What's In Blue

Posted Fri 17 Jan 2025
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Briefing on the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF)

This afternoon (17 January), the Security Council will hold a briefing on the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF). Russia requested the meeting to address the latest developments in the respective areas of operations, including the challenges peacekeepers face in carrying out their mandates. Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix and Head of the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) and Interim Head of UNDOF Major General Patrick Gauchat will brief via videoconference (VTC). Israel, Lebanon, and Syria are expected to participate under rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure.

Lacroix is expected to provide an update on the situation in UNIFIL’s area of operations with a focus on the implementation of the 26 November 2024 cessation of hostilities arrangement between Israel and Lebanon (S/2024/870). The arrangement was brokered by the US and France after over 13 months of hostilities primarily involving Israel and Hezbollah. It outlines a 60-day deadline for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to withdraw south of the Blue Line and, in parallel, for the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) to deploy to positions south of the Litani river. (The Blue Line is a withdrawal line set by the UN in 2000 to confirm the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon.) The cessation of hostilities arrangement says that Israel will not carry out any offensive military operations against Lebanese targets in the territory of Lebanon, while the Lebanese government will prevent Hezbollah and all other armed groups from conducting any operations against Israel. Under the terms of the arrangement, the LAF will also dismantle unauthorised infrastructure and confiscate unauthorised arms, among other tasks.

At less than ten days before the expiration of the 60-day deadline, which lapses at 4 am local time on 26 January, Lacroix is expected to update the Council on the process of the IDF’s withdrawal and the LAF’s deployment. The IDF has withdrawn from some areas in southern Lebanon, such as the area of Naqoura in southwestern Lebanon, where the LAF has subsequently deployed with UNIFIL’s support. The IDF continues to occupy and carry out military operations in other areas in southern Lebanon, with UNIFIL on 26 December 2024 expressing “concern at continuing destruction by the IDF in residential areas, agricultural land, and road networks in south Lebanon”. At the time of writing, it remains unclear whether the parties will agree on an extension of the 60-day deadline stipulated in the cessation of hostilities arrangement for the respective withdrawal and deployment.

Lacroix might describe how UNIFIL is working in close coordination with the LAF in the context of its deployment to southern Lebanon and in support of the implementation of the cessation of hostilities arrangement. He may highlight activities such as initiatives facilitating the return of the civilian population, clearing of unexploded ordnance, and confiscating unauthorised arms. In this respect, Lacroix may note, as Secretary-General António Guterres did in his 17 January remarks during his visit to Lebanon, that UNIFIL “uncovered over a 100 weapons caches belonging to Hezbollah or other armed groups” since 27 November 2024, when the cessation of hostilities entered into effect. He might also address challenges that UNIFIL is facing, including regarding the mission’s freedom of movement and access within its area of operations, as well as in terms of adequate resources to enable the mission to carry out its mandate and to support the LAF.

More generally, Lacroix might elaborate on how UNIFIL is adjusting its posture and adapting to the current circumstances within the contours of its mandate as framed in resolution 1701. (Adopted in 2006, resolution 1701 called for a cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.)  Lacroix may also reference recent political developments in Lebanon, such as the 9 January election of President of the Republic of Lebanon Joseph Aoun and the designation on 13 January of Nawaf Salam as prime minister, as positive steps for institution-strengthening in the country.

Gauchat is expected to brief members on recent developments in UNDOF’s area of operations. The security dynamics in the Golan have changed significantly since the ousting of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on 8 December 2024. Following this development, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement between Israel and Syria had “collapsed”. Netanyahu announced that he had ordered the IDF to take over the positions abandoned by the Syrian armed forces to prevent any “hostile force” from establishing itself near Israel’s border. (The 1974 agreement ended the Yom Kippur War and established an UN-monitored buffer zone in the Golan, establishing the areas of separation, a demilitarised buffer zone, and limitation, where Israeli and Syrian troops and equipment are restricted.)

In a 7 December 2024 letter to the Council, Israel described its actions in the Golan as limited and temporary, adding that the IDF deployment remains limited to specific locations “where defensive measures are necessary to maintain security, stability, and preventing armed groups from threatening Israeli territory”. During a visit to Mount Hermon on 17 December 2024, Syria’s highest peak and a strategic location overlooking Israel, Lebanon, and Syria, media reports quoted Netanyahu as saying that the Israeli forces would stay in the buffer zone until another arrangement is established to ensure Israel’s security. (For background and more information, see our 9 December 2024 What’s in Blue story.)

In a 13 December 2023 press release, UNDOF confirmed a significant increase in IDF movements within the area of separation and along the ceasefire line, where the IDF has been constructing counter-mobility obstacles since July 2024. However, the deployment of Israeli troops reportedly has gone beyond the buffer zone, with some media reports indicating that the IDF has conducted raids in Syrian border villages, established roadblocks, and taken control of former Syrian military outposts. In a 15 January post on X (formerly Twitter), the IDF said that its troops have continued operations in Syria and have confiscated more than 3,300 weapons from the Syrian territory, including tanks, anti-tank missiles, and mortars.

Several member states and UN officials have raised concerns about Israel’s actions in the Golan and their implications on Syria’s political process. During an 8 January Council meeting on Syria, Special Envoy for Syria Geir O. Pedersen voiced deep concern about continued Israeli military presence and activity, including beyond the area of separation, in violation of the 1974 agreement. He highlighted reports of the IDF using live ammunition against civilians, as well as incidents of displacement and the destruction of civilian infrastructure.

At today’s meeting, Council members and the briefers are expected to emphasise the importance of ensuring the safety and security of UN peacekeepers and of removing any impediment to their freedom of movement in their area of operations. Members are likely to recognise the work of UNIFIL and UNDOF peacekeepers in these difficult contexts and reiterate their support for their respective mandates. Several Council members are also likely to express support for the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and political independence of Syria and Lebanon.

Participants may underscore that deliberate attacks against UN peacekeepers are unacceptable and that the inviolability of UN premises must be respected at all times. Some Council members, such as Algeria and Russia, might mention incidents involving the IDF, such as those identified by UNIFIL as deliberately targeting peacekeepers and facilities, that took place during the phase of active combat between Israel and Hezbollah. These members might also highlight the Israeli attacks in the vicinity of the Golan and the increased hostility in Syria. Israeli forces have carried out a series of intensive airstrikes across various locations in Syria since the announcement of the Assad government’s overthrow, targeting weapons and ammunition warehouses.

Regarding the situation in Lebanon, several Council members may welcome the decrease in the overall level of violence between Israel and Hezbollah since the cessation of hostilities. Members may call for the prompt withdrawal and deployment of, respectively, the IDF and the LAF and the full implementation of the cessation of hostilities arrangement and resolution 1701. Several participants are likely to highlight the importance of equipping UNIFIL with enhanced capabilities and underscore the necessity of supporting the LAF in assuming its expanded role in southern Lebanon.

Regarding the situation in the Golan, Gauchat is likely to call on all parties to respect the framework established by the 1974 agreement and adhere to obligations under relevant Security Council and General Assembly resolutions. He may underline the need to ensure conditions for the implementation of the mission’s mandate in a safe and secure manner. Gauchat may highlight the need for the parties to cooperate with the mission and, in this regard, he might provide an update on the mission’s liaison activities with both sides as well as actions taken pursuant to its mandate and any challenges faced in this regard.

Several Council members are likely to express concern about the developments in the Golan and urge all parties to refrain from actions that might further aggravate the security situation and stand contrary to international law. Several members are likely to call for respect of 1974 agreement, for Israel to withdraw from the area of separation and respect for Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Some might also highlight and express concern about Israel’s 15 December 2024 decision to expand settlements in the Golan.

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