I just now heard the news about this.

A United Nations spokeswoman said the bombing marked the deadliest attack on the organization in its history.

Not only was the UN High Commissioner of Refugees, Sergio Vieira de Mello, among the dead, but also Rick Hooper, the United Nations' chief expert on Arab affairs; Nadia Younes, Vieira de Mello's chief of staff; Ranillo Buenaventura, head of the Iraq relief coordination office; Marilyn Manuel and Jean-Selim Kanaan, employees in Mr. Vieira de Mello's office; Chris Klein-Beckman, an the highest ranking Unicef official in Iraq; and Fiona Watson of Britain, who worked on the oil-for-food program, were also killed.

A World Bank official in Washington said five of its employees were missing. Also missing was Arthur C. Helton, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, who was scheduled to meet with Mr. Vieira de Mello at the time of the bombing.

Although Bremer is saying that there is no evidence that the suicide bomber(s) had targeted Vieira de Mello, the fact that they were able to hit the part of the building with the UN leadership in it, tells a chilling alternative story. This is a tremendous set back--the worst setback of the war so far, without a doubt.

I'm just so depressed by this news. These were the people who were actually bringing help to the Iraqi people.

This is just awful. Just bloody awful.