Annan Arrives in Israel for Lebanon Border TalksUN Secretary-General Kofi Annan met Israel's foreign minister on Wednesday to discuss ways to stabilise the Israel-Lebanon border following last month's Israeli troop withdrawal.Foreign Minister David Levy said at the start of the meeting that Israel was eager to cooperate with the United Nations. "We will work according to the maps shown to us which we worked on with UN experts," he said. "Cooperation with the UN is very important." Annan was due to hold talks with Prime Minister Ehud Barak later on Wednesday. Israel ended 22 years of occupation of south Lebanon on May 24. Last week, the United Nations verified that the withdrawal had been fully implemented. The Lebanese government alleges that Israel is still occupying Lebanese land and has threatened to block UN plans to deploy its peacekeepers in areas vacated by Israel. Before leaving Beirut on Tuesday, Annan said Israel had met the main conditions of long-standing UN resolutions demanding that it leave Lebanon. He said the United Nations would deal with any Israeli violations across the line the United Nations had drawn to demarcate the Israel-Lebanon border. Barak's office issued a statement at the start of Annan's visit saying Israel hoped he would meet representatives from Ghajar village, which has been divided in two by the UN demarcation. As the demarcation lines stand, part of the village is now in Lebanon, with the rest in the Golan Heights, claimed by Syria and occupied by Israel. The Israeli statement said it hoped Annan would also meet families of Israeli soldiers still missing in action in Lebanon. Annan is scheduled to visit Syria later in the week as part of a mission that has included Morocco, Lebanon, Egypt and Jordan. |
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