By TIAMIYU PRUDENCE AROBANI

The United Nations has renewed calls for accountability over the 2011 bombing of its Abuja headquarters, saying justice remains outstanding 15 years after the terrorist attack.

The UN said 23 people, including 13 of its personnel, were killed when the UN House in Abuja was attacked on Aug. 26, 2011.

Ten other people who were inside the building also lost their lives while several others sustained injuries in the attack.

UN Spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, said on Wednesday that the global organisation had neither forgotten the victims nor abandoned its demand for justice.

“On that day, on 26 August 2011, is a day we have not forgotten,” Dujarric said.

“Fifteen years ago, 13 of our colleagues were killed in that terror attack.

“In addition, 10 other people who were also in the building perished. Many others were injured,” he added.

The UN marked the gloomy anniversary with a remembrance ceremony at the new UN House in Abuja.

The ceremony brought together members of the UN family and others to honour those killed, survivors and people whose lives were permanently affected by the attack.

Nigeria’s UN Resident Coordinator, Mohamed Malick Fall, said the anniversary should commemorate not merely the victims’ deaths, but the lives of service they lived.

According to Dujarric, Fall said the UN remembered those lost “not only for how they died but also for how they lived with courage and compassion.”

The multilateral organisation also paid tribute to survivors, witnesses and families who continue to carry the emotional consequences of the tragedy.

“We join him in paying tribute to those who were injured, those who witnessed the bombing and those who lost friends and colleagues and family,” Dujarric said.

He acknowledged that for many survivors and bereaved families, the psychological consequences of the attack had endured long beyond the physical destruction.

“For many, the shock and the trauma of that day remain,” he said.

The UN particularly expressed concern that 15 years after the attack, judicial proceedings had yet to produce convictions.

“Fifteen years on, a number of suspects remain before the courts in Nigeria but no convictions have been handed out to date,” Dujarric regretted.

He stressed that the passage of time had not diminished the organisation’s determination to seek accountability for the deadly attack.

“We have not forgotten and we will continue to push for those responsible to be held to account,” the UN spokesperson declared.

The Aug. 26, 2011 attack remains one of the deadliest assaults on the United Nations, an institution established to advance peace, development, humanitarian assistance, human rights and international cooperation.

Its victims included personnel working across different UN agencies and other individuals who happened to be inside the building when the attack occurred.

The UN’s renewed demand for accountability underscores the principle that attacks against civilians and international personnel must be investigated and their perpetrators brought to justice.

Accountability is also considered important for victims’ families and survivors, whose pursuit of justice has continued for a decade and a half.

The remembrance ceremony further provided an opportunity to recognise the resilience of UN personnel who continued serving Nigeria following the attack.

In spite of the tragedy, the UN system maintained its presence and programmes in the Nigeria, supporting peacebuilding, humanitarian response, health, development and other national priorities.

The UN said remembering the victims must, therefore, be accompanied by continuing support for survivors and sustained efforts to ensure those responsible are held accountable. (NAN)