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March 17, 1998
DM MORDECHAI MEETS WITH SLA COMMANDER
(Communicated by DM's Media Adviser)
Defense Minister Yitzhak Mordechai met this morning (Tuesday), 17.3.98, in
his Tel Aviv office with South Lebanese Army (SLA) commander General
Antoine Lahad. During the meeting, in which coordinator of government
activities in Lebanon Uri Lubrani also participated, the defense minister
briefed General Lahad on the political efforts to advance the initiative
to implement UN Security Council Resolution 425.
DM Mordechai emphasized that implementation of Resolution 425 means
formulating security arrangements that would ensure the return to
effective Lebanese control of southern Lebanon, eliminating the military
capabilities of Hizballah and the rest of the terrorist organizations from
Israel's northern border, and guaranteeing the security, well-being and
rights of SLA soldiers and the residents of the security zone. A
unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon, the minister stressed, runs counter to
the Israeli government's and the defense establishment's official policy.
General Lahad told the defense minister that he has supported the 425
initiative since its inception, since he is convinced that its
implementation is the desire of the great majority of the Lebanese people;
it is, he said, in tune with Lebanon's national interests. General Lahad
said further that the resolution has the support of the residents of the
security zone, since its implementation is likely to ensure peace and
security on both sides of the border. He also told DM Mordechai that he
had received messages from many Lebanese leaders that they support the
Israeli proposal, but that they are prevented from expressing their
opinion publicly.
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