Prime Minister's Office clamps blackout on Lebanon discussion

Reportedly, ministers discussed continued transfer of arms from Syria to Hizbullah in violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701.

By HERB KEINON
olmert serious 298.88 (photo credit: AP [file])
olmert serious 298.88
(photo credit: AP [file])
The security cabinet met Wednesday to discuss the situation in Lebanon and Hizbullah's build-up there, but adjourned without making any operative decisions. The Prime Minister's Office clamped a complete blackout on the meeting and did not release any information about what was discussed. The discussions reportedly focused on the continued transfer of arms from Syria to Hizbullah in violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which, on the issue of the arms transfer, is not being implemented. The ministers, who were briefed by security and Foreign Ministry officials, were also reportedly told of Hizbullah's efforts to acquire an anti-aircraft system that, if made operational, could severely curtail Israeli over-flights of Lebanon. In addition, the cabinet reportedly discussed the Lebanese cabinet's policy statement, approved Monday, that granted Hizbullah the right of "resistance" to "liberate Lebanese territories." Wednesday's meeting was a continuation of a security cabinet meeting held in early July, in which the ministers were briefed by security and intelligence officials on the situation in Lebanon. Security officials said then that two years after the Second Lebanon War, there were some 2,500 non-uniformed Hizbullah men in southern Lebanon, and that the organization had trebled its pre-war military arsenal and now had more than 30,000 missiles inside Lebanon that could "cover" Israel all the way down to Dimona. One official was quoted by Israel Radio as saying that Hizbullah was trying to acquire anti-aircraft missiles, and that it posed a greater danger to Israel than its main sponsor, Iran.