An inquiry into the massive car bomb attack on UN headquarters in Iraq this summer has described security measures as "sloppy" and "dysfunctional". http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3204591.stm
What wasn't mentioned in the article, but stated in others, was that some of the security actions would've made it impossible for the attack to occur. One of those was that the route to the service road had been blocked off by a 5 ton truck. The UN ordered that out.
I love this bit from the article The report did not blame anyone for the security lapse, but recommended that managers be made more accountable for implementing security regulations. Sheesh. In their efforts to "distance" themselves from the occupying Americans, the UN made themselves a focal point for the very forces that they, presumably, were trying to indirectly appease. I am sure, when Kofi Annan spoke to Sergio Vieira de Mello's widow, and extended his condolences, I assume that this particular irony was not lost on him. Then again, maybe not.
Because we all know the US is doing a great job keeping things secure. It's not like anyone's firing rockets at deputy directors of the US DoD.
Now that I've read the WaPo article that I dedicated a thread to, I can say this...it's a damn shame they missed.