FDD

UN Peacekeepers? (CM)

Since 1948, the U.N. has stepped into the Arab-Israeli maelstrom five  times. But few of these efforts have paid off. Unless it takes a radically different shape, a new intervention could well make matters  worse, not just for the parties on the ground, but for the U.N. itself. ...

If recent history teaches anything, it is that half-hearted efforts--which give a false sense that something is being done but only end up costing peacekeepers' lives--can be worse than none at all.

More here.

Confirm Bolton (CM)

The National Review editorializes:

John Bolton "is an ambassador who has been capable both of using the U.N. to advance America’s priorities and of standing firm when the U.N. seeks to thwart those priorities. If such a record isn’t grounds for  confirmation, we don’t know what is... This is no time to silence the voice of American diplomacy —  particularly when that voice is as articulate, principled, and effective as John Bolton’s.

More here.

Bolton Rejecting Draft Security Council Resolution (CM)

We call upon Syria and Iran to end their role as state sponsors of terror and unequivocally condemn the actions of Hamas, including this kidnapping.  We yet again call upon Syria to arrest the Hamas ringleader, Khaled Meshal, who currently resides in Damascus.  We stress again our condemnation of Syrian and Iranian support of Hizballah, which has claimed responsibility for the other kidnappings along the Blue Line between Israel and Lebanon.

We further call on the Palestinian Authority government to stop all acts of violence and terror and comply with the principles enunciated by the Quartet:  renounce terror, recognize Israel, and accept previous obligations and agreements, including the Roadmap.  The failure of the Palestinian Authority government to take these steps hurts the Palestinian people.

More here.

Media Roundup

Claudia Rosett continues to cover Tongsun Park's trial for NRO.  Park is "charged by federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York with having acted as an unregistered agent of the government of Iraq under Saddam Hussein."

Andy McCarthy argues that the Hamdan decision "sounds the death knell for the National Security Agency’s Terrorist Surveillance Program (TSP)," in today's NRO.

Michael Kraus and J. Peter Pham question if Israel's disengagement from Gaza is a mistake in today's NRO.

Cliff's Notes & Comments are available in this week's e-newsletter.

Claudia Rosett on the First Oil-for-Food Trial

FDD's Claudia Rosett is blogging live for NRO on the first trial related to the Oil-for-Food scandal:

And so we come to the trial of Tongsun Park, accused by federal prosecutors of acting as an unregistered agent of Saddam Hussein, accused of playing a vital role in a secret “back-channel” network carrying messages and money between Baghdad and the U.N. executive suite. The defense lawyer has compared the prosecution’s case to “a Tom Clancy novel” and says his client is “absolutely not guilty.” The prosecution has accused Park of selling his high-level U.N. access for “cash by the bagful,” and receiving $2.5 million from Iraq for his labors, with Iraq promising millions beyond that.

Rosett's Notebook, as National Review Online calls her blog, is here.

Claudia's U.N. Update

Claudia Rosett delves deeper into the scandals at the U.N. with her two latest articles:

In NRO Claudia discusses this week's opening of the first federal trial linked to the U.N.'s infamous Oil-for-Food program.

In the Wall Street Journal Claudia reviews Paul Kennedy, a Yale historian with high-level U.N. connections', new book: "The Parliament of Man: The Past, Present, and Future of the United Nations."

Claudia Rosett Testifies on U.N. Transparency

Claudia Rosett appeared before the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. She provided testimony on the lack of transparency in the U.N.

More information on the hearing and Claudia's testimony is here.

How About Trying Reform?

Claudia Rosett discusses the "Unreality of U.N. Reform" in NRO:

Not to be outdone by his own ruckus-raising deputy, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan himself is now instructing the U.S. on how to treat the corruption-plagued, unreformed and unrepentant U.N.

Writing in the June 12 Financial Times, Annan reminds us that the U.S. has been threatening to block U.N. spending unless the organization shows serious progress toward reform. So, declares Annan, “The U.N. faces a moment of truth.”

And the Pulitzer Goes To... (BM)

Not the most deserving candidate, according to today's New York Post:

The Pulitzer Prizes, the Academy Awards of journalism, were announced last week; The Washington Post and The New York Times scored heavily, as always.  What a bore.

What a joke, actually.

Because any journalism award committee that didn't automatically hand top honors to Claudia Rosett, a journalist-in-residence for the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the columnist who has explained to the world the appalling United Nations' Oil-for-Food scandal, is trafficking in hollow honors.

The rest of the editorial is here.

Surprise, Surprise (CM)

The U.N. Human Rights Commission has been re-named the U.N. Human Rights Council. And that's it -- that's all the "reform" you're going to see.

The U.S. will not run for a seat on the "new" council. The U.S. "will support the Council and we will continue to fund it."

Why?

The U.S. government statement is here.