The speaker of the Lebanese Parliament, Nabih Berri, condemned on Monday a UN decision to reduce the number of UNIFIL personnel, calling the move part of a “conspiracy” to plunge south Lebanon into new instability and give the impression that UN Security Council Resolution 425 has been implemented.
Berri’s remarks came during a meeting with US Ambassador David Satterfield, said the Daily Star newspaper.
Berri asked the ambassador for clarification about UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s report, which endorsed reducing UNIFIL levels from 4,500 to 3,600 by July, and to 2,000 in February 2002.
Sources familiar with the meeting said that Satterfield’s explanation did not convince Berri, who told the ambassador as he was leaving the speaker’s office to “expect tough language” on the issue.
Satterfield argued that there was currently a surplus of UNIFIL soldiers who had no duties to perform, and that a reduced number of peacekeepers would mean a better performance by the rest, sources told the paper.
Satterfield said that all of the 2,000 soldiers who remain in the south would be deployed at the border, enhancing their ability to monitor developments there.
But Berri, the sources said, rejected Satterfield’s arguments.
The speaker argued in particular that “2,000 soldiers could still be deployed to the border if UNIFIL had 4,500 soldiers.”
The speaker also said it was untrue that 2,000 soldiers could accomplish the same tasks as 4,500 soldiers, claiming that these soldiers would be deployed along the border to monitor resistance operations.
According to UN Resolution 425, UNIFIL’s task is to assist the government in extending its authority over its territory, in addition to making sure Israel has withdrawn to its side of the border.
The sources said that Satterfield’s remarks about deploying UNIFIL to control the border appeared to be a modification of UNIFIL’s initial task, in line with Israel’s request to see its border protected, the paper said.
Berri said that the UN decision contradicted the agreement reached 10 days ago between Annan and Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, according to which UNIFIL personnel would be maintained at 4,500 peacekeepers.
Moreover, the speaker added, this unexpected decision was announced right after the Hariri-Annan meeting, as the premier was on his way back to Lebanon.
Berri warned against attempts to create turmoil in the south, comparing the months of calm following the Israeli withdrawal last May to the recent spate of attacks against collaborators.
“The decision to cut the number of UNIFIL personnel could also create tension in the south [and] spread the idea that Resolution 425 has actually been implemented, pressuring Lebanon to admit that the Shabaa Farms are not Lebanese,” the speaker was quoted as saying – Albawaba.com
