newinsideNAIROBI, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations children's fund (UNICEF) has strongly condemned the killing of a Somali staff member who was shot on Sunday in Huddur, southern Somalia.
UNICEF said in a statement issued in Nairobi late Monday that water engineer, Mukhtar Mohammed Hassan, was shot at close range as he walked in town with friends after attending the mosque.
"UNICEF condemns this senseless killing of a staff member, who was dedicated to UNICEF's mission to improve the lives of Somali children and women," said UNICEF Deputy Representative, Hannan Sulieman in a statement.
"Mukhtar played an important role in providing vulnerable communities with access to clean drinking water and sanitation in areas where the risk of water-based diseases is high."
According to reports, three gunmen shot into the air to disperse the crowd and then directly targeted Mukhtar.
Mukhtar worked with UNICEF providing technical supervision for UNICEF-supported water, sanitation and hygiene activities in Central and Southern Somalia.
According to the UN children's agency, investigations into the circumstances and motive for the killing are underway.
"The UN reiterates its appeal for an end to acts of violence against humanitarian workers and again calls for safe access for our staff in order to support Somalis who are already living under extremely difficult circumstances," said Sulieman.
"We send our condolences to Mukhtar's family. Our colleague will be dearly missed but his contribution will not be forgotten," she noted.
The statement came as UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon spoke out against the recent killing of aid workers in Somalia and Afghanistan, condemning the murders and voicing alarm at the increasing number of attacks against humanitarian staff in both countries.
Two local staff members for UN
agencies operating in Somalia have been killed since Friday and a
worker with a non-governmental organization (NGO) in Afghanistan was
slain on Monday.
"The Secretary-General deplores
these acts of deliberate violence against those who are making every
effort to alleviate the dire suffering of Somali and Afghan citizens,"
the UN chief said.
"He is alarmed at the increasing
trend of killing and abduction of aid workers in both countries. He
calls upon all parties to respect the neutral and impartial status of
humanitarian staff, to allow them to do their work bringing vital
life-saving assistance to the millions of Somalis and Afghans who are
counting on this support for their survival."
SOURCE: Xinhua, Tuesday, October 21, 2008