Recall that in the
18-second video, a woman in a red dress was seen straddling a man in the back
seat of clearly marked white UN vehicle. Another man appears to be asleep in
the passenger seat.
In a statement
released on Thursday July 2, the UN said the men in the video have been
identified as staff members of the United Nations Truce Supervision
Organization (UNTSO), UN military observers based in Israel.
Stéphane Dujarric,
the spokesman for the UN's secretary general said the two staff members have
been suspended without pay until the investigation into the incident has
concluded.
Dujarric told BBC;
"Their
suspension was appropriate given the seriousness of the allegations of failing
to observe the standards of conduct expected of international civil servants.
"UNTSO has
re-engaged in a robust awareness-raising campaign to remind its personnel of
their obligations to the UN Code of Conduct."
The UN maintains
strict regulations barring sexual misconduct by staffers and has come under
fire for violations in recent years. A report by the UN confirmed 175
allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse by staffers in 2019. Sixteen
claims were substantiated, fifteen were found to be unsubstantiated, and the
rest are still investigated.
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