Israel is pushing to expand the UN Interim Force’s (UNIFIL) mandate in Lebanon to include Hezbollah military posts.
Tel Aviv is asking France, which holds the Lebanon portfolio in the UN Security Council, to include the military posts that Hezbollah has placed along the border, hidden inside cargo containers under UNIFIL's mandate.
Political sources in Tel Aviv said on Friday that Israel's request from France came within the framework of preparing to extend the mandate of UNIFIL so that the peacekeepers can reach the Israeli border freely without requiring permission from the Lebanese army.
On Wednesday, the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Green Without Borders (GWB) a terrorist organization.
Israel claimed GWB is affiliated with Hezbollah and established about 30 containers along the Blue Line, which it uses for surveillance.
Tel Aviv considered them military sites that could be used to launch military action against Israel and destabilize the region.
The sources revealed that Israeli army representatives made this request to UNIFIL before heading to France, but the response was that they are currently dealing with these containers as "only obscuring vision."
Israel indicated that refusing to recognize these containers as Hezbollah military sites prevents UNIFIL from accessing them, leading to confrontation, warning that "granting legitimacy to Hezbollah's presence at the border increases the possibility of war."
The official channel, Kan 11, stated that there is an understanding of Israel's concern among the member states of the Security Council, especially the United States and Britain.
OFAC claimed the Organization supported and covered Hezbollah's operations in southern Lebanon along the Blue Line between Lebanon and Israel over the last decade while publicly operating under the guise of environmental activism.
The statement indicated that Hezbollah members conduct weapons training at firing ranges at the GWB outposts, patrol the surrounding area, and maintain containerized housing units 25 meters from the Blue Line.
Earlier, UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Aroldo Lazaro chaired a Tripartite meeting with senior officers of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and Israeli forces at a UN position in Ras al-Naqoura.
Discussions focused on the situation along the Blue Line, air and ground violations, and other issues within UNIFIL's mandate under UN Security Council Resolution 1701 (2006) and subsequent resolutions.
UNIFIL said in a statement that Lazaro expressed his concern over a series of incidents along the Blue Line in recent months which have increased tension.
"The UNIFIL chief urged the parties to continue to avail of UNIFIL's liaison and coordination mechanisms while avoiding unilateral actions."
He also appealed for engagement in Blue Line talks to address outstanding issues.
The statement indicated that "since the end of the 2006 war in south Lebanon, regular Tripartite meetings have been held under UNIFIL's auspices as an essential conflict-management and confidence-building mechanism."
The Security Council is expected to issue a resolution to renew the UNIFIL mandate.
In August 2006, the UN Security Council formed UNIFIL under Resolution 1701 and stipulated the deployment of 15,000 international peacekeepers.
