Syria, Lebanon, Israel - Presser by Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations | United Nations

Upon his return from the Middle East, Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix, today (27 Jun) told journalists in New York that Lebanese Armed Forces “have continued to strengthen their presence South of the Litani River,” with the support of the United Nations Interim Force In Lebanon (UNIFIL), while in the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) area of operations, Syrian authorities have indicated that they are ready to deploy “the military and security presence to all Syrian territory.” Lacroix said in Lebanon, “there has been additional action with a view to identify and eventually neutralize caches of weapons, which is an important element in the implementation of a resolution 1701.” Nevertheless, he said, “there continues to be violations, there continues to be more that needs to be done, again, to achieve a full implementation of that resolution.” Lacroix commended General Aroldo Lázaro, “who was at the head of UNIFIL during extremely, extremely challenging time” and welcomed General Diodato Abagnara, who just took over as the new Force Commander. UNDOF, he said, “is operating in a changed environment, where on the one hand, of course, there was this change in the political dispensation in Syria.” The Under-Secretary-General noted “the presence of the Israeli Defence Forces in the area, the so-called area of separation, where according to the 1973 Disengagement of Forces agreement, only UNDOF can be present with a military presence.” He said, “of course, the presence of the IDF in those areas is a violation, it's quite clear. Finally, he welcomed efforts “for de-escalation and the advancement of dialog in the DRC and in the wider Great Lakes region,” and said the UN “and particularly when it comes to MONUSCO, we are fully committed to supporting these efforts” and the implementation of a peace agreement. In Washington DC today, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)and Rwanda signed a US-brokered peace deal which could bring peace to the eastern region of the DRC.


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