UN Council frets at Syria-Lebanon arms smuggling

UNITED NATIONS, Aug 3 (Reuters) The UN Security Council voiced grave concern today about reported arms smuggling from Syria into Lebanon, but stopped short of accusing Lebanon's Hezbollah of violating UN resolutions by rearming.

A much-revised policy statement issued by the 15-nation council dropped wording directly targeting Syria and Iran over the arms smuggling that the United States, Britain and France had sought to include in early drafts.

The statement, finally agreed to after some three weeks of backstage haggling, said only that the council ''expresses grave concern at persistent reports of breaches of the arms embargo along the Lebanon-Syria border.'' Original drafts had said Syria and Iran must enforce an embargo on arms supplies to non-government groups in Lebanon, decreed in the Security Council resolution adopted after last year's war between Israel and Hezbollah. The final text referred only to ''states ... in the region.'' Nevertheless, US Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad said the statement read out by council President Basile Ikouebe of Congo Republic sent a ''strong message that Syria needs to do more ... to stop arms shipments across its border into Lebanon.'' The wording was stronger than previous council statements, he said.

Yesterday, President George W Bush ordered a freeze on the US assets of anyone Washington deems to be undermining Lebanon's pro-Western government. That move followed repeated US calls for Damascus to stop meddling in Lebanon.

UN officials have quoted Israeli and Lebanese government reports that arms from Syria are reaching both Hezbollah and Palestinian guerrilla groups in Lebanon. An expert team sent by the world body reported in June that Lebanese border security was incapable of stopping the smuggling.

TONED DOWN Damascus has denied involvement. Syrian UN Ambassador Bashar Ja'afari said today his country had been extremely cooperative on border security, holding 12 high-level meetings with Lebanese officials.

But he also implied that events on the Syrian-Lebanese border were no concern of other countries.

''I wouldn't see Syria putting its nose in demarcating the lines between Canada and the United States,'' he said.

Also toned down in the statement was the reference to Hezbollah, which diplomats said had been the subject of last-minute negotiations between the United States and Qatar, the only Arab country currently on the Security Council.

Council statements, unlike resolutions, are non-binding and need unanimous approval to pass.

The final version expressed ''concern about the recent statement by Hezbollah that it retains the military capacity to strike all parts of Israel.'' Earlier drafts called the statement by Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah a ''blatant violation'' of the UN resolution, which says the only arms in Lebanon should be those of the Lebanese government.

Arab analysts said Qatar had been concerned such wording could be used in future resolutions as a basis for action against Hezbollah.

Today's statement also expressed concern over increased Israeli violations of Lebanese air space, urged Israel to provide detailed data on its use of cluster munitions in Lebanon and demanded that Hezbollah free two Israeli soldiers whose abduction sparked last year's war.

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