Israel recommends that UNIFIL move north to avoid danger
Israel is recommending that the U.N. peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon move 5 kilometers (3 miles) north to avoid intensified fighting between its forces and Hezbollah fighters.
Israel’s U.N. Ambassador, Danny Danon, announced the recommendation in a statement following the wounding of two U.N. peacekeepers from the force known as UNIFIL as a result of Israeli tank fire. UNIFIL also reported that its headquarters and nearby positions “have repeatedly been hit” by Israeli forces.
U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq, asked whether UNIFIL would pull back, said the United Nations is aware of requests for the peacekeepers to move, but they remain in place while their safety and security is continuously assessed.
“Any deliberate attack on peacekeepers is a grave violation of international humanitarian law” and the 2006 U.N. Security Council resolution that ended the Israel-Hezbollah war, and UNIFIL is following up with the Israeli army, Haq said.
Danon reiterated that “Israel has no desire to be in Lebanon, but it will do what is necessary to force Hezbollah terrorists away from its northern border so that our 70,000 residents, who are refugees in their own country, can safely return to their homes.”
UNIFIL was created to oversee the withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon after Israel’s 1978 invasion. The U.N. expanded its mission following the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah war, allowing peacekeepers to deploy along the Israeli border. The force has more than 10,000 peacekeepers from around 50 countries.
“UNIFIL has remained in its positions along the Blue Line without interruption since its establishment,” Nick Birnback, U.N. peacekeeping’s chief of strategic communications, told the AP.
The Blue Line is the U.N.-drawn boundary between Lebanon and Israel, which have border disputes.
Source: Associated Press
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