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OAS SECRETARY GENERAL CONDEMNS ATTACK ON LEBANESE TOWN

  July 31, 2006

The Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), José Miguel Insulza, strongly condemned the death of innocent civilians, especially children, in Qana, Lebanon, as a result of Israeli bombing. The Secretary General observed that this massacre could have been avoided had the parties involved in the conflict listened to the voices from around the world that are calling for peace and speaking out against a confrontation that only leads the peoples of two nations to the tragedy of watching, powerless, as innocent and unarmed people die.

Insulza called on the parties to accept the universal demand for the immediate cessation of the violence that is causing death and destruction in Lebanon. He asked that Israel’s decision to temporarily suspend air strikes be made definitive, to allow progress to be made on the diplomatic front in the search for solutions that put an end to the problems that led to the crisis.

Insulza added that the world hopes that the leaders of the countries involved will act with a sense of responsibility and humanitarian spirit to avoid the deepening of a tragedy that primarily affects innocent populations.

Reference: E-163/06