The Hezbollah Video Bungle

02/04/2001| IslamWeb

NEW YORK, THE UNITED NATIONS- (Islamweb & Agencies)- The United Nations has opened an internal investigation into what it described as the "mishandling" of a videotape that may provide clues about the abduction of Israeli soldiers by the Lebanese Islamic Resistance group Hezbollah. (Read photo caption). After months of denying the existence of the footage, the UN last week offered to give Israel a censored copy - with faces blurred - in response to demands from the Israeli Government.
A spokesman for Secretary-General Kofi Annan said on Wednesday that the UN was "embarrassed and its credibility was hurt by what appears to be a mishandling of this event".
The UN is caught between a rock and a hard place over the video, with Israel demanding the unedited footage and Hezbollah saying that handing it over would effectively make the UN spies for Israel.
Possible leads
The video - made by UN peacekeepers some 18 hours after three Israeli soldiers were abducted in October - shows vehicles allegedly used by Hezbollah Resistance men.

It is also reported to show the faces of Resistance men who prevented the UN peacekeepers from salvaging the vehicles as evidence.The videotape may support the Israeli allegation that the kidnappers were disguised as UN troops.
UN Under-secretary-General Joseph Connor is to head the probe and has been ordered to report "as soon as possible", Mr Annan's spokesman Fred Eckhard said.
PHOTO CAPTION:
A spokesman for Secretary-General Kofi Annan said on Wednesday that the UN was "embarrassed and its credibility was hurt by what appears to be a mishandling of this event". (BBC)