UNIFIL has a “vocation” to remain in Lebanon, warns Sébastien Lecornu
Peacekeepers from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) “vocation to stay”estimated on Monday the French Minister of the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu, two days before a meeting of European contributors to the mission.
“The day the guns fall silent, there will always be this “blue line” (that separates Lebanon from Israel), there will be a resolution 1701 or a new resolution, there will always be an area whose neutralization we will have to take responsibility for”explained on France 5, adding that “That is why the mission is intended to remain”. “It is the United Nations that put these forces in place, it is up to the United Nations to withdraw them, unless ordered by the various contributing nations.”estimated Mr. Lecornu.
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The European countries contributing to UNIFIL (Italy, France, Spain and Ireland) will meet by video conference on Wednesday to agree on their positions. Sébastien Lecornu’s words echo those of the President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, according to whom “There will be no withdrawal of UNIFIL”.
As tensions rise between Israel and the UN mission after five peacekeepers were injured by the Israeli army, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday called on UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to put on his blue helmets “take shelter immediately”.
