Senior UNIFIL officers are concerned over remarks made by Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah on renewing the mandate of the international peacekeeping force in south Lebanon.
the authorities granted to the international peacekeeping force in south Lebanon.
Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar reported on Wednesday that senior UNIFIL officers took notice of the decisive stance by Sayyed Nasrallah regarding powers granted to the peacekeepers as stipulated by the UNSC draft resolution which will be discussed on Thursday.
In his Monday speech, Sayyed Nasrallah warned that if the UN draft resolution on not binding the international force to coordinate with the Lebanese army is passed, it will be a dead letter “just like the resolution adopted last year.”
The UNIFIL officers recalled a long list of clashes which took place between the Lebanese southern locals and the UNIFIL units during the last year, Al-Akhbar reported, citing sources.
During a luncheon held by the Lebanese Army’s Southern Litani Command in honor of UNIFIL Commander General Aroldo Lazaro yesterday (Tuesday) in Tyre, the rhetoric of the international force was different, the sources quoted by Al-Akhbar said, adding that Lazaro underlined importance of coordination between the Lebanese Army and the UNIFIL.
The sources noted that UNIFIL officers disagree about the repercussions of working independently from the Lebanese Army, with fears that this activity could spark angry reactions by south Lebanon’s locals.
Source: Al-Akhbar Lebanese daiy
