UNIFIL: Nothing changed in mission's mandate in South Lebanon

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The spokesperson of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), Andrea Tenenti, said Tuesday that nothing has changed in terms of the mission's mandate, activities on the ground, and work with the Lebanese Army.

In an interview for Al Mayadeen, Tenenti said that "we continue to work with the Lebanese Armed forces in close coordination" but noted that this "does not mean that all the activities that we are carrying out are done together with the Lebanese Army."

"This has always been the case since 2006, so nothing has changed."

Tenenti explained that "not all the activities that we are carrying out are done with the Lebanese Army. Around 20% of the activities are done with the Lebanese Army, but everything we do is decided and coordinated with the Lebanese Armed Forces."

Regarding the daily Israeli occupation violations of the Lebanese airspace, the UNIFIL spokesperson indicated that "flying over the Lebanese territory is a violation of the [UN] resolutions."

He noted that "violating the airspace is something that has been addressed in the Security Council," adding that "we have been bringing up all the violations to the Security Council."

"The Secretary-General has also expressed his concerns about air violations over Lebanese territory," Tenenti said, pointing out that the Israeli violations have the tendency to increase tension and undermine the capability of the mission to implement its mandate.

"There is a large number of Israeli air violations. These are daily violations that undermine the work of the mission and increase the tension in the area."

Tenenti noted that the Lebanese village of Ghajar has been under occupation and "Israel" is obliged to withdraw from the northern part of the village.

Coordination between UNIFIL & Lebanese Army is necessary

It is noteworthy that on Monday, Lebanese President Michel Aoun reiterated Lebanon's commitment to international resolutions, especially Resolution 1701, pointing to the importance of implementing all its components.

Aoun considered that coordination between the UNIFIL and the Lebanese army is necessary to ensure the success of the mission of maintaining security and peace on the borders, stressing the necessity of providing appropriate environments to prevent any clash between the people and the international soldiers.

On August 31, the UN Security Council renewed the mandate of the UN peacekeeping forces in Lebanon for one year, asking the UNIFIL to continue providing logistical support for the Lebanese army for another six months.

The UNIFIL has been in the Lebanese South since 1978 as a "buffer" between Lebanon and the Israeli occupation as the two parties are technically still in a state of war.

The Security Council decided, at the request of Beirut, to extend the 10,000-strong force's mandate until August 2023.

The resolution was adopted by the council's 15 members, who stressed in particulate the "risk that violations of the cessation of hostilities could lead to a new conflict that none of the parties or the region can afford."

Later, the Lebanese Foreign Ministry announced that the UN Security Council's decision to extend the UNIFIL mandate in Lebanon is written in a manner that does not go with the decision's framework agreement.