After a week of rumors and anticipation, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon officially appointed Lakhdar Brahimi as the new UN-Arab League joint special envoy to Syria. Brahimi, who formerly served as UN envoy in Afghanistan and Iraq, finally accepted the position and will resume efforts to reach diplomatic solution to Syria’s crisis, UN spokesperson Eduardo del Buey confirmed Friday.
Brahimi will be taking over from former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, who resigned as UN envoy at the start of August after the UN Security Council failed to support his efforts to reach a ceasefire and begin a political transition.
Brahimi, 78, has worked to resolve conflicts in some of the world’s most troubled areas. He led the United Nations Mission
Observer in the South African democratic elections of 1994 that allowed Nelson Mandela to assume power. He has also served as UN Special Representative of the UN Secretary General in Haiti from 1994-96.
Brahimi has worked closely with the Syrian government as a former Assistant Secretary General of the Arab League and also helped negotiate the Taif Accord to end Lebanon’s civil war in 1989.
