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Italian FM: UN Troops in Lebanon Will Not Aim to Destroy Hezbollah
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?r=279&ctl=13AD7CD:A6F02AD83191E16065B5C20F9C3AF5D79574F7DCC14957C0 Massimo D'Alema
says Hezbollah is an important part of Lebanese society





Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema Italy's foreign minister says
the goal of the expanded U.N. peacekeeping force in Lebanon will not
be to destroy the Hezbollah militant group, which fought a month-long
war with Israel.

In an interview with Time magazine, Massimo D'Alema says Hezbollah is
an important part of Lebanese society, and he hopes it will transform
into a legitimate political party.

But, D'Alema warns that if Hezbollah resumes hostilities against
Israel, the group knows "it must face the international community."

In the interview, D'Alema also says Italy agreed to send up to
three-thousand troops to Lebanon because it wants to help guarantee
Israel's security.

Israel has welcomed Italy's proposed deployment, and says it also
wants the force to include troops from Muslim countries that have
diplomatic relations with the Jewish state.

An Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman, Mark Regev, says Israel has
asked several Muslim countries to send troops, including Turkey. The
official did not disclose the other countries, but Israel also has
relations with Egypt and Jordan.

European troops will make up the bulk of the 15,000 U.N. peacekeepers
in Lebanon, but the U.N. wants to balance the force by including
Muslim troops.

France says its 2,000 troops committed to the U.N. mission will be in
place within three weeks.

In southern Lebanon, local officials say four children from the same
family were injured by Israeli cluster bombs Saturday. The bombs were
left over from the Israeli military offensive.

Meanwhile, a Lebanese official says his country will urge U.N.
Secretary-General Kofi Annan to persuade Israel to lift its air and
sea blockade on Lebanon. Mr. Annan arrives in Beirut Monday.

Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.


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