Annan: Syria Agrees to Prevent Rearming of Hezbollah
01 September 2006
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan says Syria has indicated it will increase border security to prevent the flow of arms to Lebanon's Hezbollah guerrilla group.
The U.N. chief made the remark after talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus Friday. Mr. Annan said the Syrian leader promised to "take all necessary measures" to implement the U.N. resolution that ended fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
That resolution calls on nations to prevent the supply of arms to Lebanon without the consent of the government in Beirut.
Mr. Annan also said the Syrian leader supports the release of two Israeli soldiers captured by Hezbollah in July. The U.N. chief said Syria is asking for the release of Syrian citizens held in Israel.
In other news, Spain announced it will send 1,100 soldiers to southern Lebanon as part of the expanded international force there.
The announcement makes Spain the third-largest contributor to the international force, after France and Italy.
The U.N. chief has called on Israel to withdraw from Lebanon once the international force in southern Lebanon numbers five thousand troops. He said that will happen in the coming days.
Israel says it will withdraw from Lebanon only when the two soldiers are freed and international troops are patrolling all of Lebanon's borders alongside the Lebanese army.
Syria says the presence of international troops along its border with Lebanon would be a hostile act.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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