|
UN outlines 'robust' rules of engagement for Lebanon force
 The UN on Thursday outlined what it said were "robust but not offensive" rules of engagement for peacekeepers to be deployed in Lebanon and called for urgent troop commitments from member states. "The draft rules of engagement call for the use of force to prevent the UNFIL area of deployment and operations from being used to hostile activities," Deputy Secretary General Mark Malloch Brown said at talks on the force. "Robust, yes, but not an offensive force. It is there to keep the peace as a longer term political solution is put in place," he said.He called on member states to urgently provide firm pledges for troops, warning that any delay threatened the fledgling ceasefire on the ground. "We must convert promises into firm commitments and commitments into rapid deployments on the ground. Every moment we delay is a moment of risk that the fighting could re-erupt," he said. "The situation on the ground is tenuous. We must all act with great urgency to construct a lasting ceasefire from the current cessation of fighting." Posted by: Fred 2006-08-18 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=163298 |