May 24, 2003	Saturday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 21,1424

UNITED NATIONS, May 23: The UN Human rights chief Sergio Vieira de Mello, favoured by the United States, was named the UN’s special representative to Iraq on Friday.

Mr de Mello flew into New York on Thursday from Geneva in anticipation of Friday’s announcement.

As part of the US plan for running Iraq, Annan’s a special representative will work with Washington and London on rebuilding the devastated country, with an emphasis on human rights, legal and judicial reforms.

Diplomats in New York had said that Annan wanted Lakhdar Brahimi, the former foreign minister of Algeria now heading the UN operation in Afghanistan, but that he had refused the job.