They tried to impress upon him the seriousness of the situation and the fact that he's placing himself in a very difficult situation,

In terms of logistics, the difficult terrain makes this one of most challenging relief operations ever undertaken, ... Winter is approaching fast, and temperatures are dropping.

It is very difficult to say what happens after the votes are counted,

Under the circumstances, it is difficult to envisage the United Nations operating with a large number of international staff inside Iraq in the near future unless there is an unexpected and significant improvement in the overall security situation,