UNIFIL: Negotiations “priority” to restore Mideast security

UNIFIL called in a statement on Tuesday for pushing forward for negotiation in the Middle East, making it a priority to restore Middle East security. A joint statement by the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon (UNSCOL) Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert and Head of UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) stressed that negotiation was the only way to restore stability and security in the region. The statement, said, "It is time to move toward this direction, it's been one year since near-daily exchanges of fire commenced across the Blue Line." "One year in which our repeated appeals for restraint, the protection of civilians and adherence to international humanitarian law, a return to the cessation of hostilities, and a political process anchored in the implementation of 1701 have gone unheeded," the statement added. "The near-daily exchanges of fire have escalated into a relentless military campaign whose humanitarian impact is nothing short of catastrophic," it explained. The statement stressed that increasing the intensity of violence and destruction "will not solve the fundamental issues and will not bring security to any party in the long term." Since October 2023, Lebanon has witnessed daily military confrontations with the Israeli occupation forces, the intensity of which began to escalate in September 23, it turned into violent air strikes launched by the Israeli occupation aircraft on various regions, causing major human and material losses. Source: Kuwait News Agency