Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)
In the early 1970s, tension along the Israel-Lebanon border increased,
especially after the relocation of Palestinian armed elements from Jordan to
Lebanon. Palestinian commando operations against Israel and Israeli reprisals
against Palestinian bases in Lebanon intensified. On 11 March 1978, a commando
attack in Israel resulted in many dead and wounded among the Israeli
population; the Palestine Liberation
Organization (PLO) claimed responsibility for that raid. In response,
Israeli forces invaded Lebanon on the night of 14/15 March, and in a few days
occupied the entire southern part of the country except for the city of Tyre
and its surrounding area.
On 15 March 1978, the Lebanese Government submitted a strong protest to the Security Council against the Israeli
invasion, stating that it had no connection with the Palestinian commando
operation. On 19 March the Security Council adopted resolutions 425 (1978) and 426 (1978), in which it
called upon Israel immediately to cease its military action and withdraw its
forces from all Lebanese territory. It also decided on the immediate
establishment of UNIFIL. The first UNIFIL troops arrived in the area on 23
March 1978.
In June 1982, Israel invaded Lebanon again. For three years, UNIFIL remained behind the Israeli lines, with its
role limited to providing protection and humanitarian assistance to the local
population to the extent possible. In 1985, Israel carried out a partial
withdrawal, but it retained control of an area in southern Lebanon manned by
the Israel Defense Forces
(IDF) and by Lebanese de facto forces (DFF), the so-called "South
Lebanon Army".
Although UNIFIL has been prevented from fulfilling its mandate, its
contribution to stability in the region and the protection it has been able to
provide to the local population remained important. The Force has recently
been streamlined in order to achieve savings without affecting its operational
effectiveness. The mandate has so far been renewed every six months. UNIFIL's
current mandate was most recently extended to 31 July 1999 by Security Council
resolution 1223(1999) of 28 January 1999.
As of May 31, 1999, UNIFIL had 4,500 troops; supported by international and
locally recruited civilian staff. Military personnel were contributed by Fiji, Finland, France, Ghana, India, Ireland, Italy, Nepal, Poland. UNIFIL suffered
227 fatalities as of 31 December 1998.
On 17 April 2000, the Secretary-General received formal
notification from the Government of Israel that it would
withdraw its forces from Lebanon by July 2000 "in full
accordance with Security Council resolutions 425 (1978) and
426 (1978)". He was further informed that in so doing the
Government of Israel intended "to cooperate fully with the United Nations". The Secretary-General informed the
Security Council of this notification on the same day, stating
that he had initiated preparations to enable the United Nations
to carry out its responsibilities under those resolutions.
On 20 April, the Council endorsed the
Secretary-General's decision to initiate those preparations.
As a first step, the Secretary-General sent his Special
Envoy, Terje Roed-Larsen (Norway), together with the Force
Commander of UNIFIL and a team of experts, to meet with the
Governments of Israel and Lebanon and concerned Member States
in the region, including Egypt, Jordan and the Syrian
Arab Republic. The delegation also met with the PLO and the League
of Arab States. During the mission, United Nations cartographic,
legal and military experts examined the technical issues
that would need to be addressed in the context of the implementation
of resolution 425 (1978). Parallel to that mission, which
took place between 26 April and 9 May 2000, the Secretary-General
consulted with interested Member States, including those
contributing troops to UNIFIL.
Starting on 16 May, much sooner than anticipated, IDF/DFF
began to vacate its positions, amid exchange of fire. Beginning
on 21 May, large crowds of Lebanese, accompanied by armed
elements, entered villages in the Israeli-controlled area,
and IDF/DFF vacated their position in great haste. At the
same time, a large number of the de facto forces, together
with their families, crossed into Israel. Others surrendered
to the Lebanese authorities. Within a few days, those forces
had completely disbanded. On 25 May, the Government of Israel
notified the Secretary-General that Israel had redeployed
its forces in compliance with Security Council resolutions
425 (1978) and 426 (1978).
UNIFIL continued to function in close cooperation with those
authorities and no longer exercised any control over the
area of operation. The Lebanese Government, however, still
did not deploy its personnel down to the Blue Line.
UNIFIL focused on the remaining part of its mandate: the
restoration of international peace and security, the report
continued. Pending a comprehensive peace, UNIFIL sought at
least to maintain the ceasefire along the Blue Line, through
patrols and observation from fixed positions and close contact
with the parties, with a view to correcting violations and
preventing the escalation of incidents. The Secretary-General
believed that the need for the United Nations to perform
such functions would continue to exist in the foreseeable
future.
In 2005, the resumption of military measures,
for which Hezbollah took credit, asserting its claimed prerogative
to resist Israeli occupation of Lebanese territory by force,
was disturbing, the Secretary-General said in a report.
The United Nations had made abundantly clear that no violations
of the Blue Line were acceptable. The continually asserted
position of the Government of Lebanon that the Blue Line
was not valid in the Shab'a farms area was not compatible
with Security Council resolutions. The Council has recognized
the Blue Line as valid for purposes of confirming Israel
's withdrawal pursuant to resolution 425 (1978). The
Government of Lebanon should heed the Council's repeated
calls for the parties to respect the Blue Line in its entirety.
The Secretary-General said that the 2005 rocket-firing incidents
perpetrated by individuals allegedly affiliated with Palestinian
militant factions demonstrated the volatility of the sector. Importantly,
none of the incidents resulted in a military escalation,
and for this the parties and UNIFIL deserved credit. Nevertheless,
this type of incidents presented a great risk to stability
in the area. The Lebanese Government continued to exercise
the capacity it had demonstrated thus far to exert its security
authority through various activities of the Joint Security
Force, including prompt responses to specific incidents.
More needs to be done, however, to meet the Security Council's
call for extended measures to ensure the return of effective
governmental authority throughout the south, including through
the deployment of additional Lebanese armed forces. Once
again, the Secretary-General urged the Government to do its
utmost to ensure calm and to exert full control over the
use of force across its entire territory.
The escalation of hostilities in July 2006 between the IDF
and Hezbollah has clearly affected operations of UNIFIL in
the south. Under such circumstances, UNIFIL is doing its
best to provide assistance within its limited capacities.
On the humanitarian front, UNIFIL is ready to work in collaboration
with the Lebanese government, but UNIFIL cannot replace the
role of the Lebanese authorities in the area.
As of July 2006, 257 UNIFIL personnel have
been killed in Lebanon, including 249 troops, 2 military
observers, 2 international civilian staff, and 4 civilian
staff members.
Sources: United
Nations; UNIFIL
|