Israel Complains to U.N. over Williams’ ‘Lenient’ Position on Hizbullah

Israel has issued a complaint to the United Nations over U.N. Special Coordinator of Lebanon Michael Williams’ recent report on the implementation of Security Council resolution 1701, reported the pan-Arab daily Al-Hayat on Sunday.

It deemed the report as being “lenient” with Hizbullah, while U.N. circles said that Israel was “upset with Williams for a number of reasons, most notably the fact that he failed to mention resolution 1559 at Hizbullah’s request.”

U.N. Security Council sources welcomed Williams’ report over his reassurance that the Lebanese-Israeli front has been calm since the release of resolution 1701, reported the daily.

They also voiced relief that the Lebanese file would not have to be discussed at the Security Council seeing as all eyes are on the developments in Syria.

Political upheaval in Syria, hit by months of opposition protests, is weighing heavily on neighboring Lebanon where it risks sparking inter-religious clashes, Williams warned Thursday.

"There is a great worry in Lebanon about this," said Williams, who raised the potential for "confessional clashes in Lebanon."

"What comes after (in Syria) worries in Lebanon," he told a news conference.

Activists say the Syrian government's crackdown against opposition protests has left more than 1,400 civilians dead since mid-March. Thousands more have been jailed.

Ties between Syria and Lebanon are complicated by a lengthy and bloody history. Syria only withdrew its troops from Lebanon in 2005 after three decades of military and political domination.

"Remarkably, despite tensions and despite some incidents, that resolution has held very well," he said, referring to Resolution 1701 that ended hostilities between Hizbullah and Israel after the July 2006 war.

"While the cessation of hostilities has held well, there is no movement towards a ceasefire."

Williams said the time was right for "a dialogue, a process to discuss the questions of arms, not only Hizbullah."

There have been frequent accusations from western powers that Syria has been arming Hizbullah despite U.N. resolutions banning such traffic.(AFP-naharnet)