UN concerned about arms smuggling in Lebanon
The UN Security Council expressed “serious concern” last night at mounting reports of illegal arms transfers from Syria to Lebanon and authorised an independent mission to be deployed quickly to assess how the frontier is being monitored.
A presidential statement adopted by the council welcomed the Lebanese government’s determination and efforts to prevent arms transfers, which are banned under UN resolution 1701 that ended last summer’s war between Hezbollah and Israel.
The council noted that the Syrian government said it has taken measures to prevent arms transfers. It reiterated its call on Syria “to take further measures to reinforce controls at the border.”
Alluding to the current political stand-off between pro- and anti-Syrian forces in Lebanon, the council called on Lebanese political parties “to show responsibility with a view to preventing, through dialogue, further deterioration of the situation in Lebanon.”
The council adopted the statement as Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon headed to Europe and the Middle East on a week-long trip that will end in Syria.
Ban told reporters he planned to discuss “all matters” concerning the implementation of relevant Security Council resolutions with Syrian President Bashar Assad and other officials in Damascus, “particularly the situation in Lebanon.”
The presidential statement urged all countries, “especially in the region,” to enforce a UN arms embargo. The original draft had singled out Syria and Iran.
The council reiterated its call “for disbanding and disarmament of all militias and armed groups in Lebanon.”
When the council receives recommendations from the secretary-general, it said members will “take further concrete steps to achieve the goals” of banning the sale or transfer of arms or technical assistance to any entity or individual not authorised by the Lebanese government.
In late March, Ban warned during a visit to Lebanon that arms smuggling from Syria could threaten the cease-fire in Lebanon and urged full compliance with UN resolution 1701 that ended the 34-day Israeli-Hezbollah war.
He expressed the need for “an enhanced monitoring capacity of the Lebanese armed forces to ensure that there will be no such smuggling activity.”
The council yesterday expressed “serious concern at mounting information by Israel and another state of illegal movements of arms across the Lebanese-Syrian border in violation of resolution 1701.”
It welcomed Ban’s intention “to evaluate the situation along the entire border and invites him to dispatch at the earliest, in close liaison with the Lebanese government, an independent mission to fully assess the monitoring of the border.”
The council said it would welcome any request by the Lebanese government for assistance “to enhance Lebanon’s border security capacities.”
When the council receives recommendations from the secretary-general, it said it will “take further concrete steps to achieve the goals” of banning the sale or transfer of arms or technical assistance to any entity or individual not authorised by the Lebanese government.
The council reiterated “its deep concern at the continuing Israeli violations of Lebanese air space” and appealed to all parties to respect the cease-fire and the UN-drawn boundary between Israel and Lebanon known as the Blue Line, and “refrain from any act of provocation.”
Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora, who is opposed to Hezbollah and Syrian influence, stressed last month that “not one single case of arms smuggling across the border” with Syria has been recorded.
Hezbollah, however, has boasted that it replenished its stockpile of rockets after the war.
In February, Hezbollah acknowledged that a truckload of ammunition seized by the government belonged to the guerrilla group and demanded its release. It urged the government to abide by its own policy, proclaimed in 2005, to support the “resistance” in the south – which is Lebanese shorthand for Hezbollah - but the government refused.
The Security Council expressed “deep concern” at statements by Hezbollah’s secretary general, notably about the February arms shipment, which “are an open admission of activities which would constitute a violation of resolution 1701.”
It again urged Israel to provide the UN with detailed data on its use of cluster bombs in southern Lebanon.
The council noted “with profound concern” that there has been no progress on the issue of returning two Israeli soldiers abducted by Hezbollah, which triggered the war. It also encouraged efforts to urgently settle the issue of Lebanese prisoners detained in Israel.
