(New York Times) – An independent panel has concluded in a scathing report issued Thursday that United Nations officials passed allegations of child sexual abuse by peacekeepers “from desk to desk, inbox to inbox” and failed to meet the organization’s core mission to protect the rights of the most vulnerable civilians. The report grew out of allegations that French soldiers deployed in the Central African Republic had offered food to children as young as 9 in exchange for sex. In one of the most damning indictments of the United Nations system, the report found that its officials had “turned a blind eye to the criminal actions of individual troops,” and failed to protect or aid the child victims.
