Lebanon has yet to achieve "tangible results" in meeting U.N. demands to disarm Palestinian and Lebanese militias — a reference to the Hezbollah guerrilla group, a top envoy said in a report Wednesday. The envoy, Terje Roed-Larsen, said Lebanon's inability to exert control over some areas or rein in the militias was stalling its progress toward achieving full sovereignty after emerging from nearly three decades of dominance by Syria. "Tangible results are yet to be achieved in these two fields, and I will continue my efforts in this regard," he wrote.Roed-Larsen's report said considerable progress had been made toward meeting other parts of Resolution 1559, which called for Syria to withdraw all military forces and intelligence operatives as well as the disarmament of all Lebanese militias. The report is likely to increase pressure on Syria as the United States, France and Britain challenged the rest of the U.N. Security Council to adopt a tough new resolution threatening sanctions if Damascus doesn't cooperate fully with a U.N. investigation into the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri.
There are allegations Syria is continuing to smuggle arms to Palestinian militia groups in Lebanese refugee camps, in violation of the September 2004 council resolution. Roed-Larsen is U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan's special envoy for implementation of the resolution. Syria withdrew its troops and intelligence officials last April, ending the country's 29-year presence in its smaller neighbor which began when Damascus sent troops to help quell what was then a year-old civil war. While resolution 1559 was adopted a year ago, it was Hariri's assassination, and the massive anti-Syrian protests it sparked, that spurred the Syrians to leave. While that step has been encouraging, the requirement to disarm — a clear reference to the Syrian- and Iranian-backed guerrilla group Hezbollah — has not been met, Roed-Larsen said. There also has been little significant change in Lebanon's ability to gain control over all its territory.