Israel Ready for Lebanon Pullout

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan that Israel is serious about accepting a U.N. resolution calling for its withdrawal from Lebanon. “The secretary-general will have to consult his colleagues and perhaps consult Lebanon. But we made it clear that, as far as Israel is concerned, we are ready to implement Resolution 425 that calls for our withdrawal from Lebanon, under conditions of peace and security,” Netanyahu said. Israel controls a 9-mile-deep “security zone” on the Lebanese side of the border to help prevent guerrilla attacks against northern Israel. There are frequent clashes with Iranian-backed Hezbollah guerrillas.