Lebanon hosts first PLO representative in 13 years

Abbas Zaki, an official of the mainstream Fatah movement, will formally reopen the PLO's offices in Beirut on Monday after a closure of nearly a quarter of a century under pressure from neighbouring Syria.

Zaki, whose real name is Sharif Mashaal, is the first PLO representative in Lebanon since then incumbent Shafiq al-Hut resigned in 1993 in protest against the Oslo peace accords between Israel and the Palestinian leadership.

The main tasks facing the new envoy are to reach agreement with Lebanese authorities on the disarmament of Palestinian militants in line with UN Security Council demands and to improve the condition of Lebanon's more than 400,000 registered refugees, more than half of whom still live in camps.

Syria, which backs several rejectionist factions that maintain bases in Lebanon, withdrew its troops last year after a 29-year military presence, paving the way for the reopening of the PLO office.

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