BEIRUT - The Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar published today excerpts from UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s report on the execution of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, that he is suposed to submit to the council by the end of this month.

The article stated that Section 38 of Ban’s report includes information that the German mediator commissioned to follow up on the matter of the two Israeli soldiers kidnapped by Hezbollah and the Lebanese detainees in Israel is still making efforts to conduct a prisoner swap between the two sides. “However, I cannot give any details on this in the report,” Ban said.

Ban also said he had received a letter on March 6, 2008 from Damascus saying that the issue of the delimitation of the Lebanese-Syrian border is a bilateral matter to be solved between the two states.

“Syria expressed in its letter its readiness to start drawing the border from the North because the southern part of the Syrian-Lebanese border, including Shebaa Farms, is still under Israeli occupation,” Ban said.

He also said he received a letter on April 2, 2008 from PM Fouad Siniora regarding the Shebaa Farms, whereby the premier welcomed the continued efforts to draw the geographical maps of the area. Ban added that he hasn’t received any official reply from Syria or Israel regarding temporarily putting the disputed territory under UN supervision.