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Dharam Shourie in New York
The United Nations has rejected the charge by an Israeli newspaper that Indian peacekeepers in south Lebanon corroborated with Hizbollah guerrillas in the abduction of three Israeli soldiers on October 7 last year.
A high-level UN team, which investigated the incident and submitted the report on Friday to the Security Council, said it saw no evidence that either the Indian battalion or any other component of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon colluded with Hizbollah guerrillas.
"The abduction was well-planned and UN peacekeepers became aware of it two hours later," the report said.
The team, headed by Under Secretary General for Management Joseph Connor, also justified the decision by Indian commander General Atmanathan to videotape the recovery scene.
The investigation was trigged by a demand by the Israelis for the copy of a videotape prepared by the Indian peacekeepers of Hizbollah guerrillas forcibly taking away two vehicles, which were possibly used in the kidnapping, while they were trying to retrieve it.
"The decision to videotape and photograph the recovery operation was sound. The investigation team does not question the decision to surrender the two vehicles to Hizbollah," it said.
PTI
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