UN chief Ban Ki-moon informed the Security Council of the impending mission which was requested by the Council last month to probe reports of illegal arms movements across the Lebanese-Syrian border.
After briefing the Council on the latest turmoil in Lebanon and the Palestinian territories, UN Under Secretary General for political affairs Lynn Pascoe told reporters Thursday said the UN team would assess Lebanon’s ability to check on arms movements across its border and report back to the Council.
In a letter to US Ambassador to the UN Zalmay Khalilzad released Thursday, Ban said the independent assessment team “will review the roles of relevant agencies, with particular attention to current national customs and border monitoring capacities, as well as progress made by security and customs agencies in strengthening their control of the border.”
He added that the team would also liaise closely with a German team currently conducting a pilot project in northern Lebanon and with the relevant Lebanese agencies with a view to developing a set of standards for border entry points.
The UN team, which is to spend roughly two weeks on the ground in Lebanon, will be led by Lasse Rosenkrands of Denmark and will be made up of experts from Algeria, Germany, Jamaica and Switzerland.
Earlier this month, Ban warned in a report that the alleged arms smuggling into Lebanon and the possible arming of various groups there might deepen the country’s political crisis.
Syria has denied that arms are making their way over the border into Lebanon.
Security Council resolution 1701, which ended the 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah guerrillas in south Lebanon last August, called for the prevention of illegal arms sales and smuggling operations in Lebanon.
