A draft Security Council resolution jointly sponsored by France and the United States and circulated Friday would authorize the deployment of 15,000 UN peacekeepers in south Lebanon to monitor a truce in Lebanon.

UNIFIL, the UN force which currently has about 1,190 troops in southern Lebanon, would monitor the cessation of hostilities and any permanent cease-fire that is negotiated.

The force would "accompany and support the Lebanese armed forces as they deploy throughout the south, including along the Blue Line, as Israel withdraws its armed forces from Lebanon." The Blue Line is the unofficial frontier between Israel and Lebanon.

UNIFIL would also help humanitarian work in Lebanon following the devastating conflict which has seen more than 1,100 Lebanese and Israelis killed.

The Security Council was expected to vote later Friday on the draft.