Israel To Withdraw From Lebanon Once UN Soldiers Are In Place
Joseph S. Mayton - All Headline News Middle East Correspondent Beirut, Lebanon (AHN) - Israel has announced it will begin withdrawing its troop presence in southern Lebanon once the first 5,000 United Nations peacekeeping force is in place. Italian Premier Romano Prodi announced Israel's intentions following a meeting with Israeli Deputy Premier Shimon Peres on Thursday. At a join press conference, Prodi said that this is "an important development because it will bring peace" to the region. Peres said that his country wanted to "build positive relations with Lebanon" and this was an important first step in beginning bilateral negotiations with Beirut. The Deputy Premier praised Italy for its leadership in deploying troops to Lebanon. "If Italy had not decided to deploy troops in Lebanon, Resolution 1701 would have been a meaningless piece of paper," Peres said at the press conference. "Italy has a worldwide reputation as a great builder of bridges so it can promote peace efforts not just in Lebanon but throughout the region," he added. Over 1,000 Lebanese civilians and more than 115 Israelis, mostly soldiers, were killed during the fighting, which ended August 14.
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