Israel, Lebanon urged to step up efforts for permanent peace

UNITED NATIONS. November 10. KAZINFORM UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon on Tuesday said that the security situation along the Israeli- Lebanese border is still fragile, and called on both sides to step up efforts to move from the current state of cessation of hostilities, as agreed to in August 2006, to a permanent ceasefire; Kazinform refers to Xinhua.

The secretary-general made the remarks in his latest report to the UN Security Council on the implementation of resolution 1701, which was released here Tuesday.

Recent months have been marked by an increase in political tensions in Lebanon, as well as the most serious incident to have taken place since the 2006 conflict ended, Ban said.

Resolution 1701 brought to an end the conflict that took place between Israel and the Lebanese group Hizbollah four years ago. It also calls for respect for the so-called Blue Line separating the Israeli and Lebanese sides, the disarming of all militias operating in Lebanon and an end to arms smuggling in the area.

For the first time in four years, direct fighting broke out on Aug. 3 between Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), resulting in casualties on both sides.

"This incident, the most serious to have taken place since the cessation of hostilities, illustrated the fragility of the security environment across the Blue Line and raised the specter of a serious escalation between the parties," Ban said in his report.

He urged the parties to do everything in their power to ensure that this incident remains an isolated one, and to cooperate closely with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in its efforts to prevent such an event from recurring; Kazinform cites Xinhua.

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