Germans go to Lebanon

Deputies voted 442-152 in favor of the mission, which will see a naval force patrol Lebanese waters to prevent the smuggling of weapons to Hezbollah militants based in Lebanon.

The decision means Germany will send a task force with up to 2,400 naval personnel to secure Lebanon's coast in what Chancellor Angela Merkel called a mission of "historic dimension."

A first contingent of 1,000 soldiers will leave for the Middle East on Thursday, breaking a postwar taboo for Germany. Due to its Nazi past, sending German troops to the region near Israel is particularly sensitive.

"There is perhaps no other area of the world where Germany's unique responsibility, the unique responsibility of every German government to heed the lessons of our past is so clear than it is here," Merkel said in a speech to the Bundestag.

The German chancellor also promised Bundestag members she would press Washington to take a more active role in the region, drawing a link between the Lebanon and Israeli-Palestinian conflicts.

Other European nations involved

Two frigates, four fast patrol boats, two supply ships and two helicopters will be deployed by Germany in cooperation with naval forces being sent by the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway and Denmark.

German naval vessels are expected to arrive off the Lebanese coast by early October, given that it takes about 10 days for ships to travel from the North Sea to the eastern Mediterranean.

The mission's mandate will initially be limited until Aug. 31, 2007.

The issue was hotly debated in parliament, where opposition deputies argued it would compromise German neutrality and jeopardize the political goodwill Germany enjoyed in the region.

Guido Westerwelle, head of the opposition Free Democrats (FDP), highlighted the risks of a deployment which he said could bring German troops into direct conflict with Israelis.

"We should be no under illusions just because this is a navy mission and not a ground mission," Westerwelle said.

Government ministers insisted the mission would bring stability to the region and increase Europe's role as an architect of peace in the Middle East.

The UN is deploying a 15,000-member peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon under a ceasefire agreement which last month ended fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.

Conditions met

Meanwhile, a UN spokesman said the number of UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon has risen to 5,000, meeting a condition laid down by Israel for withdrawing from its northern neighbor.

"We have reached the 5,000 troops," said Alexander Ivanko, spokesman for the UN Interim Force in Lebanon. "The first phase of the UNIFIL deployment is now completed."

Ivanko said that the initial number of about 2,000 UNIFIL troops had been boosted to 5,000 by three new battalions from France, Italy and Spain.

Israeli forces have remained in southern Lebanon for more than a month after the Aug. 14 ceasefire came into effect, ending the 34-day war between the Jewish state and the Shiite guerrilla group Hezbollah.