The Lebanese prime minister reiterates that Israeli withdrawal from the Shebaa Farms is an essential condition for an agreement with Israel. Also in suspense is the understanding between Israel and Palestine, in spite of pressure from U.S. government, which wants peace before the end of Bush's presidency.

Beirut (AsiaNews/Agencies) - Cold water on the possibility for peace talks between Lebanon and Israel, for which prime minister Ehud Olmert expressed hopes during a cabinet meeting last Tuesday: the government of Beirut is refusing, in fact, to come to the table with Tel Aviv as long as the Israelis continue to possess what the Lebanese consider "occupied territories".  At the centre of the controversy is the dispute over the Shebaa Farms, about 40 square kilometres on the border between Israel, Syria, and Lebanon, occupied by Jerusalem during the Six Day War in 1967; its annexation was never approved by the international community, and Beirut has claimed it for years has its own territory.

According to a statement released by the Lebanese government, "a peace agreement between Israel and Lebanon depends on the restitution of the [occupied] territories, on the release of prisoners held in Israeli prisons, on the delivery of a map indicating all of the landmines and cluster bombs placed during the wars".

The United Nations consider the Shebaa Farms as Syrian territory, but Lebanon, with the approval of Damascus, is claiming sovereignty over the area; the resolution of the UN Security Council - number 1701, passed in August of 2006 - provides for the "complete cessation of hostilities, in particular, the immediate end of all Hezbollah attacks, and the interruption of all Israeli military offensive operations". Lebanon and Israel have officially been at war since 1948, when the Jewish state was born, despite the armistice signed in 1949. Two years ago, prime minister Fouad Siniora pledged that Lebanon will be "the last Arab country to sign a peace treaty" with the government of Tel Aviv.

In the meantime, Palestinian prime minister Salam Fayyad says a peace agreement with Israel will be "impossible" "before the end of the year", in spite of the pressure from American diplomacy, which is pushing for an agreement to be signed before the end of George Bush's presidency in January of 2009.  Israeli settlements in the West Bank are "an obstacle" to the progress of negotiations, while Jerusalem reiterates that checkpoints and roadblocks are necessary in the area, to prevent attacks on its territory.

• Lebanon
• Israel
• peace
• negotiations
• agreement
• discussions
• dialogue