UN special envoy to Lebanon calls for ceasefire

The UN peacekeeping mission was tasked under Security Council resolution 1701, adopted in 2006, to help the Lebanese army keep the southern border area with Israel free of weapons or armed personnel other than those of the Lebanese state.

A damaged building after an Israeli airstrike in the town of Wardaniyeh, Lebanon on October 9, 2024. Photo: Reuters

All sides are prohibited from crossing the Green Line - a UN-mapped boundary dividing Lebanon from Israel and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

“We need a realistic roadmap for both sides to implement resolution 1701. And this roadmap must include clear implementation and enforcement mechanisms,” said Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, the UN special coordinator for Lebanon. “It is the lack or failure to implement resolution 1701 over the past 18 years that has led to the harsh reality today.”

UN peacekeepers remain in southern Lebanon despite Israel’s request to move out as its troops crossed the border to target Hezbollah fighters. Hezbollah said on Wednesday it had repelled advancing Israeli forces.

Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon said on Wednesday that Israel believes in the language of resolution 1701, but "we should think about how to implement it."

“We don’t want to stay in Lebanon, and I think the Lebanese army and UNIFIL are the only forces that can do that, but they need to have the strength, the authority and the ability to make sure Hezbollah doesn’t go back to where it was,” Danon said.

Last month, France and the United States proposed a 21-day ceasefire. But those talks quickly stalled when Israel bombed a southern suburb of Beirut, killing longtime Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

“I think the joint call for a 21-day ceasefire, either by the US or led by the US and France, is still on the table and very relevant, so we should not dismiss it,” said Ms Hennis-Plasschaert.

Hoang Anh (according to Reuters)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/dac-phai-vien-lien-hop-quoc-tai-lebanon-keu-goi-ngung-ban-thuc-thi-nghi-quyet-1701-post316055.html