree begins as the pres. guard begins killing Tutsi opposition leaders, followed by the police and soldiers attempting to slaughter the entire Tutsi pop., resulting in 500K-1M Rwandans (mostly Tutsis, plus moderate Hutu sympathizers) out of a pop. of 7.7M being slaughtered, mainly by the 30K-member Interahamwe militia, with the gen. Hutu pop., goaded by the govt.-controlled radio (which calls Tutsis "cockroaches") joining in; on Apr. 9 Jean Kambanda (1955-) becomes PM of Rwanda, and remains in office for the Hundred Days of Genocide, later confessing to genocide; the Tutsi-led Rwanda Patriotic Front fights back, and after a 14-week civil war it sweeps the country and is victorious by July, after which Pres. Paul Kagame ousts the Hutu govt., ending the slaughter, which becomes infamous for the total lack of internat. response, the U.N. in Rwanda pulling out after a measly 10 of its soldiers are killed; a push by Catholics to establish schools, which was most successful among the Tutsi causes the schools to become killing pens; 1.7M Hutu refugees flee into Zaire, while starvation causes a slaughter of wildlife, and prof. poachers run amok without govt. control, killing 250 Congolese park wardens; the new Tutsi-controlled govt. of Rwanda allows Hutu Pasteur Bizimungu (1950-) to serve as pres. (until 2000), with Tutsi rebel leader Paul Kagame (1957-) (founder of the Rwandan Patriotic Front) as vice-pres. and eminence grise until 2000, when he becomes you-can-i-am pres. (until ?); after the French do nothing, French institutions in Rwanda are shut down, and Rwanda switches its official language from French to English; on Feb. 25, 2010 French pres. Nicolas Sarkozy issues an apology, acknowledging "mistakes"; in 2004 a French judge accuses Kagame of being behind the shooting down of the pres. plane, which he denies; the fun then spreads to Zaire, as Hutu guerrillas hiding among the refugees begin attacking the govt., causing it to threaten to exile their own Tutsi, and leading to Rwanda supporting Tutsi rebels against the same govt.; the complicity of the Roman Catholic Church in the genocide, which ends up turning thousands of Rwandans away, incl. two Catholic nuns convicted in 2001 by a Belgian court for aiding and abetting murders; a Catholic nun who helped militias kill hundreds hiding in a hospital is sentenced to 30 years in Nov. 2006; Roman Catholic Hutu priest Athanase Seromba (1963-), who ordered militamen to set fire to a church filled with 2K Tutsis huddled inside for safety and then orders it bulldozed after some remain alive, is convicted on Dec. 13, 2006 and sentenced to 15 years; by 2006 63K genocide suspects (9.2% of the 8.2M pop.) are detained in Rwanda, and authorities say at least 761K should stand trial; in 2003 a wildlife survey shows that 20K of the 50K native bonobos in existence were wiped out; the bad example of the Roman Catholic Church later causes many Rwandans to turn to Islam.
On Nov. 29, 1994 the U.N. Security Council votes 13-0-2 (Brazil, Russia) for Resolution 963 to admit Palau.
On Jan. 30, 1995 the U.N. Security Council votes 14-0-1 (China) for U.N. Security Council Resolution 975, transferring responsibility from the Multinat. Force (MNF) to the U.N. Mission in Haiti (UNMIH); on Mar. 31 U.S. forces in Haiti turn over their peacekeeping duties to the U.N. Mission in Haiti (UNMIH) as Pres. Clinton praises the restoration of democracy during a ceremony in Port-au-Prince.
On Feb. 8, 1995 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 976 to send the 7K-man U.N. Angola Verification Mision III to Angola to police their 1994 accord.
On Mar. 3, 1995 the last U.N. forces depart from Somalia.
On July 11, 1995 Bosnian Serbs capture the silver-mining town of Srebrenica in E Bosnia-Herzegovina, supposedly under the protection of the U.N., then stage the Srebrenica Massacre of 8K Muslim men and boys (worse massacre since WWII?) under the orders of Radovan Karadzic (ends July 22), humiliating the U.N. and eventually toppling the Dutch govt.
On Sept. 5, 1995 Hillary Clinton addresses a special session of the U.N. Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, lecturing China on human rights abuses with her hair let down sexily and wearing a pink suit, with the soundbyte: "Women's rights are human rights, and human rights are women's rights"; three days earlier her hubby Bill addressed ceremonies at Pearl Harbor commemorating the 50th anniversary of V-J Day.
In 1995 the 24m-high Nacka Fountain in Stockholm, Sweden opens, designed by Uppsala-born Swedish-Am. sculptor Carl Milles (Carl Wilhelm Emil Andersson) (1875-1955) and copied by his asst. Marshall M. Fredericks, with the title "God, Our Father, on the Rainbow", celebrating the founding of the United Nations.
On Feb. 24, 1996 the Cuban govt. shoots down two civilian aircraft operated by the Miami-based Cuban refugee group Brothers to the Rescue in internat. airspace, causing Congress to pass the U.S. Helms-Burton Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (Libertad) Act of 1996, signed by Pres. Clinton on Mar. 12, reaffirming the trade embargo, authorizing private claims to owners of property confiscated by Cuba, and denying admission to the U.S. to top execs that used or invested in property that was confiscated by Cuba's Communist govt., requiring the U.S. pres. to "determine that there exists a democratically elected government in Cuba" before restoring diplomatic recognition; the U.N. Gen. Assembly denounces it as a violation of internat. law; after Cuba tries to justify its actions, U.S. U.N. ambassador Madeleine Albright utters the soundbyte: "This is not cojones. This is cowardice", which Pres. Clinton calls "probably the most effective one-liner in the whole administration's foreign policy."
On Jan. 1, 1997 after the Clinton admin. puts the screws on to deny a 2nd term to Boutros Boutros-Ghali (who had alienated U.S. U.N. ambassador Madeleine Albright), and the U.N. Security Council appoints him without a vote on Dec. 13, Kofi Atta Annan (1938-2018) of Ghana (senior official in the U.N. Dept. of Peacekeeping Operations. stinking himself up by deciding not to reinforce the beleaguered U.N. mission in Rwanda in 1994) becomes U.N. secy.-gen. #7 (until Dec. 31, 2006), becoming the first from sub-Saharan Africa and first to rise through the U.N.'s ranks, and the 2nd most important after #2 Dag Hammarskjold, eschewing his dashing flamboyant style to become an org. man, going on to serve through the troubled times before and after the Iraq War while pioneering the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) Principle.
On Feb. 18, 1997 after being nominated by his friend Pres. Clinton, Pasadena, Calif.-born Hispanic U.S. Rep. (R-N.M.) (since Jan. 3, 1983) William Blaine "Bill" Richardson III (1947-) (known for diplomatic missions to Baghdad, Bangladesh, North Korea, Cuba, Guatemala, India, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Peru, and Sudan), becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #21 (until Aug. 18, 1998), going on to fly to Afghanistan to negotiate a ceasefire with the Taliban, which fails; he goes on to becomes Repub. gov. #30 of N.M. in 2003-11.
On June 11, 1997 the U.N. Security Council votes to tighten restrictions on Iraq if it doesn't quit blocking U.N. inspectors looking for WMDs, which started in Feb. 1991; on July 1 Richard William Butler (1942-) of Australia becomes head of the weapons inspection team, and on Oct. 6 reports that Saddam Hussein is blocking efforts to inspect germ warfare shells, after which on Oct. 23 the French block an attempt by the U.S., Britain, and seven other countries to keep Iraqis involved from travelling abroad; on Nov. 13 Saddam expels the U.S. members of the team, causing the entire team to withdraw in protest and U.S. Pres. Clinton to threaten military action; after Russian foreign minister Yevgeny Maksimovich Primakov (1929-) intervenes, Saddam agrees to a compromise on Nov. 19, and the inspectors return on Nov. 22, accusing him of using the time to build up his secret stockpiles; on Nov. 25 U.S. defense secy. William Cohen warns that Iraq might possess enough nerve gas VX to kill everyone on Earth, although he admits that 25 countries have or are developing nukes or WMDs. On Nov. 13 Iraq expels U.S. members of the U.N. inspection team mandated to ascertain that Iraq has destroyed all its WMD (weapons of mass destruction: chemical, biological, nuclear, and ballistic arms); the U.S. begins a military buildup in the Persian Gulf.
On Dec. 11, 1997 the Kyoto Protocol is signed by 192 parties incl. all U.N. member states except Andorra, Canada, South Sudan, and the U.S., effective Feb. 16, 2005, extending the 1992 U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) commiting all parties to reduce greenhouse emissions esp. CO2; the Oregon Petition (Global Warming Petition Project), organized by Arthur B. Robinson, pres. of the Ore. Inst. of Science and Medicine and endorsed by Frederick Seitz (1911-2008), pres. #17 of the U.S. Nat Academy of Sciences in 1962-9 has 31K degreed signatories, urging the U.S. to reject the Kyoto Protocol, with the soundbyte: "The proposed limits on greenhouse gases would harm the environment, hinder the advance of science and technology, and damage the health and welfare of mankind."
On Jan. 15, 1998 after U.N. intervention, Croatian sovereignty is restored to Eastern Slavonia, the last Croatian territory seized by the Serbs.
On Jan. 17, 1998 Sodamn Insane celebrates the 7th anniv. of the start of the Gulf War by threatening to evict all U.N. weapons inspectors from his lovely little garden state of Iraq.
In Jan. 1998 U.N. weapons inspections in Iraq are blocked after the Iraqis accuse U.S. team head William Scott Ridder Jr. (1961-) of being a spy; inspections are allowed to resume in Feb.; Saddam Hussein blocks inspections again in Aug., then breaks off negotiations in Oct., but relents in Nov. after the U.S. builds up its forces in the region; meanwhile U.S. Rep. (D.-N.Y.) (1975-93) Stephen Joshua Solarz (1940-2010) leads a group of conservatives urging Pres. Clinton to overthrow him; Ritter goes on to claim that Iraq possesses no significant WMDs, becoming the #1 most credible critic of the Bush admin.; too bad, he has a weakness for sex with minors, and is arrested in 2001 and 2010 for soliciting them for sex on the Internet, and convicted and given a sentence of 1.5-5 years.
On Feb. 6, 1998 Pres. Clinton and British PM Tony Blair warn Saddam Hussein that any more hanky-panky with the U.N. weapons inspectors will likely bring a cowboy, er, military response.
On Mar. 14, 1999 secret U.N. talks in Turkmenistan end in an accord that "in principle" Afghanistan will soon be ruled by a coalition govt.; this doesn't stop the Taliban, which continues through the year, beginning a major offensive on July 28 to attempt to gain control of the remaining 10% of the well-bearded country.
On Apr. 27, 1998 the U.N. defies Iraq's threats and votes to extend sanctions because of its blocking of arms inspections.
On May 1, 1998 former Rwandan PM (1994) Jean Kambanda (1955-) becomes the first (only?) govt. head to confess to genocide against members of the Tutsi tribe before a U.N. war crimes tribunal, and promises to rat out his accomplices; in Sept. he becomes the first person in history to be convicted of the crime of genocide under the 1948 Genocide Convention, and receives a life sentence; the U.N. tribunal then proceeds at a glacial pace, convicting only eight more by 2001, causing a U.N. report in Dec. 1999 to blame Kofi Annan and other U.N. officials for that and also for letting the Hutu-Tutsi genocide happen.
On June 15, 1998 a U.N. diplomatic conference meets in Rome to draft the Rome Statute, which is adopted on July 17, and enters into force on July 1, 2002, establishing an Internat. Criminal Court in The Hague to try cases of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity; by Oct. 2017 123 states are parties; the U.S. and Russia sign then withdraws; by the end of 2017 the Office of the Prosecutor has opened 10 official investigations and 11 preliminary examinations, indicting 39 persons incl. Muammar Gaddafi of Libya, Jean-Pierre Bemga of Congo, Laurent Gbagbo of Ivory Coast, Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya, African rebel leader Joseph Kony, and Omar al-Bashir of Sudan.
The All-American Three Strikes and You're Out? On Dec. 15, 1998 chief U.N. weapons inspector, U.N. Special Commission (Unscom) chmn. Richard William Butler (1942-) accuses Iraq of blocking weapons facility inspections, and on Dec. 16 the U.S. and Britain begin air and missile strikes in an effort at long term attrition, targeting Iraqi military-industrial sites from bases in Kuwait and Oman, starting with a 23:00 Baghdad time hail of 200+ Tomahawk missiles (ends Dec. 19); similar crises had been resolved without such strikes in Feb. and Nov.; on Dec. 19 the strikes end, with the U.S. crowing success, causing Iraqi officials to pledge to never allow the return of them *!?*! U.N. arms inspectors over their dead bodies? - be careful what you wish for?
On Mar. 8, 1999 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 53/144 is adopted, promulgating the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders.
On June 25, 1999 the U.N. Security Council adopts Resolution 1248 without vote to admit Kiribati; on June 25 it votes 14-0-1 (China) for Resolution 1249 to admit Nauru; on July 28 it adopts Resolution 1253 without vote to admit Tonga.
On Sept. 7, 1999 U.S. ambassador to Germany (1993-4) Richard Charles Albert "the Bulldozer" Holbrooke (1941-2010) (known for brokering the 1995 Dayton Peace Accords) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #22 (until Jan. 20, 2001), going on to use his presidency of the U.N. Security Council to broker a deal in Dec. 2000 to lower the U.S. dues in return for paying $900M in back dues, helped by a contribution by billionaire Ted Turner, founder of the UN Foundation, get the U.N. Security Council in Jan. 2000 to hold six debates on African crises in DRC, Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe incl. the AIDS epidemic (first time a health issue is treated as a global security matter), and secure membership in the U.N. Western European and Others regional group for Israel, along with consultative status for the Hadassah Jewish women's service org.; after he leaves he takes over the Global Business Council on HIV/AIDS, expanding it from 17 to 225 members and increasing coverage to malaria and TB, becoming Hillary Clinton's top choice for U.S. secy. of state.
On Oct. 15, 1999 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 1267, designating Osama bin Laden and his assocs. as terrorists and establishing sanctions for them, al-Qaida, and the Taliban; on Dec. 11, 2008 it adds the Pakistan-based terrorist group Jamaat-ud-Dawa and four others as terrorist fronts under its 1999 Resolution 1267.
On Dec. 17, 1999 the U.N. Security Council votes 11-0 (China, France, Malaysia, Russia) to adopt Resolution 1284, creating the U.N. Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) to replace the U.N. Special Commission (UNSCOM); Iraq rejects the resolution, claiming it doesn't meet its reqts. for the lifting of the 1990 sanctions.
On Feb. 17, 2000 the U.N. Security Council votes 14-0-1 (China) for Resolution 1290 to admit Tuvalu; on Oct. 31 it adopts Resolution 1326 without vote to admit the Federal Repub. of Yugoslavia, which in 2003 becomes Serbia and Montenegro, which become separate in 2006.
On Mar. 2, 2000 former Swedish foreign affairs minister (1978-9) Hans Martin Blix (1928-) becomes exec chmn. of the U.N. Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) (until June 2003), going on in 2002 to search Iraq unsuccessfully for WMDs.
On Mar. 7, 2000 the Panel on U.N. Peace Operations is convened under chmn. Lakhdar Brahimi (1934-) of Algeria, going on to pub. the Brahimi Report on Aug. 21, noting that there is still no standing U.N. army or police force, calling on the U.N. to focus more on intel, with the soundbyte: "Tell the Security Council what it needs to know, not what it wants to hear", and not to send peacekeepers where there is no peace to keep; on Nov. 13 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 1327, recalling Resolution 1318 and attempting to implement the Brahimi Report.
On Mar. 14, 2000 the Fowler Report is presented to to the U.N. by a team of investigators led by Canadian U.N. ambassador (since Jan. 1995) Robert R. Fowler (1944-), detailing the financing of UNITA blood or conflict diamonds via sale on the internat. market, causing the U.N. Gen. Assembly in Dec. to adopt U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 55/56, AKA the Kimblerley Process Certification Scheme to certify rough diamonds as not financing a rebel or other violent group, requiring a special certificate.
In Apr. 2000 rebel RUF forces in Sierra Leone under Foday Saybana Sankoh (1937-2003) refuse to demobilize, and kill seven Zambian and Kenyan U.N. peacekeepers on May 3, then take 500 more hostage on May 6; on May 8 demonstrators attack Sankoh's compound in Freetown, losing 19 but causing him to flee, and on May 17 he is ratted out while hiding in his abandoned house, shot in the leg and handed over to the govt.
On May 25, 2000 the Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict is adopted by the U.N. Gen. Assembly by a 263-54 vote, requiring parties to ensure that children under age 18 are not forcefully recruited into their armed forces and do not take part in hostilities; it comes into force on Feb. 12, 2002; by Feb. 2018 180 states sign it, with 13 states signing but not ratifying it; the Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography is adopted by the U.N. Gen. Assembly, coming into force on Jan. 18, 2002; by Feb. 2018 183 states sign it, with nine states signing but not ratifying it.
On July 27, 2000 Resolution 1310 is approved by the U.N., confirming that Israel has "withdrawn its forces from Lebanon in accordance with Resolution 425".
On Sept. 6, 2000 the Taliban captures the Northern Alliance HQ of Taloqan, Afghanistan, and on Sept. 7 requests the U.N. to recognize it as the official Afghan govt.; the U.N. Security Council responds on Dec. 19 by voting 13-0-2 (China, Malaysia) for Resolution 1333 to recall all resolutions on Afghanistan, tighten diplomatic sanctions, and impose an arms embargo, repeating its demands for extradition of Osama bin Laden - french me a fry, bring me a nut, kashmir me, I won't comply?
On Sept. 6-8, 2000 the Millennium Summit is held at the U.N. in New York City by 150 world leaders from 188 member states in the largest-ever gathering of heads of states of govt. (until ?); on Sept. 7 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 1318, endorsing the U.N. Millennium Declaration, which is endorsed by the U.N. Gen. Assembly on Sept. 8,
On Sept. 28, 2000 the video New Trends in Arab Anti-Semitism was presented to the U.N. Human Rights Commission, cataloging the horrible anti-Semitism in the Muslim world.
On Oct. 31, 2000 the U.N. Security Council unanimously approves Resolution 1325, calling for the adoption of a gender perspective incl. the special needs of women and girls during repatriation, resettlement, rehabilitation, reintegration, and post-conflict reconstruction, becoming their first resolution requiring parties in a conflict to respect women's rights.
On Nov. 1, 2000 the U.N. Gen. Assembly unanimously approves Yugoslavia's application for U.N. membership.
On Dec. 12, 2000 the U.N. (Palermo) Convention against Transnational Organized Crime is passed, with three supplementary Palermo Protocols covering trafficking in persons, smuggling of migrants, and trafficking in firearms, effective Sept. 29, 2003; by June 2016 it is adopted by 187 parties incl. 182 U.N. member states, the EU, the Vatican, the State of Palestine, and Cook Islands; members that have not ratified it incl. Iran, Japan, Repub. of Congo, Somalia, South Sudan, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Palau, and Tuvalu.
On Mar. 21, 2001 the Taliban blows up the two 1,500-y.-o. Buddhas of Bamyan, one 125 ft. (world's tallest) and the other 115 ft. in Bamiyan, Afghanistan, 143 mi. NW of Kabul (on the ancient Silk Road); the region was once a center of Buddhism but now has 400K Persian-speaking education-loving mostly Shiite Hazaras, which the Taliban has been persecuting since 1996. On Dec. 20, 2002 as a reaction to the Taliban's destruction of Buddha statues in Bamiyan, Afghanistan in 2001 the 57th Session of the U.N. Gen. Assembly adopts U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 57/249, proclaiming the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, to be held each May 21 to promote diversity and harmonious living.
On Sept. 11, 2001 (Tues.) Pres. George W. Bush is targeted in an assassination plot by al-Qaida in Sarasota, Fla.? On Sept. 11 (Tues.) the New York Times pub. a story about ex-Weatherman radical William Charles "Bill" Ayers (1944-), quoting him as saying "I don't regret setting bombs. I feel we didn't do enough." On Sept. 11 (Tues.) the 9/11 Attacks see the New York City skyline changed after 19 lowdown cowardly stinking crazed Satan-controlled Muslim raghead jihad terrorist scumbags (incl. 15 Saudis) hijack four U.S. commercial airliners and take over the unprotected cabins, using flying lessons given them in the U.S. to steer and crash into the twin towers of the World Trade Center (WTC) (dedicated in Apr. 1973), and also the Pentagon; Am. Airlines Flight 11 (Boeing 767) from Boston to Los Angeles hits the North Tower at 8:46:26 a.m. with a direct hit that disables all the elevators; actor Tony Perkins' wife Berinthia "Berry" Berenson-Perkins (b. 1948) is on Flight 11; United Airlines Flight 175 (Boeing 767) from Boston to Los Angeles hits the South Tower at 9:02:54 a.m. at an angle, permitting people to escape; Flight 175 has a mysterious pod attached to the undercarriage, indicating that the whole show is really being run by the govt. and the plane was unmanned and remotely-controlled?; Am. Airlines Flight 77 from Washington, D.C. to Los Angeles hits the SW face of the Pentagon at 9:43 a.m. on the 60th anniv. of its groundbreaking; it was really a U.S.-launched missile, and was covered-up?; Pres. Bush had a meeting scheduled with affiliates of the Muslim Brotherhood after he arrived back at the White House; Pres. Bush first informs the nation of "an apparent terrorist attack on our country" at 9:30 from the school; at 9:45 a.m. the FAA grounds all civilian domestic and internat. flights to-from the U.S., although an El Al (Boeing 747) flight is allowed to take from JFK Airport to Tel Aviv at 4:11 p.m.; commercial flights resume on Sept. 13, followed by private flights on Sept. 14; on Sept. 20 a flight containing Bin Laden family members is allowed to leave the U.S., carrying four Americans; on Sept. 11 NBC-TV commentator Tom Brokaw answers a speculation by Matt Laurer with "This is war. This is a declaration and execution of an attack on the United States", later chanting "War! War!"; "When I saw the second airplane hit, I knew jihad has come to America" (Nonie Darwish); the South Tower implodes at 9:59:04 a.m., followed by the North Tower at 10:28:31 a.m., after the jet fuel ignites tons of paper, which causes internal temps as high as 2K F; Pres. Bush is informed of the South Tower crash at 9:07 a.m. by White House chief of staff (2001-6) Andrew Hill "Andy" Card Jr. (1947-) while visiting with 2nd grade (mainly black) students at Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Fla., and turns red, but stays with the kids, reading aloud from the children's story The Pet Goat (by Siegfried Engelmann and Elaine C. Bruner) with them; British-born former U.S. Army officer Cyril Richard "Rick" Rescoria (b. 1939), vice-pres. of security at Morgan Stanley (scheduled for retirement at year's end) dies after helping 2.7K coworkers to safety; after rushing in to help not knowing about the impending collapse; 343 firefighters die in the Twin Towers, and firefighter (Argentine native) Sergio Gabrial Villanueva (b. 1968) becomes a hero; Hollywood actor Steven Vincent "Steve" Buscemi (1957-) (a former NYC firefighter) quietly returns to Engine Co. 55 and works 12-hour shifts, trying to avoid publicity; two Port Authority of N.Y. and N.J. police officers survive the towers' collapse and are rescued from the rubble after 22 hours; 300K are evacuated by boat in lower Manhattan after hundreds of craft answer a Coast Guard call for help "From All Available Boats" and converge on the West Side; meanwhile United Air Lines Flight 93 from Newark, N.J. to San Francisco, Calif. carrying 37 passengers and seven crew is hijacked by Beirut, Lebanon-born pilot (al-Qaida member) Ziad Samir Jarrah (1975-2001) and three Saudi Arabia-born muscle men Ahmed bin Abdullah al-Nami (1977-2001), Ahmed Ibrahim al-Haznawi (1980-2001), and Saeed Abdallah Ali Sulayman al-Ghamdi (1979-2001), crashing at 10:03 a.m. near Shanksville in Somerset County, Penn. (60 mi. SE of Pittsburgh and 150 mi. NW of Washington, D.C.) after the 33 all-American passengers are first cowed by a fake body bomb then fight back against the four ragheads instead of cowering like sheep, and kick the surprised terrorists butts, although too late to prevent the crash; Flight 93 passenger Todd Morgan Beamer (b. 1968) becomes a U.S. hero when he quarterbacks the makeshift anti-raghead team with the all-American words "Let's roll!", which are heard on his cellphone; his sad-proud wife Lisa later founds the charity Heroic Choices; the Flight 93 Nat. Memorial is established on Sept. 24, 2002, and dedicated on Sept. 10, 2011; 2,976 are killed in the 9/11 attacks, incl. 2,605 in New York City, 125 at the Pentagon (incl. 55 military personnel), and 246 on the four planes, with 24 listed as missing, becoming the most Americans lost on U.S. soil since the Sept. 17, 1862 Battle of Antietam, and the greatest single-day civilian loss of life in the U.S. since the May 31, 1889 Johnstown Penn. Flood; Time mag. pub. a 9/11 tragedy issue with a cover photo by Lyle Owerko; many Palestinians openly celebrate the attackon the Great Satan U.S.; Iraqi pres. Saddam Hussein utters the soundbyte: "The American cowboys are reaping the fruit of their crimes against humanity"; the govts. of Cuba, Iran, Libya, and North Korea join a worldwide chorus denouncing the attacks; Arab leaders denouncing the attacks incl. King Hussein of Jordan, Egyptian pres. Hosni Mubarak, and Lebanese PM Rafik Hariri; some Muslims around the world express sympathy for the 9/11 victims, incl. a moment of silence at a World Cup match between Bahrain and Iran on Sept. 14, and a candlelight vigil by Palestinians in Jerusalem on Sept. 15 along with another in Tehran; on Sept. 14 Ireland holds a nat. day of mourning, becoming the only country other than the U.S. and Israel to do so; the Taliban in Afghanistan condemns the attacks but denies that Osama bin Laden is behind them; bin Laden also denies involvement, claiming that there is a govt. within the govt. of the U.S. that wants to turn the 21st cent. into a cent. of conflict between Islam and Christianity, suggesting U.S. Jews and intel agencies; the mastermind was mechanical engineering-trained Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (1964-); the economic repercussions cost the U.S. economy $1T (same as Bush's June 7 tax cut); 40K workers work at "The Pile" at Ground Zero for the next 8 mo., removing 1M tons of rubble, and 69% of them later develop permanent lung problems known as "WTC Cough"; NASA astronaut Frank Culbertson films the smoking WTC from space; New York Fire Dept. chaplain (Roman Catholic Franciscan friar) Father Mychal (Michael) Fallon Judge (b. 1933) dies at the WTC, becoming the "Saint of 9/11" ("God is going to make the headlines some day rather than the Devil, so don't give up"); St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church at 130 Liberty St. is destroyed, and the govt. stalls in rebuilding it until ?; St. Paul's Chapel at 209 Broadway facing Church St. opposite the E side of the WTC, where new U.S. pres. #1 George Washington prayed after his first inauguration on Apr. 30, 1789 is not harmed, and the syacmore tree in its courtyard becomes known as the 9/11 Sycamore, with a memorial later built for it (Isaiah 9:10); at 8:30 p.m. Pres. Bush gives a great Red-Blooded Am. Cowboy Speech from the White House, with the soundbyte "Make no mistake about it, the U.S. will hunt down and punish those responsible for these cowardly acts"; the U.S. launches into a new kind of war, the Global War on Terror (Terrorism) (ends ?); Osama bin Laden and his Al-Qaida org. are immediately suspected and become the world's most-wanted criminals, despite of a lack of hard evidence; Egyptian-born 9/11 ringleader ("Emir of the WTC Attack") Mohamed Mohamed Atta (b. 1968) (Mohamed Attacker?) (who created the jihad cell in Hamburg, Germany in the late 1990s, incl. three of the four pilots) is found to have met in Prague with an Iraqi spy, throwing suspicions on Saddam Hussein, and New York City-born U.S. nat. security adviser Richard N. Perle (1941-) allegedly either blames the 9/11 attack on Iraq or wants retaliation to incl. them; Pres. Bush activates the "shadow govt." of 75-150 top officials working 90-day shifts in underground bunkers on the East Coast; the Five Dancing Israelis incident starts with a woman named Maria claiming to see a white van with five men in it filming the burning Twin Towers, allegedly with shouts of joy, who are alleged to be Israeli Mossad agents, although they are interviewed and deny dancing etc., causing conspiracy theorists to claim 9/11 was a Mossad operation; New York City Mayor Rudolph William Louis "Rudy" Giuliani (1944-) leads the city in a heroic manner after the attacks, earning the title "America's Mayor", and calling the deaths "worse than anyone could bear"; "Vanity Fair" ed. Graydon Carter comments "I think it's the end of the age of irony"; British Queen Elizabeth II comments "Grief is the price we pay for love"; Russian pres. Vladimir Putin orders a massive expansion of intel-gathering efforts in North Am. and W Europe; a folded $20 U.S. bill shows the Twin Towers burning?; Algerian-born British airline pilot Lotfi Raissi becomes the first person accused of participating in the 9/11 attack, and is held for five mo. in Belmarsh hi-security prison in London, then put through nine years of hell until being cleared on Apr. 23, 2010; the 20-ft. Ground Zero Cross, a fortuitous configuration of fallen I-beams draws memorial messages and becomes a religious monument; Alicia Esteve Head, who is in Spain on 9/11 arrives in the U.S. in 2003 and pretends to be 9/11 Twin Towers survivor Tania Head, becoming er, head of the survivors' network until she is exposed in 2007, becoming the subject of the 2012 book The Woman Who Wasn't There: The True Story of an Incredible Deception by Robin Gaby Fisher; ; meanwhile by 2003 a joke translation of Quran 9:11 begins circulating: "For it is written that a son of Arabia would awaken a fearsome Eagle. The wrath of the Eagle would be felt throughout the lands of Allah and lo, while some of the people trembled in despair still more rejoiced, for the wrath of the Eagle cleansed the lands of Allah; and there was peace"; later conspiracy theorists begin exposing the 9/11 attacks as really perpetrated by the U.S. govt. to give them a pretext to destroy the last bastions of the Bill of Rights in the name of homeland security and give them a coverstory to invade the Middle East at will to secure oil, and point to a giant 9/11 conspiracy and coverup, incl. the framing of Muslim terrorists, who allegedly could never have accurately flown the airliners into the WTC, the fact that no fighters were scrambled to accept any of them, the fact that Osama bin Laden et al. were originally trained by the U.S., the problem that eight of those named on the FBI's list of 19 names later turn up alive and well living in different countries, and the evidences of the deliberate demolition of WTC Bldg. 7, which hadn't been struck by an airplane; later civil engineers prove WTC Bldg. 7 was in free-fall for 2.5 sec., pointing to planted explosives; others claim to rebut conspiracy allegations; did the U.S. govt murder its own people to make a power grab, then stage a coverup, stay tuned?; in Aug. 2009 a group of law enforcement officers and others who participated in the 9/11 rescue and cleanup develop immune system cancer and other health problems; by 2010 3K WTC survivors are still experienced long-term PTSD; on Mar. 11, 2010 they reach a $657.5M settlement; Saudi princess Haifa bint Faisal, wife of U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia Prince Bandar bin Sultan is later discovered to have donated money via a conduit to two of the 9/11 hijackers.
On Sept. 12, 2001 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 1368, condemning the 9/11 attacks and expressing readiness to take the necessary steps to respond to terrorism, recognizing the right of individual and collective self-defense.
On Sept. 19, 2001 after being appointed by Pres. George W. Bush in Feb. and being ratified by the Senate on Sept. 15, London, England-born diplomat John Dimitri Negroponte (1939-) (U.S. ambassador to Mexico, 1989-93) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #23 (until June 23, 2004), after which on June 29 he succeeds L. Paul Bremer as U.S. ambassador to Iraq (until Mar. 17, 2005) before becoming dir. #1 of nat. intelligence on Apr. 21, 2005 (until Feb. 13, 2007), controlling a $40B budget.
On Sept. 28, 2001 after a 5-min. meeting, the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 1373, responding to 9/11 by calling on all member states to ratify all existing internat. conventions on terrorism, share intel, and restrict immigration, establishing a terrorism committee to monitor compliance; too bad, the term "terrorism" isn't defined, and only al-Qaida and the Taliban are put on the sanctions list.
On May 20, 2002 East Timor (modern-day pop. 1.1M) gains independence from Indonesia, becoming a brand new nation; on May 23 the U.N. Security Council adopts Resolution 1414 without vote to admit East Timor.
On Jan. 20, 2003 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 1456, calling on all states to prevent and suppress all support for terrorism, mentioning human rights for the first time but failing to define terrorism.
On Jan. 25, 2003 a French-brokered peace in Ivory Coast is signed, calling for the govt. of pres. Laurent Gbagbo to share power with pro-Guei rebels, with Seydou Diarrhea, er, Diarra as PM; too bad, Gbagbo reneges, and riots begin in the capital Yamoussoukro, causing a ceasefire to be signed on May 3 and another peace to be declared on July 4, supported by 4K U.N. peacekeeper troops; the rebels continue to hold the N half of the country.
On Feb. 5, 2003 U.S. secy. of state #65 (2001-5) Gen. Colin Luther Powell (1937-) delivers a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, claiming that Iraq has WMDs, using it as the Bush admin.'s rationale for war; too bad, he mistakenly names obscure jihadist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi 21x, making him a celeb that causes him to recruit followers in Iraq and lay the groundwork for ISIS; after the invasion fails to find any WMDs, he calls the speech a "blot" on his record, claiming that he warned Pres. Bush "If you break it, you own it."
On Apr. 30, 2003 after 30 mo. of violence the Quartet (U.S., EU, Russia, and the secy.-gen. of the U.N.) issues the Middle East Roadmap for Peace, outlining a 3-phase plan to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, namely, Phase 1: "Ending terror and violence, normalizing Palestinian life, and building Palestinian institutions", Phase 2: "Interim agreement with a Palestinian state having provisional borders and attributes of sovereigny... as a way station to a permanent status settlement", and Phase 3: "Permanent status agreement and the end of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict"; on May 23 it is endorsed by Ariel Sharon, and on May 25 by the Israeli cabinet, followed on June 4 by Mahmoud Abbas; on Nov. 20, 2003 Resolution 1515 based on it is adopted unanimously by the U.N. Security Council, incl. Syria, calling for a permanent 2-state solution after the cessation of violence, reform of the Palestinian Nat. Authority, and dismantling of the Palestinian terrorist infrastructure, along with the "illegal outposts" of Israel; on Mar. 19, 2010 the Quartet endorses it again.
On Dec. 1, 2003 after two years of secret negotiations, the Geneva Accord (Initiative) is announced in Geneva, claiming to be a model permanent status agreement to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with a 2-state solution giving almost all of the West Bank and Gaza Strip to the Palestinians, and returning Israel's borders to the start of the 1967 Six-Day War, with East Jerusalem becoming the capital of the Palestinian state and West Jerusalem of Israel, and Palestinians agreeing to limit their "right of return" and make no more demands - just what the world needs, a 22nd Arab state?
On Dec. 9, 2003 the U.N. Convention Against Corruption (drafted Oct. 31), promoted by the U.N. Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is signed, designed to reduce corruption across country borders incl. abuse of power, private sector corruption, embezzlement, and money laundering; it becomes effective on Dec. 14, 2005, with 140 signatories and 183 parties by 2018.
In Dec. 2003 the U.N. Gen. Assembly proclaims 2005-15 as the Internat. Decade for Action 'Water for Life', promoting efforts to fulfill internat. commitments on water and water-related issues.
On Feb. 27, 2004 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 to adopt Resolution 1528 to create the U.N. Operation in Cote d'Ivoire (Opération des Nations Unies en Côte d'Ivoire) (ONUC), to take over from the MINUCI on Apr. 4 (ends ?); by Mar. 31, 2017 it comprises 17 uniformed and 689 civilian personnel.
On May 6, 2004 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 58/292 is adopted, titled "Status of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem", affirming that Palestinian territory incl. East Jerusalem is under military occupation by Israel, which is obligated by the Geneva Convention to protect civilians, supporting the 2-state solution based on pre-1967 borders.
On July 23, 2004 U.S. Sen. (R-Mo.) (1975-95) John Clagett Danforth (1936-) (grandson of Purina Mills founder William H. Danforth) (known for the Danforth Report whitewashing the 1993 Waco Siege) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #24 (until Jan. 20, 2005), attempting unsuccessfully to bring peace to the Sudan and submitting his resignation on Nov. 22 six days after the announcement that he is going to be replaced by Condoleeza Rice.
On Oct. 8, 2004 in response to the Sept. 1 Beslan School Massacre in Russia et al., the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 1566, condemning terrorism, which is defined as "criminal acts, including against civilians, committed with the intent to cause death or serious bodily injury, or taking of hostages, with the purpose to provoke a state of terror in the general public or in a group of persons or particular persons, intimidate a population or compel a government or an international organization to do or to abstain from doing any act", adding that such acts are "under no circumstances justifiable by considerations of a political, philosophical, ideological, racial, ethnic, religious or other similar nature", with U.S. U.N. ambassador John Danforth uttering the soundbytes: "The resolution which we have adopted states very simply that the deliberate massacre of innocents is never justifiable in any cause - never", and "Some claim that exploding bombs in the midst of children is in the service of God", calling it instead "the ultimate blasphemy"; the resolution calls for the creation of a working group to expand the list of sanctioned terrorist entities beyond al-Qaida and the Taliban; meanwhile work begins to draft a comprehensive convention defining terrorism for adoption by the U.N. Gen. Assembly (ends ?).
Valentine's Day Shakespearean Tragedy, or Who Was That Masked Man? On Feb. 14, 2005 a massive 1K kg car bomb blasts the motorcade of 60-y.-o. billionaire Muslim politician and former PM (1992-8, 2000-4) Rafik Hariri (b. 1944) in Beirut, Lebanon, killing him along with six bodyguards and 15 passersby, and wounding almost 100; he resigned last Oct. 20 after a dispute with Syria over its influence and its maintenance of 15K troops in Lebanon; on Mar. 24 a U.N. report concludes that Lebanon's probe into the killing is unsatisfactory, and the U.N. begins its own investigation; his 2nd son Saad Hariri (Saad ed Deen Rafiqk Al-Hariri) (1970-) becomes head of his daddy's Sunni Movement of the Future; on July 22, 2010 Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah makes a surprise announcement that his party is likely to be implicated in the assassination.
On Feb. 18-25, 2005 the World Summit on the Information Society is held in Geneva, Switzerland to address the global digital divide between rich and poor countries and spread Internet access across the world, establishing May 17 as World Info. Society Day in Nov., which is adopted by the U.N. Gen. Assembly as Resolution 60/252 in Mar. 2006; in Nov. 2006 it decides to celebrate May 17 as World Telecommunication and Info. Society Day.
On Feb. 20, 2005 former Dutch PM (1982-94) Rudolphus Franciscus Marie "Ruud" Lubbers (1939-2018) resigns as the 9th U.N. high commissioner for refugees over sexual harassment allegations; he held the post since Jan. 1, 2001, and refused to accept a paycheck.
On Feb. 26, 2005 gunmen kill nine U.N. Bangladeshi peacekeeping troops in a grass ambush in NE Congo near the town of Kafe 20 mi. NW of Bunia.
On Mar. 21, 2005 U.N. secy.-gen. Kofi Annan lays out his plans for sweeping changes to the U.N. before its 191-member General Assembly; his 63-page report is released on Mar. 20, callings for a new U.N. Human Rights Council to replace the Commission on Human Rights, an expanded Security Council, a streamlined Secretariat, programs to cut poverty and nuke proliferation, and a new convention against terrorism by Sept. 2006.
On Apr. 10, 2005 40K anti-Japanese protesters rally in Guangzhou, along with more in other major Chinese cities over Japan's bid to get a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council; on Apr. 13 China calls Japan's decision to let cos. explore a disputed area of the East China Sea for natural gas a "provocation" that could imperil Japan's bid for a permanent U.N. Security Council seat; on Apr. 14 a 3rd straight week of anti-Japanese demonstrations over Japan's wartime past and its bid for a permanent U.N. Security Council seat takes place in China, worrying the govt. that protesters could end up criticizing their regime.
On Apr. 13, 2005 the U.N. Gen. Assembly after seven years of waffling adopts a Global Treaty to Prevent Nuclear Terrorism, making it a crime to possess radioactive material or weapons with the intention of committing a terrorist act.
On May 5, 2005 Tony Blair wins a historic 3rd term as Britain's PM, but his Labour Party's majority in Parliament is sharply reduced from 161 to 68 seats (594 of 646), with only 37% of the popular vote, lowest winning share in English history; he enjoyed landslide victories in 1997 and 2001; two makeshift granades explode outside the British Consulate near the U.N. HQ in New York City as British voters go to the polls; Sadiq Aman Khan (1970-) becomes Labour MP for Tooting, London (until ?).
On May 12, 2005 after being nominated by Pres. George W. Bush, the GOP-controlled Foreign Relations Committee votes 10-8 along party lines to send the nomination of ultra-conservative interventionist (known for the Feb. 3, 1994 soundbyte: "The Secretariat building in New York has 38 stories. If it lost 10 stories, it wouldn't make a bit of difference") John Robert Bolton (1948-) as the next U.S. ambassador to the U.N. to the full U.S. Senate, but without the usual recommendation; Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio) calls Bolton "the poster child of what someone in the diplomatic corps should not be. He is an ideologue and fosters an atmosphere of intimidation" - work, it's like you don't even know me? On Aug. 2 Pres. Bush takes advantage of Congress being in recess to appoint controversial diplomat John Robert Bolton (1948-) as U.S. ambassador #25 to the U.N., saying, "This post is too important to leave vacant any longer"; he resigns on Dec. 31, 2006 after becoming known for undiplomatic outbursts and failing to gain Senate confirmation.
In May 2005 another peace is signed in 99-44/100 pure Ivory Coast, and elections are scheduled for Oct., but they are canceled after the U.N. declares it impossible to stop the fighting, and the U.N. Security Council recommends that pres. Laurent Gbagbo remain in office for another year while turning over most of his power to new transitional PM Charles Konan Banny (1942-), gov. of the West African Central Bank, who becomes PM on Dec. 7 (until Apr. 7, 2007).
On June 1, 2005 U.N. Secy.-Gen. Kofi Annan fires staffer (Cypriot diplomat) Joseph Stephanides for manipulating contracts under the $64B Iraq oil-for-food program.
On Aug. 8, 2005 former U.N. procurement officer Alexander Yakovlev of Russia pleads guilty to soliciting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from contractors in connection with the Iraqi oil-for-food program, and the same day Cyprus-born Armenian program chief Benon Vahe Sevan (1937-) is accused by a U.N.-backed probe led by former Federal Reserve chmn. Paul Volcker of taking $148K in kickbacks; in Sept. the probe releases a report claiming that half of the 4.5K cos. taking part in the program paid kickbacks or illegal surcharges.
On Sept. 14-16, 2005 the 2005 World Summit, a follow-up to the 2000 Millennium Summit meets at the U.N. HQ in New York City, with 191 member states (largest gathering of world history until ?) given "a once-in-a-generation opportunity to take bold decisions in the areas of development, security, human rights and reform of the United Nations"; the U.N. Convention Against Corruption (signed Dec. 9, 2003) receives its 30th ratification, allowing it to go into force in Dec.; the inaugural session of the Clinton Global Initiative is held in New York City to coincide with the summit.
On Oct. 7, 2005 chief U.N. nuclear inspector Mohamed Mostafa ElBaradei (1942-) and his Internat. Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) win the Nobel Peace Prize, which he claims vindicates his approach of using diplomacy rather than confrontation.
On Oct. 29, 2005 (2 days before the Hindu Diwali Festival) a series of three bomb blasts by Islamic Kashmiri Lashkar-e-Taiba (Urdu "Army of the Righteous") Islamic separatist militants strikes New Delhi, India killing 62 and injuring 210; in Dec. the U.N. declares Lashkar-e-Taiba a terrorist org., and Pakistani prof. Hafiz Muhammad Saeed (1950-) its leader.
On Nov. 1, 2005 after holding a special session on Jan. 24 marking the 60th anniv. of the closing of Nazi concentration camps, the 42nd Session of the U.N. Gen. Assembly unanimously approves U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 60/7 which designates Jan. 27 as Internat. Holocaust Remembrance Day, commemorating the WWII Holocaust tragedy that killed 6M Jews, 5M Slavs, 3M Poles, 200K Romani, 250K disabled people, and 9K homosexual men.
On Nov. 24, 2005 the Internat. Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the U.N.'s key nuclear watchdog agency meets in Vienna over the future of Iran's nuclear program; two weeks earlier its head Mohamed ElBaradei traveled to Iran to offer a proposal to move its uranium enrichment program to Russia, which was declined.
On Dec. 6, 2005 the U.N. authorizes a regional peacekeeping force for Somalia, but the Council of Islamic Courts rejects it; on Dec. 19 the first direct fighting between Somalia and Ethiopia begins.
On Dec. 9, 2005 Pres. Clinton tells the U.N. Climate Conference in Montreal that the Bush admin. is "flat wrong" in failing to ratify the Kyoto Protocol to reduce CO2 emissions just because it might damage the U.S. economy, as 150+ countries and about three dozen industrialized countries have done; the huffing-puffing U.S., China, and India still have not signed on.
On Dec. 30, 2005 Egyptian riot police kill 23 unarmed Sudanese migrants in a public park in Cairo that they had occupied for 3 mo. in an effort to pressure U.N. officials into relocating them.
In 2005 in response to the Mar. 2004 bombing of Madrid, the U.N. founds the Alliance of Civilizations to prevent a clash of civilizations, tracing back to the U.N. initiative called "Dialogue Among Civilizations" proposed in 1998 by Iranian pres. Mohammad Khatami to counter Samuel Huntington's book "The Clash of Civilizations"; too bad, it ends up being coopted by Islamic countries against the West.
In 2005 the U.N. Gen. Assembly adopts the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) Doctrine.
On Jan. 1, 2006 the U.N. World Food Program, which fed 600K in North Korea last Dec. officially shuts off aid to the country's 22M people at the govt.'s request.
Allah vs. Superman, or, Maybe that pope was right who called Muhammad the Antichrist? On Feb. 3, 2006 the reprinting of 12 cartoon caricatures of the Muslim Prophet Muhammad from the Sept. 30, 2005 issue of Denmark's Jyllands-Posten, ed. by Flemming Rose (1958-), incl. one of Muhammad with a beard in his turban causes madass protests by Muslims in Britain, Turkey, Lebanon, Syria, Pakistan, Indonesia, Malaysia and Palestine, incl. 50K in Khartoum, Sudan, causing the Danish govt. to apologize, and U.S. State Dept. spokesperson Janelle Hironimus to criticize the papers for "inciting religious or ethnic hatred in this manner", which she calls "not acceptable" (never criticizes the madass Muslims?); on Feb. 4 crazed caricatures of, er, Muslim protesters in Damascus attack the Danish and Norwegian embassies, then on Feb. 5 set fire to the Danish mission in Beirut, while Iran recalls its ambassador to Denmark; on Feb. 6 400 madass Muslims running loose in Tehran attack the Danish Embassy in the name of their prince of darkness Muhammad, the prophet of Satan who preaches hate and murder, intolerance, subjection of women and non-Muslims, polygamy and pedophilia, and doesn't claim to be divine or a healer but is an admitted killer, yet can't even be portrayed, while worshippers must dance around a black meteorite idol from outer space sent by his father the Devil?; in support many other European newspapers reprint them, the headline of France Soir reading "Yes, we have the right to caricature God" (Oui, on a le droit de caricaturer Dieu); on Oct. 28, 2005 a coalition of Dutch Muslim groups try to press criminal charges against the paper, but the prosecutor drops them; on Jan. 1, 2006 Danish PM Anders Fogh Rasmussen backs up the paper's right to freedom of speech; on Jan. 1, 2006 a Christian newspaper in Norway reprints the cartoons; on Jan. 25 Muslim leaders in Saudi Arabia demand punishment of the Danish newspaper, and on Jan. 26 withdraws their ambassador from Denmark as the country begins a boycott of Danish products; on Jan. 30 the paper apologizes for offending the Morons, er, Muslims, but stands by its decision to print them; on Jan. 31 Danish Muslims demand a clearer apology; on Feb. 2 the Jordanian weekly Shihan reprints them with an editorial by former Sen. Jihad Momani, who is then fired as the publisher withdraws the issue from circulation; in 2010 WikiLeaks reveals that Syria helped orchestrate the Motoon riots; meanwhile on Feb. 6 200 more criminals attack the Austrian Embassy in Tehran, yet more crazies storm a U.S. military base outside Bagram, Afghanistan (four being put to sleep by Afghan troops like the mad dogs they are by being shot in the street), and yet more crazed mad dogs stampede in Somalia, killing a teen boy; on Feb. 6 Lebanon apologizes to Denmark about being home to deathhead moth loonies with turbans and beards who can't stand unsevered infidel heads existing on the same planet with them (how can anyone portray the real Muhammad anyway when there are no original pics of him to go by, and don't half of the lookalike loonies call themselves Muhammad, and how is the "idolatrous" behavior of non-believers in the non-Muslim world any business of theirs to punish by taking the law in their own hands?); meanwhile on Feb. 6 Iran's parliament issues a statement mentioning what happened to Salman Rushdie (1947-), with thinly veiled threats that the British author of the cartoons will soon have a death warrant out on him, and sure enough, a $1M reward is put out for the head of the cartoonist; in Nigeria the heavily Muslim north goes bananas and kills 100 Christians in the heavily Christian SE, becoming the bloodiest cartoon fighting; the Muslims then begin pressuring the U.N. to make "defamation of Islam" a world crime, with a yearly vote that starts out strong then dwindles until ?; in July 2013 Lebanese-born Danish Muslim leader Ahmad Akkari, who traveled the Muslim World fueling the uproar over the cartoons repents, admitting the newspaper has the right to print them; too bad, on Sept. 30, 2015 after years of relentless Muslim attacks combined with submission to Sharia by the leftist govts. and PC press, Jyllans-Posten reprints the original page sans cartoons - shouldn't Islam be the world crime, with a worldwide death warrant out for each and every mental zombie suffering from this incurable mental virus for the good of the world? Are there actually any intelligent, sane people in this sick mass mind-control hypnocult ruled by a graveyard Hitler?
On Feb. 5, 2006 cartoon-hating Iran ends all voluntary cooperation with the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency - as it races to build A-bombs and use them with reckless abandon like in a, ahem, cartoon?
On Feb. 16, 2006 U.N. secy.-gen. Kofi Annan says that the U.S. should close its Guantanamo Bay Prison for terrorists as soon as possible.
On Apr. 23, 2006 Osama bin Laden issues a taped message, saying that the West is at war with Islam, accusing the U.S. and Europe of supporting a Zionist war on Islam by cutting off funds to the Hamas-led Palestinian govt., and calling on followers to go to Sudan to fight a proposed U.N. force in Darfur.
On May 9, 2006 Cuba, Saudi Arabia, China, and Russia become the 44th through 47th members of the new U.N. Human Rights Council, which replaces the politicized Human Rights Commission known for allowing members with bad records; 64 of the 191 U.N. member states submitted candidacies, which must be approved by a majority of the states; Venezuela and Iran are rejected; the U.S. didn't apply.
On May 22, 2006 cool-coastline postage-stamp-sized Slav Orthodox Christian Montenegro (pop. 600K, 30% Serb) votes by 55.4% to secede from much larger Serbia, ending its 88-year union (1918), causing celebrations in Podgorica and grumbling in Belgrade; on June 3 Montenegro declares independence, and joins the U.N. as member #192; of the 194 world countries, only Vatican City and Taiwan aren't members; on June 22, 2006 the U.N. Security Council adopts Resolution 1691 without vote to admit Montenegro.
On Sept. 7, 2006 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 60/285 is adopted, expressing serious concern for environmental damage in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, calling on all U.N. orgs. to help rehabilitate it.
On Sept. 19, 2006 U.N. secy.-gen. Kofi Annan opens the 61st U.N. Gen. Assembly, uttering the soundbyte: "On one side, supporters of Israel feel that it is harshly judged by standards that are not applied to its enemies, and too often this is true, particularly in some U.N. bodies"; on Sept. 19 U.S. Pres. #43 (2001-9) George Walker Bush (1946-) gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, claiming that the U.S. is not in a "war against Islam", saying "This propaganda is false and its purpose is to confuse you and justify acts of terror. We respect Islam"; Iranian pres. Ahmadinejad is nearby but snubs the speech; on Sept. 20 Venezuelan pres. (1999-2013) Hugo Chavez (1954-2013) gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, hamming it up by calling Bush a "diablo", saying "The Devil came here yesterday... as if he were the owner of the world", adding "In this very spot it smells like sulfur still", accusing the U.S. govt. of "domination, exploitation and pillage of peoples of the world"; "We appeal to the people of the United States and the world to halt this threat, which is like a sword hanging over our head"; U.S. ambassador John Bolton comments "Too bad the people of Venezuela don't have free speech"; in Oct. Chavez's behavior costs Argentina a seat on the U.N. Security Council; on Sept. ? a U.S. Secret Service agent accidentally discharges his shotgun as Iranian pres. Imadinnajacket is loading his motorcade at the InterContinental Hotel, freaking out Pres. Bush and co.; Imadinnajacket's refusal to make a public stink of the incident teaches the White House that he acts strategically, with caution, giving them respect for him?
On Oct. 6, 2006 (Fri.) the U.N. Security Council unanimously urges North Korea to abandon all atomic weapons and cancel test plans; on Oct. 9 North Korea detonates a nuke underground anyway, causing Pres. Bush to call it "a threat to internat. peace and security", and the U.N. Security Council to weigh severe sanctions, voting 15-0-0 on Oct. 14 for "clear threat to international peace and security", causing North Koream ambassador Pak Gil Yon to walk out of the council chamber after calling their action "gangster-like" for ignoring the U.S. nuclear arsenal, which gives U.S. U.N. ambassador John Bolton a chance to snicker; the resolution was castrated of its authorization of military action by Russia and China, but bans luxury items such as cognac, French wine, and lobster loved by Kim Jong-il; Russia is alone in saying it has "no doubts" over the North Korean claim of an underground atomic explosion, while U.S. experts claim it was a dud at a mere 1 kiloton.
On Oct. 17, 2006 U.S. officials announce that satellite images of North Korea indicate they are getting ready for a 2nd nuclear test as it holds huge rallies and proclaims that U.N. sanctions amount to a declaration of war.
On Oct. 22, 2006 Sudan orders Johannes Pieter "Jan" Pronk (1940-) of Holland, the top U.N. official there (since 2004) to leave after he accuses the army of mobilizing Arab militias on Oct. 14.
On Nov. 7, 2006 Panama wins a seat on the U.N. Security Council on the 48th ballot after Guatemala and Venezuela cancel each other out and drop out; the other new members are Belgium, Indonesia, Italy, and South Africa.
On Nov. 8, 2006 bird flu expert Dr. Margaret Chan Fung Fu-chun (1947-) of Hong Kong becomes the first Chinese to lead the World Health Org. (WHO) of the U.N. as dir. #7, taking office next Jan. 4 (until July 1, 2017); she was Hong Kong's health dir. in 1997 when the city reported the first-ever outbreak of H5N1 bird flu virus, and wins kudos for ordering all 1.5M poultry in the area slaughtered in 3 days - I can enjoy food again? On Nov. 8 Francisco de Goya's 1778 painting Children with a Cart is stolen from a truck outside a hotel in Stroudsburg, Penn. as it is being transported from the Toledo Museum of Art to the Solomon Guggenheim Museum in New York City; it is recoverd on Nov. 21 in N.J., an FBI agent saying the thieves "probably thought it was a truck full of PlayStations".
On Dec. 10, 2006 Afghan Pres. Hamid Karzai gives a speech on the 58th anniv. of the U.N. Universal Declaration of Human Rights, tearfully lamenting the killing of Afghan children by NATO and U.S. bombs and Pakistani terrorists.
On Dec. 11, 2006 U.N. secy.-gen. Kofi Annan gives his farewell address at the Truman Library in Independence, Mo., saying that the U.S. must not sacrifice its dem. ideals in its war against terrorism, that "human rights and the rule of law are vital to global security and prosperity", and that when Bush, er, the U.S. "appears to abandon its own ideals and objectives, its friends abroad are naturally troubled and confused", and finally "There's no secy.-gen. of the U.N. that's going to be in lockstep with the U.S. or any other country with regard to its policies"; he steps down on Dec. 31.
On Dec. 13, 2006 the U.N. Gen. Assembly adopts the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which is opened for signatures on Mar. 30, 2007; it comes into force on May 3, 2008, establishing the 18-person Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Geneva; by Apr. 2018 it has 161 signatories and 177 parties; in Dec. 2012 the U.S. fails to ratify it by six votes.
On Dec. 14, 2006 after the U.N. Security Council recommends him by acclamation on Oct. 9, the U.N. Gen. Assembly elects Ban Ki-moon (1944-) of South Korea as U.N. secy.-gen. #8; he is sworn-in on Jan. 1, 2007 (until Dec. 31, 2016), with the soundbyte "My mission could be dubbed Operation Restore Trust", becoming known as "the bridge-builder".
On Dec. 16, 2006 3K ethnic Tamils flee into govt.-held areas in E Sri Lanka, while the U.N. calls on Tamil Tiger rebels to let tens of thousands more flee the rebel-held town of Vaharai in E Batticaloa, where they fired artillery on Nov. 7 from a school filled with refugees, causing the Sri Lankan army to return fire, killing 45 civilians and injuring 100+; boats carrying fleeing civilians capsize, killing 8+.
In Jan. 2007 the U.N. estimates that at least 35K Iraqis have been killed each year since the U.S. Iraq War started in 2003.
On Feb. 3, 2007 Iran opens its Isfahan Uranian Conversion Facility to almost 100 reporters and a delegation of froeign ambassadors from the U.N. nuclear agency.
On Feb. 22, 2007 the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency announces that Iran has ignored the U.N. Security Council ultimatum to freeze uranium enrichment and has instead been expanding its program by setting up hundreds of centrifuges (total 1K), saying that new sanctions will be laid on them.
On Mar. 10, 2007 Iran and Syria join the five permanent U.N. Security Council members U.S., Britain, France, Russia, and China in a regional security conference in Baghdad.
The insurgents begin penetrating the holy Green Zone? On Mar. 22, 2007 a Katyusha rocket fired from a Shiite area of the E bank of the Tigris River hits near the office of PM Nouri al-Maliki, 50 yards from visiting U.N. Secy.-Gen. Ban Ki-moon in Baghdad's Green Zone, causing him to duck just minutes after al-Maliki said that the city is "on the road to stability"; meanwhile the U.S. military announces the capture of Qais al-Khazaali and his brother Laith al-Khazaali, who they claim are behind a Jan. sneak attack that killed five U.S. soldiers in Karbala.
On Apr. 2, 2007 the U.S. Supreme (Roberts) Court rules 5-4 in Mass. vs. EPA (the Endangerment Finding) to rebuke the Bush admin. for inaction on global warming, declaring that CO2 and other greenhouse gases are air pollutants under the 1963 U.S. Clean Air Act, and that the EPA has the authority to regulate those emissions from new cars and trucks, pissing-off climate skeptics, who begin lobbying to overturn it.
On Apr. 11, 2007 the Algerian al-Qaida group AQIM stages twin suicide attacks, one against the office of the PM in Algiers, the 2nd against a police station near the internat. airport, killing 33 and wounding 150+; on Sept. 6 they bomb a crowd waiting to greet Algerian pres. Abdel Aziz Bouteflika in Batna, killing 22 and injuring 100+; on Sept. 8 the attack the naval barracks in Dellys, killing 30; on Dec. 11 they finish the year by attacking the HQ of the U.N. refugee agency in Algiers, killing 47 incl. 17 U.N. employess.
On Apr. 30, 2007 after being nominated by Pres. George W. Bush on Feb. 12 and unanimously confirmed by the Dem.-controlled U.S. Senate on Mar. 29, Afghanistan-born Sunni Muslim Repub. ambassador to Afghanistan (2003-5) and Iraq (2005-7) Zalmay Khalilzad (1951-) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #26 (until Jan. 22, 2009), going on to charge in Nov. that Iran is helping insurgent groups in Afghanistan and Iraq, and is proceeding with its program to build nukes, and urge the U.N. Security Council in Aug. 2008 to take urgent action to "condemn Russia's military assault on the sovereign state of Georgia".
On May 6, 2007 the U.S., Egypt, Iran, the U.N. Security Council et al. hold a conference in Baghdad, Iraq.
On June 11, 2007 French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner announces that the pres. of Sudan has agreed to a hybrid U.N.-African Union peacekeeping force of 20K to stop the bloodshed in Darfur, but is adamant that all of the troops must be African; on June 17 the British ambassador to the U.N. announces that an agreement has been reached, with the commander to be African.
On June 24, 2007 a car bomb kills six U.N. peacekeepers on patrol in S Lebanon; meanwhile a battle between Lebanese troops and Sunni militants in N Lebanon kills 10.
On July 31, 2007 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 to adopt Resolution 1769, establishing the U.N.-African Union Mission in Darfur (ends ?), which grows to 26K personnel with a budget of $106M/mo. by 2008 after it begins deployment in Oct.; by June 30, 2013 it has 19,735 personnel; by June 20, 2017 it loses 250 personnel KIA.
On Aug. 15, 2007 in Myanmar the raising of fuel prices as much as 500% by the govt. causes citizen protests, launching the Saffron Rev., inspired by Aung San Suu Kyi, which begins as 500 mainly young male Buddhist monks march in Pokokku in N Myanmar (390 mi. NW of Yangon), causing authorities to fire warning shots and beat some of them up; on Sept. 6 the monks take some govt. officials hostage and demand apologies, and the protest spreads throughout Myanmar; on Sept. 22 2K monks march in Yangon in N Myanmar to defy the military junta, along with 10K in Mandalay, passing the house of Aung San Suu Kyi, who appears at her gate (where she is under house arrest) and accepts their blessings; on Sept. 23 150 nuns join in Yangon, along with 15K monks and laymen; on Sept. 24-26 30K-100K, incl. 10K monks stage a pro-democracy protest, which is brutally crushed by troops, who kill up to 200; meanwhile other protests go on in 25 other cities, causing the govt. to move Ain't You So Ashamed Kids to Insein Prison, and impose dusk-dawn curfews starting Sept. 26, then begin arresting hundreds of monks on Sept. 27, which doesn't stop 50K from protesting in Yangon, which troops deal with by hosing them down with insecticide spray, after which the protests stop; on Sept. 27 Japanese photographer Kenji Nagai (b. 1957) is shot and killed in the street like a dog by troops, continuing to take photos as he lies bleeding on the ground, causing Japanese PM Yasuo Fukuda to demand a full explanation; in Sept. U.N. under-secy.-gen. (since 2005) Ibahim Agboola Gambari (1944-) of Nigeria is appointed special U.N. envoy to Myanmar; on Oct. 31 they try it again in Pakkoku, but are down to 100 monks; on Nov. 26 hundreds of monks march against the Myanmar regime in safer Patna, India.
On Sept. 18, 2007 economist-diplomat Srgjan Asan Kerim (1948-) of Macedonia becomes pres. of the U.N. Gen. Assembly (until Sept. 16, 2008).
On Dec. 18, 2007 after a campaign launched by the Hands off Cain Assoc. in Italy, the non-binding U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 62/149 (104-54-29) adopts the U.N. Moratorium on the Death Penalty; it is followed by U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 63/168 on Dec. 18, 2008 (106-46-34), and U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 65/206 on Dec. 21, 2010 (109-41-35).
On Dec. 18, 2007 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 62/167 is adopted by a 22-59-10 vote, expressing serious concern about grave widespread human rights violations in North Korea and urging the govt. to man up.
On Jan. 1, 2008 begins the U.N. Internat. Year of Sanitation, declared in conjunction with the Water for Life Decade, setting the goal of reducing the number of people without access to basic sanitation by half by 2015.
On Jan. 8, 2008 Sudanese soldiers shoot at a U.N. peacekeeper convoy in Darfur, wrecking a fuel tanker and wounding a local driver.
On Feb. 22, 2008 the U.N. Gen. Assembly authorizes U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 62/141 on the Rights of the Child, establishing a special rep. to the U.N. secy.-gen. on violence against children.
On Mar. 4, 2008 the 2008 Mardakert Skirmishes see Armenia and Azerbaijan accuse each other of violating the May 5, 1994 Bishkek Protocol (provisional ceasefire agreement), after which on Mar. 14 the 62nd Session of the U.N. Gen. Assembly votes 39-7-100 to adopt U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 62/243, "The Situation in the Occupied Territories of Afghanistan", about the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, reaffirming "continued respect and support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity" of Azerbaijan "within its internationally recognized borders", demanding the "immediate, complete and unconditional withdrawal of all Armenian forces from all the occupied territories of Azerbaijan", emphasizing that "no state shall render aid or assistance" to maintain the occupation of Azerbaijani territories.
On Apr. 15, 2008 Pope Benedict XVI arrives for his first U.S. visit, becoming the first pope to be greeted by a U.S. pres. at Edwards AFB in Washington, D.C., where evangelical Methodist cowboy Pres. George W. Bush calls him "the most listened-to man in the world", apologizing for the Church's sex scandals while salivating over the 70M U.S. Catholics, whose numbers grow daily with illegal immigration; popey makes no public statements on Iraq because of the murder of Christian churchmen changing his mind about pulling out too quick?; on Apr. 16 a musical ceremony on the White House Lawn sings happy birthday to him, and he goes on to admit that the clergy sex-abuse scandal has been "very badly handled", then adds "What does it mean to speak of child protection when pornography and violence can be viewed in so many homes through media widely available today?"; on Apr. 17 he meets with victims of sexual abuse in the Boston area, and is given a list of 1K children who were abused going back several decades by Cardinal Sean Patrick O'Malley of Boston, issuing the soundbyte "No words of mine could describe the pain and harm inflicted by such abuse"; on Apr. 18 the pope gives an address to the the U.N., saying that respect for human rights and not violence is the key to solving many of the world's problems (what church has more experience?), and complaining about decision power resting in the hands of a few powerful (unnamed) nations; he leaves on Apr. 20 after leading a Mass before 60K at Yankee Stadium in New York City and telling them to be "obedient" to Church authority - a contradiction?
On Apr. 23, 2008 envoys from the U.S. and other nations dash out of a U.N. Security Council meeting after Libyan ambassador Ibrahim Dabbashi compares the plight of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip to those in Nazi concentration camps - hey I'm Maryann from Gilligan's Island?
On June 3-5, 2008 the 2008 U.N. Summit on World Hunger in Rome attended by 180 countries sees world leaders pledge to reduce trade barriers and boost agricultural productivity to fight soaring food prices, while vowing to cut world hunger in half by 2015; U.N. officials claims that $30B a year is needed to resolve the crisis; meanwhile the U.S. Congress sends a $290B farm bill to Pres. Bush for a 2nd time after fixing a printing error that left out delivery of U.S. food aid abroad.
On Sept. 16, 2008 Los Angeles, Calif.-born Columbia U.-educated Roman Catholic Maryknoll priest Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann (1933-2017) of Nicaragua (former foreign minister of Daniel Ortega, who went on a 2-mo. hunger strike in 1985 to protest U.S. military intervention via the Contras, then took the U.S. to the World Court, which ruled in 1986 that it violated internat. law and must pay reparations) becomes pres. of the U.N. Gen. Assembly (until Sept. 2009), going on to back Iranian pres. Imadinnajacket and Sudanese pres. Omar al Bashir, and accuse Israel of apartheid against the Palestinians.
On Sept. 23, 2008 the U.N. Gen. Assembly convenes, giving several world leaders, incl. Brazilian pres. Luis Inacio Lula da Silva a platform to slam the Bush admin. and Wall Street for threatening the global economy with their shenanigans; Bush counters with the lame soundbyte "We've promoted stability in the markets by preventing the disorderly failure of major companies", to which British minister Mark Malloch Brown responds "What you are seeing here is the letting off of some political steam. They are all remembering the very hard, unforgiving advice that they got from American financial institutions to deflate your economy, let your banks go to the wall."
On Oct. 28, 2008 Congolese rebels under gen. Laurent Nkunda break a Jan. U.N.-brokered ceasefire and advance toward Goma, sending tens of thousands fleeing, firing on civilians.
On Nov. 13, 2008 senior diplomats from Germany plus the five permanent U.S. security members Britain, China, France, Russia, and the U.S. hold a conclave in Paris to discuss fast-tracking new sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program that have been stalled.
On Dec. 16, 2008 the U.N. Security votes 14-0-1 (Libya) for Resolution 1850, reaffirming support for the 2007 Middle East summit in Annapolis, Md. and for the 2-state solution.
On Dec. 18, 2008 a nonbinding resolution is passed by the U.N. Gen. Assembly, backed by the 57-nation Saudi-based Org. of the Islamic Conference (OIC) urging members to take state action against "defamation of religion" and "incitement to religious hatred", particularly Muslim; meanwhile another nonbinding resolution calling for worldwide decriminalization of homosexuality is signed by 66 of 192 U.N. member countries, but the U.S. refuses.
In 2009 for the first time 1B (1.02B) people worldwide go hungry according to the U.N. World Food Program (100M than in 2008), and on Nov 11 UNICEF pub. a report claiming that almost 200M children have stunted growth because of malnutrition.
On Jan. 1, 2009 the Israeli attack on Gaza continues, stinking themselves up on Jan. 15 by hitting the U.N. HQ and destroying bags of food aid.
On Jan. 1, 2009 the Sri Lankan army captures Kilinochchi, capital of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, pushing them to the NE then cornering the rebels in a tiny sliver of land on the NE coast by early Apr.; meanwhile on Apr. 17 top U.N. official Vijay K. Nambiar (1943-) meets with Sri Lankan leaders to discuss the estimated 100K ethnic Tamil civilians that have been trapped by the civil war, of which 4.5K have been killed; sadly, it all started with religion, with the majority Buddhist Sinhalese vs. the minority Hindu Tamils.
On Jan. 26, 2009 after being nominated by pres.-elect Barack Obama on Dec. 1, and er, pacifying her Senate confirmation hearing chaired by Jesse Helms by nursing her infant son while they watched, Stanford-Oxford grad Susan Elizabeth Rice (1964-) (no relation to Condoleezza Rice) becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #27 (until June 30, 2013) (first African-Am. woman), with Obama restoring the position to cabinet level.
On Feb. 1, 2009 Gaza militants fire 10 rockets and mortar shells across the border nine days before scheduled Israeli parliamentary elections, causing an immediate retaliatory strike; on Feb. 4 armed Hamas police break into a Gaza warhouse and seize U.N. food aid, which the UNRWA condemns.
On Apr. 20, 2009 British ambassador Peter Gooderham leads dozens of diplomats in walking out of a U.N. Conference on Racism in Geneva after Iranian PM Imadinnajacket calls Israel a "cruel and oppressive racist regime", and says that the state of Israel was created "on the pretext of Jewish suffering" in WWII; protesters dressed in clown wigs disrupt Dinnajacket, shouting "racist" in French and throwing something at him; meanwhile the U.S., Israel, Germany, Poland, and the Netherlands boycott the conference, which soon falls apart.
On Apr. 27, 2009 the Nelson Mandela Foundation invites the global community to celebrate Internat. Mandela Day (Nelson Mandela Internat. Day) on July 18; in Nov. the U.N. Gen. Assembly formally declares it.
On May 25, 2009 (a.m.) (U.S. Memorial Day - thanks for thinking of us?) North Korea conducts its 2nd underground nuclear test in three years, drawing global condemnation, incl. from Russia, China, and the U.N. Security Council, which votes unanimously on June 12 for Resolution 1874, imposing sanctions on pesky North Korea, incl. authorizing ship searches on the high seas to look for nukes; their Apr. 5 launch of a long range missile compounds the condemnation, which doesn't stop them on May 27 from announcing that it no longer honors the 1953 armistice that ended the Korean War, and that it will respond with "a powerful military strike" if any nation tries to stop it from exporting missiles and WMDs, calling such naval actions a "declaration of war"; on May 26 South Korea announces that it would join nations doing just that - they have decided that Obama is another Jimmy Carter already?
On June 12, 2009 after it test-fires a barrage of ballistic missiles into waters off its E coast, the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 1874, imposing new sanctions on pesky North Korea in an effort to stifle its nuclear ambitions; by Sept. North Korea is going with the Iraqi flow and placing IEDs on roadsides.
On June 28, 2009 (6 a.m.) after pushing for a constitutional amendment to allow him to run for a 2nd 4-year term, U.S.-backed Honduran pres. (since 2006) Jose Manuel "Mel" Zelaya (1952-) is ousted by the military, who arrest him in his pajamas and fly him to Costa Rica (without asking Costa Rican pres. Oscar Aras for permission?), causing him to utter the soundbyte: "They are creating a monster they will not be able to contain"; the army insists that it is not a coup but that they had an order by a supreme court judge to remove him for abuse of authority; Roberto Micheletti (1943-) is named interim pres. by the congress; meanwhile Obama calls for his return to office, placing himself in the same camp as a number of nearby leftist govts. incl. allies Venezuela and Nicaragua, along with the U.N., EU, and OAS, causing conservative U.S. pundit Rush Limbaugh to suggest that he is trying to get the 22nd Amendment repealed so that he can serve a 3rd term, pointing to his backing of Zelaya, who wanted to amend his constitution to serve another term, along with his refusal to stand up to the bogus Iranian election, plus the facts that his daddy was a Marxist, and his followers are "cult-like"; on July 26 Zelaya sets up a camp on the Honduran-Nicaraguan border, ignoring the call of foreign leaders to not force a confrontation; his wife Xiomara Castro de Zelaya (1959-) is blocked by Honduran soldiers from joining him; on Sept. 21 (night) Zelaya slips back into Honduras and takes refuge in the Brazilian embassy, claiming to want to talk to the interim govt. to "restore democracy", causing his supporters to demonstrate and clash violently with police; after U.S. diplomatic efforts, on Oct. 30 the Honduran govt. accepts a deal allowing Zelaya to return to power; all along U.S. secy. of state Hillary Clinton worked against Zelaya.
On July 7-10, 2009 the 35th G-88 Summit is held in Italy by the U.S., U.K., Germany, Italy, France, Russia, Canada, and Japan; on July 10 they agree to raise $20B over the next three years for food and farm aid; on July 7 Pope Benedict XIV issues the encyclical Charity in Truth (Caritas in Veritate) for the summit, backing the rights of workers to form unions, and calling for a "true world authority", despite the possibility of "a dangerous universal power of a tyrannical nature"; he is really backing the U.N.?
On Aug. 20, 2009 after thuggish threats from Muammar Gaddafi (revealed by WikiLeaks in Nov. 2010), Abdel Basset Ali Mohammed al-Megrahi, the only person convicted for the 1988 Lockerbie, Scotland jet bombing arrives in Libya to cheers after only serving eight years of his 27-year min. sentence for murdering 270 infidels because he has terminal prostate cancer, drawing criticism from FBI dir. Robert Mueller, U.S. JCS Adm. Mike Mullen et al., along with the victims' families, putting Scottish justice secy. Kenny MacAskill on the grill for making the decision to free the bum; in Dec. it is revealed that he had a Ł1.8M Swiss bank account, raising the suspicion of payoff money, although the evidence wasn't used at his trial; BP (British Petroleum) is later revealed to have lobbied for release of Libyan terrorist (but of course not him) in order to obtain a 2009 oil lease for the huge Rumaila oilfield (partnering with CNPC of China), which compensates them even when oil is not being produced; by 2010 it becomes obvious that the original 3-mo. lifespan prognostication is way off, causing renewed outcries; British ex-PM Tony Blair flew to Tripolo last June 10 to meet with Daffy to arrange a Ł400M arms export deal first?; meanwhile Libyan nutcase leader (since 1969) Muammar (al-) Gaddafi (1942-2011) (celebrating his 40th anniv. in power) plans to visit the U.S. for the first time in Sept., being refused permission to pitch his Bedouin tent in New York's Central Park then settling for Englewood, N.J., pissing-off state residents, who lost 38 in the Lockerbie bombing; meanwhile Daffy Duck quacks, er, calls for the dismemberment of Switzerland for mistreating his son Motassim "Hannibal" Bilal Gaddafi last year, then gives a nutty U.N. speech on Sept. 23, saying that Obama should be pres. for life, and that the H1N1 virus was created by the military, demanding $7.7T reparations to Africa for Euro colonialism, uttering the soundbyte "What's next, fish flu?" - they should have put a bomb on the bum's plane to Libya, and another on Daffy's plane to New York, and a 3rd guess where?
On Aug. 21, 2009 the U.N. Refugee Agency expresses shock at reports that a sinking boat carrying illegal immigrants from Libya is ignored by passing vessels, causing 75 of 77 to die en route to Italy.
On Aug. 25, 2009 Rodolphe Adada of the Repub. of the Congo, head of the U.N.-African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur resigns.
On Sept. 15, 2009 after an investigation by the 3-person U.N. Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict incl. pro-Palestinian Desmond de Silva, who on Sept. 28 utters the soundbyte "Even if Bin Laden himself was on board the Mavi Marmara, it wouldn't have made the blockade legal", the 575-page Goldstone Report, by the U.N. Human Rights Council led by Jewish South African ex-judge Richard Joseph Goldstone (1938-) is released, accusing both Israel and Hamas of war crimes, saying that both sides had committed violations of the laws of war, and that while Israel had provocation it overreacted with disproportionate force, targeting Palestinian civilians and infrastructure, even using some as human shields, pissing-off the Israelis; it is approved on Sept. 29, after which in Oct. Palestinian Nat. Authority pres. Mahmoud Abbas (a U.S. ally) is accused of colluding with both the U.S. and Israel by deliberately ignoring it; on Oct. 8 Libya asks the U.N. Security Council to consider it in an emergency session; on Oct. 16 British Col. Richard Kemp testifies before the U.N. Human Rights Council that "The Israeli Defense Forces did more to safeguard the rights of civilians in a combat zone than any other army in the history of warfare. Israel did so while facing an enemy that deliberately positioned its military capability behind the human shield of the civilian population"; on Apr. 1, 2011 Goldstone recants the report, partly blaming israel for not cooperating with the HRC; meanwhile the Israeli govt. considers restricting travel by its officials and military personnel to Europe for fear of arrest as war criminals, and Hamas asks for postponement of a planned Oct. 24-26 ceremony in Cairo to sign a reconciliation pact with Fatah over the report, while Iranian pres. Inastraightjacket says that the West has been using psychological weapons that coverup how Palestians not Israelis are the real victims; on Oct. 12-16 Turkey pulls out of the EU, citing the Gaza atrocities, signaling the rejection of Kemal Ataturk's pro-Western secular Islam and the acceptance of radical fundamental Islam as it turns against its former allies Israel and the U.S. bigtime and openly courts Hamas, Syria, Iran, Hezbollah, and al-Qaida; the B'Tselem group in Israel, which is against Israeli anti-terror actions supplies info. to use in the study; in Oct. it is revealed that the Goldstone Report was initiated by the anti-Israel Org. of the Islamic Conference (OIC) (founded 1969), known for trying to criminalize any criticism of Islam or Muslims worldwide as part of a "stealth jihad"; on Nov. 7 the U.S. Congress votes 344-36 to condemn the report, after which the Obama admin. pressures Israel to accept U.N. oversight of its military for the first time ever; on Dec. 14 a London court issues an arrest warrant for former Israeli foreign minister Tzipi Livni, causing her to cancel a planned visit, after which the British govt. apologizes and foreign secy. David Miliband says that the govt. will change its laws to prevent any more warrants being put out on Israeli officials, causing the Muslim Council of Britain to loudly complain; in May 2010 pro-Israeli activists ban him from attending his grandson's bar mitzvah in Johannesburg.
On Sept. 18, 2009 suicide bombers from the Islamic Al-Shabaab insurgent group in cars with U.N. logos kill 11 at the main base of African Union peacekeepers in Mogadishu, Somalia in revenge for a U.S. raid that killed al-Qaida leader Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan in S Somalia on Sept. 14.
On Sept. 23, 2009 Pres. Obama delivers his first speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, saying that he intends to begin a "new era of engagement" with the world based on "mutual respect", and that the task of solving global crises "cannot be solely America's endeavor"; he meets with Russian pres. Dmitry Medvedev and gets a concession to consider tough new sanctions against Iran and support him on Sept. 27 as he chairs a historic meeting of the 15-member U.N. Security Council (5th time it has met at the heads-of-state level since 1946, and first chaired by a U.S. pres.), which unanimously approves the U.S.-drafted Resolution 1835 calling on nations with nukes to scrap their arsenals; China, who agrees to the resolution also tells everybody that stepping up pressure on Iran isn't an effective way to persuade them to halt its nuclear program, dissing the Sept. 23 resolution of the five permanent security council members that Iran has until Oct. 1 to prepare a "serious response" to its demands to halt or face consequences, which doesn't phase them, since on Sept. 27-28 Iran tests short and long-range missiles capable of hitting Israel and Europe; luckily, on Oct. 1 after a high-level meeting in Geneva, Iran agrees to ship its enriched uranium to Russia for processing so it can be watched.
On Sept. 23, 2009 Iranian pres. (2005-13) Imajackass, er, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (1956-) delivers a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, which bashes Israel as usual, causing 11 countries to walk out, and Israeli pres. Benjamin Netanyahu to condemn the U.N. for allowing him to speak since he also denies the Holocaust; meanwhile on Sept. 25 Obama, Sarkozy, and Brown accuse Iran of building a secret underground nuke plant, causing him to cave and announce that he will open it to inspection.
On Sept. 23, 2009 after being forced to live in a Bedouin tent on an estate owned by Donald Trump 40 mi. from the U.N. HQ, Libyan dictator (since Sept. 1, 1969) Col. Madman Daffy, er, Muammar Gaddafi (1942-2011) ignores the 15-min. limit to deliver a 100-min. speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, his first since 1969, forcing British PM Gordon Brown and other political leaders to wait while he rants and raves, calling the U.N. Security Council the "terror council", blasting the U.N. for failing to stop 65 wars since 1945, and praising "our Obama" while calling for a U.N. inquiry into the assassination of JFK; "After this speech, we will no longer have to obey the resolutions of the Security Council... Either we will continue to work together, or we will split into two camps: equitable united nations with their Security Council, and great powers with their Security Council and the right of veto that they use each other against a friend."
On Oct. 5, 2009 (noon) a Tehrik-i-Taliban suicide bomber dressed as a Frontier Constabulary paramilitary soldier asks to use the bathroom then detonates at an office of the U.N. World Food Program in Islamabad, Pakistan, killing five, becoming their first successful attack in Islamabad since June 6, and the first anti-Western attack in Pakistan since June 9, becoming the start of a Taliban guerrilla war on Pakistan (ends ?), with the Taliban linking up with al-Qaida and other militant Muslim groups to come in for the kill and get their hands on Pakistan and its nukes during the whimpy wishy-washy Obama regime, making many reflect on the nightmare film "The Manchurian Candidate" about a planted U.S. president who works for the enemy?; on Oct. 5 Muhammad Aqeel (AKA Dr. Usman), the only militant surviving the attack turns out to be the leader, who led an attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Mar., causing the press to reveal that the Pakistani police had warned the military that he was planning the attack back in July.
On Oct. 16, 2009 Bosnia, Lebanon, Gabon, Brazil, and Nigeria are elected to the U.N. Security Council for 2-year terms starting next Jan.
On Oct. 22, 2009 yet another Taliban suicide bomber kills eight outside the key Pakistan Aeronautical Complex in Kamra (45 mi. NW of Islamabad); an official denies that the facility contains nukes; earlier in Islamabad militants shoot and kill Brig. Gen. Ahmed Moinuddin, deputy comdr. of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Sudan.
On Nov. 16, 2009 PLO leader Ahmed Qurei says that the Obama admin. has reached an understanding with the Palestinian Authority that won't stop efforts to unilaterally create a Palestinian state via a U.N. Security Council resolution, and on Nov. 17 Israel approves the building of 900 new homes for Jews on the West Bank, pissing-off the Obama admin.
On Nov. 16-18, 2009 the 2009 U.N. Food Summit in Rome fails to secure substantial new funds to fight world hunger.
On Dec. 23, 2009 the U.N. Security Council votes 13-1-1 (Libya, China) for Resolution 1907, imposing an arms embargo and sanctions on Eritrea for giving aid to Islamic insurgents in Somalia esp. Al-Shabaab.
2010 is the U.N. Internat. Year of Biodiversity and U.N. Internat. Year for the Rapprochement of Cultures.
On Jan. 12, 2010 (4:53 a.m.) the 7.0 Great 2010 Haiti Earthquake centered 10 mi. from Port-au-Prince kills 100K-316K and leaves most of the 3M city pop. homeless, becoming the worst earthquake in the area in 200+ years; the nat. penitentiary collapses, allowing inmates to escape; the H.Q. of the U.N. Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) (9K troops) in Port-au-Prince collapses, causing many personnel to be unaccounted for; the pres. palace collapses, along with the parliament bldg., causing Haitian pres. Rene Preval to flee to the Port-au-Prince airport and live there; the U.S. suspends deportations of illegal Haitian immigrants, and Pres. Obama promises "unwavering support" to rebuild the country, pledging $100M in immediate aid and sending thousands of troops; $5M in aid is donated in the first 48 hours via texting in $10 increments, and $22M within a week; U.S. televangelist Pat Robertson stinks himself up by calling the earthquake God's revenge because Haiti had made a "pact with the Devil" to throw out the French in 1791, followed by Rev. Bill Shuler, who claims that the "practice of witchcraft" caused God's wrath; a group of 10 U.S. Baptists are arrested for child trafficking and kidnapping for trying to cross the border to the Dominican Repub. with 33 Haitian orphans, some of whom turn out not to be orphans, and on Feb. 17 they are finally allowed to leave the country; by Oct. 1 not one cent of the $1.1B pledged by the U.S. for rebuilding arrives as 1M+ Haitians still live on the streets; after South Korean textile co. Sae-A Trading Co. donates $50K-$100K to the Clinton Foundation, several hundred farmers are evicted to make way for the 600-acre $300M Caracol Industrial Park in 2012, creating 8K jobs, although Bill Clinton claimed it would be 100K; conspiracy theorists claim that big oil caused the quake by secret drilling, but in Oct. scientists announce that a previously unmapped fault caused it, and that the originally blamed fault is ready to trigger another one; in 2012 Hillary Clinton's youngest brother Anthony Dean "Tony" Rodham (1954-) sits on the board of N.C.-based VCS Mining as it receives one of two "gold exploitation permits" from the Haitian govt. (the first issued in over five decades) for Morne Bossa, with options to renew for up to 25 years.
On Jan. 29, 2010 former British PM Tony Blair defends the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, saying that after 9/11 the game rules changed, and Saddam Hussein had to be disarmed or removed, saying "This isn't about a lie, or a conspiracy, or a deceit, or a deception, this is a decision, and the decision I had to take was, given Saddam's history, given his use of chemical weapons, given the over 1 million people whose deaths he caused, given 10 years of breaking U.N. resolutions, could we take the risk of this man reconstituting his weapons program? I believed... that we were right not to run that risk", adding that he was convinced that Sodamn Insane had WMDs at the time.
On Jan. 30, 2010 (dawn) a joint U.S.-U.N. airstrike in Wardak Province SW of Kabul mistakenly targets an Afghan army post, killing four Afghan soldiers, pissing-off the Afghan govt.; meanwhile a U.S. drone strike in the Mohammad Khel area of North Waziristan kills five; meanwhile a suicide car bomber in Bajaur in NW Pakistan kills 14; meanwhile a suicide bomber at a falafel restaurant near a Shiite shrine in Sunni-dominated Samarra (60 mi. N of Baghdad) kills two; meanwhile critics diss the Obama admin. for never admitting to the strikes.
In Jan. 2010 Prosy Katura of the U.N. Refugee Agency (UNHCR) announces that the U.S. is allowing 5.8K Muslim Ugandan refugees to immigrate, the reason given being that they don't get along with other refugee camps.
In Jan. 2010 radical Islamic cleric Sheikh Abdullah el-Faisal, who was convicted of inciting racial hatred in Britain returns from exile to Jamaica, causing U.S. concerns that he could turn Jamaica into an incubator for Islamic extremism.
On Feb. 15, 2010 the U.N. Human Rights Council reviews Iran's human rights record, incl. mass arrests, torture, and executions, causing Western nations to line up on one side and Iran's Islamic and leftist allies incl. Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Cuba to line up on the other as Iran tries to win a seat on the council in May elections.
On Feb. 16, 2010 the Convention on Cluster Munitions is ratified by Burkina Faso and Moldavia, reaching 30 ratifications and making it internat. law effective Aug. 1.
On Feb. 18, 2010 U.N. nuclear inspectors declare for the first time that they have extensive evidence of "past or current activities" by Iran to develop a nuclear warhead that continued "beyond 2004"; on Feb. 19 Russia issues the soundbyte that it is very alarmed that Iran might be working to develop nukes; Iranian supreme assaholla Ali Khamenei quickly trots out with his claims that Islam "is opposed to nuclear weapons" - what is this prisoner doing out of his cell?
On Mar. 1, 2010 ex-Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic gives a 4-hour opening statement at the U.N. War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague, saying that Muslim attacks are to blame for Serbian atrocities against them.
On Mar. 24, 2010 the U.N. Human Rights Council votes 45-1 in favor of Palestinian self-determination, with only the U.S. voting against; a resolution to urge Israel to pay reparations to the Palestinian people for the 2009-10 invasion of Gaza is tabled by Pakistan; on Mar. 25 the Saudi-greased council passes another non-binding OIC-backed Resolution on Religious Defamation (really an attempt to foist Islamic Sharia on the world, which makes insulting Islam a capital offense), with 20 countries voting in favor, 17 against, and 8 abstaining, becoming the 11th time in 12 years (first in 2005), with the lowest victory margin yet; Zambia becomes the first African country to vote against it, and Cameroon, Burkina Faso, and Benin abstain; U.S. ambassador Eileen Donahoe calls it an "ineffective way to address" the issue, saying "We cannot agree that prohibiting speech is the way to promote tolerance, because we continue to see the defamations of religions concept used to justify censorship, criminalisation, and in some cases violent assaults and deaths for political, racial, and religious minorities around the world", adding "Contrary to the intentions of most member states, governments are likely to abuse the rights of individuals in the name of this resolution, and in the name of the Human Rights Council."
On Mar. 28, 2010 former U.S. U.N. ambassador John Bolton says on Army Radio that the Obama admin. is willing to accept a nuclear Iran, which explains their "extraordinary pressure on Israel not to attack Iran"; on Jan. 12 he warns Israel that it "has to move in the next eight days" before Iran brings its first nuclear reactor online on Aug. 21 to avoid release of radiation, saying that otherwise Iran "will achieve something that no other opponent of Israel, no other enemy of the United States in the Middle East really has, and that is a functioning nuclear reactor."
On Apr. 1, 2010 Afghan Pres. Hamid Karzi delivers a scathing sour grapes attack on the West, accusing the U.N. and the West of perpetrating a "vast fraud" in the 2009 pres. election in order to deny him reelection and/or make him "an ineffective president", drawing criticism from Afghan politicans and the White House.
On May 3-28, 2010 the 189 signatories to the 1970 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty meet at the U.N. in New York City; on May 3 Iranian pres. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad attends, claiming that the U.S. has failed its obligations, started a global nuclear arms race, and dismissing the prospect of "nuclear terrorism", causing the U.S., Britain, and France to walk out; later U.S. state secy. Hillary Clinton gives a speech, dissing Iran for disregarding the treaty; U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon utters the soundbyte that "the onus is on Iran" to prove it's not building nukes; Egypt calls for a Middle East nuclear-free zone that incl. Israel; meanwhile David Hale, deputy of U.S. Middle Envoy envoy George Mitchell tells Palestinian pres. Mahmoud Abbas that if there is "significantly provocative settlement activity" in E Jerusalem et al., the U.S. might allow U.N. Security Council resolutions condemning Israel to pass for the first time ever.
On May 13, 2010 the Obama admin. announces that the U.S. will join the U.N.-backed Alliance of Civilizations (founded 2005) to ease strains between the West and Islam; the Bush admin. boycotted it for its anti-Israel and anti-West positions, and connections with the Org. of the Islamic Conference (OIC).
On May 13, 2010 U.S. atty.-gen. Eric Holder testifies before the House Judiciary Committee, waffling about an answer as to whether radical Islam was a motivating factor for the recent radical Islamic attacks on U.S. soil, incl. the Xmas Condom Bomber and the Times Square Bomber.
On May 14, 2010 British MP Stephen Timms is stabbed by British Muslim Roshanara Choudhary (1989-) for supporting the U.S. war in Iraq; she had been watching videos by Am. radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki.
On May 17, 2010 Iran signs a surprise nuclear fuel swap deal with Western nations, brokered by Brazil and Turkey (who secretly want to go nuclear along with them?), the first since 2004, alleviating concerns that they're secretly building nukes, but not really, since the deal involves only 50% of their enriched uranium stockpile, while they continue to run the centrifuges; on May 18 the U.S. submits a draft Iranian sanctions resolution to the U.N. Security Council, targeting the Rev. Guards, causing Iranian foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki to tell the press "There is no chance for a new resolution", adding "A couple of the members of the Security Council have come up with a new recipe in the kitchen. It seems that this new dish they have prepared is not being given to the guests in a timely manner, and the guests have already had their lunch"; on June 21 Brazil announces that it is partially backing out of the Iran deal; meanwhile Congress pushes for unilateral gasoline sanctions.
Tell me, friend, when did Saruman the Wise abandon reason for madness? On May 27, 2010 the misnamed Gaza Freedom Flotilla of six cargo ships (three flying Turkish flags, incl. Mavi Marmara, carrying 400 Turks who are members of the Islamic terrorist Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) (Insani Yardim Vakfi), headed by Fehmi Bülent Yildirim (1966-), carrying 10 tons of humanitarian aid incl. bldg. materials and medical supplies sets sail from Cyprus for the Gaza Strip in a symbolic attempt by 680 Muslim and non-Muslim activists from 50 countries to break the 3-year Israeli blockade by refusing to stop at an Israel port for inspection and trucking of supplies by Israel into Gaza like is done every week with 10K tons of food and other supplies; Pres. Obama's associates Bill Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn are closely associated with the Free Gaza Movement; Turkish activist Erdinc Tekir, who is wounded in the fighting is later found to have participated in an Islamic terrorist attack on a Russian ferry in the Black Sea in 1996; some activists chant Intifada songs; others chant the Islamic battle cry "Khaibar, Khaibar, oh Jews, the army of Muhammad will return", and praise martyrdom before departure; on May 31 (U.S. Memorial Day) (pre-dawn hours of June 1 in Israel) the Israeli military boards the flotilla 75 mi. from the coast, initially carrying only paintball guns, then meeting violent resistance, the Turkish jihadists taking four Israeli marines hostage before other armed commandos storm aboard, killing nine activists and wounding 53 (incl. 37 members of the IHH or other Turkish Islamic orgs.), all on the Mavi Marmara, while getting two Israeli commandos wounded while trying to board, then tows it to Ashdod, later releasing the activists accused of attacking Israeli troops after an internat. outcry; causing Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to apologize, expressing regret and cancelling a planned trip to the White House, later uttering the soundbyte: "The state of Israel faces an attack of international hypocrisy... it is our right and obligation to prevent arms from reaching Gaza. This was not a Love Boat, it was a Hate Boat"; Obama calls the raid "a tragic situation", adding "You've got a loss of life that was unnecessary", calling for an "effective investigation"; on May 31 10K march in Istanbul, Turkey to denounce Israel, along with other demonstrations in London, Athens, etc.; in London 800 protesters attempt to storm BBC Manchester; a women's rally near the Qalandiya Checkpoint between Rammalah and Jerusalem sees Am. journalist Emily Henochowicz loses an eye after being shot with a tear gas canister by Israeli border guards; Turkey threatens action against Israel, putting it on alert; meanwhile on May 31 the U.N. Security Council holds an emergency meeting to discuss the Israeli raid, while Israeli foreign minister Avigdor Liberman claims that the flotilla organizers wanted blood to be shed, saying "Everything proves that it was a group of terrorists who want to promote terror and cooperate with terror"; Arab-Israeli Knesset member Hanib Zoabi, who is aboard the Mavi Marmara calls the IDF operation "criminal"; meanwhile Hillary Clinton is emailed by anti-Israeli advisor Sidney Blumenthal, who compares the raid on the flotilla to the 1976 Entebbe raid, suggesting ways for the U.S. to respond to the incident, with the soundbyte: "Somebody in authority needs to read Israel the riot act"; on June 2 Israeli forces find 1M Euros on one of the ships, intended for use by Hamas, along with a weapons cache; on June 2 pro-Palestinian activists send another boat, the Irish-flagged Rachel Corrie to challenge the Israeli blockade, while Egypt opens a temporary crossing into Palestinian territory, causing thousands of Gazans to flock to it hoping to escape; on June 2 Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei calls for Israel's PM and defense minister to face trial for the raid; on June 2 two rockets are fired from Gaza Strip by the Islamic Jihad, causing a retaliatory Israeli air strike that kills five; on June 2 after warning Israel not to cause an incident, the Obama admin. sides with the flotilla, and announces that it considers the Israeli blockade of Gaza to be "untenable"; Turkish-born Furkan Dogan (b. 1990) is found among the dead activists, with four bullets in his head and one in his chest, all at close range, causing the Israelis to backpeddle; on June 5 after Irish Nobel Peace Prize winner Mairead McGuire says that the activsts are prepared to be arrested, the IDF intercept the Rachel Corrie 35 mi. W of Gaza and escort it to Ashdod without incident; this time the U.S. warns the flotilla not to cause an incident; on June 5 Arab foreign ministers meet in Cairo go discuss the flotillas, and decide to "break the Israeli siege imposed on Gaza", "in any legitimate way", incl. "resistance" (violence); on June 6 Iranian supreme assashollah Ali Khamenei offers the Iranian Rev. Guards to escort future cargo ships to break the blockade; on June 7 the Israeli Navy kills six Palestinian divers, claiming they are terrorists; meanwhle on June 7 Global Muslim Brotherhood leader Youssef Qaradawi warns Israel of Allah's impending warath for having "killed God's prophets"; on June 9 48 trucks with the cargo of the Freedom Flotilla is still waiting at Kerem Shalom crossing after Hamas refuses to accept it, and on June 17 the U.N. agrees to oversee the transfer; on June 11 Turkish pres. Abdullah Gul says that Israel must apologize and compensate the Turkish victims or it might sever diplomatic relations; on June 14 Israel assembles a investigative commission, which on July 12 finds no wrongdoing; on June 15 the Internat. Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) calls Israel's Gaza Strip blockade "collective punishment" and a violation of the Geneva Conventions; on June 17 Syrian pres. Bashar al-Assad says that the Israeli attack on the flotilla has increased the chances of war in the Middle East, and that the current Israeli admin. is a "pyromaniac" govt; on June 19 the Israeli cabinet bows to pressure and eases restrictions on Gaza Strip, reserving the right to inspect for military items; on June 20 Israel gives preliminary plans for razing Palestinian homes in E Jerusalem as a prelude to building Israeli homes, pissing-off the Obama admin. again; on Jan. 23, 2011 the Turkel Commission (Public Commission to Examine the Maritime Incident of 31 May 2010) finds that the blockade "was lawful and complied with the rules of international law, in view of the security circumstances and Israel's efforts to fulfill its humanitarian obligations."
On June 9, 2010 after Turkey and Brazil try an end-run that is rejected, the U.N. Security Council votes 12-2-1 (Brazil, Turkey, Lebanon abstaining) for Resolution 1929, imposing a 4th round of sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program; Iranian pres. Madman Innadinnajacket ridicules the new sanctions, calling them a "used tissue", and on June 11 saying that Israel is "doomed"; on July 7 opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi criticizes Imadinnajacket, saying "To say that this resolution is like a used hankie won't erase the hardships arising from demagogic policies, as it is clear to me that this resolution will affect our nation's security and economy"; the new sanctions incl. the power to inspect Iranian cargo, making war with Iran inevitable?
On June 15, 2010 the U.S. claims success after 56 countries on the U.N. Human Rights Council (less than a third) support a statement critical of Iran's human rights record.
On June 19, 2010 Egypt announces that a naval flotilla of 11 U.S. and one Israeli warships passed thrugh the Suez Canal, while an Iranian flotilla approaches Gaza; on June 24 Iran sends a letter to the U.N. saying that the presence of Iranian and Lebanese ships in the Gaza area would be considered a declaration of war on Israel, and is backing down.
On June 28, 2010 a group of 25 armed masked men attack and set fire to a U.N.-sponsored summer camp in Gaza.
On July 2, 2010 the U.N. creates U.N. Women, a billion dollar agency for radical feminism devoted to gender equality.
On July 6, 2010 (Tue.) during a 3-digit heat wave in the E U.S., Queen Elizabeth II of Britain makes her first address to the U.N. Gen. Assembly since 1957, when "Leave It to Beaver" was debuting, telling them "In my lifetime, the United Nations has moved from being a high-minded aspiration to being a real force for common good"; she also visits Ground Zero for the first time; on July 5 a fire at a transformer station in Toronto, Canada causes blackouts affecting 250K and disrupts a royal dinner.
On Aug. 6, 2010 the U.S. sends its first delegation led by ambassador John Roos to Hiroshima, Japan to observe the anniv. of the U.S. atomic bomb attack, causing an outcry that Pres. Obama is about to apologize for it; U.N. secy.-gen. Ban K-Moon also attends, calling for Obama to attend personally.
On Aug. 23, 2010 the ever-less-sovereign U.S. makes its First Report to the U.N. Human Rights Council on internal conditions, saying that the U.S. doesn't have a perfect record esp. with minorities and women, and that "Although we have made great strides, work remains to meet our goals of ensuring equality before the law for all"; it also claims that the U.S. is committed to closing Gitmo and "fixing our broken immigration system" - what should we do next, masters?
On Aug. 28, 2010 after they dismantle 100+ illegal camps and send hundreds back to E Europe, the U.N. tells France to stop the forced expulsion of Roma (Gypsies).
On Sept. 6, 2010 the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency IAEA releases a report saying that Iran is "hampering" their work, and possesses 2.8 tons of enriched uranium; the White House calls it "troubling".
On Sept. 13, 2010 Italy announces that it's presenting a resolution to the U.N. to protect the rights of religious minorities in Pakistan from Muslims.
On Sept. 20, 2010 Turkish pres. Abdullah Gul abruptly cancels a planned meeting with Israeli pres. Shimon Peres at Bill Clinton's Millennium Challenge after Peres won't apologize for the Gaza Flotilla incident, but meets with Israel-hating Iranian pres. Imadinnajacket, who on Sept. 21 addresses the U.N. Gen. Assembly, saying that Capitalism is failing, and that a "pure, righteous and glorious" NWO should be created, and warning the U.S. that if its nuclear facilities are attacked, it will start a war "without boundaries", and that "war is not just bombs", also calling Hillary Clinton "an enemy of Iran", and saying that "the Zionist regime is finished" and can't attack Iran, so they're not even planning for an attack; meanwhile French pres. Nicolas Sarkozy vows a fight on world poverty, pledging to boost aid to the world's poorest by 20% over three years and inviting other nations to join.
On Sept. 21, 2010 Palestinian Authority PM Salam Fayyad walks out of a U.N. meeting after refusing to acknowledge to the Israeli rep that the "2-state solution" he claims to accept is "two states for two peoples", i.e., a Jewish and a Muslim state.
On Sept. 22, 2010 a 56-page report by the 3-member U.N. Human Rights Council fact-finding mission concludes that Israel's naval blockade Gaza is unlawful because of the humanitarian crisis there, and calls the IDF raid on the flotilla brutal and disproportionate, accusing the IDF of murder of two, incl. 19-y.-o. Turkish-Am. citizen Furkan Dogan (1991-2010); causing the Israeli Foreign Ministry to respond that the council has a "biased, politicized and extremist approach."
On Sept. 23, 2010 Pres. Obama gives an address to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, promoting human rights and democracy, with the soundbyte: "Part of the price of our own freedom is standing up for the freedom of others - that belief will guide America's leadership in this 21st century", and challenging delegates to support an Israeli-Palestinian peace and accept the Jewish state of Israel, saying "Israel's existence must not be a subject for debate. Israel is a sovereign state, and the historic homeland of the Jewish people. It should be clear to all that efforts to chip away at Israel's legitimacy will only be met by the unshakeable opposition of the United States"; he also calls for the Israeli building moratorium to be extended, and adds that Israel "must understand that true security for the Jewish state requires an independent Palestine – one that allows the Palestinian people to live with dignity and opportunity"; "If an agreement is not reached, Palestinians will never know the pride and dignity that comes with their own state. Israelis will never know the certainty and security that comes with sovereign and stable neighbors who are committed to co-existence. The hard realities of demography will take hold. More blood will be shed. This Holy Land will remain a symbol of our differences instead of our common humanity."
On Sept. 23, 2010 Iranian pres. Madman Inadinnajacket gives a speech at the U.N., where he backs the 911 Truther Movement that claims that the U.S. not Islam did 9/11 in order "to reverse the declining American economy and its grip on the Middle East, and in order to save the Zionist regime" (he won't admit the existence of Israel), causing the U.S. and 31 other nations to walk out, incl. all 27 EU nations, Australia, New Zealand, and Costa Rica, while the rest of the 192 nations applaud, after which Pres. Obama calls his claims about 9/11 ""offensive" and "hateful", adding "Particularly for him to make the statement here in Manhattan,just a little north of Ground Zero, where families lost theirloved ones, people of all faiths, all ethnicities who see this as the seminal tragedy of this generation, for him to make a statement like that was inexcusable"; Ahmadinejad asks the U.N. to proclaim 2011 as the Year of Nuclear Disarmament, with the slogan "Nuclear energy for all, nuclear weapons for none"; too bad, Obama also says "We can absorb a terrorist attack. We'll do everything we can to prevent it, but even a 9/11, even the biggest attack ever... we absorbed it and we are stronger", causing some to claim that not only did the U.S. govt. do 9/11 but that it's planning a nuclear followup; the U.S. org. Muslims of the Americas supports Dinnerjacket's speech.
On Sept. 24, 2010 the Washington Times reveals that despite denials, the J Street lobby org. was heavily funded by George Soros; on Sept. 30 it reveals that it facilitated meetings been members of Congress and South African judge Robert Goldstone, author of the U.N.-sponsored Goldstone Report slamming Israel.
On Sept. 27, 2010 rumors circulate that the U.N. is appointing Malaysian astrophysicist Mazlan Othman of the U.N. Office for Outer Space Affairs as its official extraterrestrial greeter.
On Sept. 27, 2010 the 35-member U.N. Internat. Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) votes for Pakistan to chair its governing board despite its widely-condemned nuclear bomb tests in 1998.
On Sept. 28, 2010 Claude Heller of Mexico urges the U.N. Gen. Assembly to ratify an internat. convention protecting the rights of migrant workers and their families.
On Oct. 20, 2010 U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon (1944-) warns against "a dangerous trend" of polarizing Europe over Muslim immigrants by accusing them "of violating European values", saying "Too often it is the accusers who subvert these values and thus the very idea of what it means to be a citizen of the European Union"; meanwhile 250 Roman Catholic bishops meet at the Vatican in the 2-week Special Assembly for the Middle East for the Synod of Bishops, and discuss Muslim aggression and murder and how it is driving Christians out of the Middle East, with Antioch patriarch archbishop Raboula Beylouni uttering the soundbyte "The Koran gives Muslims the right to judge Christians and kill them with Jihad. It gives orders to impose religion with force, with the sword. For this reason, Muslims don't recognise the freedom of religion among themselves or others"; after trying to draw a sharp distinction between extremist and moderate Muslims, the synod adds "but for Christians on the ground in Muslim-run countries, such distinctions are often hard to maintain"; on Oct. 23 the bishops close the meeting with a statement that Israel shouldn't try to use the Bible to justify "injustices" against the Palestinians, with Pope Benedict XVI on Oct. 24 uttering the soundbyte "Peace is possible. Peace is urgent. Peace is the precondition for a life worthy of human beings and society"; meanwhile a report by the Christian group the Gift Foundation claims Christian asylum seekers fleeing Muslim countries to the Netherlands are often threatened or physically abused by fellow refugees who are Muslims, and a proposed giant mosque near the Royal Military Academy in Sandhurst, England is canceled after local opposition.
On Oct. 22, 2010 UNESCO passes a series of resolutions regarding archeological excavations of Jewish holy sites in Bethlehem, Hebron, and Jerusalem, which the Anti-Defamation League calls "politicized and one-sided", favoring the Palestinians.
On Nov. 9, 2010 a district court in Pakistan sentences Christian woman Asia Bibi (Aasiya Noreen) (1971-) to death by hanging for blasphemy, causing a world outcry; meanwhile Pakistani cleric Maulana Yousef Qureshi offers a reward on her head of 3.7K pounds ($5.8K), and religious minorities minister Clement Shabhaz Bhatti (198-2011) (a Roman Catholic) has another fatwa put on his head for speaking out against the death sentence, and is assassinated on Mar. 2, 2011 in Islamaad by Tehrik-i-Taliban; meanwhile on Jan. 4, 2011 liberal gov. #26 of Punjab (since 2008) Salmaan Taseer (1944-2011) is assassinated in the Kohsar Market in Islamabad by his bodyguard Malik Mumtaz Hussain Qadri (1985-2016), who is hanged on Feb. 29, 2016 in Rawalpindi, after which Taseer's son Shahbaz Taseer, who was kidnapped in Aug. 2011 in Lahore by the Pakistani Taliban is released in Kuchlak, Balochistan on Mar. 8, 2016.
On Nov. 29-Dec. 10, 2010 the 2010 U.N. Climate Change Conference in Mexico, attended by 15K is dominated by global warming proponents, who call for an end to the developed world's growth for the next 20 years - the U.N. is a criminal enterprise of haters of the developed world?
On Dec. 5, 2010 a 22-y.-o. N African is arrested in Italy on suspicion of the kidnapping-murder of 13-y.-o. Yara Gambirasio in Brembata Sopra (near Bergamo); the same day a 21-y.-o. Moroccan DUI driver kills seven cyclists and injures three in Lamezia Terme in S Calabria; the incidents cause outcries over the stupidity of mass Muslim immigration.
On Dec. 9, 2010 a U.N. report urges Afghanistan to protect women's rights and give up child marriage, honor killings, and the giving away of girls to settle disputes.
On Jan. 12, 2011 Hezbollah abruptly withdraws from the Lebanese cabinet, forcing the collapse of the govt. of PM Saad Hariri just moments after he finishes a meeting with Pres. Obama; on Jan. 17 the first indictment in the assassination of former PM Rafik Hariri is filed by a U.N. tribunal, but it is sealed.
On Jan. 25, 2011 (Egyptian Nat. Police Day) the 2011 Egyptian (Papyrus) Rev. in Tahrir (Liberation) Square in Cairo begins with Tunisian-copycat violent demonstrations against the govt. of Egyptian pres. #4 (since Oct. 14, 1981) Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak (1928-), sparked by a video blog by activist Asmaa Mahfouz (1985-); they are followed by calls for a 2-day nat. strike; Coptic pope Shenouda III orders Copts to not participate for fear of a Muslim Brotherhood takeover; on Jan. 25 Mubarak's son and heir Gamal Mubarak flees to Britain with his family; on Jan. 26 IAEA dir.-gen. (1997-2009) (mistruster of the U.S., accused of pro-Iranian ties) (Gandhi lookalike?) Mohamed ElBaradei (1942-) returns to Egypt, expecting to lead the protesters; on Jan. 27 the Egyptian stock exchange plunges 6.25% in 15 min., causing trading to halt and the Egyptian govt. to cut off Internet access (first time in Internet history?) (restored on Feb. 2); on Jan. 27-28 U.S. homeland security secy. Janet Napolitano secretly meets with Muslim, Arab, and Sikh "community leaders, incl. three orgs. associated with the Muslim Brotherhood; on Jan. 28 after several vehicles are stolen from the locked-down U.S. embassy in Cairo and used to run people over, fanning riots, the Egyptian military deploys in Cairo under curfew, killing Egyptian protester Sally Zahran (b. 1987-), causing NASA to name a spaceship after her; police use U.S.-made tear gas canisters; after police use rubber bullets and pellet guns on the protesters, 3.8K suffer serious eye injuries, and 1.5K lose one eye; on Jan. 28 Mubarak dismisses his govt., then names a new one on Jan. 29, causing U.S. stocks to take a dip on Jan. 28; on Jan. 29 mobs ignore curfew and set fire to Mubarak's ruling party HQ and state security bldgs., confronting the military, with a Tiananmen Square deja vu moment; Mubarak's wife Suzanne and sons Alaa and Gamal flee to London, while Israel severs diplomatic relations and flies out 200 members of Israeli diplomatic families, and several Arab nations do ditto; on Jan. 29 (Day 5) after giving the order for police to fire on crowds, only to see troops switch sides to the protesters, Mubarak appoints his first-ever pres. and successor, intel head Gen. Omar Mahmoud Suleiman (1936-2012) (known for orchestrating the brutal interrogation of terror suspects abducted by the CIA, then passing intel info. to the U.S.) after passing over his groomed son Gamal Mubarak, sacking Egyptian PM #4 (since July 14, 2004) Ahmad Nazif (1952) in favor of Ahmed Mohamed Shafik Zaki (1941-), who becomes Egyptian PM #49 (until Mar. 3), while IAEA dir. gen. Mohamed ElBaradai announces that "the state of Egypt is in a state of collapse", calling upon the Egyptian army "to take the side of the people" and for Mubarak to step down; on Jan. 29 an escape attempt at Abu Zaabal Prison in Cairo results in eight killed and 123 wounded; on Jan. 29 an assassination attempt is made on Omar Suleiman, killing two bodyguards; on Jan. 28 White House press secy. Robert Gibbs calls for Egypt to turn the Internet and social media back on, after which Chip Reid of CBS asks him "why is the president not standing where you're standing right now?", after which Pres. Obama speaks from the White House State dining room, revelaing that he spoke with Mubarak and told him that "he has a responsibility to give meaning" to the words of his recent speech, and calling on the Egyptian govt. to "refrain from any violence on peaceful protesters"; on Jan. 28 Iranian Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami says that the U.S. dream of creating a new Middle East it dominates isn't coming true, and that a new Middle East based on Islamic principles is taking shape; on Jan. 28 after looters break into the King Tutankhamen collection and destroy two Pharonic mummies, the Egyptian army storms the Egyptian Nat. Museum at Tahrir Square in Cairo to protect it from looters, after which students form a human chain to help them as the army starts disappearing and anarchy reigns; on Jan. 28 leading Egyptian Islamic scholar Saeed Amer of Al Azhar says that protests that cause violence are forbidden (haram) in Islam; on Jan. 29 the Egyptian army surrounds the U.S. and U.K. embassies to prevent a repeat of 1979 Iran?; on Jan. 29 Saudi king Abdullah slams Egyptian protesters as "infiltrators", and says Mubarak "reassured" him about the situation, then begins opening his checkbook and spending $130B in his own country to forestall any Egypt-style revolt; on Jan. 30 the U.S. tells its citizens to leave Egypt as soon as possible, while the Egyptian govt. pulls the license for Al Jazeera Network, which had been broadcasting the protests lives on the Internet; on Jan. 30 U.S. secy. of state Hillary Clinton calls for the Egyptian govt. to conduct elections, while protesters in Alexandria begin shouting anti-U.S. and anti-Israel slogans, and armed gunmen from Hamas cross from Gaza into N Sinai to attack and push back Egyptian forces on orders of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood in order to open a new front against the Mubarak regime, causing Hamas to close the Rafah border crossing after Egyptian guards flee their posts; on Jan. 31 Cairo Airport is jammed with foreigners trying to escape, while Hillary Clinton convenes an unprecedented mass meeting of U.S. ambassadors from nearly all of its 260 embassies and other posts in 180 countries; on Jan. 31 Mubarak swears in a new cabinet, while Hamas shoots Grad rockets from Gaza to the S Israeli cities of Ofakim and Netivot, and a Qasam rocket to Eshkol, and Israeli security officials report that "something big" was smuggled from Egypt into the Gaza Strip; on Jan. 31 former U.S. ambassador to Egypt Frank Wisner holds a secret meeting in Cairo with senior Muslim Brotherhood leader Issam El-Erian; on Feb. 1 White House press secy. announces that the new Egyptian govt. must incl. a "whole host of important non-secular actors", becoming the first time that the U.S. govt. supports granting a govt. role to the Muslim Brotherhood, which wants to exterminate Israel, and calls for a referendum on the 1979 Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty; meanwhile the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood waits in the wings for a possible Islamist takeover, with leader Mohamed Ghanem calling on Egypt to stop pumping gas to Israel and prepare for a war with it; polls show that only 27% of Egyptians support modernizers, while 59% support Islamists incl. Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, causing commentators to conclude that Egyptians want Mubarak ousted because of his non-belligerent stance toward Israel and U.S. ties; on Feb. 1 Pres. Obama's envoy Frank Wisner suggest to Mubarak not to run for reelection, which he accepts, insisting on stay in power until Sept. elections, while U.S. ambassador Margaret Scobey talks with Mohamed ElBaradei; Pres. Obama gives a news conference, calling for an "orderly transition" which "must begin now", saying that Mubarak "recognizes that the status quo is not sustainable and that a change must take place"; too bad, the protesters want Mubarak out immediately, and vow to stay in the streets until he goes; on Feb. 2 (Bloody Wed.) Mubarak and anti-Mubarak forces clash in Tahrir Square, with anti-Mubarak protesters claiming that some of the opposition protesters are security personnel dressed in civilian clothing, while others ride camels and horses and are armed with clubs, injuring 1.5K and killing three; CNN's Anderson Cooper gets caught in the middle of the protesters and punched 10x; four Israeli journalists are arrested in Cairo; on Feb. 2 ElBaradei orders Mubarak to leave Egypt by Feb. 5 (Fri.) or he'll be a "dead man walking", to which Mubarak replies "This dear country is my country... and I will die on its land"; on Feb. 2 Iranian spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast claims that the U.S. is trying "to prevent the tremendous movement of Egypt's magnanimous nation", calling the dispatch of Frank Wisner part of a scheme aimed at "devising deviatory plots"; on Feb. 3 ("Day of Departure") anti-govt. protesters take over the Oct. 6 Bridge, while chaos grips Cairo, causing the army to move in and the U.S. to recall envoy Frank Wisner, while Omar Suleiman invites the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood to a nat. dialog, and the U.S. Senate unanimously approves a resolution calling on Mubarak to create a caretaker govt. but not step down; on Feb. 3 former Israeli cabinet minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer says that the U.S. doesn't realize the catastrophe they're pushing the Middle East into because Mubarak kept the peace with Israel; on Feb. 3 Mubarak grants an exclusive interview with ABC-TV's Christiane Amanpour, telling her that he'd like to resign but can't because the country would plunge into chaos; on Feb. 4 (Departure Fri.) while journalists are being rounded up, beaten, and threatened, Pres. Obama gives a press conference on Egypt, saying that the "entire world is watching", that the U.S. can't decide Egypt's fate, that "suppression is not going to work", and Mubarak "cares about his country - he is proud, but he's also a patriot", and should be asking himself "How do I leave a legacy behind in which Egypt is able to get through this transformative period... and my hope is that he will end up making the right decision"; on Feb. 5 (a.m.) masked men attack the Israeli-Egyptian gas pipeline in El-Arish, Egypt in N Sinai, causing Israel to deploy military forces to demilitarized Sinai, and more on Feb. 16; on Feb. 5 Mubarak meets with his economic ministers in the hopes that curing the unemployment and food price problems might save him; on Feb. 5 France announces that it has suspended sales of arms and riot equipment to Egypt; on Feb. 6 Suleiman forms a constitutional reform committee with opposition groups incl. the liberal Wafd Party, the leftist Tagammu Party, and the Muslim Brotherhood, and agrees to end the 30-y.-o. emergency law, permit press freedom, and release those detained during the protests, with Hillary Clinton saying "Today we learned the Muslim Brotherhood decided to participate, which suggest they at least are now involved in the dialogue that we have encouraged", saying she would "wait and see"; meanwhile Mohamed ElBaradei slams the talks because he wasn't invited, and says they lack credibility; on Feb. 6 Jordanian prince El-Hassan bin Talaal urges that the Muslim Brotherhood not be excluded from a future Egyptian govt.; on Feb. 7 Human Rights Watch announces that 297 were killed during the protests; on Feb. 8 new crowds in Tahrir Square celebrating the release of Wael Ghonim incl. middle class protesters; on Feb. 8 Iranian defense minister Brig. Gen. Ahmad Vahidi claims that the Egyptian uprising is inspired by the 1979 Iranian Rev.; on Feb. 9 strikes erupt around the country, while Al-Qaeda in Iraq urges Egyptians to wage jihad and establish an Islamist govt.; on Feb. 10 Pres. Obama calls for an "orderly and genuine" transition to democracy, and claims that Mubarak will step down; on Feb. 10 Mubarak delivers an Address to the Egyptian People, saying he won't quit and needs to stay in power until the Sept. elections, causing pissing-off the crowd in Tahrir Square, who angrily wave their shoes at him, after which Pres. Obama questions whether his pledge to shift power to his vice-pres. is "immediate, meaningful or sufficient"; on Feb. 10 Iran puts opposition leader Mahdi Karroubi under arrest for asking permission to hold a rally on Feb. 14 in support of the uprisings; meanwhile rumors of the death of Saudi King Abdullah after a phone call with Pres. Obama in which he warned him not to humiliate Mubarak surface; on Feb. 11 (Day 18) after protesters move to the Ittihadiya pres. palace in the Cairo suburb of Heliopolis and threaten massive protests in Tahrir Square, more rumors surface that Mubarak and his family have fled Cairo for Sharm el-Sheikh, followed by an announcement that he has stepped down and transferred power to the military supreme council, with the soundbyte "In the name of Allah the Merciful, the Compassionate: Citizens, during these very difficult circumstances Egypt is going through, President Hosni Mubarak has decided to step down from the office of president of the republic and has charged the high council of the armed forces to administer the affairs of the country. May Allah help everybody"; Rachel Maddow of MSNBC calls it "a Berlin Wall moment"; vice-pres. Joe Biden calls it a "pivotal moment in history", adding "The United States has largely spoken with one voice"; before stepping down, Mubarak called former Israeli minister Benjamin Ben-Elizier and slammed the U.S., saying that the U.S. push for democracy will result in an Islamist takeover; on Feb. 11 Pres. Obama delivers a Speech on the Resignation of Mubarak, praising the protesters for changing "the arc of history" (from a quote by MLK Jr.), through non-violence not "terrorism and mindless killing", saying that by stepping down, Mubarak "responded to the people's hunger for change", but "this is not the end", adding "What is clear... is my belief that an orderly transition must be meaningful, it must be peaceful, and it must begin now"; Robert Gibbs resigns the same day, with Obama uttering the soundbyte that he's not the biggest resignation news of the day; Switzerland wastes no time in freezing Mubarak's assets; on Feb. 11 Iranian pres. Imadinnajacket praises the Egyptian uprising as proof that a new Middle East is emerging that will break free of U.S. "interference" and doom Israel; on Feb. 11 South African CBS reporter Lara Logan (1971-) is assaulted by a 200-man Muslim mob shouting "Jew! Jew!", who beat and sexually assault her; on Feb. 12 the Egyptian military pledges to hand power to a civilian grovt. and abide by its peace treaty with Israel, then on Feb. 13 after large demonstrations of police, public and private sector workers, along with rallies to attempt to clear the name of the police for use of force against protesters, it dissolves parliament, suspends the constitution, and calls for elections in 6 mo., and on Feb. 14 issues Communique No. 5 to dozens of remaining protesters to leave Tahrir Square, calling for them to go back to work for nat. solidarity and to restore the economy; on Feb. 15 the Muslim Brotherhood announces the formation of a new political party, but pledges it won't field a pres. candidate in the next election; too bad, the committee appointed to draw up a new constitution in 10 days is headed by a fundamentalist Islamic judge, who refuses to remove Article 2 that makes Islam the state religion and makes Sharia the main source of law, becoming a V for the Muslim Brotherhood; meanwhile the British Guardian claims that the Mubarak regime disappeared thousands of demonstrators; meanwhile Arab govts. in Jordan, Yemen, Syria et al. raise subsidies on food and heating oil, and raise salaries and lower taxes in an attempt to stave off more unrest; after a govt. shakeup in early Feb. in Jordan, new justice minister Hussein Mjali utters the soundbyte that Israel is a "terrorist state that will be destroyed"; meanwhile leftist Jewish billionaire George Soros calls Israel an obstacle to Egyptian reform, pissing-off the Anti-Defamation League (ADL); meanwhile Gamaa Islamiya, Egypt's largest extremist org. resurfaces; Egyptian protester Jamal Ibrahim names his newborn daughter Facebook; on Feb. 18 Victory Fri. sees hundreds of thousands demonstrate in Cairo to celebrate one week sans Mubarak, while tens of thousands of Egyptian migrant workers in Libya begin returning; on Mar. 2 a constitutional referendum is announced for Mar. 19; on Mar. 3 PM Ahmed Safik steps down to prevent planned protests against him the next day, and Essam Sharaf is appointed the new PM of Egypt (until ?); on Mar. 5 protesters raid several State Security Investigations (SSI) offices across Egypt to find evidence of crimes committed during the Mubarak regime; on Mar. 22 an interior ministry bldg. catches on fire during police demonstrations outside it; on Mar. 23 a new law is announced outlawing protests and strikes, with a fine up to $100K; on Mar. 29 the military council postpones parliamentary elections until Sept.; on Apr. 1 Save the Rev. Day sees tens of thousands demonstrate to demand the military council to dismantle the old regime faster; on Apr. 5 the U.N. high commissioner on human rights urges the military council to move towards dem. reform; on Apr. 8 protesters stage a "Friday of Cleansing" in Tahrir Square, calling for a new constitution, removal of the emergency law, an end to military rule, and Mubarak's arrest; on Apr. 9 protesters in Tahrir Square calling for Mubarak's arrest are fired on by security forces, killing two and injuring dozens; on Apr. 10 Egyptian blogger Maikel Nabil is sentenced to three years in prison for criticizing the military; on Apr. 11 Egyptian ex-PM (2004-11) Ahmed Nazif is called in for questioning on corruption allegations; on Apr. 13 while in the hospital for heart problems, Mubarak is arrested for corruption, abuse of power, and the killing of protesters, along with his two sons.
On Feb. 15, 2011 Libyan human rights atty. Fathi Terbil, who represents the families of 1.2K detainees killed in a 1996 massacre in Abu Salim Prison in Tripoli is arrested, causing a day of rage on Feb. 17, escalating into an armed revolt starting in Benghazi in E Libya, causing Libyan ambassador to the U.S. (since Jan. 2009) Ali Suleiman Aujali (known for working to get Abdelbaset al-Megrahi returned to Libya) to resign; the 2011 Libyan Civil War (Revolt) (Feb. 17 Rev.) begins (ends Oct. 23) on the 100th anniv. of the 1911 Libyan War to oust the Ottoman Empire; in Feb. Pres. Obama signs a secret pres. directive authorizing the State Dept. and CIA to begin Operation Zero Footprint to arm the Libyan rebels, giving command authority to NATO Adm. James G. Stavidris not the U.S. military?
On Feb. 25, 2011 the U.N. Internat. Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) announces that it has received info. indicating that Iran is "not engaging with the agency in substance on issues concerning the allegation that Iran is developing a nuclear payload for its missile program."
On Feb. 26, 2011 the U.N. Security Resolution votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 1970, condemning the use of lethal force by the Libyan govt. against protesters in the civil war, and imposing a series of internat. sanctions, becoming the first time a country is unanimously referred to the Internat. Criminal Court by the council; France is accused of violating the resolution by parachuting weapons to Libyan rebels.
On Mar. 1, 2011 in response to Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi's treatment of protesters in the civil war, U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 65/265 is adopted, suspending Libya's right to take part in the U.N. Human Rights Council.
On May 19, 2011 Pres. Obama guves his 2011 Speech on the Middle East, hailing the "extraordinary change" taking place, and calling for Israel to pull back to its pre-1967 borders without negotiations, reversing longstanding U.S. policy, becoming the first U.S. pres. to require it as a starting point for negotiations with Palestinians, with the soundbyte "We know that our own future is bound to this region by the forces of economics and security, by history, and by faith"; "A new generation has emerged, and their voices tell us that chance cannot be denied"; "The status quo is unsustainable. A lasting peace will involve two states for two peoples", adding "Symbolic actions to isolate Israel at the United Nations in September won't create an independent state", and that the "future of Jerusalem" remains to be worked out; he also calls for Syrian pres. Bashar Assad to "lead that transition [to democracy] or get out of the way"; he also pledged $1B in aid to the Muslim Brotherhood-infested Egyptian regime; the speech causes former Mass. gov. Mitt Romney to say that Obama "threw Israel under the bus"; Obama then met with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, who voiced his displeasure with the speech, calling Israel's pre-1967 borders "indefensible", and calling on him to reaffirm the U.S. commitments made to Israel in 2004, with the soundbyte: "Among other things, those commitments relate to Israel not having to withdraw to the 1967 lines which are both indefensible and which would leave major Israeli population centers in Judea and Samaria beyond those lines. Those commitments also ensure Israel's well-being as a Jewish state by making clear that Palestinian refugees will settle in a future Palestinian state rather than in Israel. Without a solution to the Palestinian refugee problem outside the borders of Israel, no territorial concession will bring peace."; "Equally, the Palestinians, and not just the United States, must recognize Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people, and any peace agreement with them must end all claims against Israel"; he also said that Israel needs a military presence along the Jordan River, and won't deal with the terrorist org. Hamas. If this wasn't like throwing Israel under the bus to appease the growing power of the Muslim world, wait awhile and he will top it.On June 28, 2011 France confirms that it has supplied weapons to the Libyan rebels despite a U.N. arms embargo; meanwhile on June 29 Britain decides against arming them.
On June 28, 2011 Rinderpest is officially declared wiped out by the U.N. in a ceremony in Rome.
On July 1, 2011 the govt. of Bolivia renounces the U.N. Anti-Drug Convention because it objects to classifying coca leaf as an illegal drug.
On July 8, 2011 (Fri.) protests in Egypt sees tens of thousands demand justice for victims of Hosni Mubarak's regime and a clear transition plan to democracy, shouting "No parties, no Muslim Brotherhood", causing Egyptian maj. gen. Mohsen El-Fangary to tell the protesters on July 12 that they won't allow public life to be disrupted or their authority to be "hijacked"; meanwhile 500K protest in Orontes Square in Hama, Syria, greeting U.S. and French ambassadors Robert Ford and Eric Chevalier, while other demonstrations take place throughout Syria; July 9 Syrian forces raid Homs; on July 11 protesters in Damascus break into the U.S. embassy, and attack the French embassy, but are repelled by gunfire; on July 12 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 1998, condemning attacks on schools and hospitals as subject to being placed on a list of those committing "grave violations" against children.
On July 9, 2011 after a decades-long struggle to free itself from Muslim-run N Sudan, oil rich South Sudan officially becomes a nation, #54 in Africa; on July 9 pres. (since July 30, 2005) Salva Kiir Mayardit (1951-) becomes pres. #1 (until ?), visiting Israel in Dec. to thank it for its help during the first civil war (1956-72), uttering the soundbyte: "Only we can determine how our vision will be read in history books generations from now. Will we let our challenges define us, or will we rise as a nation and define our own future?... If we work together, the story of South Sudan will inspire the world"; Sudan exports 150K barrels of oil a day via a pipeline running through Sudan, providing $1K a year for each of its 8M citizens; too bad, his son Salva Kiir converts to Islam; on July 13 the U.N. Security Council adopts Resolution 1999 without vote to admit South Sudan (#193).
On July 11, 2011 the Middle East Quartet (U.S., EU, U.N., Russia) meets in Washington, D.C. to discuss ways to revive the stalled Palestinian-Israeli negotiations; Palestinian pres. Mahmoud Abbas utters the soundbyte that the U.S. should not have veto power over its decisions; U.S.-Israeli relations reach a historic new low?
On July 12, 2011 the U.N. stinks itself up by making North Korea the pres. of the Conference on Disarmament, joining China, Iran, and Pakistan to stop the arms race.
On July 14, 2011 the Arab League announces that it will ask the U.N. to recognize a Palestinian state in Sept.
On July 31, 2011 Bloody Sun. in Hama, Syria sees Syrian tanks storm it and kill 136 civilians; on Aug. 1 they attack it again and kill eight, while demonstrations erupt in other parts of Syria in support, causing Italy on Aug. 2 to recall its ambassador and urge other Euro nations to do ditto, while Russia announces that it won't oppose a U.N. Security Council resolution to condemn the violence, which is issued on Aug. 3, causing Bashar al-Assad on Aug. 4 to issue a decree permitting a multi-party political system, while having his troops round up and execute hundreds in Hama via firing squad; on Aug. 5 Syria announces that it has captured (and pulverized) Hama, and stopped the 5-mo.-old rebellion.
On Aug. 2, 2011 the U.N. Human Rights Committee issues a Report on Blasphemy Laws, saying that they are incompatible with the U.N.'s Internat. Covenant on Civil and Political Rights that came into force in 1976 and was ratified by 167 states; meanwhile the Geneva-based Human Rights Council is still controlled by the Muslim OIC.
On Aug. 26, 2011 a Muslim suicide bomber attacks the U.N. HQ in Abuja, Nigeria, killing 10+ and injuring scores.
On Aug. 18, 2011 Pres. Obama finally calls for bashful Syrian dictator Bashar al-Sosad, er, Assad to "step aside"; coordinated messages for his resignation come from Britain, France, Germany, and the EU, along with a U.N. recommendation that Syria be referred to the Internat. Criminal Court for investigation.
On Sept. 2, 2011 Turkey expels Israeli ambassador Gaby Levy and cuts military ties over the 2010 Gaza Fake Freedom Flotilla incident; on Sept. 2 the 105-page U.N. Report on the 2010 Gaza Fake Freedom Flotilla Incident is released, concluding that the blockade is legal but that the Israeli commandos used excessive force; on Sept. 5 Turkey humiliates 40 Israeli passengers after they land in Turkey en route from tel Aviv to Istanbul; on Sept. 4 Israel and Greece sign a mutual defense pact, then on Sept. 16 invoke it against Turkish naval-air movements in the E Mediterranean.
On Sept. 18, 2011 the Palestinian Authority uses Latifa Abu Hameid, mother of four terrorists who killed seven Israeli civilians and attempted to kill 12 others as their poster girl for their statehood campaign with the U.N.
On Sept. 21, 2011 Pres. Obama gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, opposing the Palestinian Authority's bid for statehood through the U.N. Security Council, with the soundbytes: "One year ago, I stood at this podium and I called for an independent Palestine. I believed then, and I believe now, that the Palestinian people deserve a state of their own"; "Peace will not come through statements and resolutions at the U.N. If it were that easy, it would have been accomplished by now"; French pres. Nicolas Sarkozy gives a speech to the gen. assembly and calls for a resolution to upgrade the PA to "observer status", claiming that failure will spark Muslim violence, with the soundbyte "Let us cease our endless debates on the parameters. Let us begin negotiations and adopt a precise timetable"; meanwhile pro-statehood protests by Palestinians in the West Bank result in a 16-mo.-o. Israeli baby being struck by a stone in the head; Obama poses for a group photo, and blocks the face of Mongolian pres. #4 (since June 18, 2009) Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj (1963-) with his hand.
On Sept. 22, 2011 Iranian pres. Madman Inastraightjacket gives a U.N. speech, taking on 9/11 ("mysterious"), the Holocaust ("excuse to pay ransom... to Zionists"), etc., causing 30 nations incl. the U.S., U.K., France, and Germany to walk out; Israel boycotts his speech entirely; meanwhile former U.S. pres. Bill "Bubba" Clinton blames Benjamin Netanyahu for sabotaging the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.
On Sept. 23, 2011 Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu gives a speech to the U.N., noting the "malignancy [that] is growing between East and West" of militant Islam, and bemoaning "Hezbollah-controlled Lebanon now presides over the U.N. Security Council"; meanwhile just before Netanyahu's speech, after rebuffing last-minute U.S. pressure, Mahmoud Abbas gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly asking for it to accept Palestine as a member state, with the soundbyte: "It is a moment of truth, and my people are waiting to hear the answer of the world"; meanwhile top Hamas official Ghazi Hamad says that Hamas wasn't consulted about the bid, and is ill-prepared for it.
On Oct. 1, 2011 the U.S. Congress blocks $200M in aid to the Palestinians over their statehood bid; meanwhile Iranian supreme assaholla Ali Khamanei rejects the Palestinian U.N. statehood bid, saying that any deal that accepts the existence of Israel would leave a "cancerous tumor" threatening the security of the Muslim Middle East.
On Oct. 4, 2011 Russia and China veto a U.N. resolution condemning Syria and threatening sanctions, causing British foreign secy. William Hague to call it "deeply mistaken and regrettable", and French foreign minister Alain Juppe to call it a "sad day for the Syrian people", while Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erodogan says that Turkey and other nations will press ahead with sanctions.
On Oct. 28, 2011 Palestinian pres. Mahmoud Abbas gives a speech on Israeli TV, where he admits that the Arab world erred in rejecting the 1947 U.N. Partition Plan.
On Oct. 31, 2011 by 107-14-52 (U.S., Israel, Canada, Germany, Sweden, and Australia against, France in favor, Britain abstains) UNESCO becomes the first U.N. agency to grant the Palestinians full membership, causing the U.S. to stop their $80M annual financing (22%) of it under 1990 Public Law 101-246 that prohibits them from funding any U.N. body that admits Palestine as a member state before a negotiated settlement with Israel; Israel retaliates by building 1,650 more homes in E Jerusalem and 350 in the West Bank settlements of Gush Eztion and Maaleh Adumim, and withholding tens of millions of dollars/mo. of custom and sales tax revenue collected for the Palestinian Authority at Israel-controlled checkpoints; Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat claims that Israel should have been the first to congratulate them.
On Oct. 31, 2011 a 4-man Taliban suicide team attacks a U.N. HQ in Kandahar City, Afghanistan, killing five.
On Nov. 3, 2011 France, Britain, and Colombia announce their decision to abstain from any vote on Palestinian membership in the U.N.; the U.S. has already pledged to veto it in the 15-member U.N. Security Council.
On Nov. 7, 2011 the IAEA releases a Report on Iran's Nuclear Capability, saying that Iran has mastered the critical steps for building nukes after receiving help from foreign scientists, and is on the brink of getting nukes; no surprise, the Obama admin. only seeks to impose more sanctions; U.N. sanctions are also unlikely because of Russian and Chinese opposition, the Russian foreign ministry saying that the IAEA presented no new facts, and deliberately politicized existing ones, ignoring Iran'a willingness to cooperate, with the soundbyte that the IAEA "had a set goal to deliver a guilty verdict"; meanwhile the Israelis ex-IAEA chmn. Mohamed ElBaradei of being an Iranian agent who covered-up their nuke program during his term; he denies it; on Nov. 10 Imadinnajacket utters the soundbyte "This nation won't retreat one iota from the path it is going... Why are you ruining the prestige of the (U.N. nuclear) agency for absurd U.S. claims?", and Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Khomeini warns the U.S. and Israel that "Anybody who takes up the idea of an attack on Iran should get ready to receive a strong slap and an iron fist"; on Nov. 11 Hillary Clinton demands that Iran respond within days to the IAEA report, and says that the U.S. is seeking to marshal internat. support for more sanctions; on Nov. 13 Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu claims that the full extent of Iran's nuclear program isn't reflected in the IAEA report.
On Nov. 16, 2011 a bomb explodes at the Queen Elissa Hotel in Tyre, Lebanon, which is frequented by U.N. staffers; no casualties.
On Nov. 22, 2011 thousands of leaked emails are released from the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) showing them deliberately misrepresenting the scientific lit. in order to support an alarmist position on global warming.
On Nov. 24, 2011 U.N. high commissioner for human rights Navi Pillay calls for a moratorium on flogging as a punishment for fornication, and criticizes the Maldivian constitution for promoting that along with requiring that all citizens be Muslim, causing Maldivians on Nov. 25 to stage a protest outside the U.N. bldg. in Male.
On Nov. 28, 2011 after a "year-long review", Al-Shabaab bans 16 aid groups incl. six U.N. agencies from C and S Somalia.
On Dec. 2, 2011 U.N. human rights commissioner Navi Pillay calls for the Syrian regime of Bashar Assad to be referred to the Internat. Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, saying that 4K+ have been killed, incl. 307 children.
On Dec. 6, 2011 U.S. state secy. Hillary Clinton makes a historic speech at the U.N. HQ in Geneva calling for worldwide LGBT rights; Pres. Obama issues an order to the federal govt. to fight for homosexual rights abroad.
On Dec. 16, 2011 Pres. Obam addresses the Union for Reform Judaism in Washington, D.C., and defends his record in Israel with the soundbyte: "No U.S. administration has done more in support of Israel's security than ours. None. Don't let anybody tell you otherwise. It is a fact", pointing to support of Israel's Iron Dome rocket defense system, its efforts to help the besieged Israeli embassy in Cairo in Sept., and actions to counter attempts to delegitimize Israel in the U.N.; meanwhile the Emergency Committee for Israel runs an ad with the title "Why Does the Obama Administration Treat Israel Like A Punching Bag?"
On Dec. 17, 2011 Korean dictator (since 1994) Kim Jong-il (b. 1941) dies, and is succeeded by his youngest son Kim Jong-un (1983-), who on Dec. 29 is declared the new nuclear-packing supreme leader (until )?; on Dec. 22 (3:00 p.m. EST) the U.N. observes a Minute of Silence for Kim Jong-il, pissing-off Western delegations, who boycott it; on Dec. 28 the U.N. lowers its flags worldwide for the clown's 2-day funeral.
On Dec. 20, 2011 after years of OIC lobbying, the U.N. Gen. Assembly adopts the infamous Religious Intolerance Resolution, a blatant attempt to stifle free speech about one and only one religion, Islam; no surprise, the Obama admin. backs it after they drop the "defamation of religion" language and add a paragraph affirming "the positive role that the exercise of the right to freedom of opinion and expression and the full respect for the freedom to seek, receive and impart information can play in strengthening democracy and combating religious intolerance"; it calls on member states "to take effective measures to ensure that public functionaries in the conduct of their public duties do not discriminate against an individual on the basis of religion or belief", and expects them to make "a strong effort to counter religious profiling, which is understood to be the invidious use of religion as a criterion in conducting questionings, searches and other law enforcement investigative procedures", calling on them to implement "measures to criminalize" the behavior of "incitement to imminent violence" based on religion - although it's mainly Muslim countries that this occurs in?
On Dec. 20, 2011 the U.N. Security Council votes 14-1 (U.S.) for a resolution condemning Israel's latest settlement expansion plans, with the Israelis saying that they shouldn't interfere in their internal affairs and focus on restarting peace talks.
On Dec. 21, 2011 the U.N. Gen. Assembly votes 89-30-64 to pass a Resolution Condemning Human Rights Abuses in Iran.
On Jan. 13, 2012 after they tell him that he's not welcome to visit Lebanon because of support for Israel, U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon demands the disarmament of Hezbollah.
On Jan. 16, 2012 U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-Moon calls on the U.N. Security Council to act with "seriousness" on Syria; meanwhile 11 are killed across Syria, while Bashar Assad offers the protesters amnesty for the 10-mo. uprising if they give up; on Jan. 22 Arab foreign ministers meet to discuss the situation.
On Jan. 26-27, 2012 in Syria security forces kill 120 as Euro and Arab nations call on the U.N. Security Council to pressure Bashar Assad to stand down; on Jan. 27 after the Free Syria Army captures it, massive demonstrations are staged in Saqba (near Damascus).
On Jan. 31, 2012 the Arab League calls on the U.N. Security Council to back its proposal for Syrian pres. Bashar al-Assad to hand over power to his deputy and announce elections.
On Feb. 7, 2012 U.N. high commissioner for refugees Adrian Edwards reports that 22K have fled fighting in Mali to neighboring countries; by June 2015 50K flee to SE Mauritania; too bad, after al-Qaida militants seize control of Mali, they impose Sharia, threatening the library of ancient Arabic texts in Timbuktu of Abdel Kader Haidara, who spent 30 years tracking them down and preserving them, causing him to sneak all 350K vols. out of the city to safety in S Mali; religious police chief Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud is later indicted by the Internat. Criminal Court in The Hague for crimes against humanity.
On Feb. 7, 2012 Argentine pres. Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner announces that Argentina will file a complaint with the U.N. over militarization around the Falkland Islands by the U.K.
In Feb. 2012 U.N. Jerusalem official Kulhood Badawi releases a photo on Twitter claiming to be of a dead Palestinian girl killed by the IDF during its shelling of Gaza, which proves to really be from 2006, causing the U.N. to let him go in Feb. 2013.
On Mar. 15, 2012 Turkish intel reports that 20K Syrian soldiers have deserted in the last 1 mo.; meanwhile Turkey threatens to launch a military operation into Syria to protect refugees, and the U.N. announces a humanitarian mission, while thousands demonstrate for Assad in Damascus.
On Apr. 3, 2012 Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan accuses the U.N. Security Council of standing by with "hands and arms tied" and indirectly supporting the oppression of the Syrian people.
On Apr. 16, 2012 the first U.N. military observers of the U.N. Supervision Mission in Syria arrive in Damascus to monitor the ceasefire, and on Apr. 20 Syria allows them freedom of movement; meanwhile on Apr. 16 26 are killed in Idlib, Syria, followed by 50 more on Apr. 20; on Apr. 21 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 2043 to send 300 more observers.
On Apr. 28, 2012 the Syrian army kills 10 in Bakha, Syria N of Damascus; meanwhile the rebels stage their first seaborne assault, using inflatable dinghies, and Syria accuses U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon of "encouraging" attacks.
On May 2, 2012 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 2046, threatening sanctions if the Sudanese border conflict doesn't end within 48 hours.
On May 9, 2012 a bomb explodes near a convoy of U.N. observers in Daraa, Syria, injuring 3+ Syrian soldiers.
On May 20, 2012 a roadside bomb explodes near a U.N. convoy in Douma, Damascus, Syria, killing 34.
On May 25, 2012 the Syrian army massacres 108 incl. dozens of women and children in Houla, Syria, causing Turkey, Germany, Canada et al. to expel Syrian diplomats; meanwhile Russia announces that it is "categorically against" foreign intervention in the conflict; on June 1 the U.N. Human Rights Council votes to condemn the massacre despite Russia, China, and Cuba voting against the resolution.
On June 8, 2012 seven U.N. peacekeepers are killed in an ambush in Ivory Coast.
On June 11, 2012 the U.S. announces sanctions on Somalis who stand in the way of a U.N.-supervised roadmap for peace in Somalia.
On Aug. 22, 2012 the Syrian army shells parts of Damascus, Syria, killing 47; meanwhile the U.N. estimates that 18K have been killed in the 17-mo. Syrian civil war, and China accuses the U.S. of using "red line" remarks as a questionable "calculus" to intervene militarily in yet another Middle East country.
The Second 9/11 shows Pres. Obama asleep at the switch worse than Pres. George W. Bush? On Sept. 11, 2012 (9/11/2012) after a mass protest against the U.S. embassy in Cairo, Egypt inflamed by a U.S.-made anti-Islam video shown on Egyptian TV, the Sept. 11 (9/11), 2012 Benghazi Attack sees the U.S. consulate in Libya attacked by al-Qaida terrorists, torturing and killing (gay?) U.S. ambassador (since June 7) John Christopher Stevens (b. 1960) and three other Americans by Sept. 12, becoming the first U.S. ambassador killed in the line of duty since 1981; diplomatic security agent David Ubben and ex-Navy SEALS turned CIA contractors Tyrone Snowden "Rone" Woods (b. Jan. 15) and Glen Anthony "Bub" Doherty (b. 1970) attempt to save Stevens in a 13-hour battle after they learn of an order to stand down from somebody up high, and Woods and Doherty are KIA; Stevens is carried through the streets by the jihadists for five hours, while Obama heads to Las Vegas, Nev. to raise funds and leaves it to his subordinates to make it into a case of Islamophobia to help his friends at CAIR?; the Obama admin. at first blames it on a Muslim mob enraged by a YouTube video titled Innocence of Muslims: The Crimes of Prophet Mohammed by Calif. filmmaker Nakoula Basseley Nakoula (Mark Basseley Youssef) (Sam Bacile) (1957-) (although there is no mob in Benghazi, only Cairo), with the White House personally telephoning YouTube to take it down; meanwhile Woods and Doherty are KIA, and Ubben's leg is shredded, and he has to suffer for 20 hours before a rescue plane arrives; on Sept. 15 Nakoula is arrested on trumped-up charges, becoming the first in U.S. history arrested for violating Muslim anti-blasphemy laws, then held for violating probation on a 2010 bank fraud conviction; he is not released until Aug. 6, 2013, on supervised probation; no surprise, the Obama admin. stubbornly refuses to blame it on Islamic terrorism, doing nothing to respond until ?; Nakoula is a Muslim and agent for the U.S. Justice Dept., and the video is Obama agitprop created by govt.-connected Stanley Associates?; the White House originally tried to blame the Bible exposition video God vs. Allah by Pastor Jon Courson of Ore. before switching to Nakoula's, probably because the latter name sounds Muslim?; on Sept. 12 Obama gives an interview to Steve Krofts of 60 Minutes, in which he utters the soundbyte: "You're right that this is not a situation that was exactly the same as what happened in Egypt, and my suspicion is, is that there are folks involved in this who were looking to target Americans from the start"; they don't air it for over amonth; meanwhile the Repubs. begin asking questions, ramping up a full investigation; on Sept. 14 Hillary Clinton tweets to her Muslim aide Huma Abedin: "I'm giving you credit for inspiring the 'peaceful' protests"'; the Muslim Brotherhood and Mohammed Morsi were behind the attack?; Pres. Assad and Hezbollah were behind the attack to get even for Stevens' role in smuggling weapons into Syria?; on Dec. 29, 2013 an article in the New York Times by David D. Kirkpatrick whitewashes the massacre, blaming it on the movie again; in 2013 retired U.S. Adm. James Lyons claims that the kidnapping was orchestrated by Obama so he could negotiate his release in return for freeing Blind Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman; in early May 2014 a smoking gun email is discovered, showing White House political operatives telling U.N. ambassador Susan Rice to claim the attack was the result of the Internet video, and Hillary Clinton uttering the soundbyte: "We are going to have the filmmaker arrested"; on May 20, 2015 it is revealed that the U.S. govt. knew on Sept. 12 that the attack was planned 10 days in advance by an al-Qaida affiliate called Brigades of the Captive Omar Abdul Rahman (BCOAR); meanwhile on May 20 despite all their b.s. about not wanting to attack First Amendment rights by banning a boring badly-made satire video, the 9th U.S. Circuit Appeals Court rules that it was a violation of the you know what Amendment to force YouTube to take it down.
On Sept. 25, 2012 U.S. Pres. Obama gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, uttering the soundbyte: "The future must not belong to those who slander the prophet of Islam", adding: "But to be credible, those who condemn that slander must also condemn the hate we see in the images of Jesus Christ that are desecrated, or churches that are destroyed, or the Holocaust that is denied" - whadya gonna do, kill me?
On Sept. 26, 2012 (Yom Kippur) while thousands protest outside the bldg., Iranian pres. (2005-13) Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (1956-) gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, criticizing the U.S. for the manner of Osama bin Laden's killing and questioning the motives of Barack Obama and Mitt Romney for running for U.S. pres, calling Israelis "uncivilized Zionists"; the U.S. boycotts his speech.
On Oct. 17, 2012 Muslim Bangladeshi immigrant Quazi Mohammad Rezwanul Ahsan Nafis (1991-) is arrested in connection with a plot to blow up the Federal Reserve in Manhattan, N.Y. as part of a jihad.
On Nov. 14, 2012 after 100+ rockets are launched at it over a 24-hour period, an IED explodes near Israeli soldiers, and Gaza militants attack an Israeli military jeep inside Israeli borders, Israel launches Operation Pillar of Defense against Hamas in the Gaza Strip (ends Nov. 21); on Nov. 15 Hamas leader Ahmed Jabari is killed by an Israeli missile strike, killing Gaza military wing chief Ahmed Jabari in an air strike; it ends on Nov. 21 after 140 Palestinians and five Israelis are killed; on Nov. 14 11-mo.-o. Omar Mishrawi, son of BBC reporter Jihad Mishrawi, plus a man and woman are killed and three injured in Al-Zaitoun, Gaza, which Hamas blames on Israeli air strikes; in Mar. 2013 the U.N. Human Rights Council exonerates Israel, saying that it was really a Hamas rocket that fell short.
On Nov. 28, 2012 the U.N. Gen. Assembly declares Mar. 21 as the Internat. Day of Forests.
On Nov. 29, 2012 (Internat. Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People) in response to Operation Pillar of Defense U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 67/19 is adopted by 138-9-41 (Israel and the U.S. vote against), upgrading Palestine to non-member observer state status, elevating it to a status equal to the Holy See, and implicitly recognizing its sovereignty, giving it status to begin proceedings against Israel in the Internat. Criminal Court; former Israeli PM Ehud Olmert supports the measure.
On Dec. 10, 2012 the Central African Repub. Civil War of 2012-14 begins (ends Juy 24, 2014), ending in a stalemate supervized by a U.N. peacekeeping force.
On Dec. 21, 2012 (15:50 UTC) Gangnam Style by South Korean singer Psy (PSY) (Park Jae-sang) (1977-) becomes the first music video to reach 1B views on YouTube; on Oct. 23, 2012 he met U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon at U.N. HQ.
On Jan. 30, 2013 a U.N. panel issues a Report on Israeli Settlements, calling them "creeping annexation" that violates the human rights of Palestinians.
On Feb. 5, 2013 the Brussels Conference on Mali is attended by reps from the African Union, U.N., EU, and ECOWAS.
On Feb. 5-7, 2013 the Council of European Bishops' Conferences meets in Warsaw, Poland; secy.-gen. Rev. Guy Liagre says that Islam in Europe is being "more radical"; "You can see the fundamentalist tendencies"; there are 558M Christians in Europe vs. 44M Muslims.
On Feb. 6, 2013 the U.N. Internat. Labor Org. (ILO) releases a report saying that youth unemployment in the Arab region is 23.2%, highest in the world, compared to an avg. of 13.9%.
On Feb. 11, 2013 North Korea stages its 3rd nuclear test for "self-defense against the U.S.", which Pres. Obama calls a "highly provocative act", causing the U.N. Security Council to hold an emergency meeting on Feb. 11.
On Feb. 12, 2013 U.N. human rights chief Navi Pillay announces that the death toll in Syria has exceeded the "truly shocking" figure of 60K.
On Mar. 6, 2013 the U.N claims that there are 1M Syrian refugees.
On Mar. 6, 2013 a report from UNICEF claims that practices by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) of arresting Palestinian youth are "cruel, inhuman, or degrading".On Mar. 7, 2013 after U.S.-South Korean military drills piss it off, and the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 2094 to place new economic sanctions on it, the govt. of North Korea warns of a preemptive nuclear strike on the U.S., causing shockwaves.
On Mar. 14, 2013 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 2095, "reaffirming its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity, and national unity of Libya", calling for full and equal participation of women, youth, and minorities in the political process, and expressing deep concern over reports of sexual violence and lack of judicial process for detainees.
On Apr. 2, 2013 after being launched in 1997 by Costa Rican pres. Oscar Arias, the U.N. Gen. Assembly votes 154-3-23 (Iran, North Korea, Syria) to adopt the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) regulating internat. trade in conventional weapons, effective Dec. 24, 2014 after 50 states ratify it; it is eventually signed by 94 states, with 41 signing but not ratifying it, incl. the U.S., which signs on Sept. 25 but is swayed by a chain email claiming that Pres. Obama is trying to take the "first major step in a plan to ban all firearms in the U.S."
On Apr. 5, 2013 the U.N. announces that it's cutting food distribution to Gaza for "days or even weeks" in protest of its HQ being stormed by protesters.
On May 17, 2013 the U.N. Refugee Agency (UNHCR) reports that 1.5M+ have fled Syria and registered with them, incl. 1M since Jan.; meanwhile the German govt. calls for a ban on jihadists returning from Syria for 2 years.
On May 18, 2013 hundreds of Muslims storm the office of Chinese man Lee Ping in Pakistani-administered Kashmir for allegedly desecrating a Quran by throwing it on the ground, causing his arrest.
On May 20-28, 2013 the 2013 U.N. World Health Org. (WHO) assembly meets in Geneva; on May 22 it passes the resolution "Health Conditions in the Occupied Palestinian Terrority Including East Jerusalem, and in the Occupied Syrian Golan", singling out Israel; meanwhile it ignores the bloody mess in Syria.
On May 28, 2013 Vatican spokesman Monsieur Silvano Maria Tomassi tells the U.N. Human Rights Council that 100K Christians are killed each year because of their faith.
On June 6, 2003 Austria announces that it's pulling its U.N. peacekeeper force out of the Golan Heights after battles there between Syrian forces and rebels; on June 7 the U.N. rejects an offer from Russia to replace its Golan peacekeepers - not Gog and Magog Time?
On June 7, 2013 six men in burkas armed with axes rob Selfridges Dept. Store in London.
On June 7, 2013 a Muslim mob attacks the Roman Catholic Jisu Niloy Seminary in Bolakipur, India, beating the rector and some students.
On June 13, 2013 the U.N. reports the death toll in Syria since 2011 as almost 93K; meanwhile anon. Obama admin. officials announce that it has concluded that Bashar al-Assad's regime crossed the red line and used chemical weapons against the rebels, and finally authorizes military support for the rebels despite al-Qaida connections; meanwhile on June 14 Syria denies it used chemical weapons, calling it a frame-up, and Russian foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov says the info. provided by U.S. officials "didn't look convincing"; on June 11 ex-pres. Bill Clinton disses Obama for inaction, saying that if he refuses to act, he will look "like a total fool"; meanwhile anybody questioning why the U.S. should arm rebels who are mainly pro-al-Qaida and/or Muslim Brotherhood is blacked-out.
On June 15, 2013 dozens of rockets are fired at Camp Liberty for Iranian dissidents near Baghdad Airport, killing two and injuring three dozen, drawing condemnation from the U.N. and the Obama admin.
On June 27, 2013 the U.N. Security Council extends the peacekeeping force in the Golan Heights for 6 mo., requesting secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon to ensure that it has the ability to fulfill its mandate.
In June 2013 according to the U.N. Food and Agricultural org. (FAO), Mexico officially becomes the world's fattest nation, with a 32.8% adult obesity rate, passing up the U.S. (31.8%).
On July 9, 2013 the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child demands that the Vatican release info. on child abuse cases by clergy.
On July 26, 2013 Syrian opposition leaders led by Syrian Nat. Coalition (SNC) pres. Ahmed Jarba come to the New York City to lobby the U.N. Security Council for support.
On Aug. 5, 2013 Samantha Jane Power (1970-), wife (since 2008) of Cass Sunstein becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #28 (until Jan. 20, 2017).
On Aug. 21, 2013 a chemical weapons attack in the outskirts of East Ghouta, Syria (near Damascus) by ? kills 494+ (1,429?), becoming the worst in the 21st cent. (until ?); on Aug. 22 the Syrian army bombs the same rebel-held suburbs; on Aug. 23 Pres. Obama calls the chemical attack a "big event of grave concern", and on Aug. 23 utters the soundbyte "We do have to make sure that when countries break international norms on chemical weapons they are held accountable"; on Aug. 30 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry releases a report that claims that 1,429 were killed incl. 426 children, that Assad's regime is responsible, and that the U.S. won't wait for U.N. weapons inspectors to finish work before deciding to take military action.
On Aug. 28, 2013 Syrian ambasssador Bashar Jaafari demands that U.N. weapons inspectors investigate alleged rebel chemical attacks on Aug. 22, 24, and 25 in Jobar, Sahnaya, and al-Bahariya.
On Sept. 14, 2013 the U.S. and Russia reach a deal on Syria to force it to account for and destroy its chemical weapons by July 2014 after allowing internat. inspectors in by Nov., leaving open the possibility of U.N. sanctions on military action for violations.
On Sept. 16-20, 2013 the Workshop on Human Space Technology is organized by the China Manned Space Agency and U.N. Office for Outer Space Affairs.
On Sept. 24, 2013 Pres. Obama gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, focusing on the Middle East, defining the Obama Doctrine of avoiding long entanglements and nation-building equally with isolationism, with the soundbytes: "The United States has a hard-earned humility when it comes to our ability to determine events inside other countries", and "I believe America must remain engaged for our own security. I believe the world is better for it. Some may disagree, but I believe that America is exceptional, in part because we have shown a willingness, through the sacrifice of blood and treasure, to stand up not only for our own narrow self-interest, but for the interests of all", saying that "There must be a strong Security Council resolution to verify that the Assad regime is keeping its commitments", and saying that the U.S. doesn't seek regime change in Iran, and leaving the door open for nuclear talks, with the soundbyte "I firmly believe the diplomatic path must be tested"; he adds that Israel security depends on a Palestinian state, and claims "a growing recognition within Israel that the occupation of the West Bank is tearing at the democratic fabric of the Jewish state", causing Israeli minister Yisrael Katz to utter the soundbyte: "I believe this is one of the most disturbing statements that a United States president has ever made"; later, after snubbing a meeting invitation from Obama, Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, denying that Iran ever sought to develop nukes, and dissing the "warmongers", with the soundbyte "Iran poses absolutely no threat to the world or the region"; Israel boycotts it, with PM Benjamin Netanyahu uttering the soundbyte that the speech is "cynical", and he's just stalling for time to build nukes; British foreign minister William Hague meets with Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, thawing two years of ice.
On Sept. 25, 2013 despite opposition by the NRA et al., U.S. secy. of state John Kerry signs the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty.
On Sept. 26, 2013 the U.N. Security's five permanent members agree on the core elements of a resolution requiring Syria to give up its chemical weapons, but the U.S. and Russia disagree on details, keeping it from being finalized until Sept. 27; meanwhile on Sept. 26 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry meets with Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif, becoming the highest level organized meeting between the U.S. and Iran since 1979.
On Sept. 27, 2013 Bolivian pres. Evo Morales gives a speech at the U.N. Gen. Assembly, calling for the U.N. to be moved out of the U.S., and calling Pres. Obama a war criminal who should face an internat. trial; "They arranged for the president to be killed, and they usurped Libya's oil."
On Sept. 27, 2013 the U.N. Human Rights Council adopts a Resolution to End Child Marriage, which is co-sponsored by 107 countries; India refuses; it also overwhelmingly adopts a resolution banning intimidation and reprisals against individuals who cooperate with U.N. human rights mechanisms; too bad, on Dec. 18 it suspends it.
On Sept. 28, 2013 a shoe is thrown at the car of Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani by 60 hardliners as he arrives in Tehran from his U.N. trip; another 200-300 shout "Thank you, Rouhani."
On Sept. 28, 2013 Malaysian PM Najib Tun Razak gives a speech at the U.N. Gen. Assembly, warning that Islamic violence is tearing the Muslim World apart, with the soundbyte: "I believe the greatest threat to Muslims today comes not from the outside world, but from within."
On Oct. 1, 2013 a U.N. Report on the Libyan Brigades details widespread torture of jailed Libyans.
On Oct. 3, 2013 the U.N. Gen. Assembly elects Iran to a senior seat on the U.N. nuclear disarmament committee as rapporteur, causing Israel to strenuously object.
On Oct. 11, 2013 the U.N. Security unanimously votes to extend the NATO-led force mandate through 2014, probably the last extension; meanwhile U.S. secy. of state John Kerry makes an unnanounced visit to Kabul for talks with Afghan pres. Hamid Karzi over the looming end of Oct. deadline for completing a security deal to allow U.S. troops to remain after the end of the NATO-led mission.
On Oct. 16, 2013 the U.N. appoints Sigrid Kaag of Netherlands to head the Syrian chemical weapons removal project.
On Oct. 17, 2013 Chad and Saudi Arabia are elected for 2-year terms to the 15-member U.N. Security Council, causing UN Watch to call for the U.S., EU, and Ban Ki-moon to protest because of their human rights abuses; after protests, Saudi Arabia declines their seat; Chile, Lithuania, and Nigeria are also elected, effective Jan. 1; on Dec. 6 Jordan is elected instead.
On Oct. 22, 2013 Israeli U.N. ambassador Ron Prosor addresses the U.N. Security Council, saying that Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani's strategy should be called SLY, for Smile, Lie, Yield minor concessions.
On Nov. 5, 2013 plans for a Geneva 2 Conference peace summit on Syria collapse, with U.N./Arab League special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi blaming it on the Syrian opposition's perpetual disarray.
On Nov. 12, 2013 the U.N. Gen. Assembly elects China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, Cuba, and 9 others to 3-year terms to the 47-member Human Rights Council, causing a firestorm of controversy - the fox guarding the henhouse?
On Nov. 25, 2013 Sheikh Khalifa of Abu Dhabi sends a letter to the U.N. expressing solidarity with the Palestinians in "their just and legitimate struggle to end Israeli occupation of their homeland".
On Dec. 5, 2013 the U.N. Security Council votes unanimously to adopt Resolution 2127 to establish the French-backed African-led African-Led Internat. Support Mission to the Central African Repub. (MISCA) (Mission Internationale de Soutien a la Centrafique sous Conduite Africaine) peacekeeping force for Central African Repub. (CAR) (until ?).
On Dec. 16, 2013 the U.N. asks for $6.5B in aid for Syrian refugees, its largest appeal so far (until ?).
On Dec. 24, 2013 investigators uncover a mass grave of 34 bodies in Bentiu, South Sudan; meanwhile the U.N. announces an increase in South Sudan peacekeepers to 12.5K.
On Jan. 1, 2014 begins the U.N. Internat. Year of Solidarity with the Palestinian People; the vote on Nov. 26, 2013 was 110-7 with 56 abstentions; the no votes incl. the U.S., Canada, and Australia; on Jan. 16 Israeli ambassador to the U.N. (since June 8, 2011) Ron Prosor (1958-) utters the soundbyte: "The U.N. continues to oil the Palestinian propaganda machine and produce highly publicized events on their behalf. Rather than putting an end to Palestinian incitement, the U.N. is now the primary platform for Palestinian propaganda. The organization allocates endless resources to advancing lies and half-truths of the Palestinian leadership instead of dealing with pressing issues facing the international community and the Middle East region. While they seek solidarity, the Palestinians continue to educate an entire generation to hate Israel. The terrorism from the PA's territories into Israel has doubled in the past year, and I have yet to hear the UN propose solidarity with the Israeli victims of terror."
On Jan. 6, 2014 U.N. undersecy.-gen. for political affairs Jeffrey Feltman warns that the civil war in Central African Repub. (CAR) has Muslim-Christian overtones and could turn into a full religious war.
On Jan. 10, 2014 after Christian-Muslim fighting leads to a a ceasefire and a summit to select a candidate with no links to either group of fighters, CAR pres. ( since Mar. 24, 2013) Michel Djotodia resigns, and on Jan. 23 Catherine Samba-Panza (1954-) becomes pres. of Central African Repub. (CAR) (until ?), the first woman, after which people relocate to religiously-cleansed neighborhoods incl. Bouar as the U.N. warns of potential genocide.
On Jan. 13, 2014 a car bomb on a crowded street in Baghdad, Iraq during a visit by U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon kills six and injures 13.
On Jan. 20, 2014 after the U.N. issues a last-min. invitation to Iran to attend the Geneva II Conference on Syria, the Syrian Nat. Coalition issues an ultimatum to Iran to commit publicly by 7 p.m. GMT to withdraw its "troops and militias" from Syria and abide by a 2012 transitional roadmap, or else the U.N. should withdraw its invitation for Tehran to take part in a peace conference, else it will boycott the conference, causing the U.N. to uninvite Iran.
On Feb. 4, 2014 U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon pub. a report on rape and torture of Syrian rebel children by Syrian troops, along with recruitment of child soldiers by rebel troops.
On Feb. 13, 2014 an Al-Shabaab attack outside Mogadishu, Somalia unsuccessfully targets a U.N. convoy outside the airport.
On Feb. 17, 2014 the U.N. releases a Report on Human Rights in North Korea, documenting "widespread, systematic abuses".
On Feb. 27, 2014 the U.S. rejects a request for a 100-day extension on the U.N.-backed deadline for destroying its chemical weapons, calling any further delays "unacceptable".
On Mar. 1, 2014 (1:00 a.m.) the Ukrainian ministry of defense announces a Russian military attack on Ukrainian military installations, along with the receipt of an ultimatum to surrender by 2:00 a.m.; at 2:00 a.m. the military airfield at Kirovske is captured; on Mar. 1 pres. Vladimir Putin asks and receives approval from the Duma to send troops into the Crimea, causing the U.S. to call it a "violation of international law" that will lead to "greater political and economic isolation"; on Mar. 1 10 Ukrainian Black Sea Fleet ships leave the naval base in Sevastopol and head to Odessa; on Mar. 2 the White House announces a $1B loan guarantee package to bolster the Ukrainian govt., along with technical support; on Mar. 4 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry visits Kiev, while Putin orders tens of thousands of Russian troops participating in military exercises near the Ukrainian border to return to their bases, and troops loyal to Moscow fire warning shots against Ukrainian soldiers in the Crimea; meanwhile the U.S. sends warships to the Crimea, and hundreds of NATO troops land in W Ukraine, while former Ukrainian PM Yulia Tymoshenko appeals to the West to intervene. On Mar. 6 the Crimean Parliament announces a referendum on Mar. 16 on whether to break away from Ukraine and rejoin Russia. On Mar. 10 Ukrainian MP Pavlo Rizanenko warns that if the U.S. et al. refuse to enforce a security pact obligating them to reverse the Russian takeover of the Crimea, Ukraine may go nuclear again. On Mar. 16 the 2014 Crimean Status Referendum votes overwhelmingly in favor of seceding from Ukraine and annexing to Russia, pissing-off the U.S., which rejects the vote as illegal; on Mar. 21 Vladimir Putin formally annexes it; the Muslim Tatars don't waste time in demanding their own autonomous region in Crimea. On Mar. 18 Russian soldiers kill their first Ukrainian soldier in Crimea shortly after Russian pres. Vladimir Putin officially asks his Parliament to accept Crimea into the Russian Federation; on Feb. 19 Russian troops storm and occupy Ukraine's naval HQ in Sevastopol. On Mar. 25 Ukrainian defense minister Igor Tenyukh resigns as thousands of Ukrainian troops withdraw from Crimea under Russian orders; meanwhile far-right Ukrainian leader Oleksander Muzychko (AKA Sashko Billy) is shot dead by police in Rivne.
On Mar. 2, 2014 Pres. Obama gives an interview to Jeffrey Goldberg of Bloomberg View, with the soundbyte: "If you see no peace deal and continued aggressive settlement construction. If Palestinians come to believe that the possibility of a contiguous sovereign Palestinian state is no longer within reach, then our ability to manage the international fallout is going to be limited"; Goldberg later paraprases Obama as saying "Israel is going more isolated and we can't defend it in the same way", saying: "I took it to be a little bit of a veiled threat... It's almost up there with, you know, nice little Jewish state you got there, I'd hate to see something happen to it. It was, look, I want to help you, but you're not helping me help you, and, therefore, there's only so much political capital I'm going to spend in the U.N., with the EU, with the Arab League, on your behalf. I think it was all couched very carefully but it's there and certainly the government in Israel feels like it's there."
On Mar. 27, 2014 after seven sessions of the U.N. Security Council result in draft Resolution 204/189, sponsored by 42 countries, only to be vetoed by Russia, the non-binding U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 58/262 is adopted by 100-11-58, titled "Territorial Integrity of Ukraine", affirming commitment to the territorial integrity of Ukraine and rejecting the 2014 Crimean Status Referendum.
On Apr. 1, 2014 (night) Palestinian Authority Pres. Mahmoud Abbas pulls an April Fool's Surprise on the U.S. and Israel by taking steps to join 15 U.N. agencies in violation of their July 2013 agreement to refrain from unilateral moves in an end-around run for statehood, causing U.S. secy. of state John Kerry to cancel an Apr. 2 trip to extend negotiations through 2015 after the U.S. releases spy Jonathan Pollard and Israel frees hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and slows down Jewish settlement construction in the West Bank; meanwhile on Apr. 3 Israel announces that it's sanctioning the Palestinian Authority, suspending high-level contacts et al.
On Apr. 7, 2014 the U.S. Senate unanimously votes to bar new Iranian U.N. ambassador Hamid Aboutalebi from entering the U.S. because of his involvement in the 1979 hostage-taking affair.
On Apr. 10, 2014 the U.N. Security Council unanimously votes for Resolution 2149, approving a 12K-man peacekeeping force for Central African Repub. (CAR).
On Apr. 12, 2014 new U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power utters the soundbyte that the "systematic targeting" of the Muslim pop. in Central African Repub. (CAR) is "heatbreaking"; she doesn't forget to mention "retaliatory attacks against Christians", as if the Christians started it and the Muslims are the good guys?
On Apr. 23, 2014 after U.S. U.N. ambassador Samantha Power fails to object, Iran is reelected to the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) despite its dismal record on women's rights.
On May 22, 2014 a proposed U.N. Security Council resolution to refer the widespread human rights violations in Syria to the ICC, submitted by France and co-sponsored by 65 countries is vetoed by Russia and China.
On May 27, 2014 members of a U.N. fact-finding mission into alleged chlorine attacks in Syria are ambushed and briefly held captive by gunmen in rebel-held Kfar Zeita in Hama Province.
On June 10-13, 2014 an Internat. Summit on Rape of Women in War Zones attended by 100+ countries is opened by U.N. envoy Angelina Jolie and British foreign secy. William Hague, who calls rape in war zones one of the "great mass crimes" of the last 2 cents.
On June 20, 2014 the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR issues a report revealing that for the first time since WWII the number of world refugees exceeds 50M.
On July 15, 2014 rebels shell the airport in Tripoli, Libya, destroying 90% of the planes parked there, causing the U.N. to withdraw its staff.
On July 23, 2014 the U.N. Human Rights Council passes a resolution condemning Israel for its Gaza offensive and establishing a 3-member commission of inquiry, headed by Canadian genocide scholar William A. Schabas (1950-), known for the 2011 soundbyte that Benjamin Netanyahu should be "in the dock of an international court" because he is "the single individual most likely to threaten the survival of Israel"; despite Pres. Obama, the U.S. is the sole no vote, with 17 members abstaining; on Aug. 13 Netanyahu replies, with the soundbyte: "UNHRC gives legitimacy to murderous terror organizations like Hamas and Daash (Islamic State)", accusing them of overlooking "massacres" committed elsewhere in the Middle East.
On July 27, 2014 (Sun.) after Hamas rejects a 24-hour Eid al-Fitr ceasefire requested by the U.N., the Israeli military resumes fighting in Gaza.
On Aug. 1, 2014 U.N. high commissioner for human rights Navi Pillay slams Israel for committing war crimes against her darling boy Hamas, and suggests that they should share their Iron Dome defensive system with it.
On Aug. 3 the Israelis allegedly shell a UNRWA school in S Gaza sheltering 3K civilians, killing 10 and injuring 35, causing U.S. State Dept. spokesperson Jen Psaki to call it "disgraceful"; the incident was staged by Hamas, with an Israeli shell hitting outside the school and bodies moved into the courtyard?
On Aug. 13, 2014 the U.N. declares the situation in Iraq a Level 3 Emergency.
On Aug. 30, 2014 Al Nusrah Front announces the kidnapping of 45 Philippine U.N. observers at the Quneitra border crossing between Syria and Golan Heights; luckily they all escape to Israel; another group is surrounded and holds out until ?.
On Sept. 8, 2014 Jordanian Prince Zeid Ra'ad Zeid al-Hussein (1964-) (Jordanian ambassador to the U.S. in 2007-10, and claimant to the throne of Iraq) becomes the first Muslim U.N. human rights chief (until ?), issuing a warning to world powers of a "house of blood" in Iraq and Syria if they don't protect women and minorities, calling the conflict "increasingly conjoined".
On Sept. 17, 2014 the Muslim-infiltrated U.N. Human Rights Council by 30-12-1 votes to remove beheading, mass shootings, and mass starvation from its purview, deeming such acts not worthy of their attention, unless it involves Israel; Britain abstains, and Obama's rep isn't present.
On Sept. 23, 2014 Pres. Obama gives a speech at the U.N. Climate Conference in New York City, calling for an internat. effort to combat global warming, and dissing China and India, with the soundbyte: "Nobody gets a pass. We have to raise our collective ambition."
Clueless in New York? On Sept. 24, 2014 Pres. Obama gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, vowing to lead a coalition to dismantle ISIS, which he calls a "network of death", with the soundbytes: "We come together at a crossroads between war and peace, between disorder and integration, between fear and hope", with "a sense that the very forces that have brought us together have created new dangers, and made it difficult for any single nation to insulate itself from global forces"; the world's problems demand attention but "are also symptoms of a broader problem, the failure of our international system to keep pace with an interconnected world when it's "inconvenient"; but "All of us, big nations and small must meet our responsibility to observe and enforce international norms"; "America is not the same as it was 100 years ago, 50 years ago, or even a decade ago because we fight for our ideals, and we are willing to criticize ourselves when we fall short, because we hold our leaders accountable, and insist on a free press and an independent judiciary, because we address our differences in the open space of democracy, with respect for the rule of law, with a place for people of every race and every religion, and with an unyielding belief in the ability of individual men and women to change their communities and their circumstances and their countries for the better"; "In a summer marked by instability in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, I know the world also took notice of the small American city of Ferguson, Missouri... And like very country, we continually wrestle with how to reconcile the vast changes wrought by globalization and greater diversity with the traditions that we hold dear"; "[W]e have reaffirmed that the United States is not and never will be at war with Islam. Islam teaches peace. Muslims the world over aspire to live with dignity and a sense of justice. And when it comes to America and Islam, there is no us and them, there is only us, because millions of Muslim Americans are part of the fabric of our country."
On Sept. 26, 2014 the U.N. Human Rights Council by 25-14 passes a landmark LGBT Rights Resolution backed by the gay U.S., condemning violence and discrimination, which Pakistan calls a "divisive and controversial initiative".
On Sept. 26, 2014 Palestinian Pres. Mahmoud Abbas gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, dissing Israel for its Gaza "genocide", with the soundbyte "We will not forget, and we will not forgive."
On Sept. 29, 2014 Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, dissing Mahmoud Abbas for "the brazen lies spoken from this very podium against my country and the brave soldiers who defend it", saying that Israel's fight against hamas is part of a global fight against militant Islam which is "on the march", adding that "Hamas is ISIS and ISIS is Hamas", and that they share a "fanatical creed"; "The Nazis believed in a master race, militant Islamists believe in a master faith"; "To disarm ISIS but leave Iran with the bomb would be to win the battle but lose the war"; "Would you let ISIS enrich uranium... develop ICBMS? Of course you wouldn't. Then you mustn't let Iran do those things either."
On Oct. 4, 2014 (a.m.) al-Qaida-linked militants ambush U.N. peacekeepers in Mali, killing nine, becoming the deadliest peacekeeper attack in Mali since their mission was launched in July 2013.
On Oct. 13, 2014 U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon criticizes Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu for going ahead with plans to build 2.5K new Jewish homes in Givat Hamatos in East Jerusalem, calling it a "clear violation of international law", causing Netanyahu to respond that "Israel doesn't occupy Gaza. Israel left Gaza to the very last centimeter, to the the very last inch."
On Oct. 16, 2014 the U.N. Gen. Assembly elects Angola, Malaysia, New Zealand, Spain, and Venezuela to serve as non-permanent members of the U.N. Security Council for two years starting on Jan. 1; Venezuela's election pisses-off the U.S., with Samantha Power uttering the soundbyte: "Venezuela's conduct at the U.N. has run counter to the spirit of the U.N. Charter, and its violations of human rights at home are at odds with the Charter's letter."
On Nov. 8-11, 2014 U.N. special envoy Staffan de Mistura presents the De Mistura Plan to Syrian pres. Bashar al-Assad, calling for a freeze in fighting and preservation of the status quo.
On Dec. 9, 2014 after pressure by the OIC-controlled U.N., U.S. govt. official Anne C. Richard announces a plan to resettle 9K Muslim Syrian refugees in the U.S., ignoring the fact that they will bring Muhammad's jihad with them.
On Dec. 19, 2014 the annual U.N. Gen. Assembly resolution condemning human rights abuses in Iran drops in support to 83 nations out of 186 (45%), down from 86 in 2013 and 2012, 89 in 2011; 78 in 2010, 74 in 2009, and 69 in 2008.
On Dec. 19, 2014 the U.N. Gen. Assembly passes a non-binding resolution demanding that Israel pay Lebanon $850M.
On Dec. 24, 2014 the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) (ratified by 50 nations on Sept. 25) goes into effect; a snare for the people of the U.S.?
On Dec. 29, 2014 Jordan submits a final draft of a Palestinian Authority-backed statehood resolution to the U.N., calling for a peace deal with Israel within a year and an end to occupation of Palestinian territories by the end of 2017; the capital will be in Jerusalem; the U.S. opposes the bid, calling it "not constructive"; Mahmoud Abbas' own Fatah Party also opposes it; Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu utters the soundbyte: "Israel will oppose conditions that endanger our future"; too good, on Dec. 30 the U.N. Security rejects the resolution, with the U.S. and Australia voting against, Nigeria abstaining, and France and Russia for; Hamas supports the bid; on Dec. 31 Mahmoud Abbas signs papers to join the Internat. Criminal Court so it can sit in judgment of Israeli officials, along with an Israeli war crimes probe request - the abomination of desolation sits where?
On Jan. 2, 2015 Palestinian Authority U.N. envoy Riyad Mansour officially requests membership in the Internat. Criminal Court (ICC), with the soundbyte: "We are seeking justice for all the victims that have been killed by Israel, the occupying power"; Israel retaliates by withholding $127M in tax revenues from the Palestinian Authority, while the U.S. Congress threatens action; on Jan. 7 U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon announces that they will join the ICC on Apr. 1.
On Jan. 8, 2015 Wei-Hock "Willie" Soon, Lord Christopher Monckton, David Legates, and William "Matt" Briggs pub. Why Models Run Hot in China's "Science Bulletin", claiming that climate computer models of the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) tend to exaggerate global warming, with the soundbyte: "The impact of anthropogenic global warming over the next century... may be no more than one-third to one-half of IPCC's current projections", pissing-off the global warming set.
On Feb. 4, 2015 the U.S. House of Reps Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa, chaired by Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) holds a hearing on suspending aid to the Palestinian Authority for joining the Internat. Criminal Court (ICC).
On Feb. 12, 2015 U.S. ambassador Keith Harper and Pakistani ambassador Zamir Akram hold a discussion on free speech vs. blasphemy in Geneva in regard to the OIC-proposed U.N. Resolution 16/18.
On Mar. 1, 2015 a U.N. report is released, which claims that the internat. Libyan arms embargo is "almost nonexistent".
On Mar. 8, 2015 militants fire 30+ rockets into the U.N. base in Kidal, Mali, killing three and injuring 12; another rocket attack hits a nearby camp for Tuareg and Arab nomads, killing two children and injuring many.
On Mar. 12, 2015 a collection of the world's largest NGOs incl. Save the Children, World Vision, and Oxfam pub. a report card
On Mar. 19, 2015 peace talks on Libya begin in Skhirat, Morocco, led by U.N. special envoy Bernardino Leon.
On Mar. 22, 2015 the U.S. pulls its last forces out of Yemen, following the example of Britain; meanwhile on Mar. 25 Yemeni pres. Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi asks the U.N. Security Council to authorize military invention to oust the Houthi rebels.
On Mar. 24, 2015 the U.N. Human Rights Council holds Hate Israel Day, with 30 mainly Islamic Israel haters praising six reports presented to the council by U.N. officials.
On Apr. 17, 2015 the U.N. releases a call for $274M in aid to save lives in hot hot hot Yemen.
On May 1, 2015 Russian ambassador Vitaly I. Churkin criticizes the West for blocking a U.N. Security Council resolution seeking "humanitarian pauses" in the Saudi-led airstrikes in Yemen; on May 8 Saudi Arabia announces a 5-day bombing cessation, to begin at 11:00 p.m. on Tues. Apr. 12.
On May 5, 2015 the 70th Anniv. of the End of WWII is celebrated; Israeli ambassador Ron Prosor gives a speech at the U.N., comparing radical Islamists to Nazis; on May 9 Russia holds their official ceremony in Moscow; German chancellor Angela Merkels snubs it because of tensions over Ukraine.
On June 2, 2015 Pres. Obama gives an interview to an Israeli TV station, raising the possibility that the U.S. would allow a U.N. vote on Palestinian statehood if Netanyahu, er, the two sides fail to make a meaningful movement toward resolution.
On June 8, 2015 Zainab Bangura, U.N. envoy on sexual violence utters the soundbyte that ISIS is selling kidnapped teenie girls for "as little as a pack of cigarettes".
On June 12, 2015 (early a.m.) an explosion in the Al Qasimi neighborhood in the Old City of Sana'a, Yemen destroys a 2.5K-y.-o. U.N. cultural heritage site; the Saudis are accused of doing it with air strikes, but deny it.
On June 21, 2015 after a meeting with Mahmoud Abbas, French foreign minister Laurent Fabius announces a new French Israeli-Palestinian peace effort in Ramallah, seeking a U.N. Security Council Resolution dictating a time frame for a settlement, warning of an "explosion" unless the deadlock is broken; in the past the Obama admin. has threatened to veto such a measure, but Fabius utters the soundbyte: "Our American friends have made statements which are maybe more open than before."
On June 22, 2015 the Schabas Report on the 2014 Gaza War is released by the U.N. Human Rights Council (UNHRC), trying to lower Israel down to the level of Hamas by accusing it of war crimes and accepting the Palestinian death count of 1,462 out of 2,251 Palestinians who were killed being mere civilians; Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu calls the report "biased", adding "Israel is not perpetrating war cimes but rather protecting itself from an organization that carries out war crimes. We won't sit back with our arms crossed as our citizens are attacked by thousands of missiles"; on June 29 retired British army Col. Richard Kemp accuses the UNHRC of allowing itself "to become a tool of Hamas' murderous strategy" that sought to maximize Palestinian casualties during the Gaza conflict in order to paint Israel in a bad light, with the soundbyte: "By unjustly condemning Israel, by refusing to condemn Hamas' repeated and unprovoked aggression, this council has consistently validated and encouraged Hamas tactics."
On June 29, 2015 UNESCO condemns ISIS for its "barbaric assaults" on World Heritage sites in Syria and Iraq, saying that they may amount to war crimes.
It's just like a bad dream and I can't wake up? On July 14 after 12 years of talks incl. 18 days of intensive sessions in Vienna, Iran reaches a landmark deal on nukes with the U.S. and other world powers after the Obama admin. folds and allows them the right to object to internat. inspections of military sites, with a 24-day notice, allowing them 5,060 centrifugues at one location (vs. 164 in 2005 and 19K today), freaking-out Republicans because in return Iran gets relief from billions of dollars in internat. sanctions and access to $100B in frozen assets, and its ominous ICBM program remains untouched, along with its support for Hamas, Hezbollah and other terrorist orgs., its repression of human rights, and its repeated calls for death to America and Israel; the U.S. promises to train Iranians to defend their nuclear facilities, esp. from Israeli attack?; Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu calls the deal "an historic mistake for the world"; former Israeli foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman utters the soundbyte: "History will remember the Iran deal just like the Munich Agreement and the agreement with North Korea"; U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk (co-sponsor of the Senate-approved sanctions against Iran) calls the deal "unremitted garbage", "the greatest appeasement since Chamberlain gave Czechoslovakia to Hitler", saying: "Tens of thousands of people in the Middle East are gonna lose their lives because of this decision by Barack Hussein Obama.. This agreement condemns the next generation to cleaning up a nuclear war in the Persian Gulf. It condemns our Israeli allies to further conflict with Iran"; Saudi Prince Bandar Bin Sultan pub. an article blasting the deal, saying "It will wreak havoc in the Middle East which is already living in a disastrous environment in which Iran is a major player in the destabilization of the region", comparing it to Pres. Clinton's mistake with North Korea, only this time Obama "knows what President Clinton didn't know when he made his deal";on July 14 Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani delivers an address to the Iranian people, with the soundbyte: "The superpowers officially recognized Iran's nuclear activity"; on July 14 (night) Israeli ambassador to the U.S. Ron Dermer gives an interview to Megyn Kelly of Fox Mews, with the soundbyte: "I think you have given up everything. Yesterday Iran had an illegal nuclear program and was facing a headwind of sanctions. This deal gives them a legal nuclear program and gives them a tail wind of sanctions relief that they're going to use to continue their march of conquest and terrorism throughout the Middle East... in Syria, in Lebanon, in Gaza, in Yemen. And during this deal, Iran will be able to continue to do research and development on advanced centrifuges and to develop their intercontinental ballistic missiles. Those ICBMs are for you" - want a blowjob, then visit Obama's List dot com today? On July 14 IAEA secy.-gen. Yukio Amano and Atomic Energy Org. of Iran chief Ali Akbar Salehi sign a roadmap agreement to provide the IAEA with clarifications and explanations of PMD (Possible Military Dimensions) of their nuclear program.
On July 15, 2015 Pres. Obama gives a Speech on His Iran Nuke Deal, defending the proposed deal while playing safe with soundbytes like "It's not the job of the president to solve every problem in the Middle East... But I think I can provide that next president at least a foundation for continued progress"; meanwhile despite lobbying by vice-pres. Joe Biden et al., the opposition builds, while Saudi Arabia warns Iran that any economic gains from the lifting of sanctions must be used to improve the lives of Iranians "rather than using them to cause turmoil in the region."; when CBS reporter Major Garrett suggests that Pres. Obama doesn't care about Americans held hostage by Iran, he utters the immortal soundbyte: "That's nonsense and you should know better"; meanwhile Obama pisses-off Congress by obtaining quick approval from the U.N.; too bad, he first has to get the U.N. Security Council to rescind six resolutions against Iran (2006-10), but he pulls it off easily on July 20 with a unanimous 15-0-0 vote for U.N. Security Council Resolution 2231 endorsing the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), with the statement "The country's ballistic missile program and capability... fall outside the scope and the jurisdiction of the UNSC resolution and its annexes", which causes the Iranian govt. to issue the soundbyte: "The Islamic Republic of Iran considers science and technology, including peaceful nuclear technology, as the common heritage of mankind. At the same time, on the basis of solid ideological, strategic and international principles, Iran categorically rejects weapons of mass destruction and particularly nuclear weapons as obsolete and inhuman, and detrimental to international peace and security. Inspired by the sublime Islamic teachings, and based on the views and practice of the late founder of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini, and the historic Fatwa of the leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Khamenei, who has declared all weapons of mass destruction, particularly nuclear weapons, to be Haram (strictly forbidden) in Islamic jurisprudence, the Islamic Republic of Iran declares that it has always been the policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran to prohibit the acquisition, production, stockpiling or use of nuclear weapons."
On Aug. 24, 2015 the U.N. Security Countil holds its first-ever meeting on the persecution of gays by ISIS, sponsored by the U.S. and Chile, with U.S. ambassador Samantha Power uttering the soundbyte: "We're getting this issue into the DNA of the United Nations."
On Sept. 15, 2015 the U.N. Gen. Assembly 70th Session begins (ends Sept. 2016).
On Sept. 22-27, 2015 Pope Francis visits the U.S., landing in Washington, D.C. and meeting with Pres. Obama in the White House on Sept. 23 (the 266th pope meeting Obama on the 266th day of the year, which is also the period of human gestation?), during which Obama utters the soundbyte: "So we stand with you in defense of religious freedom and interfaith dialogue, knowing that people everywhere must be able to live out their faith free from fear and free from intimidation"; on Sept. 23 after a popemobile tour of Washington, D.C., where he kisses a baby, Francis becomes the first pope to perform a mass in the U.S. at the Nat. Cathedral; on Sept. 24 he becomes the first pope to address the U.S. Congress (joint session), telling them to seek the "common good", after which Rep. Bob Brady (D-Penn.) grabs his half-full drinking glass and swipes it, drinks from it, and saves the rest for sprinkling on his children; (George Washington and Thomas Jefferson roll over in their graves?); after Obama invites prominent gay and pro-abortion activists to the pope's reception, Ark. Gov. Mike Huckabee utters the soundbyte that the decision is "classless" and a "new low", saying that the Obama admin. "will go down as the most anti-Christian in American history"; on Sept. 25 the pope delivers an address to the 70th U.N. Gen. Assembly in New York City, and visits the 9/11 Memorial before giving a mass at Madison Square Garden for 18K; on Sept. 26 the pope gives a speech outside Independence Hall in Philly, standing at the same lectern that Pres. Lincoln used to deliver the Gettysburg Address, addressing illegal immigrants, with the soundbytes: "Please don't ever be ashamed of your traditions", "You remind American democracy of the ideals for which it was founds, and you remind us that society is weakened whenever and wherever any injustice prevails; “Do not forget what happened here more than two centuries ago. Do not forget that Declaration that proclaimed all men and women are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, and that governments exist to protect and defend these rights", adding that the Catholic invaders, er, immigrants "bring many gifts to the U.S"; while in the U.S., Pope Francis visits with Ky. clerk Kim Davis, later taking pains to deny that it "be considered a form of support for her position"; he also secretly meets with gay couples incl. Yayo Grassi and Iwan Bagus.
On Sept. 23, 2015 U.S. State Dept. spokesman Mark Toner utters the soundbyte that the U.S. "would welcome" Saudi Arabia heading the U.N. Human Rights Council, causing an outcry, which doesn't stop the U.N. from doing it; meanwhile on Sept. 23 a super-rich Saudi Muslim is arrested in Beverly Hills, Calif. for forcing a woman to blow him.
On Sept. 25, 2015 Chinese pres. Xi Jinping visits the White House for the first time just as Pope Francis leaves town for New York City; he and Pres. Obama announce a global climate change agreement approved by the pope, and a pact to stop state-sponsored cyberattacks; on Sept. 26 Xi Jinping meets in Seattle, Wash. with tech corp. CEOs incl. Tim Cook of Apple, Jeff Bezos of Amazon.com, and Satya Nadella of Microsoft to discuss Chinese cyber espionage and rook them into pressuring Washington, D.C. into not imposing sanctions; on Sept. 28 Jingping hosts a meeting on women's rights at the U.N., causing Hillary Clinton to call him "shameless" when he is persecuting women's activists at home, causing China to respond that she's a "demagogue" like "big mouth" Donald Trump; on Sept. 25-27 the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is approved by the U.N. Gen. Assembly to bring the internat. community "to the cusp of decisions that can help realize the... dream of a world of peace and dignity for all" (U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon), containing 17 sustainable development goals incl. an end to world poverty and hunger, gender and wealth equality, action against climate change et al.; it's really an insidious Satanic plan for a New World Order (NWO)?
On Sept. 28, 2015 Pres. Obama gives a speech at the 70th U.N. Gen. Assembly, with the soundbyte: "If we cannot work together more effectively, we will all suffer the consequences. That is true for the United States, as well, no matter how powerful our military... We understand the United States cannot solve the world's problems alone", adding "I lead the strongest military the world has ever known. I will never hesitate to protect my country and our allies unilaterally and by force when necessary"; he then complains about Donald Trump et al., with the soundbyte: "We see greater polarization, more frequent gridlock... movements on the far right, and sometimes the left, that insist on stopping the trade that binds our fates to other nations, calling for the building of walls to keep out immigrants", and "Most ominously, we see the fears of ordinary people being exploited through appeals to sectarianism, or tribalism, or racism, or anti-Semitism, appeals to a glorious past before the body politic was infected by those who look different, or worship God differently, a politics of us versus them"; no surprise, he adds that there must be a "rejection by non-Muslims of the ignorance that equates Islam with terrorism", bragging about increasing the yearly quota of Muslim immigrants; Russian pres. Vladimir Putin gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, calling on the world to join Russia's fight against terrorism while preserving Bashed Ass in power in Syria; Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani gives anspeech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, along with Russian pres. Vladimir Putin; meanwhile Pres. Obama meets with Putin at the U.N., becoming their first meeting in 15 mo.; on Sept. 29 Obama hosts a counter-terrorism summit at the U.N., uttering the soundbyte that Syrian pres. Bashar al-Assad must go before ISIS can be defeated; British PM David Cameron tasks Obama for trying to get the foreign leaders to stop profiling Muslims because "violent extremism is not unique to any faith", with the soundbyte: "Barack, you said it and you're right, every religion has its extremists. But we have to be frank that the biggest problem we have today is the Islamist extremist violence that has given birth to ISIL, to al-Shabaab, to al-Nusrah, al-Qaida, and so many other groups."
On Sept. 28, 2015 King Abdullah of Jordan delivers an address to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, blaming Israel for troubles on the Temple Mouth, and warning that Jordan will "prevent any threat" to the "holiness" of the city, and "reject any threat to the Arab character of the holy city".
The beginning of worldwide Islamic Sharia law enforcement? On Sept. 29, 2015 the Strong Cities Network is launched, with the U.N., the U.S. atty. gen., and the mayors of several U.S. cities uniting to fight ISIS; on Oct. 7 U.S. atty. gen. Loretta Lynch at the U.N. announces the Strong Cities Network (SCN), a global law enforcement initiative to fight extremism in U.S. cities; in Oct. the Justice Dept. announces that a new position is being created to investigate lone-wolf domestic extremists - part of Pres. Obama's insidious plan to bypass Congress and the U.S. Constitution to surrender U.S. sovereignty to the U.N.?
On Sept. 30, 2015 Palestinian Authority (PA) pres. Mahmoud Abbas delivers an address to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, announcing that the PA no longer adheres to the 1993 Oslo Accords because "we won't work as employees for Israel", "with the soundbyte: "Our patience for a long time has come to an end", and that Israel "must fully assume all its responsibilities as an occupying power."
In Sept. 2015 Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is overheard talking on a hot mic at a U.N. development summit in New York City with German chancellor Angela Merkel, telling her "we need to do some work" on the issue of suppressing "offensive posts" on the refugee crisis, meaning anybody complaining about the evils of Islam and Muslim immigration to the West, answering "Yeah" to her question "Are you working on this?"
On Oct. 1, 2015 Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu delivers an address to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, berating it for its silence in the face of the death threats against Israel by Iran, glaring at the members for 45 sec., calling the Iran nuke deal a "marriage certificate for that unholy union" of radical Islam and nukes.
On Oct. 2, 2015 Amnesty Internat. disses the U.N. Human Rights Council for bowing to Saudi pressure and passing a resolution shunning an internat. investigation into reported abuses in Yemen by Saudi-led forces and Houthi rebels, calling for the U.K. to stop supplying them with arms.
On Oct. 9, 2015 the U.N. Security Council votes 14-0-1 (Venezuela) for Resolution 2240 to enable Operation Sophia, with six EU warships patrolling off the coast of Libya to turn back boats transporting refugees to Europe.
On Oct. 27, 2015 for the 14th straight time (since 1992) the U.N. Gen. Assembly votes to condemn the 55-y.-o. U.S. embargo on Cuba; this time it's 191 to 2 (U.S. and Israel); in 2014 Marshall Islands, Micronesia, and Palau abstained.
On Oct. 27, 2015 U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees #19 (since June 15, 2005) Antonio (António) Manuel de Oliveira Guterres (1949-) of Portugal warns of the coming "amputation in the DNA of Christianity... in... the Middle East"; Guterres leaves office on Dec. 31.
On Oct. 27, 2015 U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) introduces legislation to defund the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) for being "tied to foreign terrorist orgs', incl. storing rockets used by Islamist jihadists to attack Israel.
On Oct. 29, 2015 French mathematicians of the Paris-based Societe de Calcul Mathematique pub. a Paper on the Costly and Pointless Crusade Against Global Warming, with the soundbyte: "You would probably have to go quite a long way back in human... history to find (such a) mad obsssion", pointing out that "There is not a single fact, figure... or observation that leads us to conclude the world's climate is in any way 'disturbed'. It is variable, as it has always been."
On Nov. 2, 2015 the govt. of Libya threatens the EU to recognize its Islamist govt. or face millions of illegal immigrants; meanwhile U.N. high commissioner for refugees Antonio Guterres announces that 218,394 illegally migrated to Europe in Oct., vs. 219K for 2014.
On Nov. 5, 2015 the U.N. Gen. Assembly votes 117-21 to allow Israel to join the Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space; Egypt votes for Israel for the first time since 1948.
On Nov. 30-Dec. 12, 2015 the 2015 U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP 21) in Paris, France, attended by leaders from 147 nations negotiates the Paris Climate Agreement (Accord), signed by reps of 196 parties, agreeing to a goal of a 1.5C limit to global temperature increase by 2030.
On Dec. 14, 2015 (11:55 p.m.) the Arab coalition against Houthi rebels in Yemen begins observing a 7-day ceasefire to coincide with U.N.-brokered peace talks in Switzerland; too bad, a missile attack by Houthis in Taiz Province kills dozens hours before the ceasefire is to take effect, and the truce is off.
On Dec. 17, 2015 after extended talks in Morocco, Libya's rival govts. in Tobruk and Tripoli sign a U.N.-sponsored peace deal.
On Dec. 17, 2015 U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution 70/175 is adopted, promulgating the Nelson Mandela Rules (U.S. Std. Min. Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners).
On Jan. 1, 2016 Iran becomes a member of the executive board of the U.N. Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (U.N. Women) along with the U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF), the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, and the Commission on Narcotic Drugs.
On Jan. 5, 2016 Iran unveils a new underground missile base which incl. nuclear warhead-ready Emad precision-guided missiles, which violate a 2010 U.N. Security Council resolution.
On Jan. 20, 2016 Venezuela is reelected to a 3-year term on the U.N. Human Rights Council despite its Socialist govt. ruining the economy, with 700% inflation causing a dozen eggs to sell for $150.
On Jan. 27, 2016 the Guardian of London pub. an article citing a U.N. panel's findings of "widespread and systematic" attacks on civilians by Saudi air strikes in Yemen.
On Jan. 31, 2016 after street protests and armed insurgency, the African Union (AU) votes to dismiss a proposal by U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon, U.N. ambassador Samantha Power, the EU et al. to deploy troops to Burundi to prevent possible genocide and prepare for a transitional govt. after the ouster of 3-term (since 2005) pres. Pierre Nkurunziza.
On Feb. 1, 2016 U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon pub. the op-ed. Don't Shoot the Messenger in the New York Times, scolding Israel for criticizing his earlier comments about the justness of the Palestinian cause while condemning "Palestinians targeting Israeli civilians", containing the soundbyte: "As oppressed peoples have demonstrated throughout the ages, it is human nature to react to occupation, which often serves as a potent incubator of hate and extremism", adding that "History proves that people will always resist occupation".
On Feb. 18, 2016 the Dinka Sudan People's Liberation Army attacks the U.N.-run camp in Malakal, South Sudan, killing 25 Nuers.
On Mar. 2, 2016 in reponse to its 4th nuke test on Jan. 6 and its long-range missile test on Feb. 7, the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 2270, imposing new sanctions on North Korea; on Mar. 3 North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un orders his military to be ready to use nukes "at any moment", threatening to carry out a "preemptive attack" on his enemies.
On Apr. 15, 2016 UNESCO passes a resolution calling Israel and "occupying power" of the Western Wall and Temple Mount, and ignores any Jewish connection to it, calling it the Al-Buraq Plaza and Al-Aksa Mosque, causing Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to utter the soundbyte: "UNESCO ignores the unique historic connection of Judaism to the Temple Mount, where two temples stood for a thousand years and to which every Jew in the world has prayed for thousands of years. The U.N. is rewriting a basic part of human history and has once again proven that there is no low to which it will not stoop."
On Apr. 22, 2016 (Earth Day) the Paris Climate Agreement (Accord) is opened for signatures at the U.N. HQ in New York City, setting a long-term goal of keeping the increase in global avg. temp to below 2C above pre-industrial levels, and limiting the increase to 1.5C, with each country voluntarily setting targets and target dates, along with plans and reporting mechanisms; by May 2018 195 members sign the agreement, and 177 become a party to it.
In June 2016 the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that the Lake Chad humanitarian crisis caused by Boko Haram has displaced 2.6M, with 3.8M facing "severe food shortages".
On July 10, 2016 Dem. Nat. Committee staffer Seth Conrad Rich (b. 1989) is murdered by a gunman as he walks home in Bloomingdale, Washington, D.C.; despite nothing taken, police call it a botched robbery; WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange later implies that he is the source of the damaging emails posted days before the Dem. Nat. Convention; this adds to the recent suspicious deaths of U.N. official John Ashe (June 22), Victor Thorn (Aug. 1), and Shawn Lucas (Aug. 4).
On July 10-18, 2016 the 2016 African Union (AU) Summit in Kigali, Rwanda unveils the African Union Passport; Morocco, which left the AU in 1984 requests reinstatement and sends a delegation; the AU announces the sending of a new technical team to N Mali to determine how to deploy a U.N. peacekeeper force.
On July 12, 2016 a U.N. tribunal rules that China's claims to sovereignty over the South China Sea violate internat. law, as do its enforcement attempts; too bad, there are no teeth to their ruling.
On Sept. 20, 2016 Pres. Obama gives a speech at the U.N. Gen. Assembly, calling for world leaders to accept more Muslim refugees - shilling for George Soros again?
On Sept. 21, 2016 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry slips up at the U.N. and utters the soundbyte: "Now, I have said to Russia many times it's very hard to separate people when they are being bombed indiscriminately and when Assad has the right to determine who he's going to bomb, because he can, quote, 'go after Nusrah' but go after the opposition at the same time because he wants to", indicating that Syria was prohibited from attacking al-Nusrah Front AKA al-Qaida in Syria.
On Sept. 22, 2016 Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly on the "core of the Palestinian-Israel conflict", uttering the soundbyte that the U.N. "began as a moral force and has become a moral farce", adding "Lay down your arms. The war against Israel is over. Israel has a bright future at the U.N.", saying that if Palestinians accept peace there will be peace, inviting Mahmoud Abbas to "speak to the Israeli people at the Knesset in Jerusalem" and offering to "gladly come to speak peace wtih the Palestinian parliament in Ramallah", but "we will not accept any attempt by the U.N. to dictate terms to Israel", because "The road to peace runs through Jerusalem and Ramallah, not New York"; at a meeting in Manhattan he utters the soundbyte that U.S. public support for the Palestinian cause is "flat like an EKG of a dead person"; meanwhile on Sept. 22 Palestinian Authority pres. Mahmoud Abbas gives a speech at the U.N. Gen. Assembly, dissing the Balfour Declaration that granted Israel its territory, with the soundbyte: "100 years have passed since the notorious Balfour Declaration, by which Britain gave, without any right, authority or consent from anyone, the land of Palestine to another people", demanding that Britain apologize and threatening to sue for damages.
On Sept. 22, 2016 after protests outside U.N. HQ by former U.S. Sen. Joe Liberman et al. on Sept. 21, Iranian pres. Hasan Rouhani gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, blasting "the usurping Zionist regime" as well as the U.S. and Saudi Arabia for fueling terrorism, also accusing the U.S. of not complying with the nuclear deal, eroding its credibility; on Sept. 21 Iranian-Canadian journalist Maziar Bahari gives a speech at the U.S. Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C., dissing the media for failing to "call out the Iranian government's Holocaust denial".
On Sept. 26, 2016 an emergency U.N. Security Council meeting sees a walkout by the U.S., British, and French ambassadors as the Syrian ambassador begins to speak, with U.S. ambassador Samantha Power accusing Russia of "barbarism", and British ambassador Matthew Rycroft calling Russia "an international pariah" for its escalation of the air offensive against rebel-held E Aleppo, where 250K civilians are trapped.
On Oct. 8, 2016 the U.N. Security Council votes on a Russian draft resolution on the Aleppo situation, proposing a political rather than military solution; Egypt votes for, and Saudi Arabia votes against, exposing their rift.
In Oct. 2016 DC Comics char. Wonder Woman is announced as the honorary U.N. ambassador for the empowerment of women and girls in accordance with U.N. sustainable development goal #5 ("achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls" adopted in 2015 (fulfillment date 2030); too bad, 1,180 U.N. employees sign a petition protesting the appointment because of Wonder Woman's "overtly sexualized image" that is allegedly not "culturally encompassing or sensitive".
On Nov. 7, 2016 the U.N. Climate Megaconference in Marrakesh, Morocco.
On Dec. 12, 2016 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry secretly meets with PLO exec secy. Saeb Erekat and Palestinian intel chief Majid Faraj on the upcoming U.N. resolution against Israel; on Dec. 13 U.S. nat. security advisor Susan Rice meets with them, followed by reps of the secys. of state and homeland security, and dir. of the CIA, agreeing "to cooperate in drafting a resolution on the settlements", which becomes U.N. Security Council Resolution 2334 of Dec. 23; on Dec. 27 after Kerry, Pres. Obama et al. deny any collusion, the Egyptian daily Al-Youm Al-Sabi' releases minutes of the meetings.
On Dec. 23, 2016 (one hour before Sabbath on the U.S. East Coast) after Egypt withdraws it under pressure from Israel, and the backstabbing Obama admin. breaks with tradition and abstains, giving the green light, the U.N. Security Council votes 14-0-1 (incl. New Zealand, Malaysia, Senegal, and Venezuela) to adopt U.N. Security Council Resolution 2334, demanding an end to Israeli settlements in E Jerusalem, affecting 500K, standing and applauding afterwards to rub it in, pissing-off Donald Trump, who tweets: "As to the U.N., things will be different after Jan. 20th"; on Dec. 24 Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu calls it a "shameful ambush"; Am. Jewish leader Alan Dershowitz finally turns on Obama, calling him the worst president ever, with the soundbyte: "He called me into the Oval Office before the election and said to me, 'Alan, I want your support. And I have to tell you, I will always have Israel's back.' I didn't realize that what he meant was that he'd... stab them in the back"; U.S. Sen. (R-S.C.) (2003-) Lindsey Graham, chmn. of the Subcommittee on Foreign Operations of the Senate Appropriations Committee utters the soundbyte that Obama "has gone from naive and foolish to flat-out reckless", adding: "With friends like these, Israel doesn't need any enemies", threatening to defund the U.N.; the first time a U.S. pres. abstains on a U.N. anti-Israel resolution during his last month in office; on Jan. 16 Trump gives an interview to Steve Kroft of 60 Minutes, admitting that he ordered the abstention vote, with the soundbyte: "I don't think it caused a major rupture in relations between the United States and Israel. If you're saying that Prime Minister Netanyahu got fired up, he's been fired up repeatedly during the course of my presidency."
On Dec. 28, 2016 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry gives a 70-min. 9,490-word speech defending the U.S. decision to stab Israel in the back in the U.N., with the excuse that friends must tell each other hard truths and that a 2-state solution is the "only way to ensure Israel's future as a Jewish and democratic state", dissing Benjamin Natanyahu and his coalition as "the most right-wing in Israel's history, with an agenda driven by the most extreme elements", adding that Israel can either be Jewish or democratic, but not both - in which case democracy-hating world domination Muslims will only enhance democracy by mass immigration to not only Israel but the entire West?
On Dec. 28, 2016 Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu issues a reply to Kerry's speech, calling it "almost as unbalanced" as the U.N. resolution, with the soundbytes: "Israelis do not need to be lectured about the importance of peace by foreign leaders. Israel's hand has been extended in peace to its neighbors from day one, from its very first day. We've prayed for peace, we've worked for it every day since then"; "In a speech ostensibly about peace between Israelis and Palestinians, Secretary Kerry paid lip service to the unremitting campaign of terrorism that has been waged by the Palestinians against the Jewish state for nearly a century. What he did was spend most of his speech blaming Israel for the lack of peace, by passionately condemning a policy of enabling Jews to live in their history homeland, and in their eternal capital Jerusalem"; "Hundreds of suicide bombings, thousands, tens of thousands of rockets, millions of Israelis in bomb shelters are not throwaway lines in a speech. They are the realities that the people of Israel had to endure because of mistaken policies, policies that at the time won the thunderous applause of the world"; he then angles for future partnership with pro-Israel pres. Trump, with the soundbytes: "Our alliance is based on shared values, shared interests, a sense of shared destiny, and a partnership that has endured differences of opinions between our two governments over the best way to advance peace and stability in the Middle East"; "I have no doubt that our alliance will endure the profound disagreement we have had with the Obama administration, and will become even stronger in the future."
On Jan. 1, 2017 after the U.N. Security votes 15-0-0 on Oct. 6 to recommend him, former Socialist PM (1995-2002) Antonio Manuel de Oliveira Guterres (1949-) of Portugal becomes U.N. secy. gen. #9 (until ?).
On Jan. 27, 2017 former U.S. Repub. gov. #116 (2011-17) Nimrata "Nikki" Haley (nee Randhawa) (1972-) becomes U.S. ambassador to the U.N. (until ?).
On Feb. 23, 2017 U.S. secy. of state Rex Tillerson and homeland security secy. John Kelly meet with Mexican foreign affairs secy. Luis Videgaray in Mexico City, who complains that Mexico "does not have to accept provisions that one government wants unilaterally to impose on another", threating to go to the U.N. to defend human rights of Mexicans, while they respond: "In our meetings, we jointly acknowledged that, in a relationship filled with vibrant colors, two strong sovereign countries from time to time will have differences. We listened closely and carefully to each other as we respectfully and patiently raised our respective concerns."
On Apr. 17, 2017 the 54-member U.N. Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) hands out 13 leadership posts in U.N. orgs. dealing with gender equality and the advancement of women, with all but seven countries voting to give Saudi Arabia a slot on the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in 2018-22.
On Apr. 24, 2017 Pres. Trump meets with U.N. Security Council ambassadors at the White House, describing the U.N. as an "underperformer", complaining about costs going "out of control", and how unfair it is that the U.S. has to pay 22% of the operating budget and 28.6% of the peacekeeping budget; with the soundbyte: "It hasn't lived up to the potential. I see a day when there's a conflict where the United Nations, you get together, and you solve the conflict. You just don't see the United Nations, like, solving conflicts. I think that's going to start happening now."
On July 8, 2017 Pres. Trump announces that the U.S. is pledging $50M to a World Bank program dedicated to women's entrepreneurship in developing countries; Trump also promises $639M in aid to the U.N. World Food Program for starving people in Somalia, South Sudan, Nigeria, and Yemen.
On Aug. 5, 2017 after Pres. Trump announced his intentions in June, the U.S. formally notifies the U.N. of its intent to withdraw from the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement.
On Sept. 3, 2017 North Korea explodes a nuke that causes a 6.3 earthquake, claiming it's an H-bomb, becoming their 6th nuke test, causing U.S. defense secy. James "Mad Dog" Mattis to warn them that any more major threats will be met with a "massive military response" that will be "both effective and overwhelming"; on Sept. 4 U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley gives a speech on Iran in the U.N., saying that they are inviting war; on Sept. 5 she gives a speech on Iran, saying that Pres. Trump has reason to find that it has violated the terms of the JCPOA.
On Sept. 19, 2017 (a.m.) Pres. Trump gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, touting his America First policy and advising other nations to put their countries first too, adding: "We will stop radical Islamic terrorism, because we cannot allow it to tear up our nation and, indeed, to tear up the entire world", warning "Rocket Man" Kim Jong-un of the "depraved regime" in North Korea: "No nation on Earth has an interest in seeing this band of criminals arm itself with nuclear weapons and missiles... The United States has great strength and patience, but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea. Rocket Man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime", warning that if he attacks the U.S. his country will be totally destroyed, and demanding that Iran "stop supporting terrorists" and "begin serving its own people", saying that the world will see "very soon" his position on the Iranian nuclear deal, which has an Oct. 15 decision date to cancel or remain in the deal another 90 days; he goes on to describe Assad's rule in Syria as a "criminal regime", and diss the Maduro regime in Venezuela, with the soundbyte: "The problem in Venezuela is not that socialism has been poorly implemented, but that socialism has been faithfully implemented", saying that the U.S. will not stand by while "the government of Venezuela persists on its path to impose authoritarian rule on the Venezuelan people."
On Nov. 24, 2017 U.N. report claims that missiles fired by the Houthis of Yemen at Saudi Arabia were manufactured in Iran.
On Dec. 6, 2017 (70 years 7 days after the U.N. vote to create Israel on Nov. 29, 1947) (3 days shy of the centenary of the British conquest of Jerusalem from the Ottomans) after signing the semi-annual waiver of the 1995 U.S. Jerusalem Embassy Act on Dec. 4, despite dire warnings from Muslim and Euro leaders incl. the EU, U.K., Egypt, Abdullah II of Jordan, Saudi King Salman, who calls it "a flagrant provocation of Muslims all over the world", Hamas, which threatens to "open the gates of Hell", and Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, who calls it a "grave mistake", and warns "Jerusalem is our red line", Pres. Trump announces that the U.S. is recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital and that he is ordering the U.S. embassy in Tel Aviv to move there, keeping a campaign promise no matter how much flak results; wasting no time, on Dec. 6 Hamas issues a call for a Day of Rage on Dec. 8, which incl. protests in Indonesia and Malaysia.
On Dec. 12, 2017 the Hope for the Middle East Petition signed by 800K from 143 countries is presented to the U.N. secy.-gen., calling on the U.N. to protect the rights of Iraqi Christians.
On Dec. 18, 2017 an Egyptian-sponsored U.N. Security Council draft resolution to require Pres. Trump to rescind his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital is vetoed by the U.S., with U.S. ambassador Nikki Haley calling it an insult that won't be forgotten; the vote is 14-1; on Dec. 20 Pres. Trump threatens to cut off financial aid to countries that vote in favor of the draft resolution submitted by Yemen and Turkey.
On Dec. 20, 2017 after a speech by U.S. U.N. ambassador #29 (since Jan. 27) Nimrata "Nikki" Haley (nee Randhawa) (1973-) bemoaning the U.N.'s longtime hostility to Israel and threatening the it with defunding, saying that the U.S. will be "taking names" of nations that vote for it, the U.N. Gen. Assembly votes 128-9-35 (U.S., Israel, Guatemala, Honduras, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Togo vote against, 22 of 28 EU countries incl. U.K., France, and Germany vote for, five EU states, Australia, Canada, Colombia, and Mexico abstain, 21 delegations are absent) to adopt U.N. Gen. Assembly Resolution ES-10/L.22, titled "Status of Jerusalem", submitted by Yemen and Turkey, declaring "null and void" all actions intended to alter Jerusalem's character, status, or demographic composition, asking nations not to follow Pres. Trump and establish diplomatic missions in Jerusalem, claiming his decision risks igniting a religious war in the Middle East "that has no boundaries" (Palestinian foreign affairs minister Riad al-Malki), whining about the "negative tends" imperiling the Two-State Solution.
On Dec. 22, 2017 the U.N. Security Council unanimously imposes new sanctions on North Korea, causing its foreign ministry on Dec. 24 to reject them and call them an act of war.
On Feb. 7, 2018 the 19-member U.N. NGO Committee of the U.N. Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) meets in New York City, rejecting applications from TWO U.S.-based groups fighting for human rights in Iran and North Korea, the Iran Human Rights Documentation Center (IHRDC) (founded 2004) and the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) (founded in 2001), which U.S. U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley calls "shameful".
On Feb. 10, 2018 (early a.m.) (one day before the 39th anniv. of the Iranian Islamic Rev.) an Iranian drone (UAV) enters Israeli airspace from Syria, causing the IAF to shoot it down and Syrian AA batteries to respond, hitting an Israeli F-16 that crashes in Israeli territory, critically injuring one pilot, after which the IAF raids Syria, hitting 12 targets, becoming their biggest attack against Syria since the 1982 Lebanon war, and Israel warns Iran over its continuing presence in Syria; on Feb. 12 the big rally in Tehran sees hundreds of thousands curse the U.S. as "enemy number one"; on Feb. 20 U.S. U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley gives a speech to the U.N. Security Council, with the soundbytes: "Israel, like any other country, has a right to defend itself and its borders. The Israeli people face the frightening escalation of Islamic terror acts through Israel. The Palestinian Authority refuses to take the most basic steps towards ensuring peace with Israel, and instead incites terrorism. Textbooks in Gaza and the West Bank teach children that Israel has no right to exist. They teach their children to hate Jews. The Hamas charter calls for the destruction of the State of Israel and the Jewish people"; "The West must stop embracing Islam-based hatred of Israel."
On Feb. 20, 2018 Palestinian Authority pres. (since Jan. 15, 2005) Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) (1935-) gives a speech to the U.N. Security Council, accusing the Trump admin. of abdicating its commitment to an independent Palestinian state, calling for an internat. peace conference under U.N. not U.S. sponsorship; when he abruptly exits stage left after his speech, U.S. U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley utters the soundbyte: "Our negotiators are sitting right behind me, ready to talk. We will not chase after you. The choice, Mr. President, is yours."
On Feb. 26, 2018 the 37th Session of the U.N. Human Rights Council convenes, with U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Prince Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein complaining of "violations of human rights which should have served as a trigger for preventative action" (meaning alleged Israeli oppression of Palestinians, not his oppression of his people?), calling for a Code of Conduct to stop the U.S. and other permanent members of the U.N. Security Council from making "pernicious use" of their veto against resolutions condemning Israel, like the U.S. has done 43x.
On Mar. 5, 2018 Hungary presents a 12-point "security first" proposal to the U.N. to counter its Global Compact for Migration, which Pres. Trump chucked in Dec., calling it a "no borders plan".
On Mar. 12, 2018 U.S. U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley gives a speech to the U.N. Security Council, covering the history of U.S. involvement in Syria and warning that military action is still on the table against the regime of Bashar al-Assad, with the soundbyte: “This is no cease-fire. This is the Assad regime, Iran and Russia continuing to wage war against their political opponents,” Haley charged. "If we can't save families that haven't seen the Sun for weeks because they have been hiding underground to escape barrel bombs,” she said, “then the Security Council is as impotent as its worst critics say it is. When the international community consistently fails to act, there are times when states are compelled to take their own action."
On Mar. 22, 2018 after a leak from his aides about ignoring warnings not to congratulate Vladimir Putin on his election V, Pres. Trump replaces nat. security adviser H.R. McMaster by former U.S. U.N. ambassador John Bolton (until ?).
On Mar. 28, 2018 U.S. U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley announces to the U.N. Security Council that the U.S. "will not pay more than 25 percent of the [United Nations] peacekeeping budget", and that the U.S. is cutting aid to the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) from $125M/year to $65M/year unless Palestinian leaders return to negotiations with Israel (part of the $1.3T omnibus spending bill signed by Pres. Trump on Mar. 23), pissing-off the Palestinian Authority, whose spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeinah utters the soundbyte that this amounts to a declaration of war.
On Mar. 30, 2018 the Great March of Return by tens of thousands of Palestinians begins, resulting in riots on the Israeli border of Gaza that kill 27 Palestinians; on Apr. 8 Fatou Bensouda, chief prosecutor of the Internat. Criminal Court express "grave concern" over the shootings of Palestinians by Israeli troops, who claim they were trying to breach the border fence, along with the actions of Hamas, who may have been using protests as a cover for military activities; on Apr. 7 the U.S. blocks a draft U.N. Security Council resolution submitted by Kuwait calling for an "independent and transparent investigation" of the clashes, and calling for restraint, expressing "grave concern at the situation at the border".
In Mar. 2018 a confidential memo is leaked, showing U.S. U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley proposing that U.S. foreign assistance should be withdrawn from dozens of poor countries that vote against it in the U.N.
On Apr. 5, 2018 at Russia's request, the U.N. Security Council meets to discuss the escalating diplomatic crisis between Russia and the West caused by the Mar. 4 Salisbury Incident, the poisoning of former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal on British soil, which caused a wave of expulsions of diplomats. On Apr. 5 U.S. U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley speaks at Duke U. in Durham, N.C., uttering the soundbyte: "I know John Bolton well. I've gotten advice from him. I've talked to him. I know his disdain for the U.N. I share it."
On Apr. 8, 2018 after learning that "Animal" Assad has ordered a chemical attack near Damascus that killed dozens incl. children, Pres. Trump tweets the soundbyte: "Many dead, including women and children, in mindless CHEMICAL attack in Syria. Area of atrocity is in lockdown and encircled by Syrian Army, making it completely inaccessible to outside world. President Putin, Russia and Iran are responsible for backing Animal Assad. Big price to pay. Open area immediately for medical help and verification. Another humanitarian disaster for no reason whatsoever. SICK!"; on Apr. 9 (early a.m.) Israeli launches an air strike against a Syrian miitary base; Assad did it because Trump announced that he was pulling U.S. troops out of Syria?; on Apr. 10 the U.N. Security holds an emergency meeting over the child-killing chemical attack in Syria; U.S. U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley utters the soundbyte that it must vote on Apr. 11 for a Mar. 1 draft resolution to establish an inquiry into who is to blame; "History will record this as the moment when the Security Council either discharged its duty or demonstrated its utter and complete failure to protect the people of Syria. Either way, the United States will respond", causing Russian envoy Vassily Nebenzia to reply that the repercussions will be "grave"; too bad, on Apr. 11 the U.N. Security Council fails to pass a resolution.
On Apr. 12, 2018 UNICEF chief of health Stefan Peterson issues a statement announcing a major yellow fever vaccination campaign for Africa in conjunction with WHO, the GAVI global vaccine alliance, and 50 health partners, with the goal of eliminating it by 2026.
On Apr. 15, 2018 U.S. U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley claims that the Trump admin. is preparing new sanctions for Russia over its support of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, causing an admin. official on Apr. 16 to clarify that it's delaying additional sanctions unless/until Russia engages in some new provocation inc. a new cyber attack so that Trump can work with them to combat Islamic extremism, etc.
On Apr. 15, 2018 Muslim jihadists dressed as U.N. peacekeepers attack a U.N. MINUSMA military camp in Timbuktu, Mali, killing one peacekeeper and injuring seven French soldiers while losing 15 of their own; the French army calls the attack "particularly sophisticated and underhanded".
On Apr. 16, 2018 the U.N. Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) hands out leadership posts, giving a seat on the 41-member exec board of U.N. Women to Saudi Arabia for 2019-21 (which already seats Iran, Pakistan, and Yemen), and seats on the NGO accrediting committee to Bahrain, Burundi, China, Cuba, Libya, Russia, and Sudan; Iran is given seats on the U.N. Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) and the U.N. World Food Program; Cuba is also given posts on the CCPCJ and the Commission on the Status of Women. Saudi held seats on the board of U.N. Women in 2011-13 and 2014-6.
On May 1, 2018 the U.N. Climate Change Secretariat releasts its first annual report, calling climate change "the single biggest threat to life, security and prosperity on Earth", according to exec secy. Patricia Espinosa, and rolling out its Gender Action Plan to mobilize women to fight global warming.
On May 10, 2018 after would-be Green King of the World Pres. Emmanuel Macron of France introduces it, the U.N. Gen. Assembly adopts Resolution 72/277: Towards a Global Pact for the Environment, which requests the U.N. Secy.-Gen. to submit to the Gen. Assembly at its 73rd Session in 2018 a technical and evidence-based report that identifies and assesses possible gaps in internat. environmental law and environment-related instruments with a view to strengthening their implementation, and establishes an ad hoc open-ended working group under the auspices of the Gen. Assembly to consider the report and discuss possible options to address possible gaps in international environmental law and environment-related instruments as appropriate, and if deemed necessary, the scope, parameters, and feasibility of an internat. instrument, with a view to making recommendations, which may incl. the convening of an intergovernmental conference to adopt such an instrument during the first half of 2019. On Jan. 14-18, 2019 the U.N. Ad Hoc Open-Ended Working Group Towards a Global Pact for the Environment (OEWG) in Nairobi, Kenya meets to consider the U.N. secy.-gen. report "Gaps in international environmental law and environment-related instruments: towards a global pact for the environment"; too bad, the meeting ends in disagreement after the U.S. calls the report "not fully objective nor an accurate reference text".
On May 14, 2018 the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, Israel officially opens amid violent Palestinian protests at the Gaza border that kill 62 Palestinians, incl. three armed terrorists trying to plant a bomb near the border fence, after which on May 15 the Palestinians stage a big funeral to gain internat. sympathy, with Hamas claiming that "50 Hamas martyrs during the Million Man March of Return on May 14", causing Turkey to call for an emergency meeting of the OIC as Israel and Turkey expel each other's ambassadors; on May 14 Trump critic John O. Brennan tweets the soundbyte: "Deaths in Gaza result of utter disregard of Messers Trump & Netanyahu for Palestinian rights & homeland. By moving Embassy to Jerusalem, Trump played politics, destroyed US peacemaker role. New generation of Israelis/Palestinians need to isolate extremists to find path to peace"; on May 15 U.S. U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley utters the soundbyte at the U.N. Security Council before walking out on the Palestinian rep: "Hamas has attacked the Kerem Shalom crossing, the biggest entry point in Gaza for fuel, food, and medical supplies. This is how determined they are to make the lives of the Palestinian people miserable. They light Molotov cocktails attached to kites on fire and attempt to fly them into Israel to cause as much destruction as possible. W hen asked yesterday why he put a swastika on his burning kite, the terrorist responded, 'The Jews go crazy when you mention Hitler.' This is what is endangering the people of Gaza. Make no mistake: Hamas is pleased with the results from yesterday. I ask my colleagues here in the Security Council, who among us would accept this type of activity on your border? No one would. No country in this chamber would act with more restraint than Israel has"; Israel is officially regathered for 70 years in fulfillment of the Biblical book of Daniel's 70 Weeks Prophecy?
On May 18, 2018 U.N. human rights chief Zeid Raad al-Hussein claims that Israel used "wholy disproportionate" force against the Palestinian Gaza border protesters at a meeting in Geneva, causing the Israeli ambassador to respond that the militant Islamist leaders deliberately put people in harm's way to gain internat. sympathy and delegitimize Israel.
On May 28-June 24, 2018 the 2018 U.N. Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, Switzerland, run by the Conference on Disarmament (founded 1979), known for drafting the 1997 U.N. Chemical Weapons Convention is chaired by er, the Syrian Arab Republic of Animal Assad over U.S. objections.
On June 8, 2018 the 193-member U.N. Gen. Assembly votes for two nations to fill non-permanent seats on the U.N. Security Council; Israel makes its bid while 56 Arab nations oppose them.
On June 19, 2018 as it begins a 3-day meeting in Geneva, U.S. U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley and U.S. secy. of state Mike Pompeo announce that the U.S. has pulled out of the U.N. Human Rights Council, calling it "not worthy of its name" and a "protector of human rights abusers and cesspool of political bias", accusing it of "politicizing and scapegoating countries with positive human rights records".
On June 25, 2018 the U.N.'s WHO announces that for purposes of the 11th ed. of its Internat. Classification of Diseases (ICD), transgender individuals will no longer be classified as mentally ill.
On Aug. 31, 2018 the Trump admin. announces an immediate end to all U.S. funding of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA); last year it contributed $364M, about one-third of its budget.
On Sept. 10, 2018 U.N. secy.-gen. Antonio Guterres warns that the world is facing "a direct existential threat" from global warming, and must rapidly shift from dependence on fossil fuels by 2020 to prevent "runaway climate change", with the soundbytes: "Climate change is moving faster than we are. We need to put the brake on deadly greehouse gas emissions and drive climate action"; "We need to rapidly shift away from our dependence on fossil fuels. We need to replace them with clean energy from water, wind and sun. We must halt deforestation, restore degraded forests and change the way we farm"; "According to a UN study, the commitments made so far by parties to the Paris agreement represent just one-third of what is needed"; he announces a climate summit for world leaders in Sept. 2019 "to bring climate action to the top of the international agenda."
On Dec. 10-11, 2018 EU heads of state sign the non-binding U.N. Global Compact for Migration, a plan to flood the EU with 59M migrants by 2025; the compact is formally endorsed by the U.N. Gen. Assembly on Dec. 19; it contains a section on "eliminating all forms of discrimination", and a stated aim is to "shape perceptions of migration", stirring fears of suppression of freedom of speech; after denouncing the compact as amounting to a bid "to advance global governance at the expense of the sovereign right of States to manage their immigration systems in accordance with their national laws, policies and interests", with a U.S. envoy warning that it could translate into a "long-term means of building customary international law or so-called 'soft law' in the area of migration" adding that term 'compact' is an amorphous word in internat. law that "implies legal obligation", the U.S. refuses to sign, as does several other nations incl. Austria, Bulgaria, Czech Repub., Australia, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Slovakia, Switzerland, and Latvia; 100K in Britain sign a petition opposing the compact; Belgian PM Charles Michel signs it despite the right wing Flemish N-VA Party departing from his 4-party coalition, leaving him with a minority govt.; on Dec. 4 French Gen. Antoine Martinez sends a letter signed by several other top military brass and former French defense minister Charles Millon accusing pres. Emmanuel Macron of Treason for signing it; on Dec. 16 5K protest the migration pact in Brussels, Belgium, with shouts of "No jihad in our country" and "We are tired, close the borders"; on Dec. 13 13 countries vote against the pact, incl. the Vesegrad Four (Czech. Repub., Hungary, Poland, Slovakia), Austria, Bulgaria, Latvia, Israel, the U.S., Dominica, and Brazil; they also reject the sister Global Compact on Refugees, which mentions "replacement" of existing Euro pops. with migrants. On Dec. 11 Pres. Trump meets with Dem. leaders Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Nancy Pelosi, who refuse to give him $5B to build a border wall, causing him to reiterate his threats to shut down the govt. while he has the military build it, with the soundbyte: "I am proud to shut down the government for border security."
On Dec. 31, 2018 the U.S. and Israel officially quit UNESCO, with U.S. U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley uttering the soundbyte: "Today the U.S. withdrawal from this cesspool became official."
On Mar. 5, 2019 Hungary presents a 12-point "security first" proposal to the U.N. to counter its Global Compact for Migration, which Pres. Trump chucked in Dec., calling it a "no borders plan".
On Apr. 26, 2019 Pres. Trump speaks at the annual Nat. Rifle Assoc. (NRA) meeting in Indianapolis, Ind., slamming Dems. like Bernie Sanders for wanting prisoners to vote in elections, and framing the 2020 U.S. pres. race as about freedom vs. Socialism; Trump announces U.S. withdrawal from the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty, expressing concern over 2nd Amendment rights, with the soundbyte: "Under my administration we will never surrender American sovereignty to anyone, we will never allow foreign bureaucrats to trample on your Second Amendment freedom and that is why my administration will never ratify the U.N. trade treaty."
On May 8, 2019 China gets a seat on the U.N. Forum for Indigenous Peoples, never mind their oppression of pesky Muslim Uighurs.
On Aug. 21, 2019 the U.N. establishes Aug. 22 as their Day of Global Recognition of Violence Against People Based on Faith.
On Sept. 23, 2019 the 2019 U.N. Climate Action Summit in New York City is attemded by 100+ world leaders; Pres. Trump drops by at the start, cutting in front of Greta Thunberg, but doesn't speak, then leaves to attend a meeting on religious freedom, preparing to address the U.N. Gen. Assembly on Sept. 24; Greta Thunberg gives her well-rehearsed, outgoing speech (impossible for an Assburger sufferer, although Trump's upstaging act might have made her speech more anger-filled?), with the big soundbyte: "My message is that we'll be watching you. This is all wrong. I shouldn't be up here. I should be in school on the other side of the ocean. Yet you come to us young people for hope. How dare you. You have stolen my dreams, my childhood with your empty words, and yet I'm one of the lucky ones. People are suffering, people are dying, entire ecological systems are collapsing. We're in the beginning of a mass extinction, and all you can talk about is the money and eternal fairy tales of economic growth. How dare you? For more than 30 years the science has been crystal clear. How can you look away and come here saying you're doing enough when the politics and solutions needed are nowhere in sight? You say you hear us and that you understand the urgency. But no matter how sad and angry I am, I really want to believe that, because if you really understood the situation and kept on failing to act, you would be evil, and that I refuse to believe"; French education minister Jean-Michel Blanquer utters the soundbyte: "One shouldn't create a generation of people depressed over the subject of climate change"; meanwhile Thunberg and 15 other children file a complaint with the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child against Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, and Turkey for failing to act against climate change; meanwhile #ShutDownDC sees dozens of climate protesters disrupt traffic in usually-deadlocked Washington, D.C.
On Sept. 24, 2019 after a scandal involving U.S. vice-pres. Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden in Ukraine emerges, the Dems. try to twist it with an announcement by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that an impeachment investigation for Pres. Trump is being started over a July 25 phone call to new (since May 20) Ukrainian pres. #6 Volodymyr Zelensky where he merely asks if he would investigate them, with the double-standard soundbyte "No one is above the law", even when no quid pro quo is discovered in the transcripts; on Sept. 25 Pres. Trump meets with Zelensky at the U.N., and they hold a press conference, where Zelensky confirms that Trump put him under no pressure; meanwhile on Sept. 25 the U.S. Justice Dept. clears Trump for violating campaign finance laws; on Sept. 27 Trump tweets the soundbyte: "If that perfect phone call with the President of Ukraine Isn't considered appropriate, then no future President can EVER again speak to another foreign leader!"; too bad, it is revealed that three Dem. Senators asked Ukraine to investigate Trump in May 2008; also it is revealed that the U.S. Senate approves a 1998 treaty with Ukraine allowing the U.S. pres. to ask Ukraine for legal assistance in criminal matters.
On Oct. 7, 2019 Pres. Trump defends his Oct. 6 decision to pull U.S. troops out of N Syria after talking to Kurd-hating Turkish pres. Recep Tayyip Erdogan even though that opens it up for a Turkish assault on U.S.-backed Kurds, claiming that even though they helped the U.S. defeat ISIS, they were paid "massive amounts of money" for it, and that U.S. troops "are not a police force"; after bipartisan criticism, Trump tweets Turkey to leave the Kurds alone or he will "obliterate" their economy; also, Europe won't help, and the U.S. isn't going to hold thousands of ISIS fighters in Guantanamo Bay; too bad, on Oct. 9 Turkey attacks the Kurds in NE Syria to eliminate a "terrorist corridor", causing the U.N. Security Council to meet to discuss the situation; on Oct. 11 Turkey bombs U.S. forces in Kurd-held Kobani, Syria, calling it a mistake.
On Oct. 13, 2020 the oxymoronic U.N. Human Rights Council sees Red China, Russia, Cuba, Pakistan, and Uzbekistan gain seats, while Saudi Arabia fails, all to begin 3-year terms on Jan. 1.