United Nations, July 16: Lebanon accused the United
States of blocking a Security Council statement calling for a
cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah, saying the impotence
of the UN's most powerful body sent the wrong signal to small
countries and the Arab world.
"It's unacceptable because people are still under
shelling, bombardment and destruction is going on ... And
people are dying," Lebanese special envoy Nouhad Mahmoud
said yesterday.
Qatar, the only Arab nation on the Council, received
widespread support during closed Council consultations last
night for a press statement calling for an immediate
cease-fire, restraint in the use of force, and the protection
of civilians caught in the conflict, Council diplomats said.
But Argentina's UN ambassador Cesar Mayoral said the
United States objected to any statement and Britain opposed
calling for a cease-fire.
The US and Britain want to wait for the outcome of this
weekend's Group of Eight meeting in Russia, an Arab League
foreign ministers meeting, and a mission sent to the Middle
East by Secretary-General Kofi Annan, he and other diplomats
said.
France's UN ambassador Jean-Marc De La Sabliere, the
current Council president, confirmed "there was no agreement
on a text tonight, but we will meet on Monday."
"Many delegations would have liked to have a very prompt
reaction," he said. "Others think the spotlight should be
elsewhere, not here in the council. For me, what is important
is all the efforts to calm down the situation."
Bureau Report
First Published: Sunday, July 16, 2006, 00:00