UN Resolution 1559

In order to end what it saw as meddling in Lebanon's internal affairs by its neighbors, on Feb. 9, 2004, the UN Security Council passed resolution 1559, declaring its support for a free and fair presidential election in Lebanon without foreign interference and calling upon all remaining foreign forces to withdraw from Lebanon.

The vote was 9-0 (Angola, Benin, Chile, France, Germany, Romania, Spain, Britain, United States) with 6 abstentions (Algeria, Brazil, China, Pakistan, Philippines, Russia).

The resolution also called for the disbanding and disarmament of all militias, which prohibited the government from exerting its full sovereignty. Resolution 1559 also called for implementation of previous resolutions concerning Lebanon's territorial integrity and political independence.

When Rafik Hariri, the former prime minister of Lebanon, was assassinated in Lebanon in 2005, mass demonstrations put pressure on Syria to withdraw its troops. President Bashar Assad of Syria announced a withdrawal and on April 26, 2005, after 29 years of military action in Lebanon, the last Syrian troops left. The dismantling of Lebanon's militias therefore is the last main part of Resolution 1559 that has not been implemented.

SOURCE: UN, news reports

Globe Staff/ Kathleen Hennrikus