UNITED NATIONS, June 19 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon and other high-ranking UN officials on Wednesday expressed outrage at a deadly attack on a UN office in Somalia's capital Mogadishu, which killed at least 15 people.
In a telephone conversation with Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, Ban said he was "concerned and outraged" by the attack on the office of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) in Mogadishu, said Ban's deputy spokesperson Eduardo del Buey at the daily briefing.
The secretary-general also "thanked the President for expressing his concern and condolences for the attack on the UN compound in Mogadishu," said del Buey.
Suicide bombers attacked the UN office in Mogadishu on Wednesday, leaving at least 15 people dead, including eight working for the UN. The al-Qaida linked militant Al-Shabaab group said it was behind the assault.
The Somali government on Wednesday deplored the deadly attack on the UNDP office in Mogadishu.
According to del Buey, the secretary-general, who is currently on a visit to China for talks with the country's leaders, told the Somali president that "he was deeply concerned and outraged by the despicable attack against the United Nations" and "added his own personal condolences to the families of the deceased."
In their phone conversation, Ban also urged the president to ensure UN staff are protected and to coordinate closely with the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and his Special Representative in Mogadishu.
The UN chief stressed that the United Nations would not be deterred from delivering its mandate, said del Buey.
Before addressing the Security Council Wednesday morning on conflict prevention and natural resources, UN Deputy Secretary- General Jan Eliasson said he was greatly saddened and shocked by the tragic events in Mogadishu.
"Full details are still emerging, but we know that several people have died," said Eliasson.
"Our thoughts are with the United Nations staff and all those who have suffered through this tragedy," he said. "We remain committed to the principles of achieving peace and to keep Somalia on its path to recovery."
The top UN envoy in Somalia has also condemned Wednesday's massive attack on the world body's compound in Mogadishu, calling it a "desperate" attempt to derail the country's recovery and development efforts.
"I am truly shocked and horrified by what took place in Mogadishu today," the Secretary-General's Special Representative and head of the UN mission for Somalia (UNSOM), Nicholas Kay, was quoted by del Buey as saying.
While the UN is verifying reports of casualties in the aftermath of the attack, Kay noted that there are some who are injured, but that the vast majority of staff are unhurt.
"Our Mogadishu colleagues are shaken but the United Nations remains determined to stand by the people of Somalia," the UN envoy stated.
Following two decades of strife and humanitarian crises, Somalia entered a new phase in its history last year with the establishment of a representative government and the approval of a draft constitution.
UNSOM, which began operations earlier this month, is tasked by the UN Security Council to offer expertise in areas ranging from the political process to disarmament to help the country consolidate and build on hard-won gains towards peace, reconciliation and stability.
In an official statement issued here later Wednesday by Ban's spokesperson office, the secretary-general condemned the "violent attack on the United Nations Common Compound in Mogadishu in which UN humanitarian and development workers reside and work."
"Among the fatalities at the UN compound, we can confirm at this time that among those killed are one international staff member, three contractors and four Somali security guards," said the statement.
In the statement, the UN chief expressed his sincere appreciation to the Somali government and the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) for "their immediate responses to secure the area and protect UN personnel" and commended "UN security guards who bravely engaged the assailants after they entered the compound following the detonation of a car bomb at its entrance."
"Malicious terrorist attacks of this nature will not deter the United Nations or weaken its resolve to stand by the people and government of Somalia as they work courageously to build peace in their country," Ban added.
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