Mandate of UN Force in Golan Heights Extended

Mandate of UN Force in Golan Heights Extended by Security Council

New York, Jun 15 2005 5:00PM

The United Nations Security Council today decided to renew the mandate of the 31 year-old UN observer force in the Golan Heights for a period of six months, until 31 December 2005.

The action comes after a report by Secretary-General Kofi Annan in which he found that the presence of the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) remained essential in the context of a tense Middle East, even though the situation in the Israel-Syria sector stayed "generally quiet."

UNDOF was established in May 1974 to monitor the Israeli-Syrian ceasefire in the Golan Heights. As of 6 June 2005, it had 1,028 troops from Austria, Canada, Japan, Nepal, Poland and Slovakia and was assisted by 57 military observers from the UN Troop Supervision Organization (UNTSO).

In its resolution extending UNDOF, the Council also welcomed efforts being undertaken by the force to put into place the Secretary-General's zero-tolerance policy on sexual exploitation.

ENDS

© Scoop Media