Pakistan urges Israel to withdraw from Lebanon, Syrian buffer zone

NEW YORK: Pakistan has called on Israel to leave Lebanese and Syrian territory, including the Golan Heights, and for UN peacekeepers to work freely to secure adherence to international accords for promoting permanent peace and stability in the Middle East.

Ambassador Munir Akram, Pakistan’s permanent representative to the UN, expressed profound concern in a speech to the UN Security Council (UNSC) about the growing dangers that peacekeepers from the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) face.

Following a briefing by two top UN peacekeeping officers to the 15-member Council on the latest events in Lebanon and the occupied Syrian Golan, as well as the difficulties faced by “blue helmets” operating there, the Pakistani representative spoke.

UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix was joined by Major General Patrick Gauchat, Head of UNTSO who is temporarily in charge of the UN force in the Golan, UNDOF.

Lacroix is currently in Lebanon, where UNIFIL  monitors the Blue Line border of separation with Israel.  He is there with the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and they visited the Mission’s area of operations earlier in the day.

In his remarks, the Pakistan envoy strongly condemned Israel’s ongoing aggression in Syrian territories and the illegal incursion of Israeli military forces in the separation areas established under the 1974 Disengagement Agreement.

That agreement remains binding and must be upheld without exception, Ambassador Akram said, adding no force except UNDOF should have a military presence there. “Any unilateral actions that undermine this agreement are unacceptable.”

Similarly, he said, Pakistan recognizes the essential role of UNIFIL in maintaining stability in Southern Lebanon under Security Council Resolution 1701.

Welcoming the cessation of hostilities arrangement between Lebanon and Israel of November 26, 2024, Ambassador Akram backed the Lebanese leadership in their commitment to fulfill this arrangement.

But he voiced alarm over the continued violations of the arrangement by Israeli forces including airspace violations, airstrikes and restrictions on UNIFIL’s freedom of movement.

“Israel must adhere to the 60-day timeline stipulated in the arrangement and complete its withdrawal from Southern Lebanon,” he said. Any security concerns should be promptly reported to the appropriate mechanisms, including UNIFIL, instead of resorting to unilateral violations of the arrangement and of Resolution 1701.

“The unrestricted freedom of movement of UNIFIL and full deployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) are crucial to achieving the security and stability’/.

The Pakistani envoy urged the Security Council to ensure the full implementation of the mandates of both UNDOF and UNIFIL, saying they must have its sustained backing.  UNDOF and UNIFIL, he said,  must be equipped with adequate resources and modern technologies to enhance their operational efficiency and to ensure the safety and security of peacekeepers, which was paramount.

“Those who attack UN peacekeepers must be held accountable.”

Ambassador Akram hoped that the Gaza ceasefire “is real and it will be the first step towards a comprehensive solution, including two-state solution and establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state.”