U.N. Demands Marine Hostage Be Freed

The U.N. Security Council on Friday condemned the abduction of Lt. Col. William R. Higgins, a U.S. Marine serving with a U.N. peacekeeping group in southern Lebanon, and demanded his release.

Higgins was abducted Feb. 17 by pro-Iranian Shia Muslim forces. His wife, Marine Maj. Robin Higgins, looked on as the Security Council voted Friday. Asked to comment afterward, she told reporters, “I have nothing to say, but I thank you for your support.”

A resolution approved unanimously by the council’s 15 members urged member governments to “use their influence in any way possible” to bring about Higgins’ release.

Timed to Other Resolution

Council President Poulo Nogueira Batista of Brazil said the resolution was timed to coordinate with a resolution renewing for six months the mandate of the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon, which was also adopted unanimously.

UNIFIL was organized in March, 1978, to supervise the withdrawal of Israeli troops. It consists of 5,844 personnel from nine nations commanded by Maj. General Lars-Eric Wahlgren of Sweden. Contributing troops are Fiji, 701; Finland, 543; France, 502; Ghana, 901; Ireland, 744; Italy, 52; Nepal, 856; Norway, 906, and Sweden, 639.

Higgins was assigned to the U.N. Truce Supervisory Organization, an all-officer group formed to observe the border between Israel and Syria. It is the only such U.N. force in which U.S. personnel serve. He was one of 64 UNTSO members assigned to UNIFIL.

The cost of maintaining UNIFIL is running at $11.6 million a month. Much of this is borne by the countries contributing troops.

As of the first of July, Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar said in a report to the Security Council, $282.9 million in assessments for the upkeep of the Lebanon force had not been paid. The United States owes more than $500 million in total assessments.