UN urges Syria, Iran to respect Lebanon arms ban

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Syria and Iran to respect an arms embargo on militias in Lebanon and urged Damascus, in a report issued on Friday, to better control its border with its neighbor.

In a report for the Security Council, Ban also demanded support from Syria in efforts to disarm Palestinian armed groups outside Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon. Israel and the Lebanese government have told the United Nations that arms are being shipped from Syria into Lebanon, both to the pro-Iranian Lebanese Hizbullah group, which fought a war with Israel last year, and to Palestinian factions. (Reuters)