The Canal Hotel bombing was a suicide truck bombing in Baghdad, Iraq, during the afternoon of 19 August 2003. It killed 23 people, including the United Nations' Special Representative in Iraq Sérgio Vieira de Mello, and wounded over 100, including human rights lawyer and political activist Amin Mekki Medani. The blast targeted the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq created just five days earlier.
The 19 August bombing resulted in the withdrawal within weeks of most of the 600 UN staff members from Iraq. These events were to have a profound and lasting impact on the UN's security practices globally.
Canal Hotel bombing
United Nations members prepare to load flag-draped metal transfer cases carrying the remains of bombing victims from the UN Office of Humanitarian Coordinator for Iraq
U.S. officers secure a United Nations flag over the transfer case of Sérgio Vieira de Mello, prior to a memorial service at the Baghdad International Airport.
Sérgio Vieira de Mello was a Brazilian United Nations diplomat who worked on several UN humanitarian and political programs for over 34 years. The Government of Brazil posthumously awarded the Sergio Vieira de Mello Medal to honor his legacy in promoting sustainable peace, international security and better living conditions for individuals in situations of armed conflict, challenges to which Sérgio Vieira de Mello had dedicated his life and career.
Vieira de Mello c. 2002
U.S. soldiers placing Vieira de Mello's casket into an SUV.
Logo of the SVDM Foundation.
The new square dedicated to Sérgio Vieira de Mello in Bologna, Italy (January 2011)
