Security Council Topic A: The Situation involving Lebanon
Background Information
In the spring of 1958 a short lived armed rebellion took place inside the nation of Lebanon. There was influence in this conflict from the nation of Syria which shares a common border with Lebanon. This let to the formation of the United Nations Observation Group in Lebanon (UNOGIL). That group was quickly dissolved. Unfortunately, the peace inside Lebanon did not last for very long.
In the early 1970's the tensions started to grow once again, however, this time there was another external factor in the conflict, that being Israel. Israel, which had been recently recognized as nation, was looking specifically to protect their citizens. It was during the mid 1970's that there were increasing tensions amongst all in the region.
Those tensions finally came to a head in March of 1978. On the March 11th, there was a commando attack inside Israel's sovereign boundaries which killed many members of the Israeli population. Israel did not wait long to respond, invading the southern parts of Lebanon on the night of March 14/15. and occupying the entirety of the southern portion of Lebanon, except for the city of Tyre. The Security Council, responding to a petition from Lebanon, decided they had no choice but to get involved in this conflict.
The Council called upon Israel to withdraw all its forces from Lebanese territory. The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) was also established per the two concurrent resolutions 425(1978) and 426(1978).
Current Situation
Every couple of years the United Nations, and its observer groups have to mediate questions involving boundaries, and other issues. On 7 June 2000 the Blue Line border demarcation between Lebanon and Israel was established by the UN. This line has been instrumental in determining the level of withdrawal by Israeli troops. The UN also made an extension to the existing mandated Blue Line to distinctly mark the boundary between Israel and the Golan Heights region. The Golan Heights is an area left in constant debate and struggle. Israel continues to claim that the territory is in their sovereign borders, while Lebanon claims the same.
Recently there has been a dramatic buildup in the tensions between Lebanon and Israel; leading to questions concerning the viability of a lasting and effective peace in the region. One of the most alarming events took place between July and August of 2006. This time the aggression was sparked by actors with in Lebanon. Whether the culprits were official state actors, or an organization loosely tied to the official government of Lebanon, will never be officially determined. However, the consequences of that first action nearly brought on a full scale war between Israel and Lebanon; conflict between the two states was closer than at any point before.
The Security Council became actively involved in this situation, with both France and the United States working on language to bring about a peaceful end to the conflict. Due to the current state of affairs, the Council had no alternative but to again expand the mandate and the mission of UNIFIL. UNIFIL was being stretched farther than it had been before. However, UNIFIL was capable of meeting the mandate, by conducting mandatory observations and assisting with humanitarian efforts.
Eventually the conflict subsided, but tensions will always be at a higher level than in the past. This last conflict again called upon both Israel and Lebanon to respect the boundaries that have been drawn and a full respect for the Blue Line.
Future Outlook
As tensions continually mount in the region and the instability of the Lebanese government grows the mission of UNIFIL will constantly be tested. The influence of other states acting in the region will also go a long way in determining how much pressure can be leveled upon this fragile peace in the region before it crumbles. UNIFIL is able to meet their mandate but there are no guarantees that given the pressures from outside the region on the fragile peace that it can continue.
Focus Questions
1). Why is the ongoing conflict between Israel and Lebanon so alarming?
2) What is the Blue Line? Has it been effective?
3) What impact does stability in the region as a whole have on stability in Lebanon?
4) What should the goal of the Security Council be as it pertains to Lebanon?
5) What would the potential ramifications be of continued instability? Further, what are the potential ramifications of all out war?
6) What is Hizballah? What role does Hizballah play in this conflict?
Links for Research
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lebanon
http://www.imcworldwide.org/content/article/detail/1251/?gclid=CLHhmfzU4Y4CFQlQWAodIDIvTA
http://www.spme.net/cgi-bin/articles.cgi?ID=1813
http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/templateC05.php?CID=2059
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hezbollah
Security Council Topic B: The Situation in Somalia
Brief History
Britain withdrew from British Somaliland in 1960 to allow its protectorate to join with Italian Somaliland and form the new nation of Somalia. In 1969, a coup ushered in an authoritarian socialist rule that managed to impose a degree of stability in the country for a couple of decades. After the regime's overthrow early in 1991, Somalia descended into turmoil, factional fighting, and anarchy. In May 1991, northern clans declared an independent Republic of Somaliland that now includes the administrative regions of Awdal, Woqooyi Galbeed, Togdheer, Sanaag, and Sool. The regions of Bari, Nugaal, and northern Mudug comprise a neighboring self-declared autonomous state of Puntland, which has been self-governing since 1998 but does not aim at independence; it has also made strides toward reconstructing a legitimate, representative government but has suffered from civil strife. First, Puntland disputes its border with Somaliland as it also claims portions of eastern Sool and Sanaag. Second, beginning in 1993, a two-year UN humanitarian effort (primarily in the south) was undertaken to alleviate famine conditions, but when the UN withdrew in 1995, having suffered significant casualties, order still had not been restored. A two-year peace process, led by the Government of Kenya under the auspices of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), concluded in October 2004 with the election of Abdullahi YUSUF Ahmed as President of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia and the formation of a transitional government, known as the Somalia Transitional Federal Institutions (TFIs). The Somalia TFIs include a 275-member parliamentary body, known as the Transitional Federal Assembly (TFA), a transitional Prime Minister, Ali Mohamed GEDI, and a 90-member cabinet. The Transitional Federal Government (TFG) has been deeply divided since just after its creation and until late December 2006 controlled only the town of Baidoa. In June 2006, a loose coalition of clerics, business leaders, and Islamic court militias known as the Supreme Council of Islamic Courts (SCIC) defeated powerful Mogadishu warlords and took control of the capital. The Courts continued to expand, spreading their influence throughout much of southern Somalia and threatening to overthrow the TFG in Baidoa. Ethiopian and TFG forces, concerned over suspected links between some SCIC factions and al-Qaida, in late December 2006 drove the SCIC from power, but the joint forces continue to fight remnants of SCIC militia in the southwestern corner of Somalia near the Kenyan border. The TFG, backed by Ethiopian forces, in late December 2006 moved into Mogadishu, but it continues to struggle to exert control over the capital and to prevent the reemergence of warlord rule that typified Mogadishu before the rise of the SCIC. (CIA World Fact Book)
Current Situation
Ethiopian forces invaded southern Somalia and routed Islamist Courts from Mogadishu in January 2007; "Somaliland" secessionists provide port facilities in Berbera to landlocked Ethiopia and have established commercial ties with other regional states; "Puntland" and "Somaliland" "governments" seek international support in their secessionist aspirations and overlapping border claims; the undemarcated former British administrative line has little meaning as a political separation to rival clans within Ethiopia's Ogaden and southern Somalia's Oromo region; Kenya works hard to prevent the clan and militia fighting in Somalia from spreading south across the border, which has long been open to nomadic pastoralists. (CIA World Fact Book)
Focus Questions
Links for Research
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/so.html
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=22916&Cr=somalia&Cr1
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=22400&Cr=somalia&Cr1
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2007/sc9083.doc.htm
http://www.un.org/News/briefings/docs/2007/070905_Ripert.doc.htm