ANKARA - Turkey, the first Muslim country to contribute troops to a UN military mission in violence-wracked Lebanon, on Tuesday extended its mandate by a year.
Parliament approved the motion by a show of hands, deputy speaker Ismail Alptekin said.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government said it sought the go-ahead in anticipation that the UN Security Council would likely prolong the mandate of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), which ends on August 31.
The UNIFIL mission, first created in 1978, was enhanced and expanded after Israel's devastating 34-day war last summer against Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon, in which some 1,200 Lebanese died.
Turkey sent a 261-strong contingent of mainly army engineers stationed near the southern port of Tyre to help with reconstruction.
A Turkish frigate with a crew of 234 was also assigned to UNIFIL's naval component, which aims to prevent the Hezbollah receiving weapons by sea.
Parliament authorised the one-year deployment on September 5, 2006, overriding widespread opposition and protests that the mission could pit Turkish troops against fellow Muslims.
05/29/2007 15:02 GMT