Israel is in favor of extending the mission of the UN interim force in southern Lebanon, but believes that the mandate of the peacekeepers must be expanded to be more effective. This was stated by the official representative of the Israeli Foreign Ministry Lior Hayat.
“Israel supports the renewal of UNIFIL’s mandate, but we believe that qualitative changes are necessary in how the UN and the Security Council are implementing the mandate that UNIFIL receives in accordance with Resolution 1701, which allows them to effectively carry out tasks in southern Lebanon. We appreciate that the countries that send peacekeepers to the mission are making efforts to keep peace on the border, this is our task too. But if the peacekeepers do not have the opportunity to work effectively in southern Lebanon, including the ability to enter the places that, according to our information, Hezbollah is using to store their arsenals, if they do not have the opportunity to be there, then this means that they will not do everything possible to maintain peace at the border, ” the diplomat said.
Let us remind you that earlier the Lebanese government decided to send a request to the UN Security Council to extend the mission of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for a year.