The interim prime minister of Lebanon, Najib Mikati, affirmed this Monday that his government is willing to deploy the army in the south of the country to fully implement UN Resolution 1701, approved in 2006 after a month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. , in an attempt to establish a security zone that avoids a direct confrontation with the neighboring country and restore stability on the border.
“We in Lebanon are ready to implement resolution 1701, and immediately after the implementation of the ceasefire, Lebanon is ready to send the Lebanese army to the area south of the Litani River and to fully carry out its functions,” in coordination with the UN peacekeepers, Mikati declared after a meeting with the president of the House of Representatives, Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally.
The Lebanese prime minister specified that the river, located about 30 kilometers from the border with Israel, would be the new security line to guarantee stability in the region, thus allowing an eventual demilitarization of the area controlled by Hezbollah.
His words came as Defense Minister Yoav Gallant suggested that an Israeli ground incursion into Lebanon is imminent.
Political agreement conditional on ceasefire
Mikati also revealed that he and the speaker of Parliament agreed that the election of a new president, to end the nearly two-year vacancy in the country’s top office, would only take place once a sustained ceasefire was secured. . “As soon as the ceasefire is implemented and the Lebanese army assumes its duties in the south, parliament will meet to elect a consensus president,” the prime minister declared.
The lack of a president has plunged Lebanon into a deep political and economic crisis, and recent violence with Israel has further aggravated the situation. The election of a president is seen as a priority to stabilize the country and ensure that the government can cope with the current crisis.
The Lebanese Ministry of Health says that more than 1,000 Lebanese have been killed and 6,000 injured in the last two weeks, without specifying how many were civilians. One million people – a fifth of the population – have fled their homes, according to the government.
What is Resolution 1701
Resolution 1701 was adopted by the UN Security Council in August 2006, following a month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah that left hundreds dead and displaced tens of thousands of people in southern Lebanon. The resolution called for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanese territory and the deployment of the Lebanese army and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in the area south of the Litani River, where the Shiite militia has traditionally maintained a strong presence.
However, since then, implementation of the resolution has been partial and tensions have periodically risen at the border. Israel accuses Hezbollah of having reinforced its presence in the area and increased its arsenal of weapons, while the terrorist group maintains that Israeli incursions into Lebanese territory never stopped and that Israel’s aggression towards the country continues.
As the clashes continue, diplomats have once again turned to Resolution 1701 as the only way out to avoid an all-out war. However, the current circumstances are much more complicated than in 2006, with a stronger Hezbollah and with more political influence, and an Israel willing to intensify its military actions after having decimated the leadership of the terrorist group in the bombings of recent days.
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