UNIFIL's Failure to Enforce UNSC 1701

Over the years, and especially since the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1701 in 2006, the Hezbollah terrorist organization has built and developed an extensive network of terrorist infrastructure in the villages of southern Lebanon. Under the guise of civilian cover, Hezbollah operatives have concealed large quantities of weapons, including arms, launchers, and more. Additionally, the organization chose to plant some of its terrorist infrastructure near UN positions and posts, seeking to exploit UNIFIL personnel and their facilities to shield its assets. All of this reflects the failure of UNIFIL to enforce Resolution 1701.

On September 30th (Thursday), the IDF began limited, localized, targeted ground operations based on precise intelligence in southern Lebanon, aimed at enforcing Resolution 1701 - pushing Hezbollah, along with its assets and infrastructure, away from the border and enabling residents of northern Israel to return to their homes. Prior to the start of the ground activity, the IDF informed UNIFIL that the Blue Line area would become an active combat zone and urged the force’s personnel to vacate the combat area to ensure their safety. Since then, the IDF has maintained continuous communication with UNIFIL, coordinating its activity with UN forces and making every effort to prevent harm to UN forces and their facilities.  Since the beginning of the activity, the Northern Command and UNIFIL liaison and coordination personnel have coordinated hundreds of operational activities.

However, since the start of the ground activity in southern Lebanon, Hezbollah has sought to protect its operatives and facilities from the IDF by exploiting and endangering UNIFIL personnel and facilities. Since the beginning of the war, the Hezbollah terrorist organization has carried out thousands of terrorist activities against Israeli civilians, firing over 125 projectiles from adjacent to UN positions. In October alone, more than 200 Hezbollah-launched projectiles landed next to UN positions.

On November 7th (Thursday), as part of the IDF’s activity to destroy Hezbollah’s terrorist infrastructure in Lebanon, the IDF operated near a UN post. Contrary to claims, engineering vehicles operated outside the fence of the UN post and did not enter the UNIFIL position.

It is possible that as part of the troops’ activity part of the Blue Line infrastructure was harmed.  The IDF emphasizes that it has no intention of altering the Blue Line. The IDF operates solely against Hezbollah’s capabilities with the purpose of pushing the organization from the area and ensuring security for Israeli residents.

The IDF will continue its targeted operational activity against the Hezbollah terrorist organization and its terrorist infrastructure, while adhering to the principles of international law, and to the extent possible coordinating its operational activity with UNIFIL to ensure the safety of its personnel and posts. Coordination with UNIFIL will continue, despite the challenging combat situation posed by a terrorist organization that exploits UN facilities and civilian infrastructure to protect its operatives. The IDF acts, and will continue to act, with increased caution in areas adjacent to UN facilities, even when this presents an operational disadvantage and endangers its troops.