The commander of UN peacekeepers in Lebanon has said that the situation on the Lebanese-Israeli border “remains tense and unpredictable” as Israel continued its daily violations of the ceasefire.
In honor of the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers, UNIFIL hosted on Thursday a ceremony at its Naqoura headquarters attended by members of the Lebanese Army, security services, local political and religious authorities, ambassadors, and UN officials.
“The situation along the Blue Line remains tense and unpredictable, with repeated violations and a high risk of miscalculation," Head of Mission and Force Commander Lieutenant-General Aroldo Lázaro warned.
"Through our liaison and coordination mechanisms, we offer a channel for dialogue and de-escalation helping to build the foundation for a possible solution," he said.
Emphasizing the need for a political process, the UNIFIL head noted that "the path to peace in southern Lebanon is political."
"We must all work to create the right conditions for a long-term, sustainable solution," he said.
"One important step in recent months has been the significant deployment of more LAF (Lebanese Army) soldiers to the south,” the UNIFIL chief stated. “Their presence as the sole providers of state authority and security must be preserved and for that, help from international partners needs to be maintained,” he added.
During the ceremony, Lázaro and Lebanese Army Commander representative Brigadier General Nicola Tabet laid wreaths in tribute to fallen peacekeepers. Over 4,400 UN peacekeepers have lost their lives on missions around the world since 1948, including more than 330 since UNIFIL was established in 1978.
The ceremony was held as Israel continued to violate the US-brokered ceasefire agreement that brought the latest war between Israel and Hezbollah to an end in late November.
An Israeli drone strike killed on Thursday a municipal worker in southern Lebanon, the state-run National News Agency said.
The man was on his way to work on a well supplying water to homes when he was killed in the town of Nabatieh al-Fawqa, NNA said. Lebanon’s Health Ministry also reported one person killed in the strike.
