Israel to withdraw Ghajar in south Lebanon

Israel accepted UNIFIL’s proposal on withdrawing its forces from the northern part of Ghajar village in south Lebanon and to be replaced by UNIFIL troops, according to Israel Radio .

Israel Radio also reported that U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Special Representative on the Implementation of Security Council Resolution 1559, Terje Roed-Larsen, has arrived in Israel on Sunday where he held meetings to discuss the issue of Ghajar pullout with Israeli Prime Minister, Defense Minister, and President. Ghajar lies at the foot of Mount Hermon and straddles the Lebanese-Syrian border. It is inhabited by Alawites, most of whom have obtained Israeli citizenship even though they consider themselves Syrian. The village is an extension of the Syrian Golan Heights plateau, which Israel occupied during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and then annexed in 1981. According to a U.N. one-third of the village is on Lebanese soil, while the other two thirds are part of occupied Syrian territory.