The United Nations response.

• Position: Brief Article

The 11 September attack claimed the lives of more than 6,000 people from 80 nations. On 12 September, both the General Assembly and the Security Council adopted strong resolutions "unequivocally" condemning the "heinous acts of terrorism" and vowing to "bring to justice" the perpetrators and their sponsors. Cancelling its special session on the follow-up to the World Summit for Children, scheduled for 19 to 21 September, the Assembly on 18 September also decided to postpone its annual high-level general debate, which was to take place from 24 September to 5 October.

As the UN Chronicle was going to press, the Council had just passed a wide-ranging resolution targeting terrorist financing, and the Assembly was about to begin a week-long debate on measures to eliminate international terrorism, with some 145 representatives listed to speak. Opening the debate, General Assembly President Han Seung-soo of the Republic of Korea said the fight against terrorism transcended cultural and religious differences. "We must never forget that terrorism is not a weapon yielded by one civilization against another, but rather an instrument of destruction through which small bands of criminals seek to undermine civilization itself."

In his opening address, Secretary-General Kofi Annan on 1 October pointed out that "a single attack involving a nuclear or biological weapon could have killed millions". He called on Member States not to lose momentum in developing a "broad, comprehensive and, above all, sustained strategy to combat terrorism", noting that the United Nations was "uniquely positioned to serve as a forum" to fight it "on a global scale". While acknowledging the complexities of the issue, the Secretary-General urged them to sign, ratify and implement "without delay" all the existing conventions on terrorism (see page 74), and also to forge agreement on a comprehensive convention on international terrorism.

Mr. Annan also called attention to the victims, "whether they are the direct targets or other populations who will be affected by our common effort", and urged donors to support the recent UN humanitarian appeal for Afghanistan. "But just as a concerted international response can make the work of terrorists much harder to accomplish", he said, "so should the unity born of this tragedy bring all nations together in defence of the most basic right--the right of all peoples to live in peace and security".

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