A former United Nations peacekeeper told a Danish news site that the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon is subject to limitations placed on it over fears of reprisals from Hezbollah operatives.
In an interview with B.T. News on Sunday, an individual using the alias ‘Michael’ described the conditions in southern Lebanon during his tenure with the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization as being “completely under Hezbollah's control.”
‘Michael’ informed the tabloid he was assigned to document any infringements of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, which permits only the Lebanese military to operate in the country’s southern border area.
During his deployment, he disclosed that Hezbollah representatives had prohibited UNIFIL employees from traveling after dark, controlled their presence in certain municipalities, confiscated their recording equipment, and prevented them from approaching suspicious persons near the boundary with Israel.
"We reported daily violations of Resolution 1701 to our superiors, including in particular restrictions on our freedom of movement, and we were instructed to report all violations regardless of number. But nothing ever happened,' the ex-soldier said. "We did not hear back from them, and nothing was initiated. It was wildly frustrating, and it only confirmed to me what I had experienced in other countries I was posted to: The U.N. is incompetent.”
‘Michael’ also claimed many UNIFIL personnel were personally supportive of Hezbollah, recalling an incident when a colleague praised Hassan Nasrallah, the terror group’s recently eliminated leader.
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