Lebanon prevents UN condemnation of terror attack

            Lebanon, which is currently a member of the United Nations Security Council, prevented early Saturday a condemnation of the recent terror offensive in southern Israel. Israel’s UN Ambassador Ron Prosor expressed his disappointment with Beirut’s move, noting that Lebanon is itself “a state controlled by a terrorist organization.” The UN envoy said that the latest fiasco proved that the UN has become “blind and deaf” when it comes to condemning terror attacks against Israeli citizens. “The Security Council’s silence is deafening,” Prosor said. A draft proposal for a presidential statement was distributed to the Security Council’s 15 members Thursday. The United States, Europe and India vigorously supported a harsh UN denunciation of the murderous attack in Israel, yet the Arab representative in the Council, Lebanon, announced Friday that it will endorse such censure only if it is “balanced” with a condemnation of Israel’s retaliatory strikes in the Gaza Strip. Europe, the US and Israel rejected the Lebanese equation, in essence burying the condemnation and demonstrating yet again that the UN is unable to address some of the most vital issues on its agenda. (05,00)