It is the tanzanian jurist Mohamed Chande Othman who is leading the work to gather information that could shed light on what lay behind the plane crash in 1961 in which Dag Hammarskjöld died.
Read more: Ubåtsutredaren to go to the bottom of Hammarskjold
In the resolution adopted by the UN at the end of last year stated that countries that can be considered to have documents surrounding the case in their file shall designate a special person who is given the responsibility to develop and compile the information. Now it turns out that two of the countries that are considered to play key roles when it comes to solving the riddle either did not want to cooperate or at least not in the way the resolution prescribes.
target Othman harsh criticism against both south Africa and the united kingdom. He notes that two of the nine member states not acting in accordance with the resolution.
” It is regrettable because the information submitted to the united nations so far has not been sufficient to draw conclusions regarding the cause of the crash, and it seems likely that both of these member states may have relevant information not made available, writes Othman.
When it comes to the Uk reveals Othman that it took almost half a year before the authorities responded to his request. It was argued in march of this year, already taken up all the available information in connection with the first report of the Othman presented in the last year. The investigator believes, however, that the investigation showed that there may be more documentation
” I believe that it is still necessary to a high-ranking official makes a thorough examination of the intelligence – security and försvarsarkiv according to the resolution 72/252, writes Othman, who also criticised south Africa, which at all did not answer his attempts at contact.
the United Nations Association, which monitors the UN, questions.
– The british approach is puzzling, and it fattens only the speculation that it has something to hide. Our government should immediately give orders to our ambassador to the united nations to confirm that we, just like all the other countries asked to do, will to cooperate, ” says Wardrop to DN.
Researcher Susan Williams, who wrote the book “Who killed Hammarskjöld?” (Who killed Hammarskjold?), one of the most ambitious attempts to solve the riddle, is also critical.
– this report is of great, and disturbing significance because it shows that south Africa and the united kingdom have slammed the door, ” says Williams to The Guardian.
Hammarskjöldutredaren: ”Those who knew something did not want to talk about it.”
It is the Swedish government that operates Hammarskjöldsaken in the UN, and has been behind both of the resolutions that the general assembly adopted. Erik W Karlsson at the foreign MINISTRY’s press service notes that it is not a final report, and that they therefore do not want to comment on the criticism in detail. At the same time, he points out that Sweden, for the UN, pointed out that Othman in his report from the 2017 explained that the burden of proof now placed on the member states to show that they produced all the relevant documents, including those declassified.
the british conduct in connection with the accident in 1961 in Ndola, in present Zambia. The united kingdom was dissatisfied with how the Dag Hammarskjöld acted to try to solve).
the DN has in the past with the help of documents, prepared by the Hammarskjöldforskaren Hans-Kristian Simensen from the british archives, has shown how the Uk was allowed to influence the investigation as the united nations sounded the make of the crash, including that gained access to the Swedish evidence to the inquiry that made it possible to customize their own testimony.
that can shed light on ”Operation Celeste”, an alleged south african mordkomplott supported by american and british intelligence. 1998 found the handwritten document, which was adopted to show how a paramilitary group planned to kill Hammarskjöld by placing a bomb on board ”Albertina”, the plane that the secretary-general was travelling in.
”Bombteorin” has been rejected by experts. However, the claimed Othman in his fjolårsrapport that there is significant evidence that the aircraft had 16 people on board, was forced down by another plane.
In Sweden, it is the former ambassador Mathias Mossberg, who is working to develop ”american” information. Othman, who shall present the final report in June 2019, the commission notes that Sweden has so far contributed with relevant information about people who belong to paramilitary groups and intelligence services, and were in the Congo at the time of the crash, as well as information about the capacity of the northeastern indian Katangas air force.
