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Lebanon deploys troops to Syria border, Hizbullah moves South

SPECIAL TO WORLD TRIBUNE.COM
Thursday, October 27, 2005

Lebanon's Prime Minister Fuad Siniora has ordered the army to increase deployment along the Syrian border while at the same time allowing Hizbullah to increase its armed presence near the border with Israel.

A United Nations report said the government of Lebanon's Prime Minister Fuad Siniora has embarked on a policy to reduce the military presence in southern Lebanon. At the same time, Siniora has ordered the army to increase deployment along the Syrian border.

Lebanon, the report said, has failed to fulfill Resolution 1559, passed in September 2004 and which called for the disarming of Hizbullah and Palestinian insurgency groups. The report said the Beirut government has also refused to impose its authority over Hizbullah-dominated areas in southern Lebanon, Middle East Newsline reported.

The report, authored by UN special envoy Terje Roed-Larsen, said that in June 2005 the Lebanese Army reduced its presence in southern Lebanon. As a result, the report said, Hizbullah increased its presence near the Israeli border.

In contrast, Lebanon has increased military deployment along the border with Syria. The report said the Lebanese Army has erected checkpoints and surrounded Palestinian insurgency bases around Beirut and the Bekaa Valley.

"Prime Minister Siniora has further informed me of a recent increased deployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces along the border with Syria for the purpose of halting the illegal transfer of arms and people," Roed-Larsen said. "He has further informed me that the Lebanese Armed Forces have erected checkpoints and increased their presence around positions of armed Palestinian groups to the south of Beirut and in the Beqaa Valley in recent weeks, and that the government of Lebanon has begun a dialogue with such groups on the issue of their arms."

On July 1, the UN relayed its concern to the Beirut government over the reduction of the Lebanese Army presence in the south. Later, the Lebanese army restored the level of troop deployment, but the report did not cite a corresponding reduction in Hizbullah's military presence.

"The Lebanese authorities stated to me that measures of a reduced army presence were part of an overall redeployment of the army throughout the country as a result of a reduction in its troop strength from 60,000 to 40,000 troops," the report, released on Wednesday, said.

"There has not been any noticeable change in the operational status and capabilities of Hizbullah, which, according to its own leadership, has more than 12,000 missiles at its disposal," the report said.

The report said a range of insurgency groups aligned with Syria continue to operate in Lebanon. The UN said Syria has acknowledged the smuggling of arms and weapons to and from Lebanon.

"The government of Syria has informed me that the smuggling of arms and people across the Syrian-Lebanese border does indeed take place, albeit in both directions," UN secretary-general Koffi Annan said.

The report cited a national debate concerning the need to disband and disarm both Lebanese and non-Lebanese militias. The UN envoy said Siniora has pledged to extend its control over all of Lebanon, but did not cite any plans.

In the meantime, the report said, Hizbullah and Palestinian insurgency groups operate freely in Lebanon. The report said Lebanese authorities "do not generally enter" Palestinian refugee camps, where Al Qaida-aligned and Palestinian groups operate.

"Although important progress has been made, I will continue to assign the matter of the full restoration of the sovereignty and political independence of Lebanon the highest priority in my efforts to assist the parties in the implementation of Resolution 1559 [2004] in the coming months," Roed-Larsen said.

The report verified the complete withdrawal of the Syrian military in April 2005. But Roed-Larsen said his team has heard reports from Lebanese of a continued Syrian intelligence presence in their country.

"It was possible that some Syrian intelligence officers made a few fleeting visits to Lebanon after their withdrawal, and that it was probable that Syrian intelligence officers made telephone calls to maintain networks of contacts, bolster their influence and subtly manipulate the political environment," the report said. "However, the extent and purpose of any such activity is difficult to assess."


Copyright © 2005 East West Services, Inc.

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