Security Council extends mandate of UN force in Lebanon for final time

United Nations, Aug 29 (IANS) The Security Council extended the mandate of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for the final time before its withdrawal.

Resolution 2790, which was unanimously adopted by the 15-member council, extends UNIFIL's mandate until December 31, 2026, before a drawdown and withdrawal within one year, Xinhua news agency reported.

The resolution requests UNIFIL to cease its operations on December 31, 2026, and to start its orderly and safe drawdown and withdrawal of its personnel from this date and within one year.

It decides that UNIFIL's liquidation shall begin after the end of the drawdown and withdrawal phase. It authorizes, for the duration of UNIFIL's liquidation, the retention of a limited guard capability to protect UNIFIL's personnel, facilities and assets in close coordination with the Lebanese armed forces and security forces.

The resolution calls on the Lebanese government to fully respect all provisions of the 1995 Status of Forces Agreement, in particular the provisions relating to UNIFIL's freedom of movement throughout Lebanon as well as its privileges and immunities. It calls on the Lebanese government to take all appropriate steps to respect the safety and security of UNIFIL and its associated personnel and their equipment and premises.

UNIFIL was first established in 1978 to confirm Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon. After the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel, UNIFIL's mandate was expanded by Resolution 1701 to monitor the cessation of hostilities and to accompany the deployment of Lebanese armed forces throughout southern Lebanon as Israel withdrew its troops.

Resolution 2790 demands the full implementation of Resolution 1701, and reiterates its strong support for full respect for the cessation of hostilities and for the Blue Line, a border demarcation line between Lebanon and Israel established by the United Nations in 2000.

It calls on Israel to withdraw its forces north of the Blue Line and to lift the designated buffer zones north of the Blue Line. It calls on the Lebanese authorities to deploy to those positions with the time-bound support of UNIFIL, and to extend the control of the Lebanese government over all Lebanese territory for it to exercise its full sovereignty.

Resolution 2790 requests the UN secretary-general to explore, by June 1, 2026, options for the future of the implementation of Resolution 1701 after the withdrawal of UNIFIL.

--IANS

int/rs