3 months ago

UNIFIL sounds alarm over Israeli 'destruction' in southern Lebanon

A truce took effect on November 27, two months after Israel escalated its bombing campaign and sent troops into Lebanon, following nearly a year of cross-border fire exchanges over the Gaza genocidal war.

Reuters

A Lebanese army member walks near rubble at a damaged site in the Lebanese village of Khiam, December 23, 2024. / Photo: Reuters

The United Nations' peacekeeping force in Lebanon expressed concern at the "continuing" damage done by Israeli forces in the country's south despite a ceasefire in its war on Lebanon.

Lebanon's army on Thursday condemned Israel's "violation of the ceasefire agreement by attacking Lebanese sovereignty and destroying southern towns and villages".

Under the ceasefire agreement, UNIFIL peacekeepers and the Lebanese army were to redeploy in south Lebanon, near the Israeli border, as Israeli forces withdrew over 60 days.

UNIFIL said in a statement on Thursday that "there is concern at continuing destruction by the IDF (army) in residential areas, agricultural land and road networks in south Lebanon".

Violation of Resolution 1701

The statement added that "this is in violation of Resolution 1701", which was adopted by the UN Security Council and ended the last Israel-Lebanese war of 2006.

The UN force also reiterated its call for "the timely withdrawal" of Israeli troops from Lebanon, and "the full implementation of Resolution 1701".

The resolution states that Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers should be the only forces in south Lebanon, where Hezbollah exerts control, and also calls for Israeli troops to pull out of Lebanese territory.

"Any actions that risk the fragile cessation of hostilities must cease," UNIFIL said.

On Monday the force had urged "accelerated progress" in the Israeli military's withdrawal.

Israeli strikes deeper into Lebanon for 1st time since ceasefire

'Serious risk'

The Lebanese army said in a Thursday statement that it was reinforcing its presence in several areas of the south where "Israeli forces have penetrated".

One of those areas is Qantara, where Lebanon's official National News Agency (NNA) reported on Thursday "extensive" Israeli assaults, sending residents fleeing.

Hezbollah lawmaker Ali Fayad decried the offensives in a statement as an "extremely dangerous" development that poses "a serious risk" to the implementation of Resolution 1701.

On Wednesday the NNA said Israeli aircraft struck the eastern Baalbek region, far from the border.