UN calls for immediate ceasefire

2006-07-21 07:27

United Nations - UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan faces opposition from Israel and the United States to an immediate ceasefire in the escalating Israeli-Lebanon conflict.

Annan went before the security council on Thursday, urging a halt to the fighting and support for a wide-ranging plan to end the war, saying hundreds of innocent civilians are being killed and injured.

A ceasefire is essential to help over 500 000 affected by the conflict and to give diplomacy a chance to produce a lasting solution, he said.

'Far from over'

But Israel's UN ambassador Dan Gillerman said the military operation to gain the freedom of two captured Israel soldiers, which has expanded to target Hezbollah guerrillas in southern Lebanon, was far from over.

"It will take as long as it will take," he said. "We will do whatever is necessary. We have no timeline."

US ambassador John Bolton said that while it was time for the security council to start considering a response, any talk of a ceasefire with Hezbollah was unrealistic.

"I think it's a very fundamental question how a terrorist group agrees to a ceasefire," he said.

"How do you hold a terrorist group accountable? Who runs the terrorist group? Who makes the commitments that the terrorist group will abide by a cease-fire? What does a terrorist group think a cease-fire is?"

UN proposals to end conflict

Annan reported to the council on the assessment of a three-man UN team he sent to the region that met with leaders in Israel and Lebanon.

The team - led by Annan's special political adviser Vijay Nambiar and including his Mideast envoy Alvaro de Soto and his top adviser on Syria-Lebanon issues Terje Roed-Larsen - came back with a list of proposals to quell the conflict.

The secretary-general had the opportunity to make his case for a ceasefire directly to US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice at a two-hour private dinner on Thursday night, and the three-member UN team was scheduled to meet her on Friday morning before she returns to Washington. Rice is holding a wide range of consultations before heading to the Middle East, possibly early next week.

Israel condemned for using excessive force

Annan condemned Israel for using excessive force and Hezbollah for attacks against Israel and for abducting the soldiers which triggered the conflict. He acknowledged there were "serious obstacles to reaching a ceasefire".

Nonetheless, he put forward the UN team's proposals for a way out. Its elements include:

Hezbollah handing the two captured soldiers over to the Lebanese authorities, under the auspices of the International Committee for the Red Cross.

The council could then deploy an expanded peacekeeping force on the Lebanese side of the UN-drawn boundary with Israel known as the Blue Line to stabilise the situation.

Lebanon should implement a security council resolution calling for the government to extend its control over the south and disarm Hezbollah.

The international community should establish a framework to fund humanitarian, development and reconstruction aid for Lebanon.

Since fighting began on July 12, the security council has taken no action and Lebanon accused the United States on Saturday of blocking even a statement to the press calling for a ceasefire.

- AP