UN chief in Haiti, Tunisian Hedi Annabi, lost his life during the Tuesday's earthquake from the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince, UN president Ban Ki-Moon conformed on Sunday, quoted by AFP. The UN chief of mission's death was announced first on Wednesday evening, but the UN did not confirm it before his body was found.
UN chief in Haiti, Tunisian Hedi Annabi, lost his life during the Tuesday's earthquake from the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince, UN president Ban Ki-Moon conformed on Sunday, quoted by AFP. The UN chief of mission's death was announced first on Wednesday evening, but the UN did not confirm it before his body was found.
Hedi Annabi's Deputy Carlos da Costa and UN Police in Haiti Doug Coates have also been found dead. Hedi Annabi had been chief of mission in Haiti since September 2007. Born in 1944, he had been working for the UN since 1981. At the time of the earthquake, he was taking part at a reunion with his main co-workers and a delegation of Chinese police at the Christopher hotel in Port-au-Prince. The building was badly affected by the 7.0 magnitude earthquake.
Tens of thousands of persons have lost their life and thousands have been hurt during the tragic seismic event considered "a major disaster" for the Caribbean island. Rescue teams from various countries are currently helping with the search and rescue operations.
An 11-year old girl was rescued by the intervention teams after having spent 36 hours under a building's ruins in Port-au-Prince. The rescued teams did not benefit of proper equipment and many used their bare hands to get her out. CNN announced on Saturday that she has died. According to her family, she passed away an hour after she was rescued. "Mother, don't let me die" were her last words, her uncle said. She died on her way to the hospital.
The news of her death came in
