Annan expects Israel to lift Lebanon blockade within 48 hours

United States Secretary General Kofi Annan said during his visit in Egypt on Tuesday that he expected Israel to lift its blockade on Lebanon within 48 hours.

Annan made the remarks to reporters after his meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria north of Cairo.

The UN chief said he was hoping for "positive" news in the next 48 hours on whether Israel would lift an air and sea blockade on Lebanon.

"I hope that in the next 48 hours we will have some news on that, constructive positive news," said Annan, who arrived in Alexandria earlier in the day on a one-day visit to Egypt.

On July 12, Israel imposed a blockade and launched massive military offensive against Lebanon after Lebanese Hezbollah guerillas kidnapped two Israeli soldiers and killed eight others in cross-border attacks.

Although the 34-day-long fighting between the two sides came to a cease-fire on Aug. 14 thanks to the UN Resolution 1701, Israel has vowed to maintain its blockade until a UN peacekeeping force takes control of south Lebanon to guarantee the safety of the Jewish state.

As for the issue of prisoners' swap between Israel and Hezbollah, Annan said that he decided to appoint a mediator for talks with the two sides on the issue of the abducted Israeli soldiers.

He said that both Israel and Hezbollah agreed to hold talks for the release of the two Israeli soldiers captured by Hezbollah.

"I'm hopeful that my facilitator will be able to work with the parties to come forward with an acceptable solution for both parties," Annan said.

Annan also said that it was better that the appointed party acts as a "facilitator," not a "mediator," between the two sides to solve the issue of the two Israeli soldiers and Lebanese prisoners.

Asked on Darfur's problem and if he would submit a report on the situation in Sudan, Annan expressed his concern over Sudan's refusal to allow the deployment of international forces in Darfur based on UN Security Council resolution 1706.

Annan, however, said that any deployment of international forces to replace the African Union (AU) peacekeeping forces in Darfur should win consent from the Sudanese government

"The Security Council has passed a resolution asking for the deployment of UN troops but of course we would like to have the consent and the cooperation of the Sudanese government, (and) that's the only way to make a success the peacekeeping operations in Darfur," Annan said.

The resolution calls for up to 22,500 troops and police officers and an immediate injection of air, engineering and communication support for the 7,000-member African force in Darfur.

However, the Sudanese government has so far rejected the resolution, citing that it was "inapplicable".

Annan also commented on Sudan's decision on Monday that the AU peacekeeping forces should decide in one week whether to extend the presence of the AU troops after Sept. 30, which Annan considered as not an entirely positive decision.

The international community was currently aiding nearly three million internally-displaced Sudanese in camps, Annan said, calling on the Sudanese government to shoulder its responsibilities in face of such crisis.

The international peacekeeping forces will be deployed in Sudan to help the Sudanese people and government in protecting the citizens' lives, Annan reiterated, saying the target was to assist the Sudanese people and not to invade the country.

After wrapping up his visit to Egypt, the UN chief arrived in Turkish capital Ankara on late Tuesday, the last leg of his Middle East tour aimed at strengthening the truce between Israel and Hezbollah.

The tour had also taken him to Lebanon, Israel, Palestinian territories, Syria, Jordan, Iran, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Source: Xinhua