Annan: "You cannot disarm Hezbollah by force" [View All]

[bigtree]

Annan: Wants Agreement On Crisis From Key Mideast Players

UNITED NATIONS (AP)--Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Monday he wants the upcoming meeting of key Mideast players to agree on a package to stop the Israeli-Hezbollah fighting and ensure lasting peace between Israel and Lebanon.

"You cannot disarm Hezbollah by force," the secretary-general said, stressing that this will require a political understanding among the Lebanese. That is why Iran and Syria, Hezbollah's main supporters, must be part of a solution, he reiterated.

"What is important is that we leave Rome with a concrete strategy on how we are going to deal with this and we do not walk away empty-handed and once again dash the hopes of those who are caught in this conflict," Annan said.

The package should include a cessation of hostilities and cease-fire, deployment of an international force, the release of the two Israeli soldiers abducted by Hezbollah that sparked the conflict, an end to Hezbollah's shelling of Israel and Israel's shelling and bombardment of Lebanon, he said.

more: http://www.newspress.com/Top/Article/article.jsp?Section=WORLD&ID=564775439344993503