I. Introduction
1. The present report provides a comprehensive assessment of the implementation of Security Council resolution 1701 (2006) since my previous report, dated 14 March 2019 (S/2019/237), including on the specific provisions of resolutions 2373 (2017) and 2433 (2018). The situation in the area of operations of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) remained generally calm. UNIFIL and the Office of the United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon (UNSCOL) maintained continuous liaison with both parties to de-escalate tensions and continued to urge them to utilize established channels to address concerns and to refrain from any action threatening the cessation of hostilities. Outstanding obligations remain for both parties under resolution 1701 (2006). There was no progress towards a permanent ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel.
II. Implementation of resolution 1701 (2006)
A. Situation in the area of operations of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon
2. On 20 February and 17 April, UNIFIL conducted assessment visits to one of the tunnels near the Israeli town of Zar‘it, south of the Blue Line, across from Ramiyah (Sector West). As previously reported (S/2019/237, para. 2), the Israel Defense Forces announced the discovery of the tunnel on 13 January. Technical experts confirmed on 17 April that it crossed the Blue Line, in violation of resolution 1701 (2006). The UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander informed the Lebanese authorities of the UNIFIL findings, urging immediate follow-up action in connection with all tunnels confirmed to cross the Blue Line, in accordance with the country’s responsibilities under resolution 1701 (2006). The Lebanese Armed Forces informed UNIFIL that it was investigating the issue and would report its findings. On 29 May, the Israel Defense Forces started neutralizing the tunnel by filling it with concrete. UNIFIL has verified the existence of five tunnels, and confirmed that three of them crossed the Blue Line. UNIFIL has provided the coordinates of those three tunnels to the Lebanese authorities.
3. On 15 March, in a meeting with my Special Coordinator, Michel Aoun, President of Lebanon, committed to launching an investigation of the tunnels crossing the Blue Line. The Commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces, Joseph Aoun, subsequently confirmed to my Special Coordinator, on 23 May, and to the UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander, on 3 June, that the Lebanese Armed Forces was taking action to gain access to the sites. On 27 May, President Aoun confirmed to my Special Coordinator that an investigation was under way. UNIFIL continues to follow up with the Lebanese authorities on the matter.
4. Although UNIFIL called upon the Israel Defense Forces to suspend its construction works in the Lebanese “reservation” area until an agreement had been reached between the parties, the works continued. UNIFIL continued its liaison and monitoring activities in connection with the construction works. The Israel Defense Forces continued the installation of T-wall blocks it had started on 10 January in the area of Misgav Am, south of the Blue Line, across from Udaysah (Sector East), inside a Lebanese “reservation” area. Israel has now installed two separate wall segments almost 10 km in length. The Israel Defense Forces on 10 March started to remove the technical fence located south of the Blue Line but north of the T-wall blocks in the vicinity of Kfar Kila (Sector East). UNIFIL maintained its increased presence adjacent to the works to mitigate tensions. On 12 March, at the request of the Israel Defense Forces and with the agreement of the Lebanese Armed Forces, UNIFIL engineers removed the last sections of the Israel Defense Forces’ technical fence at that location, whereupon the Israel Defense Forces concluded its works in the area. In connection with its activity on 12 March, UNIFIL observed eight Israel Defense Forces soldiers who were monitoring the work of the UNIFIL engineers, assuming a prone position and pointing their weapons towards an area north of the Blue Line. Lebanese Armed Forces soldiers were present but did not react to the gun-pointing. UNIFIL positioned itself between the parties until the soldiers had redirected their weapons.
5. On 6 May, the Israel Defense Forces informed UNIFIL of planned works in an area adjacent to a Lebanese reservation area south of the Blue Line, close to Ra’s al-Naqurah (Sector West). UNIFIL urged the Israel Defense Forces to refrain from initiating works until an agreement could be reached between the parties. On 22 May, the Israel Defense Forces commenced the construction of a concrete platform and an observation tower. On 12 June, the Lebanese Armed Forces began preparatory works for an observation tower north of the Blue Line in the area adjacent to the Israel Defense Forces works. UNIFIL continues to liaise with both parties regarding the works.
6. On 27 May, the Israel Defense Forces fired smoke grenades to disperse a gathering of people north of the Blue Line who were protesting damage done to a poster of Imam Mousa Sadr of the Amal Movement as a result of the Israel Defense Forces’ maintenance work on the wall in Kfar Kila. The protest continued the following day.
7. On seven occasions, Lebanese civilians demonstrated in villages close to the Blue Line, declaring that Shabʻa Farms and Kfar Shuba Hills were part of Lebanon and calling for a unified Lebanese position to counter the recognition by the United States of America of the occupied Syrian Golan as part of Israel.
8. From 18 February to 24 June, UNIFIL recorded 333 ground violations of the Blue Line, 329 of which had been committed by unarmed civilians crossing south of the Blue Line, including 167 violations by shepherds and farmers, mainly in the Shabʻa Farms area, and by farmers cultivating their fields near Rumaysh, as well as 116 violations by civilians going to the Shuʻayb well near Blida (all Sector East). Armed hunters crossed south of the Blue Line on four occasions.
9. Israel continued to enter Lebanese airspace in violation of resolution 1701 (2006) and Lebanese sovereignty. From February to June, UNIFIL recorded an average of 100 airspace violations each month, with 250.4 overflight hours on average. Unmanned aerial vehicles accounted for approximately 72 per cent of the violations, while the remaining violations involved fighter aircraft or unidentified aircraft. UNIFIL continued to protest all air violations to the Israel Defense Forces and to urge their immediate cessation.
10. The occupation of northern Ghajar and an adjacent area north of the Blue Line by the Israel Defense Forces continued. While the Government of Lebanon has welcomed the UNIFIL proposal, shared with the parties in 2011, for the facilitation of the withdrawal of the Israel Defense Forces from the occupied area, the Government of Israel has yet to respond.
11. Pursuant to resolution 1701 (2006), UNIFIL continued to assist the Lebanese Armed Forces in establishing an area between the Blue Line and the Litani River free of unauthorized armed personnel, assets and weapons other than those belonging to the Government of Lebanon and UNIFIL. UNIFIL, in close coordination with the Lebanese Armed Forces, maintained 16 permanent and an average of 150 temporary checkpoints and conducted 310 counter-rocket-launching operations each month, on average.
12. From 18 February to 24 June, UNIFIL observed 97 instances of unauthorized weapons in the UNIFIL area of operations. All but the following four incidents involved hunting weapons. On 14 April, an Observer Group Lebanon patrol observed three individuals in a vehicle with one AK-47 near Mhaibeb (Sector East). The same day, UNIFIL observed two individuals firing a pistol from a vehicle near Marjayoun (Sector East). On 28 May, UNIFIL observed an individual carrying a handgun during the aforementioned protest in Kfar Kila (see para. 6 above). On 4 June, UNIFIL observed an individual with an automatic rifle near Hinniyah (Sector West). UNIFIL informed the Lebanese Armed Forces, which is investigating each of those incidents.
13. UNIFIL maintained its high operational tempo, in line with resolution 2373 (2017), as reiterated in resolution 2433 (2018). During the reporting period, UNIFIL conducted 13,884 monthly military operational activities on average, including an average of 7,458 patrols. Some 7.8 per cent of all UNIFIL operational activities included at least one woman.
14. UNIFIL vehicle, foot and air patrols maintained an operational footprint in all municipalities and villages in its area of operations. Air reconnaissance patrols continued to be concentrated over areas to which ground patrols had limited access, including private property, rugged terrain or land contaminated by explosive remnants of war or anti-personnel mines. Owing to late or uncoordinated flights of unmanned aerial vehicles operated by the Lebanese Armed Forces, UNIFIL had to reschedule several flights. Following developments in Gaza in early May, UNIFIL increased the number of counter-rocket-launching operations, including along the Blue Line.
15. UNIFIL and Observer Group Lebanon continued patrols to areas surrounding the sites of the Lebanese non-governmental organization Green without Borders close to the Blue Line. UNIFIL, in close coordination with the Lebanese Armed Forces, also visited the Green without Borders sites in Ramiyah, Ayta al-Sha‘b and Aytarun (Sector West) and Udaysah in April, May and June. No violations of resolution 1701 (2006) were observed. UNIFIL continues to monitor all Green without Borders sites.
16. While the freedom of movement of UNIFIL was generally respected, some restrictions were encountered, as detailed in annex I. Several incidents involved members of the local community claiming that UNIFIL was entering private property and that it had to be accompanied by the Lebanese Armed Forces at those locations. Two cases involved Observer Group Lebanon, for which the Lebanese Armed Forces requests advance patrolling information. UNIFIL is engaging with the Lebanese Armed Forces on this issue.
17. On 25 March, the Lebanese Armed Forces, despite having provided prior approval, refused access to a media delegation accompanied by UNIFIL to film a UNIFIL patrol close to a UNIFIL position.
18. On 24 April, a UNIFIL team that had accidentally exited the area of operations some 4 km north of Dayr Siryan (Sector East) was stopped by individuals dressed in civilian clothes. One of the individuals was armed with an AK-47 rifle and took a Global Positioning System device, a map and a signal document from inside the UNIFIL vehicles. Subsequently, a Lebanese Armed Forces unit arrived and escorted the UNIFIL team back to its area of operations. On 28 April, UNIFIL sent a letter to the Lebanese Armed Forces expressing concern over the incident. The Lebanese Armed Forces has returned the missing items to UNIFIL.
19. The United Nations has continued to follow up with Lebanese authorities at Headquarters and in Lebanon, including through the Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations during his visit to Lebanon in March, on the incident of 4 August 2018 in the village of Majdal Zun (Sector West), described in my report of 15 November 2018 (S/2018/1029, para. 16), in which some 20 individuals dressed in civilian clothes attacked a UNIFIL patrol. Lebanese authorities have not provided an explanation as to why the conclusions of the Lebanese Armed Forces diverged significantly from those of UNIFIL. The United Nations has not been informed of criminal proceedings to date to bring the perpetrators to justice. UNIFIL has provided the Lebanese authorities with information to assist in the identification of the perpetrators. The United Nations continues to engage with the Lebanese authorities to request updates on this incident and its follow-up.
20. In support of the operational capacity-building of the Lebanese Armed Forces,
UNIFIL increased the percentage of operational activities that can be conducted in close coordination with the Lebanese Armed Forces from an average of 19 per cent in September 2018 to 23 per cent in June 2019.
21. The UNIFIL Maritime Task Force carried out interdiction operations throughout the maritime area of operations, hailing 2,765 vessels, of which 801 were inspected and cleared by the Lebanese authorities. In support of continued capacity-building of the Lebanese Navy, the Task Force conducted 323 training activities, including maritime interdiction operation drills with two Lebanese patrol boats, to improve the common operational standards for monitoring and hailing activities.
22. Pursuant to paragraph 7 of resolution 2433 (2018), the Lebanese Armed Forces and UNIFIL, within the framework of the strategic dialogue mechanism, advanced discussions in the joint working group established to develop a strategy for a phased transition of the responsibilities of the Maritime Task Force to the Lebanese Armed Forces. They jointly identified key capabilities for the Lebanese Navy necessary for a transfer of Task Force responsibilities. They also examined the possibility of a partial assumption by the Lebanese Armed Forces-Navy of some Task Force responsibilities once the planned upgrade and repair of the existing radar system and ships have been completed. The Lebanese Armed Forces-Navy presented the main elements of a long-term development plan to UNIFIL, pending approval by the leadership of the Lebanese Armed Forces.
23. In a letter dated 12 March to the Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, the Permanent Mission of Lebanon outlined the commitment of the Government of Lebanon and its ongoing efforts to develop the naval capabilities of the Lebanese Armed Forces. The letter specifies that the key elements of the country’s maritime strategy are upgrading the coastal radar network, establishing logistics bases and a Maritime Forces Academy and acquiring offshore patrol vessels.