Int'l community expresses concern over Hezbollah-Israeli clashes
13/7/2006 14:55
The international community voiced concern over tension at the border
between Israel and Lebanon yesterday, calling for the release of two captured
Israeli soldiers by the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
In a statement
issued by his spokesman, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan condemned Hezbollah's
attacks across the Blue Line, saying the violent act was a blatant breach of UN
Security Council resolutions.
He called on all concerned parties to exercise
maximum restraint to avoid any further escalation, stressing that "all should
respect fully their obligations under international humanitarian
law."
Finland, current holder of the European Union (EU) presidency, called
on Hezbollah to "immediately and unconditionally" release the two Israeli
soldiers, and to cease all attacks on Israel.
The Lebanese government also
has a responsibility to prevent a deterioration of the situation, said a
statement from Finland.
In Berlin, Germany urged Lebanese militants to
release the Israeli soldiers "immediately and unconditionally."
A Foreign
Ministry spokesman said German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier was in
contact with his counterparts in the Middle East to help mediate the
crisis.
French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said he was "very
concerned" about the tensions and asked for the release of the two Israeli
soldiers.
Paris would remain in permanent contact with all the concerned
parties and with those who made efforts to find a solution to this crisis, he
added.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice condemned the capture, which
"undermines regional stability."
"I condemn today's kidnapping by Hezbollah,
a terrorist organization, of two Israeli soldiers," Rice said in a statement
issued in Paris ahead of a foreign ministers meeting over the Iranian nuclear
issue.
She called on Israel for restraint. "All sides must act with restraint
to resolve this incident peacefully and to protect innocent life and civilian
infrastructures," she said.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said
in Beirut that his group did not intend to escalate the conflict with Israel,
while insisting on swapping prisoners.
"Our action is aimed at exchanging
prisoners (in Israeli jails), we do not want to escalate the clash or drag
Lebanon and the region into war," Nasrallah told a press conference.
"But if
the enemy (Israel) wants escalation, we are ready for it," he
added.
Nasrallah said the hostages would only be released through "indirect
negotiations and an exchange of prisoners."
Also on Wednesday, the Lebanese
government said it was not responsible for Hezbollah's capture of the two
Israeli soldiers and demanded an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council on
Israel's retaliation.
"The Lebanese government was not informed and does not
take responsibility for what happened on the international border," Lebanese
Information Minister Ghazi Aridi said after an urgent cabinet
meeting.
Earlier, Hezbollah claimed that it had kidnapped two Israeli
soldiers, demanding Israel release prisoners held in Israeli jails in exchange
for them.
But Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert called Hezbollah's attack
"an act of war," vowing a "very painful and far-reaching" response.
He
declined to negotiate over the fate of the two soldiers who went missing during
the border violence.
Israeli troops traded fire with Hezbollah militia across
the border after at least two rockets fired by Hezbollah hit northern Israel,
wounding four Israelis.
Two Lebanese civilians and seven Israeli soldiers
were killed in the clash.
Wednesday's violence came as Israeli troops pressed
ahead with a massive offensive in the Gaza Strip in a bid to free an Israeli
soldier kidnapped by Palestinian militants on June 25 and stop Palestinian
rocket attacks.
Xinhua
|
