Secretary-General Informed Israeli Forces Withdraw from Southern Lebanon; Emphasizes Need for UNIFIL Freedom of Movement Throughout Operations Area

The Security Council continued its debate regarding southern Lebanon as Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim said this morning he had been informed by Israel that its forces had withdrawn from southern Lebanon. Since the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) was not in a position to confirm this, he emphasized again the need for the Force to have full freedom of movement throughout its whole area of operations in the south. In another development, Lebanon told the Council that its Army contingent with UNIFIL was prepared to move to join the UNIFIL contingents at At-Tiri, the area of confrontation between the United Nations Force and the ""de facto"" forces within the UNIFIL area of operations. In addition to the statements by the Secretary-General and the representative of Lebanon, statements were made this morning by the representatives of France and Israel.
Egypt's Ahmed Esmat Abdel Meguid, at left, conferring informally today with Lebanon's Chassan Tueni.