UN Security Council to discuss extending UNIFIL mandate in Lebanon

The United Nations Security Council will discuss on Friday extending the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for one year and reducing the number of soldiers stationed from 15,000 to 13,000.

France, which prepared a preliminary draft for the Security Council decision, called on the: “Lebanese government to facilitate UNIFIL’s rapid and complete access to sites the forces want to investigate, including all places north of the Blue Line connected to tunnels allowing infiltrations.”

An unnamed diplomat told Agence France-Presse that reducing the number of UNIFIL troops will not have a huge impact, because there are currently 10,500 UNIFIL peacekeepers deployed.

Diplomats have expressed that the US, which fully supports Israel, has criticised the force’s lack of action in the face of Hezbollah, which has a strong presence in southern Lebanon.

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The Lebanese government and Hezbollah have recently asked to extend the peacekeeper’s mission without any modification. However, last week Israel accused the mission of “bias and incompetence” and called for a reform.

UNIFIL’s mandate will be extended on 31 August.

Lebanon will rise up from its ashes – Cartoon [Sabaaneh/MiddleEastMonitor]