Rivlin: Iran, Hezbollah destabilizing security; UNIFIL must be empowered
Rivlin’s visit comes in advance of the UN Security Council’s anticipated renewal in August of UNIFIL’s mandate.
By TOVAH LAZAROFFPresident Reuven Rivlin visits northern Israel and meets with IDF personnel on July 16, 2020(photo credit: KOBI GIDEON/GPO)
Iran and Hezbollah are working to destabilize Israeli security, President Reuven Rivlin warned as he visited northern Israel on Thursday and called for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon to be fully empowered to monitor the situation.“I know that the IDF is doing everything to prevent attempts to infiltrate, but the Lebanese government, and UNIFIL which assists it, must take responsibility for preventing attempts to cross the border and breaching the calm in this area,” Rivlin said.“We know very well that Hezbollah and its proxies, and Iran and its proxies, will take every opportunity to destabilize our security. Protecting this incendiary border requires [the IDF] to mount overt and covert operations and, most importantly, responsibility, judgement, mission focus and the will to win,” he said.Rivlin’s visit comes in advance of the UN Security Council’s anticipated renewal in August of UNIFIL’s mandate that governs the peace-keeping mission’s activities. Both Israel and the United States want to see UNIFIL’s mandate expanded so it can better monitor Hezbollah’s activities along the border.At issue in particular, has been the cross border terror tunnels which Hezbollah has dug between Lebanon and Israel.
