Debris are piled up amid the destruction a day after Israeli airstrikes that targeted the southern Lebanese city of Nabatieh on October 17, 2024. AFP
The UNIFIL force's spokesman said it was more important than ever for the peacekeepers to remain in place, despite repeated attacks on their positions by Israeli forces.
"The escalation along the Blue Line is causing widespread destruction of towns and villages in south Lebanon, while rockets continue to be launched towards Israel, including civilian areas," said Andrea Tenenti, spokesman for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon.
The Blue Line is the demarcation line between Israel and Lebanon.
"The devastation and destruction of many villages along the Blue Line, and even beyond, is shocking," Tenenti told a media briefing in Geneva, via video-link from Beirut.
"The role of UNIFIL at the moment is more important than ever. We need to be here. We need to try to bring back stability and peace to this region," he added.
UNIFIL was set up in 1978 to monitor the withdrawal of Israeli forces after they invaded Lebanon, and to help the Lebanese government restore authority over the border region.
Tenenti said the mission currently had more than 10,000 peacekeepers from 52 contributing countries, which shows international "commitment to bring back stability to this region that has been devastated by conflict for the last 12 months".
The troops were "incredibly resilient" and "the morale is still very high", he added.
UN flag still flies
On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on the UN to move peacekeepers away from the border, so it could press with its invasion of Lebanon.
They have decided to stay put in their 29 positions close to the Blue Line.
"It's important for the UN flag to still fly there, and because we are there at the request of the Security Council, there was also a strong and vocal voice from... the international community to stay," said Tenenti.
"Immediately after that, we've been targeted several times, five times. And deliberate attacks," he added.
The attacks have sparked international criticism, but Israel's army says it is not targeting the UN peacekeepers or their positions.
Tenenti said UNIFIL was allowed to act in self-defence, "but we also have to be very pragmatic on when to use it and how to use it because we don't want to become part of the conflict -- and using force, that could trigger more violence."
"It's very important at the moment to decrease the violence, to decrease the tension."
In recent weeks, most UNIFIL patrols had been suspended, he said. But they continue to monitor the situation from their positions, adding that the safety of the mission was the top priority.
Hezbollah has been exchanging cross-border fire with Israel for more than a year. It says it is acting in response to Israel's devastating ground and air assaults in Gaza.
The near-daily exchange of fire across the Israel-Lebanon border has led to the displacement of tens of thousands of people on both sides even before the dramatic escalation last month, when Netanyahu vowed to expand the war on Gaza to Lebanon.
The Israeli war in Lebanon has so far killed at least 2,367 people since October 2023, two thirds of them killed in the last month, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.
Israeli strikes on Lebanon have so far killed 2,367 people, more than three-quarters of them in the past month, according to the latest toll released by the Lebanese health ministry.
The Israeli escalation has also displaced some 1.2 million people in Lebanon.
*This story was edited by Ahram Online.
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