New York  - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday welcomed a decision by the United States to send a delegation to a Geneva conference on racism, which has been strongly criticized for its anti-Israel stance.

The Durban Review Conference, scheduled for 20-24 April in Geneva, continues from meetings that took place in Durban, South Africa, several years ago. That conference ended with condemnation of Israeli actions against the Palestinian people.

Preparatory discussions in Geneva on drafting an outcome document have also been denounced as anti-Israel.

Jerusalem, Feb 13 : UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon has said that a team would leave soon for the Middle East to review all incidents that resulted in death or injuries to United Nations staff during the Israeli raids on Gaza strip.

In a statement issued by Ban Ki-Moon's spokesperson on Thursday night, the UN Secretary-General expected "full cooperation of all parties concerned."

New York  - Zimbabwe's new Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai should address immediately the economic and humanitarian crises in the country, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Wednesday in welcoming the new government leader.

Tsvangirai was sworn in as a political partner in the government of President Robert Mugabe, a deal that fulfilled an agreement reached last September between Mugabe and the opposition party headed by Tsvangirai.

New York  - United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon condemned Wednesday the attacks that killed at least 26 people in the Afghan capital of Kabul, calling the incident a heinous crime against innocent people.

"This horrendous crime against civilians is a total disrespect of human rights," Ban said in a statement. "The UN stands shoulder-to- shoulder with the Afghan people and government to condemn today's attacks."

New York - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday called for a summit of world leaders to discuss efforts to complete a new Kyoto Protocol by year's end.

The high level conference will take place on the fringes of the annual UN General Assembly session in September, which will be attended by government leaders of all 192 UN members.

"Reaching a new climate agreement this year will require direct involvement of world leaders," Ban said. "I have been consulting actively about the best way to engage them."

New York  - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon appointed Tuesday a board of inquiry into incidents that caused deaths and destruction at UN compounds in Gaza Strip during the recent Israel-Hamas conflict.

The board will be headed by Ian Martin, a Briton that has led various crucial UN missions around the world, who is called to complete the inquiry and submit a report within one month.

Ban said the board will comprise legal advisers and a military expert.