Lebanese Army Starts Occupying Southern Part Of The Country
Komfie Manalo - All Headline News Foreign Correspondent Marjayoun, Lebanon (AHN) - After a slight delay, the Lebanese army backed by tanks and armored vehicles started rolling into strategic Litani River region early Thursday to implement a key condition in the U.N.-sponsored cease-fire in the Middle East. Also on Thursday, the Israeli military stepped up its withdrawal from territories it captured in southern Lebanon during the 34-day war and handed some of its positions to U.N. peacekeepers already on the ground. An AP report counted at least ten armored vehicle convoys passing through a newly constructed bridge over the Litani River about 18 miles north of the Israeli border as well as trucks and jeeps carried thousands of Lebanese troops to the city of Tyre. Some of the troops were expected to arrive in Tyre by sea. In Marjayoun, Lebanon, at least a dozen trucks loaded with Lebanese troops followed by at least 20 other smaller trucks started their deployment in the area to ascertain the government's authority. A senior military official told the AP the deployment will continue for a few days "to spread Lebanese government authority over all Lebanese territory, including south of the Litani River." Under the U.N. truce, the Lebanese government must deploy a total of 15,000 troops south of the country to establish a buffer zone between Israel and the Hezbollah guerrillas. That number would be reinforced by U.N. peac |
