Since a brief visit in October, officials of the United Nations have deemed the city too dangerous for the organization's relief workers.
The contacts had not previously been publicly acknowledged by any official of the United Nations.
Sporadic violence continued up to the vote, but it went off without widespread complications, said officials of the United Nations, which organized and supervised the elections.
But several relief agencies, including officials of the United Nations, said they thought the effort was running as smoothly and as sensitively as possible.
But election day went off without widespread complications, said officials of the United Nations, which organized and supervised the voting.
The order drew praise from officials of the United Nations, which brokered the agreement.
The contacts were never publicly announced by any official of the United Nations.
He had chosen to make it a background briefing, something they could credit to "a high official of the United Nations."
The base police and officials of the United Nations peace-keeping force were not even permitted to approach.
That person was Carmelo Soria, an international official of the United Nations.
