DATE=4/26/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=LEBANON / ISRAEL (L-O)
NUMBER=2-261739
BYLINE=EDWARD YERANIAN
DATELINE=BEIRUT
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Lebanon's prime minister says he would welcome
an international peacekeeping force along the border
with Israel, after Israeli troops are withdrawn from
Southern Lebanon. Edward Yeranian reports from Beirut
that the prime minister's declaration appears designed
to dispel international fears that guerillas will
continue to attack Israel after the planned July
pullout.
TEXT: Going on the record for the first time,
Lebanon's Prime Minister Selim al Hoss says any void
created by the Israeli pullout from southern Lebanon
should be filled by U-N peacekeepers.
He said the Israeli withdrawal would not lead to a
vacuum that threatens security and stability.
Prime Minister Hoss added that those areas vacated by
Israel will, in his words - be protected by an
international force, according to U-N resolutions.
Security Council Resolutions 425 and 426, passed in
1978, call for the deployment of U-N peacekeepers
along the international border once Israel withdraws.
Both Israel and Lebanon must agree before such a
deployment can take place.
Until now, Lebanese government officials have been
unwilling to give Israel any guarantee for the
security of its northern border without a
comprehensive peace accord.
Although the Prime Minister's declaration stops short
of providing such a security guarantee, it appears
designed to reassure the international community.
Four-thousand lightly armed U-N peacekeepers have been
stationed in southern Lebanon since 1978, as part of
the U-N Interim Force - known as UNIFIL. The force
has been unable to prevent clashes between Israeli
troops and Lebanese guerillas.
Prime Minister Hoss's declaration follows a visit
Tuesday to Beirut by Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk al
Shara. Both Lebanon and Syria say they are
coordinating positions in negotiations with Israel.
Syria's Foreign Minister also met Tuesday with French
President Jacques Chirac, giving rise to Lebanese
press speculation that Syria is preparing to resume
talks with Israel.
Syria is the main powerbroker in Lebanon, with 40-
thousand troops in the country. (SIGNED)
NEB/EY/GE/RAE
26-Apr-2000 11:30 AM EDT (26-Apr-2000 1530 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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