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UN plays down risk of renewed Lebanon-Israel strife

UNITED NATIONS: A top UN official on Friday played down risk of renewed fighting between Israel and Lebanon's Shiite movement Hezbollah but urged the two sides to refrain from further "inflammatory" words. Michael Williams, the UN special coordinator for Lebanon, told reporters that he briefed the Security Council "on the recent rise in rhetoric and public threats between Israel and Lebanon which have generated concerns of a renewed confrontation." "This public rhetoric and brinkmanship contravenes the spirit of (Security Council) Resolution 1701 and is utterly unhelpful," he noted. Resolution 1701 ended a 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah that killed more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and more than 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers. It has not led to a permanent ceasefire. Williams said that in his private talks with Israeli and Lebanese officials, both sides, in contrast to some of their public utterances, "continue to express their commitment to the prevailing cessation of hostilities and to the full implementation of Resolution 1701." "I believe that it is these private statements, rather than the public rhetoric, that convey their true intentions and I have called on all relevant parties to desist from inflammatory statements," he added.

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