The United Nations has no plans yet for a mass evacuation of staff from Iraq following a truckbomb attack that killed at least 17 people.
United NationsSecretary-General Kofi Annan today said UN staff wouldremain in Iraq despite the devastating bombing of the world body's headquarters in Baghdad.
"We will continue our work...We will persevere, we have workto do. I am going back to New York and we will make a verycomprehensive assessment of our present security arrangementsand what needs to be done," Annan told a news conference duringa stopover in Stockholm. "We will not be intimidated."
Some UN staff in Baghdad had said an evacuation was planned. But spokesman Mr Salim Lone said no such decision had beenmade, although staff who were scheduled to take a break wouldleave the country as planned, and many wounded were also beingevacuated.
"It is not true we are evacuating our staff to Jordan. Theonly ones that are going to Jordan are those who are beingmedically evacuated," Mr Lone told journalists outside the devastatedUN headquarters building.
"Those who were scheduled to go on leave as part of theUN's rotations of six weeks are going ahead."
Among the dead from the blast were Mr Sergio Vieira de Mello,the top UN envoy in Iraq. More than 100 people were wounded.Around 300 people work in the UN headquarters in the CanalHotel.
Lone said UN staff would hold a meeting thisevening to evaluate the situation.
US officials say they suspect the attack was a suicidebombing.