Israel's Barak Calls on Lebanon for Peace
 

 
By Christine Hauser

FATMA GATE, Israel-Lebanon border (Reuters) - Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Barak appealed to Lebanese President Emile Lahoud Thursday to use the Israeli withdrawal from south Lebanon as a springboard for peace.

Barak was addressing a special meeting of parliament, the Knesset, after jubilant Lebanese had taunted the Israeli army and displayed a loaded Katyusha rocket launcher on their side of the powderkeg frontier.

The United Nations sought Lebanese cooperation to fill an ominous vacuum in the area, where the Shi'ite Muslim Hizbollah seized control after Israel's allied South Lebanon Army (SLA) militia disintegrated and the army precipitously withdrew.

But Beirut declared Thursday a national holiday and gave little indication of urgency. Key meetings between U.N. Middle East envoy Terje Roed-Larsen, President Emile Lahoud and Prime Minister Selim al-Hoss were delayed until late in the day.

Barak addressed parliament in Israel's northernmost city of Kiryat Shmona, frequent target of Katyusha rockets fired by Hizbollah guerrillas from Lebanon.

 
 ``On this stage in Kiryat Shmona, the city that was the primary target for aggression and terrorism from Lebanon, I appeal to the government and people of Lebanon,'' Barak said.

``I appeal to you, President Emile Lahoud -- Israel extends its hand toward peace out of a vision of a joint future better for the children of both peoples. Let's exploit the moment, let's talk peace,'' he said.

At least 1,000 people gathered on the Lebanese side of the frontier to peer into Israel and celebrate the end to its occupation of a ``security zone'' set up with the aim of keeping guerrillas -- and their rocket launchers -- far from the border.

Israelis Rallies Around Barak

In Israel, public opinion rallied round Barak's swift extraction of the army from 22 years in Lebanon, an operation that did not claim a single casualty after more than 1,000 troops lost their lives there over the years. Tens of thousands of Lebanese also died over the years.

An opinion poll showed nearly three-quarters of the Israeli public squarely behind Barak who won election a year ago pledging to end the occupation in Lebanon. Analysts noted, however, that honeymoons are notoriously brief in Israeli politics.
 
 
 The U.N. envoy's mission came as Israel also issued repeated warnings that it would not hesitate to retaliate against Lebanese territory -- including the interests of dominant power Syria -- if it came under attack.

Lebanon has rejected security guarantees for Israel until it recovers all of what it regards as its territory, Syrian demands are met and a solution is found to the Palestinian refugee issue.

Lebanon's influential former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri said peace between Lebanon and Israel hinged on a stalled Syrian-Israeli peace deal.

Israel said Thursday that it would hand over a piece of territory claimed by Lebanon, but that it had no intention of relinquishing control over the entire area known as the Shebaa Farms. It says the area was captured from Syria in the 1967 Middle East war.

The United Nations wants the Lebanese army, with the help of a U.N. peacekeeping force that would be doubled to 7,900 troops, to fill the vacuum in south Lebanon.

Lebanon's Hoss Reassures South

Prime Minister Hoss assured residents in south Lebanon on Thursday that the government would guarantee their security. He said that police already in the area would be reinforced.

But he ruled out an immediate army deployment, saying the United Nations had first to fully verify the Israeli withdrawal.

U.N. envoy Roed-Larsen said in Beirut that he had sent U.N. experts on a verification mission. He said he would also seek maps from the Israelis on mines they left behind.

``I believe that we all understand that the coming days will be decisive,'' he said on his arrival in Beirut Wednesday night. He also planned to visit Israel and Syria to discuss relevant security issues.

Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi of Iran, which backs the Hizbollah movement, toured the border area Thursday and mixed praise for the guerrillas who precipitated Israel's withdrawal with reassurances for Christians in the area.

Thousands of members of the collapsed South Lebanon Army, many of them Christians, have sought refuge in Israel for fear of Hizbollah retaliation.