LEBANON - July 27 - PM Hoss Appeals For Aid.

PM Hoss appeals to rich states to help develop the south of the country, saying failure to do so would destabilize the area in the wake of Israel's withdrawal. At a meeting of senior representatives from 40 countries, Hoss says: "The people of the south now need the support of the world community to recover a sense of decent life, to retain a sense of normalcy, to recapture the means to self-sustaining livelihood", adding: "Unless this is achieved in earnest, the liberated territories could become a breeding ground for instability in Lebanon, which may not be conducive to regional stability". But Inder Sud, director of the World Bank for the ME, says it would be difficult to secure all the aid Lebanon wanted to rebuild the south. He says: "I do understand that the needs are enormous.... The challenge is to put them in the context of what can be afforded. I think we are not at that stage yet".

Lebanon is seeking US$1.3 bn to rebuild the south, US$260m in emergency aid and another US$5 bn for other areas of the country in grants or soft loans. (The money would be spent on schools, hospitals and infrastructure and compensate the relatives of those who died in violence during Israel's occupation.) Hoss says a lack of international pressure on Israel during its occupation of southern Lebanon had had "tragic consequences" that needed to be addressed. (The government wants to encourage private investment in the area but delays in deploying UN peacekeepers and the Lebanese army there have discouraged investors.)

UN envoy Larsen, dispatched to help deploy peacekeepers along the Israeli-Lebanese border, says donors and international institutions must work closely with the Lebanese government. Some delegates say it is unlikely that the international community would extend aid soon and deferred judgment on the Lebanese government's plans for the south. At the end of the conference, Hoss says a 3-member commission, comprising the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development, the UN Development Program (UNDP) and the World Bank, would prepare for the donor meeting and decide its timing. He says the delegates agreed that it was important to give priority to emergency issues related to basic needs of the south and not the medium and long-term development projects. Hoss says: "Those basic needs could not wait until there is another donor meeting and for that it will be discussed on bilateral basis between Lebanon and the donor countries".