S/RES/1496 (2003)
Security Council Distr.: General
31 July 2003
03-44786 (E)
*0344786*
Resolution 1496 (2003)
Adopted by the Security Council at its 4802nd meeting,
on 31 July 2003
The Security Council,
Recalling all its previous resolutions on Lebanon, in particular resolutions
425 (1978) and 426 (1978) of 19 March 1978 and 1461 of 30 January 2003 as well
as the statements of its President on the situation in Lebanon, in particular the
statement of 18 June 2000 (S/PRST/2000/21),
Recalling further the letter from its President to the Secretary-General of
18 May 2001 (S/2001/500),
Recalling also the Secretary-General’s conclusion that, as of 16 June 2000,
Israel had withdrawn its forces from Lebanon in accordance with resolution
425 (1978) and met the requirements defined in the Secretary-General’s report of
22 May 2000 (S/2000/460), as well as the Secretary-General’s conclusion that
United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) had essentially completed two
of the three parts of its mandate, focusing now on the remaining task of restoring
international peace and security,
Emphasizing the interim nature of UNIFIL,
Recalling its resolution 1308 (2000) of 17 July 2000,
Recalling also its resolution 1325 (2000) of 31 October 2000,
Recalling further the relevant principles contained in the Convention on the
Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel adopted on 9 December 1994,
Responding to the request of the Government of Lebanon, as stated in the letter
from its Permanent Representative to the United Nations of 2 July 2003 to the
Secretary-General (S/2003/685),
1. Endorses the report of the Secretary-General on UNIFIL of 23 July 2003
(S/2003/728), and in particular its recommendation to renew the mandate of UNIFIL
for a further period of six months;
2. Decides to extend the present mandate until 31 January 2004;
3. Reiterates its strong support for the territorial integrity, sovereignty and
political independence of Lebanon within its internationally recognized boundaries;
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S/RES/1496 (2003)
4. Welcomes the steps already taken by the Government of Lebanon to
ensure the return of its effective authority throughout the south, including the
deployment of Lebanese armed forces, and calls on it to continue to extend these
measures and to do its utmost to ensure a calm environment throughout the south;
5. Calls on the parties to ensure UNIFIL is accorded full freedom of
movement in the discharge of its mandate throughout its area of operation as
outlined in the Secretary-General’s report;
6. Reiterates its call on the parties to continue to fulfil the commitments
they have given to respect fully the withdrawal line identified by the United
Nations, as set out in the Secretary-General’s report of 16 June 2000 (S/2000/590),
to exercise utmost restraint and to cooperate fully with the United Nations and
UNIFIL;
7. Condemns all acts of violence, expresses great concern about the serious
breaches and the air, sea and land violations of the withdrawal line, and urges the
parties to put an end to these violations and to abide scrupulously by their obligation
to respect the safety of UNIFIL and other United Nations personnel;
8. Supports the continued efforts of UNIFIL to maintain the ceasefire along
the withdrawal line through mobile patrols and observation from fixed positions and
through close contacts with the parties to correct violations, resolve incidents and
prevent their escalation;
9. Welcomes the continued contribution of UNIFIL to operational demining,
applauds the progress in demining efforts noted by the Secretary-General in his
report, encourages further assistance in mine action by the United Nations to the
Government of Lebanon in support of both the continued development of its
national mine action capacity and emergency demining activities in the south,
commends donor countries for supporting these efforts through financial and in-kind
contributions and encourages further international contributions, takes note of the
communication to the Government of Lebanon and UNIFIL of maps and
information on the location of mines and stresses the necessity to provide the
Government of Lebanon and UNIFIL with any additional maps and records on the
location of mines;
10. Requests the Secretary-General to continue consultations with the
Government of Lebanon and other parties directly concerned on the implementation
of this resolution and to report thereon to the Council before the end of the present
mandate as well as on the activities of UNIFIL and the tasks presently carried out by
the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO);
11. Looks forward to the early fulfilment of the mandate of UNIFIL;
12. Stresses the importance of, and the need to achieve, a comprehensive,
just and lasting peace in the Middle East, based on all its relevant resolutions
including its resolutions 242 (1967) of 22 November 1967 and 338 (1973) of
22 October 1973.