Resolution 1496
(July 31, 2003)
The Security Council,
Recalling all its previous resolutions on Lebanon,
in particular resolutions 425 (1978) and 426 (1978) of 19 March 1978
and 1461 of 30 January 2003 as well as the statements of its President
on the situation in Lebanon, in particular the statement of 18 June
2000 (S/PRST/2000/21),
Recalling further the letter from its President
to the Secretary-General of 18 May 2001 (S/2001/500),
Recalling also the Secretary-General's conclusion
that, as of 16 June 2000, Israel had withdrawn its forces from Lebanon
in accordance with resolution 425 (1978) and met the requirements defined
in the Secretary-General's report of 22 May 2000 (S/2000/460), as well
as the Secretary-General's conclusion that United Nations Interim Force
in Lebanon (UNIFIL) had essentially completed two of the three parts
of its mandate, focusing now on the remaining task of restoring international
peace and security,
Emphasizing the interim nature of UNIFIL,
Recalling its resolution 1308 (2000) of 17 July
2000,
Recalling also its resolution 1325 (2000) of
31 October 2000,
Recalling further the relevant principles contained
in the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel
adopted on 9 December 1994,
Responding to the request of the Government
of Lebanon, as stated in the letter from its Permanent Representative
to the United Nations of 2 July 2003 to the Secretary-General (S/2003/685),
1. Endorses the report of the Secretary-General
on UNIFIL of 23 July 2003 (S/2003/728), and in particular its recommendation
to renew the mandate of UNIFIL for a further period of six months;
2. Decides to extend the present mandate until
31 January 2004;
3. Reiterates its strong support for the territorial
integrity, sovereignty and political independence of Lebanon within
its internationally recognized boundaries;
4. Welcomes the steps already taken by the
Government of Lebanon to ensure the return of its effective authority
throughout the south, including the deployment of Lebanese armed forces,
and calls on it to continue to extend these measures and to do
its utmost to ensure a calm environment throughout the south;
5. Calls on the parties to ensure UNIFIL is
accorded full freedom of movement in the discharge of its mandate throughout
its area of operation as outlined in the Secretary-General's report;
6. Reiterates its call on the parties to continue
to fulfil the commitments they have given to respect fully the withdrawal
line identified by the United Nations, as set out in the Secretary-General's
report of 16 June 2000 (S/2000/590), to exercise utmost restraint and
to cooperate fully with the United Nations and UNIFIL;
7. Condemns all acts of violence, expresses
great concern about the serious breaches and the air, sea and land
violations of the withdrawal line, and urges the parties to put
an end to these violations and to abide scrupulously by their obligation
to respect the safety of UNIFIL and other United Nations personnel;
8. Supports the continued efforts of UNIFIL
to maintain the ceasefire along the withdrawal line through mobile patrols
and observation from fixed positions and through close contacts with
the parties to correct violations, resolve incidents and prevent their
escalation;
9. Welcomes the continued contribution of UNIFIL
to operational demining, applauds the progress in demining efforts
noted by the Secretary-General in his report, encourages further
assistance in mine action by the United Nations to the Government of
Lebanon in support of both the continued development of its national
mine action capacity and emergency demining activities in the south, commends donor countries for supporting these efforts through
financial and in-kind contributions and encourages further international
contributions, takes note of the communication to the Government
of Lebanon and UNIFIL of maps and information on the location of mines
and stresses the necessity to provide the Government of Lebanon
and UNIFIL with any additional maps and records on the location of mines;
10. Requests the Secretary-General to continue
consultations with the Government of Lebanon and other parties directly
concerned on the implementation of this resolution and to report thereon
to the Council before the end of the present mandate as well as on the
activities of UNIFIL and the tasks presently carried out by the United
Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO);
11. Looks forward to the early fulfilment of
the mandate of UNIFIL;
12. Stresses the importance of, and the need
to achieve, a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East,
based on all its relevant resolutions including its resolutions 242
(1967) of 22 November 1967 and 338 (1973) of 22 October 1973.
Sources: The United Nations |