UN denies it will fire on IAF reconaissance flights
A spokesman for UN Secretary General Kofi Annan told the Jerusalem Post this evening that the UN has no intention of using anti-aircraft missiles against Israeli jets flying reconaissance missions over Lebanon. The spokesman confirmed that the French UNIFIL forces have anti-aircraft missiles, but says that they may only be used defensively. He also called the deployment of anti-aircraft missiles 'routine' for the French since one of their UN peacekeeping forces was attacked by helicopters in the Ivory Coast in 2004.The spokesperson also told the Post that "any change of the rules of the engagement to allow for a more liberal use of these weapons would need to be based on a political decision by the UN secretariat and the countries contributing troops to the peacekeeping force," and added that "such a decision is not on the horizon."
Meanwhile, Haaretz is reporting that UN peacekeeping chief in Lebanon French Major General Alain Pelligrini said on Thursday that should diplomatic efforts fail to stop Israeli flights over Lebanon, force might be considered in the future.
His comments came as Sa'id Hariri, the son of slain former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri urged French President Jacques Chirac to help stop the Israel Air Force's overflights.
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 10:49 PM
1 Comments:
It is unthinkable that Israeli leadership would believe one word out of the mouth of the UN top brass. It is sad that the French seem once again to be picking the wrong side. Will they get the message when Notre
Dame becomes a mosque?
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