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In presidential statement, Security Council reiterates full support for democratically elected government of Lebanon SC/8898 Security Council 5585th Meeting (Night) Condemns Any Effort to Destabilize Country; Reaffirms Strong Support For Lebanese Sovereignty, Territorial Integrity, Unity, Political Independence Reiterating its full support for the legitimate and democratically elected Government of Lebanon, the Security Council this evening condemned any effort to destabilize Lebanon, calling upon all Lebanese political parties to show responsibility with a view to preventing, through dialogue, further deterioration of the situation in that country. In a statement (document S/PRST/2006/52) read out by its President for December, Jamal Nasser Al-Bader of Qatar, the Council reaffirmed its strong support for Lebanon's sovereignty, territorial integrity, unity and political independence within its internationally recognized borders and under the Government's sole and exclusive authority. It also called again on all parties concerned to cooperate fully and urgently with it for the full implementation of all relevant resolutions concerning the restoration of Lebanon's territorial integrity, full sovereignty and political independence. Calling for the full implementation of resolution 1701 (2006), the Council urged all concerned parties to cooperate with it and the Secretary-General to achieve that goal. Welcoming the Secretary-General's indication in his letter of 1 December 2006 to the Council (document S/2006/933) of the continuing commitment of the Governments of Lebanon and Israel to all aspects of the resolution, the Council urged both Governments to strictly abide by their commitment and to pursue their efforts to achieve a permanent ceasefire and a long-term solution envisioned in the resolution. The Council also noted that important progress has been made towards the implementation of resolution 1701, in particular through the cessation of hostilities, the imminent withdrawal of all the Israeli forces from Southern Lebanon and the deployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces in the south of the country for the first time in three decades, together with the deployment so far of more than 10,000 troops from the reinforced United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). Welcoming the maintenance of the 14 August cessation of hostilities and supporting the UNIFIL's work, together with the parties, to finalize the Israeli withdrawal from the remaining area inside Lebanon and set up temporary security arrangements for the part of the village of Ghajar inside Lebanese territory, the Council positively noted the decision of the Israeli Cabinet in that regard and looked forward to its early implementation. Expressing deep concern at the continuing Israeli violations of Lebanese airspace, the Council appealed to all parties concerned to respect the cessation of hostilities and the Blue Line in its entirety, to refrain from any act of provocation and to abide scrupulously by their obligation to respect the safety of UNIFIL and other United Nations personnel, including by avoiding any course of action which endangered United Nations personnel. Reiterating deep concern at the latest reports, though unverified, of illegal movements of arms into Lebanon, the Council welcomed initial steps by Lebanon's Government, notably the deployment of 8,000 troops along the border, to prevent movements of arms in conformity with relevant resolutions, and called again on Syria's Government to take similar measures to reinforce controls at the border. Mindful of the conclusions of the team of border police experts dispatched by the Secretary-General at Lebanon's request, the Council invited him to pursue further technical and independent assessment of the situation along the border and to report back to the Council. Welcoming the concrete steps by Lebanon's Government -- with UNIFIL's assistance -- to establish between the Blue Line and the Litani river an area free of any armed personnel, assets and weapons other than those of Lebanon's Government and UNIFIL, the Council called on the Lebanese Government to strengthen its efforts to that end and reiterated its call for disbanding and disarmament of all militias and armed groups in Lebanon. Expressing deepest concern at the presence in very high numbers of unexploded ordnance in South Lebanon, including cluster munitions, the Council deplored the death and injury of dozens of civilians, as well as several de-miners, caused by those munitions since the cessation of hostilities. Reaffirming the urgent need for the unconditional release of the abducted Israeli soldiers, the Council further encouraged efforts aimed at urgently settling the issue of the Lebanese prisoners detained in Israel. The meeting began at 6:05 p.m. and adjourned at 6:22 p.m. Presidential Statement The complete text of the presidential statement (document S/PRST/2006/52) reads as follows: "The Security Council recalls all its previous resolutions on Lebanon, in particular resolutions 1701 (2006), 425 and 426 (1978), 520 (1982), 1559 (2004) and 1680 (2006), as well as the statements of its President on the situation in Lebanon, in particular the statements of 30 October 2006 (S/PRST/2006/43) and of 21 November 2006 (S/PRST/2006/46). "The Security Council reiterates its full support for the legitimate and democratically elected Government of Lebanon, calls for full respect for the democratic institutions of the country, in conformity with the constitution, and condemns any effort to destabilize Lebanon. The Security Council calls upon all Lebanese political parties to show responsibility with a view to preventing, through dialogue, further deterioration of the situation in Lebanon. It reaffirms its strong support for the sovereignty, territorial integrity, unity, and political independence of Lebanon within its internationally recognized borders and under the sole and exclusive authority of the Government of Lebanon. The Council reiterates its call upon all parties concerned to cooperate fully and urgently with the Security Council for the full implementation of all relevant resolutions concerning the restoration of the territorial integrity, full sovereignty, and political independence of Lebanon. "The Security Council welcomes the letter of the Secretary-General to the President of the Council of 1 December 2006 (S/2006/933), as well as his previous reports of 18 August 2006 (S/2006/670) and of 12 September 2006 (S/2006/730) on the implementation of resolution 1701 (2006). "The Security Council calls for the full implementation of resolution 1701 (2006) and urges all concerned parties to cooperate fully with the Security Council and the Secretary-General to achieve this goal. "The Security Council welcomes the Secretary-General's indication of the continuing commitment of the Government of Lebanon and the Government of Israel to all aspects of the implementation of resolution 1701 (2006). It urges both Governments to strictly abide by their commitment and to pursue their efforts to achieve a permanent cease-fire and a long-term solution as envisioned in the resolution. "The Security Council notes that important progress has been made towards the implementation of resolution 1701 (2006), in particular through the cessation of hostilities, the imminent withdrawal of all the Israeli forces from Southern Lebanon and the deployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces in the south of the country for the first time in three decades, together with the deployment so far of more than 10,000 troops from the reinforced UNIFIL. "The Security Council welcomes the maintenance of the cessation of hostilities since 14 August 2006, supports the work done by UNIFIL, together with the parties, to finalize the Israeli withdrawal from the remaining area inside Lebanon and set up temporary security arrangements for the part of the village of Ghajar inside Lebanese territory, positively notes the decision of the Israeli Cabinet in this regard, and looks forward to its early implementation. "The Security Council commends the Lebanese Government for extending its authority throughout its territory, particularly in the South, and encourages it to continue its efforts in this regard, including through the reinforcement of its capacities along its borders and the exercise of its monopoly of the use of force all over its territory in accordance with relevant Security Council resolutions. "The Security Council reiterates its full support to UNIFIL and looks forward to the completion of its deployment early next year as contemplated by the Secretary-General in his letter. It expresses its strong appreciation to Member States who have contributed to UNIFIL in the past and since the adoption of resolution 1701 (2006) and notes the establishment of the Strategic Military Cell dedicated to UNIFIL at UN Headquarters. "The Security Council, while expressing deep concern at the continuing Israeliviolations of Lebanese airspace, appeals to all parties concerned to respect the cessation of hostilities and the Blue Line in its entirety, to refrain from any act of provocation and to abide scrupulously by their obligation to respect the safety of the UNIFIL and other United Nations personnel, including by avoiding any course of action which endangers United Nations personnel and by ensuring UNIFIL is accorded full freedom of movement throughout its area of operation. "The Security Council, in this context, reiterates its deep concern at latest reports, though unverified, of illegal movements of arms into Lebanon. It welcomes the initial steps taken by the Government of Lebanon, notably the deployment of 8,000 troops along the border, to prevent movements of arms in conformity with relevant resolutions, and reiterates its call upon the Government of Syria to take similar measures to reinforce controls at the border. "The Security Council, mindful of the conclusions of the team of border police experts dispatched by the Secretary-General at the request of the Government of Lebanon, invites the Secretary-General to pursue further technical and independent assessment of the situation along the border and to report back to the Council on further findings and recommendations in this regard. "The Council invites further Member States, as recommended by the Secretary-General, to consider possible bilateral assistance to the Government of Lebanon to enhance its border security capacities. "The Council urges all Member States, in particular in the region, to take all necessary measures to implement in full paragraph 15 of resolution 1701 (2006) including the arms embargo, and expresses its intention to consider further steps to achieve the goals set out in this paragraph. "The Security Council welcomes the concrete steps taken by the Government of Lebanon, with the assistance of UNIFIL, to establish between the Blue Line and the Litani river an area free of any armed personnel, assets and weapons other than those of the Government of Lebanon and of UNIFIL and calls upon the Government of Lebanon to strengthen its efforts to this end. The Council also reiterates its call for disbanding and disarmament of all militias and armed groups in Lebanon. "The Security Council expresses deepest concern at the presence in very high numbers of unexploded ordnance in South Lebanon, including cluster munitions. It deplores the death and injury of dozens of civilians, as well as of several de-miners, caused by those munitions since the cessation of hostilities. It welcomes the continued contribution of UNIFIL to operational mine clearance, encourages further assistance in mine action by the United Nations to the Government of Lebanon in support of both the continued development of its national mine action capacity and clearance of the remaining mine/unexploded ordnances threat in the South, commends donor countries for supporting these efforts through financial and in kind contributions and encourages further international contributions and practical cooperation. "The Security Council reaffirms the urgent need for the unconditional release of the abducted Israeli soldiers. "The Security Council further encourages efforts aimed at urgently settling the issue of the Lebanese prisoners detained in Israel. "The Security Council commends the efforts of the Secretary-General and his facilitator to this end and calls upon all parties concerned to support those efforts. "Bearing in mind the relevant provisions of resolutions 1559 (2004), 1680 (2006) and 1701 (2006), in particular on the delineation of the Syrian-Lebanese border, the Security Council takes note with interest of the appointment by the Secretary-General of a senior cartographer to review relevant material and develop an accurate territorial definition of the Shebaa Farms area. "The Security Council notes with appreciation the process launched by the Secretary-General to investigate the cartographic, legal and political implications of the proposal contained in the seven-point plan of the Government of Lebanon and looks forward to its further recommendations on this issue early next year. "The Security Council calls upon the international community urgently to provide the Government of Lebanon with financial assistance in support of the national early recovery and reconstruction process. It expresses its appreciation to the Member States, United Nations bodies and intergovernmental, regional and non-governmental organizations that have provided and continue to provide assistance to the Lebanese people and Government, and looks forward to the success of the international Conference which will be held in Paris, on 25 January 2007, in support of Lebanon. "The Security Council reaffirms its full support to the Secretary-General in his efforts and dedication to facilitate and assist in the fulfilment of all provisions of resolution 1701 (2006) and requests the Secretary-General to report on a quarterly basis on the implementation of this resolution, notably on further progress made towards the achievement of a permanent cease-fire and a long-term solution." 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