Diplomats Suggest Expansion of Buffer Zone between Lebanon and Israel

A UN peacekeeper vehicle passes a destroyed car in the southern outskirts of Tyre, Lebanon, Wednesday, March 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammad Zaatari)

United Nations diplomats said that some recent suggestions are focusing on the expansion of the buffer zone between Lebanon and Israel as a precaution to prevent further escalation between Lebanon’s Hezbollah group and Israel, or a spillover of the Gaza war into Lebanon.
These suggestions were raised during a closed-door meeting held by the UN Security Council on Tuesday that discussed the latest report of Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the ongoing efforts to implement UN Resolution 1701, amid the daily exchange of fire between Lebanon and Israel.
A diplomat of the five permanent members of the Council told Asharq Al-Awsat that interlocutors expressed “concern over the escalation along the Blue Line in recent weeks”, and stressed the need for the full implementation of resolution 1701. They also reiterated the need to support UNIFIL's role to prevent further deterioration.
UNIFIL’s Role
Another diplomat also expressed worry saying “we are gravely concerned about the situation on the border”, warning against any kind of “provocations that could aggravate things further”.
He said a “more effective” role and UNIFIL “preparedness” is essential in order to tune down the tension, adding that they seek to find a way to expand the buffer zone to protect Israel from attacks from the Lebanese side, and for the Lebanese armed focus to to control the situation in south Lebanon.
Dangerous Threat
Guterres had expressed concern in his report about the tension along the Blue Line amid increasing hostilities and an almost daily exchange of fire between Hezbollah and other non-government armed groups on one hand and Israel on the other.
He said the conflict entails a dangerous threat for the stability of Lebanon, Israel and the region, and demanded a political approach to address the root of the conflict based on UN resolution 1701.
Lebanese Army
The diplomats agreed on the necessity to address the tension along the Blue Line, appease the security situation and stop the provocations on both sides of the border. This would help thousands of displaced people on both sides of the border to return to their villages.
To that end, bolstering the role of the Lebanese army and UNIFIL is essential.
Representatives of the UN countries have therefore underscored that to achieve that end, Lebanon’s state institutions must be restored, mainly the election of a new president and the formation of a government capable of performing the needed financial and economic reforms.