The situation on the Israeli-Lebanese border is extremely sensitive, a spokeswoman for the UN peacekeeping mission located there said Wednesday. She urged all sides to halt any actions that could lead to an escalation.“We are aware of disturbing reports about an incident along the Blue Line,” Kandice Ardiel said. “We are looking into it. In the meantime, the situation is extremely sensitive.”“We urge everyone to cease any action that may lead to escalation of any kind,” the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) spokeswoman added.Ardiel spoke after the IDF halted two attempts by suspects on the Lebanese side of the border to sabotage the security barrier.
Border tensions continue to rise
Tensions had already been high on the border after the Iranian proxy group Hezbollah placed a military structure on the Israeli side of the border at Mount Dov and put a few others on the Lebanese side.The move was in direct violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which upholds the terms of the cease-fire that ended the 2006 Second Lebanon War.UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s office is expected to release a report on compliance with those terms this week, prior to a UN Security Council vote later this month to renew UNIFIL’s mandate.On Monday, UNIFIL Force Commander Aroldo Lazaro met with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and caretaker Prime Minister Najib Makati.“Our meetings focused on the implementation of @UN Resolution 1701, Lebanon’s request to renew our mandate, and the current situation along the Blue Line,” Lazaro tweeted.Israel has demanded that Lebanon force Hezbollah to remove the military structures. It has long argued that UNIFIL is not fully empowered by Lebanon to monitor the border area and ensure that there are no armed non-state actors, such as Hezbollah, in that area.Amos Hochstein, the US special envoy for global infrastructure and energy security, met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday to discuss regional issues. Last year, he mediated an agreement to resolve the maritime border dispute between Israel and Lebanon.