UN force remains on station in southern Lebanon

UN peacekeeping chief says UNIFIL’s commander and liaison officers were in constant contact with their Israeli and Lebanese counterparts.

An UNIFIL armoured personnel on patrols last month. Picture: AFP

UN peacekeepers are staying in their positions on Lebanon’s southern border despite Israel’s request to vacate some areas before it launched its ground operation against Hezbollah, the UN peacekeeping chief has said.

Jean-Pierre Lacroix said on Thursday the commander and liaison officers from the UN force, known as UNIFIL, were in constant contact with their counterparts in the Israeli and Lebanese militaries.

He called that key to protecting the more than 10,000 peacekeepers. The UN force is “the only channel of communications between the parties,” he said. “The peacekeepers are also working with partners to do what they can to protect the population.”

UNIFIL was created to oversee the withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon after the 1978 invasion. The UN expanded its mission following the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, allowing peacekeepers to deploy along the Israeli border. A UN Security Council resolution ending that war demanded that all armed groups — including Hezbollah — be disarmed and that the Lebanese army deploy throughout the country to the Israeli border. After 17 years, neither has happened.

Mr Lacroix, who is under ­secretary-general for peace operations, said UNIFIL had anticipated “a limited, targeted ground operation” and had thoroughly discussed whether UN peacekeepers should stay or not, deciding they should stay for now. “We’re constantly reviewing the situation” on the ground in terms of the safety and security of the peacekeepers, he said. He added that contingency plans were ready but refused to discuss them. Mr Lacroix also stressed that Israel and Hezbollah have an obligation to protect the peacekeepers.

Israeli ground forces crossed into southern Lebanon early on Tuesday, which along with stepped-up airstrikes marked a significant escalation against Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants and of the war in the Middle East. The fighting comes as the region braces for Israel’s response to Iran’s ballistic missile attack.

Hezbollah began firing across the border after Iranian-backed Hamas militants carried out ­attacks on Israel on October 7 and then Israel retaliated with its military offensive in Gaza.

Mr Lacroix said that there were a few “issues” after Israel’s ground operation in Lebanon began, which he wouldn’t go into, but that the UN liaison mechanism with its Israeli and Lebanese counterparts was “effective in addressing those issues”.

He said UNIFIL was not carrying out patrols, which it would normally do, but its positions were manned. In some places, the number of peacekeepers has been reduced by about 20 per cent, he said.

When Mr Lacroix was asked whether Israeli fire was coming too close to its bases or positions, he replied that one of the added values of the liaison operation is “to prevent and deal with possible incidents that would have the potential of affecting the safety, the security of our peacekeepers”.

The liaison officers were also dealing with other activities, including military movements.

Mr Lacroix said UNIFIL had been supporting civilian efforts to supply humanitarian assistance to people in southern Lebanon. The peacekeepers are still trying to help and “are playing a role as much as possible,” he said.

AP