Hezbollah chief meets Annan, warns against Israeli border violations

June 20, 2000
Web posted at: 9:12 a.m. EDT (1312 GMT)

BEIRUT, Lebanon -- Hezbollah will renew its attacks against Israel if the Israelis violate their border with Lebanon, the Muslim group's leader told U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Tuesday.

"(The Lebanese resistance) will not wait long for the political efforts to handle these violations and, like they did in the past, they will work in the future to liberate every single span of land," a Hezbollah statement quoted Sheik Hassan Nasrallah as telling the United Nations chief.

Nasrallah's meeting with Annan in Beirut was his first with a senior international leader.

GALLERY Scenes of the Israeli-Lebanese withdrawal     RESOURCES In-depth: Mideast Struggle for Peace     ALSO Israel's Shas Party members turn in resignations     AUDIO U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan comments on the U.N.'s involvement in determining violations at the newly demarcated Israeli-Lebanese border 1.1MB/30 sec. AIFF or WAV sound     MESSAGE BOARD Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon

Hailed last month as conquering heroes as Israeli soldiers pulled out and a pro-Israel Lebanese militia collapsed, Hezbollah openly moved into southern Lebanon, where Israel had maintained a "security zone" -- to protect northern Israel against attacks from guerrillas based in the region -- for nearly two decades.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak ordered the pullout, prior to a self-imposed July deadline to leave Lebanon, to comply with a 22-year-old U.N. resolution ordering Israel to leave Lebanon. Annan certified that the pullout was complete, but both Hezbollah and Lebanon disputed it.

"We demand the United Nations handle the Israeli violations quickly," Nasrallah reportedly told Annan.

Annan said the U.N. is doing just that, adding that it is the U.N.'s -- not Hezbollah's or Lebanon's -- responsibility to determine if and when any violations have occurred.

"(The U.N. peacekeeping force in Lebanon) is in the midst of checking violations and getting them corrected, if they are confirmed, and we are taking this up with the Israeli authorities," he said before leaving Lebanon on his way to Israel via Jordan.

Annan acknowledged that violations had occurred, and likely would occur, but he said they were minor and would not deter the deployment of U.N. peacekeepers by any significant time.

"We are dealing with these violations very firmly," he said.

The U.N. leader said that an additional 1,000 troops were ready to join peacekeepers in Jordan, bringing the mission up to 5,600 soldiers.

During a meeting with Lebanese officials on Monday, Annan was told that the peacekeepers could not deploy until Lebanon agreed that the pullout was complete.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

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