“Israel cannot win this war-Siniora

[malaise]

Well they're uniting Lebanon. Great interview.
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/B99073EF-D5EA-4F81-BCFC-6755FF28BF92.htm

Siniora said his government cannot force Hezbollah to disarm as long as Israel continues to occupy the Shebaa Farms.

“I’d like to remind you that the Shebaa Farms is not a property of Hezbollah. It’s a property of Lebanon and it’s for all the Lebanese,” he said.

“So anyone who would say that giving this land back to Lebanon would be considered a victory for Hezbollah is mistaken. This issue has to be looked at in totality. Lebanon gets back its land and, ultimately, Israel gets a safe border.”

[in_cog_ni_to]

1. According to the UN, the Shebaa Farms is on the Syrian side of the border.

Shebaa Farms
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Geographic position of the Shebaa FarmsShebaa Farms, also known as the Shabaa Farms, is an area of disputed ownership and is located at the junction of Syria, Lebanon, and Israel, southwest of Shebaa, a Lebanese village on the northwestern slopes of Mount Hermon. The area is about 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) in length, and averages 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) in width, at altitudes of 150 to 1,880 meters (490–6,170 ft). Its fertile and well-watered farmland formerly produced barley, fruits, and vegetables.

The region was captured by Israel during the Six Day War, and was officially annexed in 1981. United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 of 1967, reaffirmed by UN Security Council Resolution 338 of 1973 calls for the "withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict", and the area is still regarded by the United Nations and the world community as territory under Israeli occupation.

Following the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1978, UN Security Council Resolution 425 asked for Israel to ' withdraw forthwith its forces from all Lebanese territory'. On May 22, 2000, <1>,following twenty two years of occupation, and to comply to this resolution, Israel withdrew its forces to the line held on May 14, 1978. The compliance was then disputed by Lebanon, who claimed the Shebaa farms area, occupied since 1967. was actually Lebanese, and that the Israelis should therefore withdraw from there as well.

This appeared to be the first time Lebanon had claimed the area to be Lebanese, and their evidence was contradicted by published maps showing the area to be in Syria. The United Nations agreed with Israel's view that the area is not covered by United Nations UN Security Council Resolution 425 governing the withdrawal from Lebanon, and the UN certified Israel's pullout <2> but declared their decision was'"without prejudice to future border agreements between the Member States concerned".

Israel's view, and that of the UN, is that the area is not covered by United Nations UN Security Council Resolution 425 that governs Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon. That resolution asked Israel to withdraw from Lebanon according to the line its forces were positioned at before the May 14, 1978 invasion. (See: Blue Line)

On May 22, 2000, Israel completed its withdrawal from the south of Lebanon in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 425 <3>. The UN certified Israel's pullout <4>.

In a June 18, 2000 statement, the Security Council noted that Israel and Lebanon had confirmed, to the Secretary General, that identification of the withdrawal line was solely the responsibility of the United Nations and that both sides would respect the line as identified. Moreover, the Security Council took notice, "with serious concern," of reports of violations - by Hizbullah - that had occurred since June 16, 2000 and called upon the parties to respect the line drawn by the United Nations.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, in remarks to the press with U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, Foreign Minister of Spain Josep Pique, Foreign Minister of Russia Igor Ivanov, and European Union Senior Official Javier Solana in Madrid, Spain, on April 10, 2002, said: "With reference to the disturbances along the Blue Line emanating from Lebanese territory, I call on the Government of Lebanon and all relevant parties to condemn and prevent such violations. The Security Council itself confirmed in June 2000 that Israel had withdrawn from southern Lebanon in compliance with UN Security Council resolutions 425 and 426. Attacks at any point along the Blue Line, including in the Shebaa Farms area in the occupied Golan Heights, are violations of Security Council resolutions. Respect for decisions of the Security Council is the most basic requirement of international legitimacy."

More recently, the January 20, 2005 UN Secretary-General's report on Lebanon explicitly stated: "The continually asserted position of the Government of Lebanon that the Blue Line is not valid in the Shab'a farms area is not compatible with Security Council resolutions. The Council has recognized the Blue Line as valid for purposes of confirming Israel’s withdrawal pursuant to resolution 425 (1978). The Government of Lebanon should heed the Council’s repeated calls for the parties to respect the Blue Line in its entirety." <5> Timur Goksel, a spokesman for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) told the BBC that: "on all maps the UN has been able to find, the farms are seen on the Syrian side ."